BOSTON -- As he watched a chapel ceiling be painted, Father Jeremy Paulin saw the glory of God.

Father Paulin, an Oblate of the Virgin Mary, has been the director of the St. Francis Chapel in Boston's Prudential Center since June 2024. The chapel has recently undergone a series of renovations, which are now mostly complete, including the repainting of the walls and ceiling. Father Paulin was brought to tears from seeing the ceiling be painted -- not with elaborate frescos or gold inlays, but simple, pure white (it helps make the chapel look bigger).

"I had been asking the people to pray for two intentions in this renovation," Father Paulin said Feb. 13. "It is important that God's will be done, and his glory be revealed in this renovation. And I began to see it unfolding. It's very beautiful to see that, in fact, this is what God was doing in the chapel."

Within the temple of consumerism that is the Prudential Center, St. Francis Chapel has stood as a reminder of faith for over 55 years. In 1969, when the Prudential Center was still new, Cardinal Richard Cushing founded the chapel to make Christ's presence known in the heart of a sprawling modern cityscape. Since then, it has undergone many renovations and even a change in location in 1992. It currently stands next to a Dunkin' Donuts. The Oblates of the Virgin Mary have staffed the chapel since 1983. Three Masses, confession, and adoration are offered daily.

"It's an amazing place," Father Paulin said.

The most recent round of renovations was kickstarted when an anonymous benefactor donated $25,000 for the Oblates to repaint the chapel, which hadn't received a new coat of paint in 18 years. Some chairs in the main chapel were also fixed, and the walls behind the votive candles were scrubbed clean.

"They were smoky and sooty after thousands of candles and tens of thousands of prayers after 30-plus years," Father Paulin said, "and they look like new, ready for many more thousands of candles to come."

The alcove, which houses relics of Pope St. John Paul II, St. Faustina Kowalska, and St. Maximilian Kolbe, was also spruced up. During adoration on the morning of The Pilot's visit, a woman stopped praying the rosary to inform Father Paulin that the portrait of St. Maximilian Kolbe was crooked.

"It's been bothering me since I came in," she said, asking Father Paulin to forgive her.

Father Paulin straightened the portrait, balancing his knees atop the kneeler's armrest to reach it.

The same benefactor who suggested the paint job also pointed out that the floors in certain areas, such as the confessional and the gift shop, were in need of replacement. The gift shop is a major source of income for the chapel, selling prayer cards, rosaries, crucifixes, books, and fridge magnets of Pope Francis. Among the most popular items are Tiny Saints charms. With big round heads, black eyes, and no mouths, they're like Funko Pops of holy men and women. The woman staffing the gift shop told The Pilot that even grown men comment on how adorable the Tiny Saints are. When The Pilot visited, the gift shop was still undergoing repairs.

The total cost of the renovation was $40,000, all provided by donations.

"It's glorious," Father Paulin said. "I was really moved by the generosity of the people."

He has encouraged people to check out the "nice and fresh" confessionals. It's typical for people who haven't been to church in decades to enter the chapel seeking confession.

"I think that was the original insight of Cardinal Cushing when he established this chapel, to put Christ into the marketplace, into the world," Father Paulin said.

Father Paulin has visited or ministered in California, Colorado, Illinois, Florida, and the Philippines, and he has found the St. Francis Chapel to have the most diverse clientele. Many are not from the area but are passing through on vacation, attending events at the Hynes Convention Center or undergoing treatment at nearby hospitals.

"They don't want to miss their Mass," Father Paulin said, "and so they find the chapel, and they come there. And to me, it's very encouraging that people are so serious about their faith."

He estimates that anywhere between 1,500 and 2,000 people from all walks of life enter the chapel each week.

"It's a great place for spiritual healing and adoration and veneration," Eversource President and CEO Joe Nolan, who has visited the chapel regularly for 40 years, told The Pilot, "and it provides a great place for peace and tranquility in this hustle and bustle that we see here in the Prudential Center every day."

Robert Grehan, director of operations for Analysis Group, has worked in the Prudential Center for 16 years. He said that the chapel is his "oasis."

"It's a very peaceful place," he told The Pilot. "It's a nice community. That's what attracts me to it."

Grehan has noticed that at a time when young people's Mass attendance is flagging, the St. Francis Chapel attracts a youthful and devout crowd.

"A lot of the attendants receive with the tongue, which you don't see in a lot of churches," he said.

Stacey Ibe, a first-year dental student at Boston University, moved to Boston in 2021 and discovered the chapel by accident.

"We turned the corner here by the Dunkin'," she recalled. "I saw St. Francis Chapel. I was like, 'Oh my goodness.' And I think the intimacy of it is what kept me here. I feel like my relationship with Christ has grown a lot since coming here."

She travels from North Quincy to attend Mass in the chapel every Sunday. She also joined the chapel's music ministry, followed by a friend of hers. Father Paulin has organized a group of Berklee students who attended Mass at the chapel into a choir accompanied by several young musicians.

"The choir has grown exponentially," Ibe said. "I think, honestly, once Father Jeremy joined, it's like it was a domino effect. So, as the chapel was renovating physically, the ministries in the church were also given a little bit of renovation."

The chapel has a thriving Hispanic community and has long served as a gathering place for immigrants. Beatriz Soto discovered the chapel when she moved to Boston from Mexico over 30 years ago to study English.

"It immediately became my home," she told The Pilot.

She "fell in love" with the Boston area and decided to stay there. She often comes to St. Francis for Mass even though she now lives in Belmont.

"It's a place where my faith keeps growing, and the community is always there," she said.

Worshiping at St. Francis made Soto feel like she was still in Mexico. She and her friends would attend Mass and then sit together in the mall to talk about their faith and families.

"That was the plaza for us," she said.

On Feb. 13, the mall became a plaza once again. Gathered around a table in front of the Clover vegetarian restaurant were a priest, a CEO, a director of operations, a nanny, and a dental student, all brought together by St. Francis Chapel.

"I think the chapel has been evolving at the same time the Prudential Center has been changing," Soto said, "and now this new updating on the painting and all those things, means that the church is moving forward. We're going forward."