Park Street Church — Attraction in Boston

I became a new Christian while I was attending Park Street Church in 1989, after a troubled past. 33 years later, I am still attending, and God is still the most important person in my life. I am grateful to Park Street Church for nurturing my faith, being a community of amazing people that come and go. I have been involved in many parts of the church, helping to teach Sunday school, prepare communion, being part of Women's Ministries, on the Nominating Committee once, and being part of Small Groups that have evolved and come and gone. I've sat in the presence of five senior pastors who preach earnestly from the Bible and are self-sacrificing servants: Paul Toms, David Fisher, Gordon Hugenberger, our interim Phil Thorne, and now Mark Booker. They are each different, each unique, and each have given of themselves in service of God's Word and truth. Now that I am older, it is interesting and refreshing to have a senior pastor who is younger than me! His preaching is sound, grounded in God's word. It's not easy being an Evangelical Christian in our divisive and rancorous culture. Mark Booker stands his ground, making no excuses for clinging to God as the rock of his life, in my opinion. I met my husband in a small group after I became a Christian. We were blessed to have one son when I was 40, and to raise him up with the help of this church, with eyes wide open. Park Street is a church full of normal people, all of us sinful, and nurturing each other toward being...

One of the attractions included on the Freedom Trail in Boston is the historic Park Street Church located on the corner of Park and Tremont, wedged in between Boston Common and the Old Granary Burial Ground.

Established in 1809, Park Street Church is noted as having been a brimstone storehouse during the War of 1812 and being the venue where Samuel Francis Smith's 'My Country Tis a Thee' song was first sung. Sadly, the church was closed both times we passed by so we were only able to view the historic building from the outside.

Designed by Peter Banner, the most memorable thing about the church exterior for us was seeing the 217-foot steeple. Apparently, the steeple made Park Street Church the tallest landmark in America from 1810 to 1846. Considering the size of so many skyscrapers and tall buildings across the country today, it is interesting to think that this was the tallest building in the country during its early years.

If you do pass by the Park Street Church, it is definitely worth time to pop into the adjacent cemetery next door, known as the Old Granary Burial Ground. Another member of the Freedom Trail, this is where you find the burial place and monuments for the likes of Paul Revere, John Hancock, the five victims of the Boston Massacre and the parents of...

This church is mission-centered! I go to the 11 am service regularly, and love hearing missionaries coming back to share God’s work in their field. The sermon is solid but might be harder to approach to seeker whose native language isn’t English.

There are three services on Sunday: 8:30 am, 11 am and 4 pm. The morning services feature Hymn music, and the afternoon one has a contemporary band! All of the services have good music that draw the congregation to worship wholeheartedly.

Considering the size of the congregation, it calls for some effort to get connected. Small groups are definitely a good way. The international fellowship gathers right after the 11 am service, and the Thursday night outreach (TNO) is a good place to learn to serve and to love. TNO starts serving at around 5 pm in the basement on Thursday. There are also other groups such as Café and community group and...