Greater Boston: The most Irish city in America
"Irish Famine Memorial, Washington Street, Boston", by Robert Linsdell, licensed under CC by 2.0
Among New England's many historical points of interest, one of its most poignant is the Irish Famine Memorial located in a small park on the corner of Washington and School Streets in downtown Boston. Cast bronze sculptures depict two Irish families: one emaciated and clothed in rags, starving to death from the famine caused by potato blight that began in 1845, and another family healthy, well-dressed, and prosperous, representing the estimated 100,000 Irish who escaped the famine by sailing to the port of Boston.
"Irish Famine Memorial, Washington Street, Boston", by Robert Linsdell, licensed under CC by 2.0
With the annual Saint Patrick's Day parade, the Boston Celtics, and the numerous Irish pubs in town, it's obvious that Irish roots run deep in Greater Boston. But many people don't realize just how deep those roots really are: According to Wikipedia, among the largest cities in America, Boston has the highest percentage of people with Irish ancestry (22.8%). Among medium-size American cities, Weymouth, has the largest percentage of Irish descendants (45.5%). And among America's smallest cities, Scituate has the largest percentage of Irish descendants (61.5%).
With demographics like that, there's no wonder the people of Greater Boston have such great affection for the Emerald Isle. If we also consider the post-modern culture New Englanders share with Western Europeans, and the exceptionally gifted and experienced pastors leading churches across Greater Boston, it's safe to say that there is no place in America more suited to do missions in Ireland than Greater Boston!
On May 11th-16th, a small group of pastors from Greater Boston are taking a vision trip to Ireland. They will connect with our IMB missionaries and the indigenous churches they work with in Dublin, the capital of the Irish Republic, and Belfast, the capital of Northern Ireland. They want to discover ways Boston-area churches can help to strengthen and start more churches in Ireland. We have a vision of seeing more and more of our churches in the Greater Boston region engage in this partnership.
To find out how your church can join the Greater Boston/IMB-Ireland Partnership, contact Sam Taylor at staylor@bcne.net.
Sam Taylor serves as the Boston area regional coordinator at the Baptist Churches of New England.
