'In praise and dissent'

The Old South Meeting House steeple.

The church’s interior.

“We, the people—the tourists        

and townies—one nation under
          this vaulted roof, exalted voices
                    speaking poetry out loud,

in praise and dissent.
          We draw breath from brick. Ignite the fire in us.’’

From “Old South Meeting House,’’ by January Gill O’Neil. The church was built in 1729 and then rebuilt after the Great Boston Fire of 1972. The church was the organizing point for the Boston Tea Party, in 1773.