Cambridge Zen Center, or CZC as it's commonly known, is a Buddhist temple and residential zen…read morecenter located in a busy urban section of Cambridge, MA. It welcomes any and all to public practice hours every day of the week with the exception of scheduled zen retreats that occur once monthly and last an entire weekend. Free introductory classes in meditation are offered each Thursday night at 6:45-7:15pm week and you can attend this class as many times as you like. Anytime during scheduled public practice you are also welcome to join in. If you are usure of what to do feel free to ask a resident for guidance. Residents at CZC are happy to help you get your bearings and will try to answer questions or direct you to someone else who can assist you. Please be aware that shoes are not worn inside the building and there is a shoe rack where you can leave your shoes. If you choose to come practice please silence your phone before entering the practice hall. Also hats may not be worn the practice hall. All things considered CZC is a unique community of zen practitioners with residents of all ages and backgrounds from around the world. Join us for a vegetarian public dinner on Tuesday nights before practice and get to know us! For further info about scheduling please check the CZC webpage cambridgezen.org

The Cambridge zen center is an amazing place, for many months I woke up at 4:30 am so I could take…read morethe hour long ride from dorchester to sit meditation for 30 minutes. They have weekend retreats that are amazing and not that it should matter, but the food is great. They have meditation morning and night (even noon sometimes), an on Sundays and Tuesdays they occasionally have Kong an (Koan) interviews with one of the Guiding teachers. Thursday is usually a dharma talk by members or residents (it's a residential center too). CZC is part of the Kwan Um zen school which translates to Perceive Sound, so I would highly recommend sitting and perceiving sound there.

Hope fellowship church is a church that really does care about everyone the people are supper…read morefriendly and so are the staff and elders

I saw a couple reviews that mentioned the church's Southern Baptist Convention roots and just…read morewanted to speak to that. I understand the resistance, truly I do. The past year that I have been in Boston has involved a lot of researching denominations and trying to understand them and the SBC certainly is a hard one to grapple with for many. But no matter how many times I've ventured elsewhere, I *always* come back to Hope Fellowship. Mostly, that is because I'm convinced that Hope Fellowship is led by godly, prayerful people and that the Spirit is bearing fruit here. Again, trust me, I get the doctrinal disputes and I struggle with the SBC on certain issues. At Hope, the leadership doesn't shy from hard topics but it also doesn't give black-and-white, pre-scripted answers; nor does it give wishy-washy, ungrounded ones. I've only ever seen Hope leadership tackle highly sensitive subjects in a nuanced, thoughtful, and humble way. Even if you don't agree 100%, you know you can share your perspective with leadership and be heard and loved. Furthermore, personally, I've found that this church has a refreshing way of incorporating confession and also rejoicing in God's mercy. During each service we have a call-and-response of a Psalm and then a prayer of confession and then a passage reminding us of how we have been redeemed from that sin. It's so balanced and thoughtful and, to me, really models what we see throughout Acts as people come to faith--a rhythm of repentance and joyfully accepting God's grace. If you are looking for a church that does not shy from tough questions and that will continually extend the love of Christ to you and motivate you to do the same for others, this place does that.

What a fine and beautiful old church. Lots of stained glass. Daily mass is 8 am and 11. I just…read morewent to pray and think. I was told JFK went here when he was a student. Near Harvard Square.

We recently attended a caroling service at St. Paul's. Normally this service, with the Harvard…read moreChoir, is held at Memorial Hall on the Harvard campus, but currently that is under renovation. The Parish of St. Paul church was an excellent alternative site for this service, the 107th consecutive one and the oldest such caroling service in the United States. The church is beautiful, and the acoustics are excellent. The choir is amazing, and the audience is invited to sing along with some of the carols, including ones in Latin. Toward the end of the evening the audience is asked to join in singing "O Silent Night" in either English or German, a nod to the famous impromptu "armistice" between German and Allied troops on the front lines at Christmas time during the first World War. There also were Biblical readings about the birth of Christ read by distinguished Harvard professors and clergy. Admission to the caroling service is free, but a collection is taken at the end of the service, and you are asked to contribute generously to a good local cause.

