What does it look like when the Church steps beyond sanctuary walls and into the deep-seated needs of a city? It looks like broken walls repaired, systemic burdens lifted, and diverse communities coming together to share the love of Christ, in word and deed.
Last week at Boston Flourish, nearly 200 Christian leaders spanning diverse generations, denominations, and professions came together with a bold proclamation: revival in New England is not a relic of the past—it is alive and active right now, as God’s redeeming work shows up in our neighborhoods, schools, and workplaces.
Explore our highlight blog below, complete with video and photo recaps from the event, and be inspired by how God is actively moving—in Boston as it is in heaven.
What a day at Boston Flourish!
The Boston Flourish movement recently marked a major milestone, celebrating five years of convening Christian leaders, students, pastors, and marketplace professionals across Greater Boston to connect, learn, and shape a flourishing future for the region. Guided by the theme “A story unfolding, a legacy in motion,” nearly 200 participants gathered around a shared conviction: following Jesus to foster a city where every neighbor can truly flourish.
Boston Flourish bridges pastors, nonprofit practitioners, community advocates, business executives, and emerging leaders to make an impact on key issues facing our city. What started as an annual gathering has now matured into an ongoing movement—one carried forward through deep relationships, shared resources, cross-sector initiatives, and Christ-centered action. Together, we are becoming the body of Christ that we are created to be: “From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love as each part does its work” (Eph 4:16).
Redefining Revival: The Blueprint of Isaiah 58
UniteBoston’s Executive Director Rev. Kelly Fassett opened our gathering with a keynote from Isaiah 58, challenging us to expand our traditional understanding of spiritual awakening:
“Revival is bringing life back to the whole community—confronting injustice and restoring right relationship between God, people, and systems so that every neighbor experiences the flourishing God intends.”
Drawing on both biblical foundations and Boston’s rich spiritual heritage, Rev. Fassett emphasized that true revival moves beyond spiritual devotion to dismantle systemic brokenness. Isaiah 58 makes it clear that if we loose chains of injustice and share food with the hungry, then God’s light will appear like the dawn. When the Church addresses historic racial wealth gaps, housing burdens, and health disparities, we also stand with Jesus’ mission to bring Good News to the poor, proclaim freedom for captives, and that the oppressed will be set free (Luke 4:18). When we step across social and cultural divides to love one another in our fragmented world, we become a living testament to the reconciling power of Jesus Christ.
Signposts of Revival in Boston
Ongoing signs of revival were named clearly—Here are signs of God’s kingdom advancing across key issue areas championed by Boston Flourish over the years:
- In Our Schools: 35 churches and community organizations partnering with 23 public schools across Boston and Cambridge with the Boston Education Collaborative, serving roughly 5,000 students every year.
- In Second Chances: 14 formerly incarcerated men and women completing 56 workdays to restore and reupholster 772 historic sanctuary seats at Tremont Temple Baptist Church.
- In Compassionate Advocacy: 155 Christians mobilizing in under 24 hours to file a petition for habeas corpus and secure the release of Pastor Raúl from unjust immigration detention—all while he was actively sharing the hope of Christ in the detention center.
- In Healing & Protection: Hundreds of women vulnerable to commercial sexual exploitation and trafficking receiving weekly wraparound care with Route One Ministry, with the launch of a new drop-in center in Cambridge this fall.
- In Immigrant Solidarity: 15 cross-church partnerships with Welcome NST coordinating 13 legal consultation clinics for families navigating shifting TPS policies. (Note: Eight Haitian congregations are actively seeking sister-church partnerships)
- In Restorative Generosity: Episcopal City Mission distributing $1.3 million in direct payments to Black and Brown grassroots organizers as an act of tangible repentance and structural repair.
- In Spiritual Rebirth: New England experiencing a remarkable 90% increase in baptisms over the past several years.
- In Faithful Presence: 60 volunteer chaplains representing 16 Christian traditions keeping prayerful vigil outside the Burlington ICE facility to walk alongside immigrant families reporting for check-ins.
