Emmanuel House is an intentional community affiliated with us through CRECHE (Charles River Episcopal Co-Housing Endeavor). We join three other congregations in our diocese in support of this non-profit, which aims to create a network of mixed-income, inter-generational, intentional communities. As stated in its mission, CRECHE strives to:
create a community-focused alternative to the for-profit housing market that is rooted in relationship and mutuality: co-housing communities in which people live like families, sharing meals, common spaces, and the rhythms of home care.
Currently, there are three houses in the network.
- Our own intentional community is located on St. Luke’s Road in Allston. Emmanuel House’s members are committed to cultivating community space for contemplative practice, community gardening, and hospitality.
- St. Mary’s House in Dorchester is affiliated with St. Mary’s Episcopal Church, a vibrant Afro-Caribbean congregation in Upham’s Corner.
- Trinity House in Newton Center, affiliated with Trinity Parish, is dedicated to the care and formation of graduate students at Boston College, particularly Protestant and queer students.
Residents of Emmanuel House have committed to developing a relationship with our congregation as part of their life as an intentional community. Residents have been busy serving on the Vestry and Worship and Commission, as well as baking Communion bread, and helping Julian Bullitt out with building-maintenance activities. They have also hosted Lenten dinners and topical discussion groups. 
Our rector, The Rev. Pamela L. Werntz, described CRECHE and its role in the congregation this way:
The innovative, compelling and creative vision of CRECHE is to make the oldest, most fundamental component of Christianity—the household (oikonomia)—accessible to people who are yearning to live more fully into their baptismal promises in daily life. Even in these early days, our plans to extend the mission of the Church to households, and the neighborhoods in which they are situated, is reinvigorating and inspiring other parish households to grow in their own Christian identity. The CRECHE model is scalable and transferable to any place where people of faith want to live more authentically and deeply. This work is thrilling.
Originally launched as The Boston-Cambridge Mission Hub in 2017 with seed funding from a grant from our Diocese, CRECHE was incorporated as an independent charitable organization, enabling them to sign leases, borrow money for capital improvements, and purchase property among other things. Executive Director of CRECHE, The Rev. Isaac Everett serves at the altar and in our pulpit from time to time. CRECHE hopes to grow into a larger network of sustainable communities and are now also able to accept your tax-deductible donations.
Keep a look out in This Week @ Emmanuel for upcoming events hosted by the houses and CRECHE’s website for more information.