Beautiful Catholic Church in the heart of Cambridge. Enjoyed mass here while visiting. They are…read morecurrently undergoing renovations so there was some scaffolding in the front of the church. Parking can be difficult so we took a ride share from our hotel.

Quick Saturday evening mass. 32 minutes....! Beautiful…read moreneighborhood church in Cambridge just happened to be staying down the street and passed by on a walk. No music for mass on Saturday- and just a few families. Was glad to have been able to attend.

Hôun-an(Dharma Cloud) offers formal Zen practice at the Cambridge Buddhist Association in the…read moreRinzai-ji style. The focus of the meetings is on Zazen (seated meditation), Kinhin (walking meditation), and chanting. The teachings of Tathagata Zen are given through regular Dharma talks and the opportunity to meet informally with the abbot. The abbot and founder of the center is Kyôon Dokurô, Osho, who received Dharma Transmission from Kyôzan Joshû Sasaki Rôshi. The group of founders also includes the vice-abbess Shûko and several other long time students of Joshû Rôshi. For more information and schedule: http://www.unsui.org

First Parish is back in its Meeting House, has a new senior minister, the Rev. Dr. Rob Hardies, and…read moreis making major tech upgrades to support live streaming, online worship, and public events -- new cameras, new microphones, and more! It is exciting to see my local Unitarian Universalist congregation regathering and adapting to today's world.

Awesome religious temple in the midst of the cultural birthplace of the United States. Washington…read moreworshipped there. The Massachusetts Constitution was debated and formulated there. Many of the luminaries of American history sat in its pews. There is a feeling of history and dignity in every square inch of the church. True to its Unitarian tradition, they have dispensed with the Trinity, the Holy Ghost, the entire Nicean Creed and revealed truth. It is a true Humanistic ritual in the nature of Unitarian Universalist thought of the Founding Fathers. The sermons are packed with young worshippers and many stay afterwards to socialize and then head off to the many coffee houses in the area. Truly an outstanding place.

Stunning church! My family and I were in awe of how beautiful the church was, and it reminded us of…read morethe Sistine chapel. We attended the 7am mass on Sunday while visiting Boston, and the mass was very quick, only lasting about 45min as none of the hymns were sung. During the pandemic, everyone maintained a social distance and wore their masks properly. We were very impressed by the signs near the entrance of the church indicating those who helped rebuild and restore the church. What a wonderful visit it was!

the fathers at st catherine church are the best i have to start going back to church and i'm gonna…read more dedicate myself to st catherine's i just want to thank you all the fathers for there dedication for al of us . you are all the best .

I first attended Pentecostal Tabernacle when I was an undergrad at Boston University and loved it!…read moreIt truly became my home away from home. The congregation was super friendly, smiles all around with an amazing praise and worship team. A "come as you are" and "church without walls", PT welcomes all. After I graduated, I knew that there was always something special about PT. So, seven years later when I found myself back in Boston there was no hesitation that Pentecostal Tabernacle would become my home church. BEST DECISION EVER! The worship experience is always spirit filled. But there is nothing like being spiritually fed with the bible-based teachings from Bishop Greene and knowing that presence of the Lord is in this place. If you are looking for a home church, look no further.

Jesus Jumpers who invade a nice neighborhood weekly, to celebrate ignorance and superstition. They…read moreignore any and all parking regulations--blocking driveways, loading and unloading passengers in live traffic, parking ON SIDEWALKS, blocking a narrow street for fire engines and ambulances. Blocking driveways and hydrants. Making a general nuisance of themselves. No idea where they come from--but it's clearly not the neighborhood they treat so poorly once a week. Management ignores requests to get this under control. Horrible. Stay away.

