In Holy Reverence of Disabled Bodies
For too long, we have been fed the misconception that our worth is tied to our productivity, leaving disabled people to be viewed as less vital to the wholeness of our beloved communities.
We Do Not Forget Our Innocence
As we move through life finding ourselves, always newly wise and newly foolish, we ask that our mistakes be small and not hurtful. We ask that as we gain experience we do not forget our innocence, for they are both part of the whole.
The Promise and the Practice: Lamentation for Two Voices
This Lamentation is for two voices: one white, and one person of color/indigenous (POCI). Both voices invite people to repeat a refrain several times: white voices say, “So much has been lost,” and voices of color say, “Beloved, you must not be defensive when you hear our hurt.” The latter,...
A Responsive Prayer for Banned Books
In the spirit of the ever-searching mind and the deep questioning soul, we call to mind beloved books and their wisdom.
We Will Pay Attention
With appreciation to Timothy Snyder’s On TyrannyAs fear abounds, may courage as well. In these times, we know we will need not to turn away nor surrender in advance. In the coming years, when asked to turn away, to focus only on our own survival and to disregard our neighbors's—Knowing the...
We Labor in Love
One: On Labor Day we honor our work, physical and mental, paid and unpaid, joyous and heartbreaking. Many: We give thanks for work’s gifts, suffer its difficulties, and strive to make labor just and joyous for all. One: Our work can build our society, provide for our material needs, and give our...
Our Common Life Is Enriched
We are grateful for the gift of our lives and the gift of other people in our lives. Each of us is created with dignity and worth. We are called to love one another and to do nothing to others that we would find hateful to ourselves. We honor the many ways that people live and love....
Forms of Abundance
Leader: What is abundance? What do we call riches and bounty? Congregation: Abundance is all around us. L: That we are alive is priceless; that we are loved is beyond worth. C: That we love others in turn fills our souls. L: The gifts of food that Mother Earth provides from Her body, endlessly...
All of Nature Is Sacred
Leader: For the love of all began with the world. Congregation: All of Nature is sacred. L: Every creature is a thinking, feeling being. C: We are blessed with wondrous variety. L: We are part of nature and of every being on the planet. What we do to one affects the many. C: In this web of...
Spring in all her green glory
Leader: Quick! Look about you! The snows of Winter are gone and the Earth has awoken once more! Congregation: Hail the Spring in all her green glory! L: The brave small flowers push up from the warming soil; birds return from their southerly homes; the first buds appear on the trees....
Together in a Sacred Space
Leader: In this sacred place, we need not be alone. We seek a listening ear, a warm heart, open arms. Congregation: In this sacred place, we join together against the waves of negativity and oppression in our world. L: We are a community of individual beings, living our own lives, yet coming...
Lament
When we feel overwhelmed, we gather to find a path, to find new ways forward.
Our Journey Is to Transform
As Unitarian Universalists, our journey is to transform the big and the small, to transform ourselves, and to transform the world.
We Are a Bridge
We celebrate our desires to stretch our wings towards where we wish to fly and soar free. And thus, we make a bridge. We affirm our commitment to remain connected to those who are still earth-bound and captive, remembering that a bridge may be a footpath or an umbrella. And thus, we offer a bridge.
Calloused and Muddy from the Road
Let us imagine washing the feet of someone who has wronged us. Their feet, too, are calloused and muddy from the road.
Celebrating Abundance
All that we are, together and individually, is part of the abundance of the universe.
Inviting Lakshmi to Our Worship (In Accountable Relationship With Our Hindu-UU Members)
Welcome abundance, welcome prosperity, welcome love, and welcome light.
Reading for a Final Congregational Meeting
The flames did not show the whole path, but by their light we saw each other and knew we did not travel alone.
We Are Known in Community
May we continue to strive to know one another in community.
In Celebration of Earth’s Waters
Give thanks for all the waters that be—for bays and gulfs and shining seas!
We Are Called to Pay Attention
Many: This morning* and all mornings, we are called to pay attention. One. We are called to pay attention to our individual lives, to our delights and pains. We are called to understand and cherish ourselves, to take good care of ourselves, to know ourselves as loving and worthy of love....
Love Is Hard
Love is hard. Love for people, especially those who are different from you. Love that says “I see you as a person.” Love that says “let your unique light shine in the world” because each of our souls touches the divine mystery. Love that says “we’re on a journey together, and my fate is...
Cherish Your Doubts
Cherish your doubts, for doubt is the attendant of truth. Doubt is the key to the door of knowledge; it is the servant of discovery. A belief which may not be questioned binds us to error, for there is incompleteness and imperfection in every belief....
We Need a Religion
In a world with so much hatred and violence, We need a religion that proclaims the inherent worth and dignity of every person. In a world with so much brutality and fear, We need a religion that seeks justice, equity, and compassion in human relations . In a world with so many persons abused and...
