The Good Books

Descending the stairs, however, customers are faced with a very different setting. Orderly rows of books and choral music are arrayed for browsers, and the liturgical inventory (altar cloths, clerical collars and the like) is organized neatly behind the counter.

But Assistant Manager David J. O'Malley says the bookstore is just as comprehensive as the upper store.

"We sell religious and spiritual books of all authors, ages and subjects. The only place you could find a more complete collection is [at] a divinity school, and they aren't nearly as big," he explains.

The rare book selection is impressive. "One of my favorites is this," he says, gesturing to an elaborately gilded Roman Brevari dating from 1643.

But the heart of the store remains church goods, and they deal in everything from palms to pews.

Here, the divine and the commercial merge. Where else in Boston can you buy Jesus and the Virgin Mary at forty percent off?

Although the holy water containers look suspiciously like travel shampoo bottles, and the "Collect `em, Trade `em, Save `em Saints Cards" might be better if they included bubble gum, the management says it doesn't see any compromising contradictions.

"We're a store and a source of spirituality," the sales clerk says simply.

Clerks or Clerics?

But the salespeople take the difference between the earthly and the spiritual very seriously.

"The questions people ask...well, it's very humbling to work here," said the assistant manager. "They come to you and say `I want to pray to God. How do I do it?'"

To prepare clerks for such questions, a strong background in religion is encouraged.

"Our salespeople are very knowledgeable about religion, though personal religiosity isn't a necessary requirement. Though it helps in any job really," O'Malley said.

The salespeople are helpful, for the most part friendly and eager to explain their wares. "God bless you" is heard often, either as an exclamation or as a farewell.