The First Church of Christ, Scientist, Boston, Massachusetts
The First Church of Christ, Scientist, Boston, Massachusetts
Pillars & Foundations documents an exploration of communities, as well as faith through religious institutions. My intent is to share experiences, and spread the positivity that I observe.
The old, original church is still attached to the massive Romanesque Revival church (pictured in the blog from the inside) |
My time in the "mother church," as the new extention (1906) is referred to, was an impressive, largely avant-guard organ concert that was part of Boston's "First Night 2019." By the way, don't get me started about how I detest, no that's too strong, how I'm not a fan of the term "first night." It isn't the first night, it is the last night. At best, part of it is "first morning," if we are going to get all technical. Anyway. The concert was impressive and one of two I saw that evening, the other being at Old South Church which I'll write about in a second post to be published in the next couple of weeks. There were three organists, and one of the compositions was a very modern take on the song Amazing Grace.
The photo of the organ above is unfortunately a little bit blurry. What strikes me about this church is how clean its lines seem when you are inside. While over 100 years old, it still seems quite pristine (despite ongoing repairs which are evident). The organ seems shiny and new but it dates to 1952 and was built by Aeolian-Skinner.
Outreach
Typically I write a bit on what the church does for the surrounding community. As mentioned the plaza of the church is one of Boston's most iconic public spaces. Go on a hot day and you'll find people strolling around the reflecting pool, or children running through the large fountain at the northeast edge of the campus.Also noteworthy is the Christian Science Monitor, a highly regarded news publication that has even received Pulitzer prizes in the past. Despite being published in affiliation with a religious organization the magazine has maintained a more mainstream following. The founder of the church Mary Baker Eddy, actually founded the publication in 1908.
Perhaps in line with their magazine publication, the outreach of the church itself seems largely focused around media, be it online courses, various publications, or podcasts which are available on their website.
Various efforts to fight for social justice are also participated in such as prison and institutional work and disaster relief.
Text and photographs by George Parks
Sources are embedded in links
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