The paper explains that Trinity Church (1876) remains a historical wonder of religion and beauty, but the John Hancock skyscraper
is both aesthetically unpleasant and structurally unsound. The author points out that the Trinity Church heralded the signature "Richardsonian Romanesque" style of its celebrated designer, H. H. Richardson, and presented a bold, fresh, new face and feeling for
ecclesiastical architecture in America. The paper relates that neighboring the Trinity Church is the modern minimalist John Hancock skyscraper (1976), by far the tallest building in all of Boston, with a facade of blue reflective glass that makes it look like a giant test tube, a bizarre
juxtaposition in style and purpose.