But now faith, hope, and love remain, these three. The greatest of these is love. — Christian scripture (1 Corinthians 13:13)

My religion is simple, my religion is kindness. — Dalai Lama

The gloves symbolize love. In this session, engage in reflection about the strength and universality of love.

Allow time for participants to explore why it may sound simple and desirable to love, or to act from love; it can actually be very hard. Emphasize compassion as the goal of every major religion. In addition, you will want to articulate ways the concept of universal love is connected to the love we feel for and show to our families and friends.

Goals

This session will:

• Help deepen participants' Unitarian Universalist identity, ethical discernment, and understanding of Unitarian Universalist faith through reflection and discussion about these qualities of our faith
• Teach participants that Unitarian Universalism is a faith that will help you exercise compassion in the world
• Demonstrate that Unitarian Universalism values justice, compassion, and equity in human relations (second Principle)
• Teach that Unitarian Universalism affirms that we learn from Jewish and Christian teachings which call us to respond to God's love by loving our neighbors as ourselves (fourth Source)
• Engage participants in the spiritual practices of chalice lighting, voicing of joys and concerns, and intentional discussion.

Learning Objectives

Participants will:

• Learn about the universality of human compassion
• Explore the strength of love
• Bodily practice and experience the strength of compassionate dialogue with one another
• Articulate ways that they have experienced compassion, both as a giver and as a receiver.