- In Street-Level Transformation: Over the last three years, the number of churches and ministries represented from among those volunteering at Miracle Mile Ministries has quadrupled, from 47 in 2022 to 253 in 2025. As Pastor Sam Acevedo shared, they are “channeling the power of the Holy Spirit, through the body of Christ, to transform what has been known as ‘Methadone Mile’ into ‘Miracle Mile’… one soul at a time.”
A tangible expression of this shared infrastructure is the Boston Immigrant Resource Dashboard (BIRD). While Boston is often described as resource-rich but connection-poor, BIRD bridges this gap. Developed through a collaborative effort that began at Boston Flourish three years ago among non-profit leaders, pastors, civic leaders, and immigrant service providers, the platform connects new arrivals with essential services such as legal aid, ESOL classes, and workforce training.
BIRD celebrates an increasing collaboration with Boston’s Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Advancement (MOIA), where MOIA’s intern Victoria Rodriguez is devoting 5 hours per week to assist with onboarding providers and communication with BIRD.
Collaborative Breakouts & Emerging Strategies
After the morning plenary, leaders dug into three focused areas of regional impact in three breakouts:
- Leading Across Generations: As Greater Boston churches navigate a pivotal season of pastoral transitions—highlighted in a recent Boston Globe feature on Bishop Matthew Thompson Sr.’s consecration at Jubilee Christian Church—seasoned pastors and emerging leaders alike are discerning next steps. Drawing from a year of citywide listening by the Emmanuel Gospel Center (EGC), Jane Yim, EGC’s Director of Applied Research, facilitated an interactive workshop on intergenerational leadership and the adaptive structures needed to ensure lasting ministry vitality.
- The Boston Youth Ministry Project: Rev. Dr. Virginia Ward hosted an engaging, podcast-style dialogue exploring the state and future of urban youth ministry. Seasoned and emerging leaders gathered to share insights, address key challenges, and discuss how the Church can foster belonging, faith, and leadership among Boston’s youth through intergenerational collaboration.
- Miracle Mile: Rev. Sam Acevedo and Evelyn Abrau from Congregación León de Judá walked leaders through the frontline ministry of Miracle Mile. They shared how churches and volunteers are working together to bring compassionate, sustained care to neighbors facing homelessness and addiction, and inspired participants to develop a similar outreach in their own neighborhood or city. It was powerful to see synergies emerge across local organizations around launching mentoring initiatives and trauma-informed care—and a vision was sparked for a citywide Miracle Mile coalition to support all those who are engaged in similar work.
- The best way to see the transformative power of the Holy Spirit at work through Miracle Mile is to experience it! Join Evelyn and their team on every Saturday morning at 8am at Congregation Lion of Judah, 20 Reed Street, Boston MA. Register Here.
- Join for a follow-up Miracle Mile Follow-Up Zoom Call on Thurs. Nov. 19 from 12pm to 1pm to hear updates on the mentoring initiative, next steps for creating research to demonstrate the value of Miracle Mile, as well as a Miracle Mile coalition. Register Here.
Honoring Faithful Pioneers: The Boston Flourish Legacy Awards
The afternoon session concluded by presenting the Boston Flourish Legacy Award to three couples whose decades of selfless leadership have helped pave the way for this movement:
- Jeff and Ellen Bass
- Rev. Dr. Ray Hammond and Rev. Dr. Gloria White-Hammond
- Rev. Dr. Lawrence Ward and Rev. Dr. Virginia Ward
Each person reflected on how God’s redeeming work has built bridges across theological, civic, and economic divides in our city, while also highlighting the vital role of deep, trusting friendships among these three couples. Highlighting the generational legacy, hip-hop artist Caleb McCoy joined his parents, Bill and Paulea Mooney-McCoy, for an inspiring intergenerational performance to close out our gathering.
This is the enduring legacy and ongoing promise of Boston Flourish: the Church linking arms across traditions, generations, and sectors to announce and embody the good news of Jesus Christ.
This is the Boston Revival: Many expressions. One Body. One mission.
For the flourishing of our city—in Boston as it is in heaven.
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