Architect Paul Schweikher designed this South Austin church in 1936. “He was known for Mid-century suburban houses,” Rogers said. “So it’s very unusual, and you feel like your in someone’s basement rec-room.” Constructed during the Great Depression, the church was built using brick and wood to save money—it is simple, but still unique.

Open Saturday, October, 19, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday, October 20, from 1 to 5 p.m.

Located in Beverly, this neo-gothic structure dates back to 1940, but it also has this groovy stained glass installed in the 60s, according to Rogers. “That juxtaposition is really compelling.” The organ will be played periodically throughout the day.

Open Saturday, October 19, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday, October 20, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Walter T. Bailey, the first licensed African-American architect in Illinois, designed this Bronzeville church in the Streamline Moderne style. Rogers said this was one of the churches, “credited as the birthplace of gospel music.” The church has been broadcasting services for over 80 years, which makes it longest continuous program of its kind.

Open Saturday, October 19, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday, October 20, from 1:30 to 5 p.m.

This modernist church in Englewood is inspired by traditional African huts and is named for an enslaved person in 16th-century Italy who followed Francis of Assisi. Along with contemporary stained glass and a 200-pound hand-woven tapestry, the sanctuary holds a full-immersion stone baptismal pool which holds 10,000 gallons of water.

Open Saturday, October, 19, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday, October 20, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Lots of people travel to Wilmette’s Bahá’í House of Worship throughout the year, but OHC visitors will be able to snap photos inside, something that is not usually allowed. The impressive North Shore structure is the Bahá’í religion’s first temple in the western hemisphere, opening in 1953. The dome is made with white Portland cement and crushed quartz to make it as white as possible.

Open Saturday, October, 19, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday, October 20, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

St. Mel’s Irish Catholic parish once occupied this 1910 building in West Garfield Park, but the Mount Pilgrim Missionary Baptist Church bought it in 1993. “Much of the original design remains,” Rogers said, but the building’s new windows are “very powerful.” One depicts the slave trade’s imprint on this African-American church and the surrounding community. The newest window includes imagery of the child martyrs from the Civil Rights movement and Chicago’s urban violence, including Hadiyah Pendleton and Laquan McDonald.

Open Saturday, October, 19, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Sunday, October 20, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Right across the street from former President Obama’s home, this 1924 building houses the oldest Jewish congregation in the Midwest, founded in 1847. “Its smaller chapel was designed later by Ron Dirsmith, an architect who was mostly known for later working with Hugh Hefner doing office designs for Playboy,” Rogers said.

Open Saturday, October, 19, from noon to 3 p.m. and Sunday, October 20, from noon to 3 p.m.

This modernist synagogue was built in River Forest by architecture firm Loebl, Schlossman and Bennett in 1953. But, Rogers said that “the real star is the collection of five 20-foot-tall stained glass windows that were executed in the 60s by William Gropper, known as a comic artist. It tells the story of the book of Genesis in his unusual, almost cartoonish style.”

Open Sunday, October 20, from noon to 5 p.m.

Rogers called this Lower West Side church, “instantly recognizable for having the twin spires that you can see from a long way away.” But its real claim to fame is not as noticeable—it was constructed without a single nail and even featured in Ripley’s Believe It Or Not.

Open Saturday, October, 19, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Sunday, October 20, from 1 to 5 p.m.

Holy Trinity is on the National Register of Historic Places and is a Chicago Landmark and is the oldest Orthodox parish in Chicago. Its unique style is typical of Slavic provincial architecture. Designed by Louis Sullivan, it is the famous architect’s only remaining church in Chicago and one of just two in the world.

Open Saturday, October, 19, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Sunday, October 20, from noon to 4 p.m.

This contemporary Buddhist temple with a hexagonal shape was constructed in 2006 in Chicago’s Uptown neighborhood. Chicago’s original temple, however, was founded in Hyde Park in 1944 and catered to Japanese-Americans recently released from World War II internment camps.

Open Saturday, October, 19, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday, October 20, from 1 to 5 p.m.

The current building was designed by Loebl, Schlossman and Bennett in 1957, although the Chicago Loop Synagogue was founded in 1929 for Jewish workers downtown and visitors. A must-see here is a wall of stained glass crafted by Abraham Rattner.

Open Sunday, October 20, from noon to 5 p.m.