Once a year outdoor Greek fest. Don't miss out on gyros, other amazing treats and people…read more This is a fun and delightful event put on by the Orthodox Church. There's music and really tasty Greek foods to eat, all under a ginormous tent in their parking lot. They also have raffles and some crafts that they sell inside. Every year, I take advantage of this weekend event and eat gyros, spanakopita, and Loukoumade to my heart's content. I'm not sure if it's the same weekend every year, but keep an eye out for it in June.

Greek Festival! Greek Festival! Greek Festival!…read more Man, those people can party. Want a gyro? They've got it for $6! Need some spanakopita? You can have your fill for $7, plus a salad and some rice! Best of all, they have an amazing assortment of desserts, from one delicious (but scary looking) pastry to BAKLAVA ($3), and they give you a huge piece of baklava that's about three times the size you would normally get at a Greek restaurant. Oh, man, they also have these tasty deep fried little donuts that are drenched in nuts and a honey sauce. I feel like I'm a total stoner who's like, "Dude, I'm soooo hungry, but I only have $12 -- what should I do?" I'm flashing back to my college years. And they have beer in plastic cups for $3, and Ouzo for $4. Perfect for a poor man's budget, and you can watch people kicking up their heels to quintessential Greek music. Hurry hurry hurry, they're only going to have this festival for two more days.... Then you will have to make do with Trader Joes frozen foods til next year.

I've learned about genuflecting. I've discussed head coverings. I've followed Hebrew recitations…read morewith English prayer books. It was the Quakers' turn. This stop on the religious pub crawl was inspired by a movie about slavery. And in case you didn't know, a few things happen when curious Black girls watch slavery movies - 1. We get angry. There's usually a ship scene, field scene and a rape - er, gratuitous sex scene. This is when we throw houseshoes at the tv. 2. We get uplifted. This usually comes about when we realize that even though many of our traditions and languages were lost, the way we tie our head scarf is eerily similar to the way the main character does. We also use the same slang they used and pass on the same variations of dance. We're encouraged by this. 3. We get motivated. This usually prompts us to ask questions. This lead me to the Quaker Meeting House in Cambridge. Just like the stories about Black-Jewish fellowship, I'd heard about Quakers getting on the abolition train long before others. I met with Resident Friend, Tom Ash. I was expecting some bearded man with a faded black vest and worn hat, with a cow chewing cud in the backyard - I got a sweet grandpa looking dude in sweats. His shirt literally read: 'Not only am I perfect, I'm Irish, too'. Yes, indeed. Irish, too. I was expecting some 25th generation Quaker; Tom had a Catholic upbringing and still incorporated the Irish language and immigration experience into his spirituality. He described the stillness of Quaker gatherings, he went into detail about how one is moved to speak during a meeting. This contrasted sharply with my experience of loud, shouting, dancing services. We discussed everything from The Potato Famine to stereotypes to the fumbling first steps of Quaker Abolition. I learned that entire nations can have patron saints. He even blessed me in the Irish language [which is pretty nifty, by the way]. Even though this group of folks got on board before most, unfortunately some chose to engage in the slavetrading and ownership. This 'interview' was SO pleasant - it was like sitting down with a friend. The path of nonviolence was one I felt very close to and it was nice to sit with someone who'd seen so much of America's missteps - I can learn at the feet of my grandparents [who picked cotton in rural Mississippi] all I want, but i always suspected that there were different American perspectives. History is fluid. It's convenient as hell to assign ally status to certain groups of people; it's convenient to say that one group oppresses another, that other groups have lived with a foot on their necks - but it's inaccurate. Our history's muddled - beautiful, but muddled. And I find that the only way to unearth some of these stories is by having conversations just like these. Thanks, Tom.

I was there for a concert, for which it served as an excellent venue. It's in a beautiful setting…read more I haven't been there for church services. As a Catholic Christian, I tend to be much more traditional about liturgy; to me, it's significant that Jesus instituted the Church 2000 (and not just a couple hundred) years ago. To other folks, such details may not be as important.