“We want the congregation to remain in the chapel if at all possible,” Sibert says. “They also have new leadership, and I think that there’s a new level of commitment. There have been some major positive developments in the last few years. We felt more optimistic about their ability to make good on their commitment.”

And according to the Reverend Peter J. Gomes, Plummer professor of Christian Morals and a member of the United Ministry, the restrictive zoning enacted in 1999 to prevent construction of a condominium would make the chapel a tough sell.

“Any other possibility would have to be adaptable to the use of the lot and the building, one reason that it wouldn’t be easy to sell to anyone else,” he says.

Keeping the Faith

Even with a six-month extension, raising $2 million is a daunting task for the tiny congregation.

But members of the congregation say they are hopeful—particularly with the prospect of getting a bookstore on their property.

Andrew Dole, Buteaux’s husband, says that the congregation hopes to work out a deal with the Massachusetts New Church Union—the statewide Swedenborgian parent organization—which could bring much-needed revenue to the Cambridge church.

“We’re hopeful of working something out,” Dole says, adding that members of the Cambridge congregation will meet with representatives of the New Church Union later this month. “We’ve only had a preliminary meeting, but we hope to be able to work together for a solution.”

Wiberg said he hopes that the statewide group will agree to relocate the Union’s Swedenborgian bookstore from Newbury Street to the Cambridge congregation’s land.

The bookstore would be housed in a new, separate building built next to the chapel—the current parish extension wing would have to be torn down to make room.

“It would be like…the bookstore next to Westminster Abbey,” Wiberg says. “This wouldn’t be a melted-down Barnes and Noble–it would be a charming place.”

Wiberg also said that the congregation is seeking a more favorable 501(c)(3) nonprofit designation from the IRS, which would allow them to apply for tax-free grants.

However, according to Wiberg, the designation would not help the congregation raise enough money by September.

“I think that our application to these grants will be productive in the long term but our immediate needs may not be fulfilled in this way,” Wiberg says.

And although the church’s original plan—to sell chairs on a board of directors for $500,000 apiece—hasn’t yet met success, Gomes says that the church might be able to find a buyer.