Amid the chaos, chairos

On the corner of 81st and Broadway stands the First Baptist Church. A sign welcomes us to stop in so Meredith and I climb the stairs and open the great oak door. We are greeted in the vestibule by Ruby, an elderly volunteer who opens the church to visitors on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

“People get to see the building from the outside but most people never come in,” she tells us. But since 9/11 the church has been opening its doors to neighbors and strangers for prayer and meditation. Ruby’s is the smiling face those strangers see. “Outside it’s loud but in here they can get away from it. This place is peaceful.”