Tapestry of Faith: Spirit of Life: An Adult Program on Unitarian Universalist Spirituality

Alternate Activity 1: Ritual in Your Congregation

Part of Spirit of Life

Activity time: 30 minutes

Materials for Activity

Preparation for Activity

  • Copies of Handout 2 for all participants.
  • Consider how to best divide participants into groups of four.

Description of Activity

Invite participants to name rituals that are part of their congregational life (e.g. Christmas Eve candlelight service, Coming of Age service, water ceremony) Distribute Handout 2 and read it aloud.

Invite participants to move into groups of four to explore how the described elements of ritual appear in the congregational rituals they have named. Invite each group to consider one of the named congregational rituals and use Handout 2 as a guide to help them explore the way in which the ritual is created. Allow ten minutes for groups to work together. Gather the whole group and invite the small groups to share their thoughts about the elements of the congregational ritual they examined.

After all groups have shared, allow time for general comment, observation, and conversation.