UU Principles and Disability: A Responsive Reading
As Unitarian Universalists, we believe in the inherent worth and dignity of every person. C: “Worth” takes endless forms. As we find more expressions of our worth, we grow richer as a church community. We believe in justice, equity and compassion in human relations. C: If we let rationalizations...
At the start of the Religious Education year
ALL: We come together as a living church. WORSHIP LEADER: We come together from different places as unique individuals. Our paths and the ways of our going are diverse, yet we share our journey....
We Bless These Animals We Love
Minister: Surrounded by the animals we love, we remember with gratitude the pets, protectors, and animal companions who have blessed our lives. People: We give thanks for our childhood pets, who taught us to love and to cry. We give thanks for our children's pets, who help us to teach them...
Reflection on Our Seven Principles
We, the member congregation of the Unitarian Universalist Association, covenant to affirm and promote: The inherent worth and dignity of every person. We promote the first and most honored principle of our Association by opening our pulpit to all....
We Are Waiting (a reading for Advent)
When used as a responsive reading, "We are waiting" is the congregational response. This is the season of anticipation, Of expecting, of hoping, of wanting. This is the time of expecting the arrival of something--or someone. We are waiting. This is the time of living in darkness, in the hues of...
In Troubled Times
Into the dwelling place of togetherness, we come to collect remnants of hope.
Words of Installation
First Reader: We come to you with our hopes and our fears. Will you lead us in building a welcoming religious community, tolerant and appreciative of our differences, loving and compassionate of heart, courageous and independent in spirit? Ministers: We will....
For Nothing Is Fixed
For nothing is fixed, forever and forever and forever; the earth is always shifting
Try to Love the Questions Themselves
Have patience with everything unresolved in your heart and try to love the questions themselves as if they were locked rooms or books written in a very foreign language. Don't search for the answers, which could not be given to you now, because you would not be able to live them....
The Hero Path
We have not even to risk the adventure alone; for the heroes of all time have gone before us; the labyrinth is thoroughly known; we have only to follow the thread of the hero path. And where we had thought to find an abomination, we shall find a god......
Each Candle a Miracle
We light the Hanukkah candles in wonder, joy, and gratitude, each candle a miracle. When the Holy Temple was rededicated at the time of the Maccabean liberation battle, only one day’s worth of oil remained, yet it burned for eight days so we light candles in remembrance....
We Don't Know What Happened
Leader: We're not sure what happened. But, we know what it's like when someone appears whose message we feel offers hope, who inspires us with new ways of living....
Proud
One: Today, Pride Day, we affirm with joy that we are proud. Many: We are proud to be lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, queer, and questioning. One: We are proud to have survived and thrived despite challenges to our dignity, well-being, and sometimes even our lives. Many: We are proud to be...
Deeper
One: We would go deeper. Many: We would become the selves we cannot even imagine today. One: We would become courageous. Many: We would grow to delight in congregations filled with different perspectives. One: We would know unutterable joy. Many: We would be filled with gratitude. One: May we go...
Forgiveness
One: It may be the hardest thing we will ever do, Many: Caught up in our self-righteousness, honing our pain. One: The one who offended may not deserve forgiveness Many: And we are not obliged to offer it. One: Why, then, should we forgive? Many: Because we have all caused pain....
Do Not Be Afraid
When the angel Gabriel brought to Mary the news that she would give birth to a son, Luke records that “she was much perplexed by his words and pondered what sort of greeting this might be.” The angel said to Mary, [response:] Do not be afraid. When an angel appeared before the shepherds living...
Daring for Peace
As we are confronted by chaos, May we have the wisdom to believe in peace. Surrounded by voices of disagreement, May we have the audacity to speak for peace. Lured by the seduction of despair, May we have the courage to maintain a vision of possibility and peace.
Listening Is an Act of the Heart
One: Listening is not an act of the ear, listening is an act of the heart. Many: In these times when so much speaks: outrage, anger, disillusionment. One: Rage is a constant cry. Derision has found his voice. The despair of the fair and faithful speaks fast and often. The whisper of despair grows...
We Need to Be Resurrected
One: Despair is sapping our spirits, damaging our souls, hurting our hearts. Many: We need to be resurrected into hope, faith, and trust. Today, may we be resurrected. One: Violence is shortening our lives and robbing us of our joy. Many: We need to be resurrected into peace and its many blessings.
Honoring Our Elders
We give thanks for your presence among us. You are living examples of courage and perseverance. We give thanks for the stories you have collected through the years. By sharing your stories, you help shape ours. We give thanks for the many tasks you have undertaken for the betterment of others. We...
Animal Companionship Responsive Blessing
Leader: Ours is a world alive and aloud with the presence of creatures and critters. Animals abound, interwoven in our human lives and wholly independent. This is the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part....