Park Street Church

About Us

Trinitarian, International, Congregational, Evangelical Christian Church

Park Street Church is a historic church, on Boston's Freedom Trail. Founded in 1809 by a group of 26 Trinitarians against the rising New England Unitarian tide, it has since remained a bastion for Bible-believing Trinitarians. The Boston Globe has dubbed it the "flagship of Evangelical churches," as one of the senior pastors was instrumental in starting two Evangelical seminaries, World Relief, Christianity Today, and helped to get Billy Graham started on his mid-(20th-)century Intercontinental Crusade.

Park Street has three services: 8:30am, 11am, and 4pm, where the morning services are described as "relaxed Traditional" and the evening service is described as more contemporary. Currently the tagline is "seeking truth in the company of friends." Park Street Church tends to address current issues of faith and practice as well as challenges from the timeless wisdom of Scripture, which is normative for faith and life.

For more history:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Park_Street_Church

Vibe: Casual, Downtown, Historic, Multigenerational

Programs: Community Service, Social Justice, Addiction/Recovery, Young Adults, Youth Group, Choir, Missions, Dance, Nursery, Adult Education, Food Pantry, Daycare, Preschool, School, Seniors Ministry, Children's Ministry

Music: Traditional Hymns, Contemporary, Hillsong-style, Organ, Praise and Worship

Denomination: Congregational (CCCC)

Size: Medium

Language: English

Founded: 1809

Contact

Phone

(617) 523-3383

Website

http://www.parkstreet.org

Social

Our Services

Sunday

08:30am: Casual Traditional
11:00am: Casual Traditional
04:00pm: Contemporary/Mixed (mostly under 40)

What to Expect

What are services like?
The morning services tend to be more organ and hymns, although occasionally have a capella, new compositions, new hymns e.g., Keith and Kristyn Getty, and praise and worship music. The 8:30am service tends to have the most younger kids. The evening service tends to be be predominantly people under 40. Since there are two levels in the church (sanctuary and balcony), the dynamic is different for each. Services tend to last approximately 1.5 hours. Communion is served to all baptized believers regardless of denomination on the First Sunday of the Month. The central portion of the worship service is the sermon.

What is the community like?
As the services tend to be "large for New England," community at Park Street Church is experienced at several other levels: 1) in small groups or Bible studies, 2) at affinity group ministries (i.e., for those who have a lot of similarities, such as being in college, in graduate school, young adults, engaged, newly married, toddlers of various ages, high school, etc.), 3) serving together in formal and informal ministry, 4) in between the morning services at coffee hour, 5) after services over a meal (lunch or dinner)

What if I'm not a Christian?
You are always welcome to visit! At any given Sunday, approximately 16% at any given service self-report as "not a Christian". There are also many venues for discussing and understanding Christianity, including in the format of an informal class, "Christianity Explored." If people have questions, they would be welcome to ask these in this forum. Many elders and pastors and lay leaders are also interested in dialoguing on issues of spirituality and of faith.