Old South Church

What Old South Church does

Old South Church is a nonprofit, progressive Christian congregation founded in 1669 and located at 645 Boylston Street in Boston's Copley Square. The church operates as an Open and Affirming congregation within the United Church of Christ (UCC) denomination and serves a congregation of members, families, and the broader public through multiple weekly worship formats (First Worship, Festival Worship, Thursday Night Church, and Vespers Healing Worship), faith formation programs for children, youth, and adults, and an active portfolio of social justice initiatives spanning immigration, racial justice, climate action, and LGBTQ+ inclusion. The congregation traces 355+ years of continuous operation, with historical ties to figures such as Samuel Adams, Phillis Wheatley, and Benjamin Franklin, and is currently led by Senior Minister Rev. John Edgerton following the 2022 retirement of Rev. Nancy Taylor.

The church's technology stack is intentionally lightweight and built around the Church Center mobile platform (used for member management, online giving, event registration, calendar, and communications) and a livestream/Zoom infrastructure that enables global virtual attendance alongside in-person worship. It maintains an active digital presence across website, email newsletter, Facebook, Twitter/X, Instagram, and YouTube, and operates an affiliated Old South Preschool as an adjacent operating subsidiary. The business model is donation-driven: tithes and offerings (voluntary contributions via online and in-service giving), facility rental income (weddings and external events), and earmarked capital reserve donations (e.g., a $1.1M anonymous pledge reported in April 2026) constitute the core revenue streams, supplemented by community-facing programs such as the Weekly Pushback initiative, which disburses $1,000 weekly to external mission organizations. There is no productized software offering, no API, no proprietary technology IP, and no externally disclosed revenue or budget figures.

Name

Old South Church

Legal name

Old South Church

Website

https://oldsouth.org

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Old South Church is a 355-year-old progressive Christian congregation in Boston, affiliated with the United Church of Christ, providing worship, faith formation, social justice programming, and community outreach to members and the broader public.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Religious Congregation Services

NAICS

Religious Organizations (8131), Religious Organizations (81311)

akta.pro primary industry

Local Congregations & Worship Communities (Churches, Mosques, Temples, Synagogues) (BPAGAJAA)

akta.pro secondary industry

Places of Worship & Religious Facilities Operations (Cemeteries, Retreat Centers, Pilgrimage Sites) (BPAGAJAL)

Keywords

• Progressive christian worship
• Religious community services
• Faith formation programs
• Social justice ministry
• Congregational pastoral care

Headquarters

HQ city

Boston

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Others, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Tithes and Offerings: Voluntary contributions from congregation members during worship services and through online giving platforms
2. Building Use and Facility Rentals: Rental income from weddings, events, and facility usage by external parties
3. Capital Reserve Donations: Major gifts and pledges designated for building maintenance and capital improvements

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Old South Church operates as a progressive Christian congregation delivering weekly worship services across four formats, a multi-faceted music program, faith formation programming for all ages, and a portfolio of social-justice and pastoral-care ministries. Its events are delivered in person at the historic Copley Square sanctuary and globally via livestream, supported by a Church Center mobile app for membership, giving, and communications. The congregation also rents its historic facilities for weddings and community events and runs an affiliated preschool.

Product overview

Old South Church is a progressive Christian congregation (Open and Affirming Congregation of the United Church of Christ) offering a portfolio of worship, spiritual formation, music, and social justice programs. The church operates its own Church Center app for member management and provides Livestream services for virtual worship attendance. Core offerings include multiple worship styles (First Worship, Festival Worship, Thursday Night Church, Healing Worship), music programs (choirs, handbells, organs), faith formation for all ages (Children/Youth/Families, Adult Education), justice and action initiatives (climate, racial justice, immigration, LGBTQ+), and congregational care support. The church also operates facility rental services and maintains an affiliated preschool program. The church does not offer a technology product, API, or software platform for external use.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Weekly Worship Services Weekly Christian worship gatherings held in person at the Boston sanctuary and broadcast online, serving congregation members, newcomers, and virtual attendees worldwide across four distinct worship styles.
• Music Programs Musical offerings including choirs, handbell ensembles, and organ performances, supporting congregational worship and standalone musical events.
• Children, Youth & Families Ministry Faith formation programs for children, youth, and families including Sunday School, Church School, nursery care, youth groups, family activities, and confirmation preparation.
• Adult Education Learning opportunities for adults including Bible studies, book groups, seasonal small groups, and theological inquiry programming.
• Justice & Action Programs Social justice initiatives covering climate crisis action, racial justice, LGBTQ+ inclusion, immigration support, and homelessness and housing insecurity programs.
• Congregational Care & Support Pastoral support services including the Call Crew (homebound contact), Food Crew (meal provision), Prayer Shawls ministry, and emergency assistance for members and the wider community.
• Sanctuary in the City Public access to the church building seven days a week, hosting ministries to the unhoused, 12-step programs, and community groups at the Copley Square sanctuary.
• Facility Rental Wedding and event venue rental services at the historic Boston church building.
• Livestream Worship Services Online streaming of worship services (First Worship, Festival Worship, Thursday Night Church, Healing Worship) for global virtual attendance.
• Old South Preschool Preschool program operated as a separate affiliated entity providing early childhood education.

