The church that houses the United Parish Brookline congregation was designed in the High Victorian Gothic style in 1873 by nationally renowned Edward Tuckerman Potter. United Parish in Brookline formed in 1970 after a merger between Methodist, United Church of Christ, and Baptist congregations. In 1988, it was the first house of worship in Brookline to call a woman, Rev. Patricia Coughlin, as Senior Pastor. United Parish Brookline has a long history of public support of LGBTQ+ rights, including multiple pastors and staff who identify as LGBTQ+, and now fly a transgender pride flag on its lawn despite the flag being burned twice.  

United Parish Brookline has maintained substantial community outreach and interfaith partnerships, including housing the town’s only thrift shop, a food pantry, and addiction recovery initiatives. The church also shares its space with a Buddhist meditation group and worships several times a year with a local Jewish congregation. In 2021, United Parish launched the Negro Spirituals Royalties Project, a racial justice initiative that donates “royalties” for Negro spirituals sung in worship to a local academy for the preservation and teaching of gospel music. 

A National Fund grant of $250,000 with $1.5 million in matching funds raised by the congregation will support urgently needed repairs to the deteriorating masonry. The sanctuary entrance under the building’s tower and other portions of the grounds have been closed off to the public until these urgent repairs can be made. 

United Parish in Brookline by David DelPoio

First Church in Oberlin