Pillars & Foundations

Buddhist Meditation Group, Unitarian Universalist Church, Reading, MA 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.  UUCR About a year ago I had the pleasure of attending a Sunday service at UU Reading (read about it here) . I found a welcoming community of diverse people, and eventually it was only natural that I would have to attend the Buddhist Meditation group held at 7:15 on Monday nights in their community room. I had managed to attend twice previously, but I had not written about the experience. Amidst my spiritual and community exploration over the past year I attended Kurukulla Center in Medford semi-continuously on Monday nights where courses are offered on Buddhist practice. On one occasion I had an off night and attended Andy Furst 's Sangha in Reading. On another date I attended again and a substitute from UU...

Good Shepherd Episcopal Church, Reading, MA Pillars & Foundations documents an exploration of communities, their foundations, as well as faith through religious institutions. My intent is to share experiences, and spread the positivity that I observe. The hope is to provide a window into these organizations allowing those who might not other wise venture in to appreciate these thoughtful, often intimate groups in our midst. Faith centers embody a drive to make a difference which they deliver upon, regardless if it is with one person looking for hope & community, or a recipient of their expansive charitable work. Building & History Good Shepherd has a great history resource on their website which describes how the church grew out of  Emmanuel Episcopal Church of Wakefield originally meeting in homes first as well as the Odd Fellow's building. Eventually in 1925 the existing structure was built, and an additional hall was built in 1950. The front of the churc...

Old South United Methodist Church, Reading, MA 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 hope is to provide a window into these organizations allowing those who might not other wise venture in to appreciate these thoughtful, often intimate groups in our midst. Faith centers embody a drive to make a difference which they deliver upon, regardless if it is with one person looking for hope & community, or a recipient of their expansive charitable work. Building & History Old South United Methodist Church sits in the Common Historic District of Reading on the corner of Main and Salem St. It is one of the most distinctive buildings in the town, and a sign inside the foyer states that it was constructed in 1817. The National Register of Historic places , which the church is listed with, describes the building as a Feder...

First Congregational Church of Reading, Reading, MA 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 hope is to provide a window into these organizations allowing those who might not other wise venture in to appreciate these thoughtful, often intimate groups in our midst. Faith centers embody a drive to make a difference which they deliver upon, regardless if it is with one person looking for hope & community, or a recipient of their expansive charitable work. Building & History First Congregational became a separate entity from two neighboring churches in Wakefield and North Reading in 1770 .  While the current granite building built in 1910, is the fourth meeting place of this congregation, the organization itself is older than the country it resides in. The current church's architectural style is described as Colle...

Saint Athanasius Parish, Reading, Massachusetts I intend to explore and experience the services of many different churches, predominantly near where I live in Massachusetts. Discovering all of these different faith communities builds my knowledge of the neighborhoods around me and the people who live there. These institutions are important, often overlooked and even misjudged centers of our communities that seek to make a positive impact on their participants, as well as others through their generosity and public service. It is possible that through this activity I may eventually consider a long term relationship with one of these pillars and foundations of the community, however I am eager to do a lot of exploring first. History & Building I was pleased to find that Saint Athanasius has an excellent write-up on their web page about their parish history. The parish is fairly new when compared to many I have visited, establishing in 1960, and their unusual, modern ch...