As one of America’s long-term
entry points for immigrants, Boston is also the perfect place
to explore our country’s ideology for religious freedom. As in
past Old World civilizations, cathedrals and shrines were located
in major cities and urban areas. Boston is no exception, including
the diversity that is found in America’s multi-cultured society.
African Meeting House - 8 Smith
Court / Beacon Hill / 617-725-0022 /
Built from plans for a town house with salvaged materials from Old
West Church, the African Meeting  House
is the oldest black church in America, dedicated in 1806.
Arlington Street Church - corner
of Arlington and Boylston Streets / Back Bay /
Mother church of American Unitarianism, Arlington Street Church was
the first public building in the Back Bay area. Visitors are welcomed
daily to an interior that houses 16 original Tiffany stained glass
windows.
Christ Church - Garden Street /
Cambridge / 617-876-0200
Constructed during the Colonial period in 1761, in early 1775 the
church became a barracks for English troops who melted down its organ
pipes for musket balls. George and Martha Washington worshiped here
on New Year’s Eve of that same year when local citizens restored
the interior.
The First Church of Christ, Scientist - 175 Huntington
Avenue / Boston / 617-450-3793
Mother church and world headquarters of the Christian Science Church,
the religious order was formed by Mary Baker Eddy in 1879 when she
felt the power of prayer cured her illness. The granite church portion
(now a chapel) was built in 1894, a larger basilica was built in 1906.
The complex was expanded to its present design with reflecting pool,
office tower and plaza in 1973.
- Longyear Museum - 1125 Boylston
Street / Brookline / 617-278-9000 /
The museum honors the life and writings of Mary Baker Eddy.
- Mapporium - Restoration - 175
Huntington Avenue / Boston / 617-450-3793 /
The stained glass globe was constructed in the 1930s but has been
recently restored. Visitors walk through the center of the globe
viewing the world from the inside out.
King's Chapel and Burying
Ground - 58 Tremont & School Streets / Boston / 617-523-1749
The first chapel on this site was built in 1688. Replaced with a more
formal edifice in 1750s, the original 1717 pulpit remains as does
the chapel bell cast by Paul Revere. Boston’s oldest burial ground
is here.
Old North Church - 193 Salem Street
/ North End / Boston / 617-523-6676 / Free
As immortalized in the poem, “one if by land, two if by sea ...”
the Old North Church was here during the Revolution to light the way
to freedom by being the instrument of signalling the British invasion.
What a ride Paul Revere must have had. The 1723 era church is a centerpiece
in the Patriot’s Day re-enactments in April.
Old South Meeting House - 310 Washington
Street / Boston / 617-482-6439 / $ (nominal fee)
A Puritan church built in 1729, the structure was the towns largest
during that period and used for town meetings. The Sons of Liberty
met here and planned an infamous “tea party” in 1773. The
British turned the building into a stable and tavern during the Revolution.
Old West Church - 131 Cambridge
Street / Beacon Hill / 617-227-5088 /
The British razed the 1737 era church during the early days of the
Revolution in retaliation of its use as a signalling tower for the
Continental rebels. The present structure was built in 1806, designed
by Asher Benjamin, a protégé of Charles Bullfinch.
Park Street Church - 1 Park Street
/ Beacon Hill / 617-523-3383 /
Dedicated as a Congregationalist church in 1810, the church was adapted
from a design by Christopher Wren. The 217 foot steeple has presided
over a rich church history including being a storehouse for the state
militia during the War of 1812, center of the South Seas missionary
movement and the place where the song “America The Beautiful”
was debuted.
St. Stephen’s Church - 401
Hanover / North End / 617-523-1230
The present edifice is a restoration of a Charles Bullfinch design
created in 1804, its original structure was built in 1714 as a Congregationalist
meeting house. In 1862 the church became Roman Catholic and at that
point acquired the name of St. Stephens.
Trinity Church of Boston - Copley
Square / Boston / 617-536-0944
for guided tours / $ (nominal fee) An architectural wonder of the
Romanesque style, Trinity has been hailed as one of the 10 best buildings
in the country. Founded in 1733, the present structure was designed
by Henry Hobson Richardson and dates from 1877. The stained glass
windows of Edward Burne-Jones executed by William Morris enhance the
inspiring John LaFarge interior.
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