Quantifiable outcome

• Weekly Pushback program gives $1,000 to organizations serving the community

Named customers1 record

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Roeshanna Moore-Evans / Equity Empowerment, LLCcoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting Partner · 1 April 2024BELONG consultant engaged for a two-year belonging and engagement consultancy project to help Old South become more welcoming and inclusive. Founder recently helped launch Harvard's inaugural reparative justice initiative.
• United Church of Christ (UCC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDenominational affiliation providing theological framework, ordination pathways, and connection to wider Protestant tradition. Old South Church is an Open and Affirming congregation of the UCC.
• Greater Boston Interfaith Organization (GBIO)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerBroad-based, non-partisan, interfaith, multiracial power organization. GBIO has worked for 20+ years on housing, healthcare, criminal justice reform, racial disparities, and neighborhood rebuilding. Old South actively participates in campaigns including immigration justice and financial activism.
• Common CathedralminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerMinistry partner providing services to unhoused individuals and those in need in the Boston community.
• City MissionminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner organization for outreach grants and community service initiatives.
• Smart from the StartminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner organization receiving outreach grants and support from Old South Church.
• Congregational Library & ArchivescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLocated at 14 Beacon Street, Boston. Houses historical documents, sermons, and archives documenting Old South Church's 355+ year history and early American religious life.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Old West Church: Historic Boston UCC congregation in the West End, sharing Old South's denominational affiliation, historic-preservation challenges, urban-mission focus, and progressive commitments.
• Brattle Street Church (First Baptist Church of Boston-area): Historic Cambridge/Boston-area Congregational/UCC-adjacent congregation with deep New England roots and progressive intellectual tradition — directly comparable on heritage profile and regional congregation model.
• First Church in Cambridge, Congregational (UCC): Long-standing UCC congregation in Cambridge adjacent to Boston with progressive theological orientation, music programs, and social justice engagement — directly comparable on denomination, region, and ministry model.
• King's Chapel: Historic Boston congregation (founded 1686) on the Freedom Trail with progressive theology and a long-standing relationship with Old South (Old South's BELONG consultant, Roeshanna Moore-Evans, recently guided King's Chapel living memorial work). Directly comparable in urban-historic, progressive-Protestant positioning.
• Arlington Street Church: A progressive Unitarian Universalist congregation in Boston's Back Bay — the same neighborhood as Old South — with similar commitments to social justice, LGBTQ+ inclusion, and progressive theology, making it a directly comparable urban-Boston historic progressive church.

Emerging players

• Marsh Chapel (Boston University): University-connected Methodist chapel providing programming space to multiple community groups. Comparable on the Sanctuary-in-the-City program model of hosting outside community organizations within a historic religious building.

Broad incumbents

• Trinity Church Boston: Much larger Episcopalian historic congregation in Copley Square (same neighborhood), offering broader programming, music, and rental capacity. A broader-incumbent benchmark for scale, music programming, and rental economics in Boston.
• Park Street Church: Historically significant Boston church ("Brimstone Corner") with large Sunday attendance and a Boston tourism footprint. Comparable on historic-Brand and event-venue dimensions but theologically more conservative.
• Old North Church: Famous historic Boston church (Paul Revere's lantern) with strong tourism revenue, gift shop, and visitor programming. Relevant comparable on the historic-venue tourism and events side, though it operates less as an active congregation.

Regional players

• First Parish Cambridge: Historic Unitarian Universalist congregation in Cambridge with progressive theology, justice work, and music programs — adjacent denomination with directly comparable progressive urban ministry model across the river.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/OSCboston
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCFLlMhdvt0AMf0AbrAWOMNQ
• Facebookfacebook.com/OldSouthChurch
• Instagraminstagram.com/oldsouthchurch
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/old-south-church

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Old South Church