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An unlit chalice on a church altar

Unitarian Universalists honor and celebrate a wide range of holidays and occasions over the course of a year. Unlike other faith traditions that use a single lectionary (a collection of scripture readings appointed for a given day or occasion), the topics and themes for Unitarian Universalist worship services are usually chosen independently by worship leaders in congregations. These include unique UU traditions, like the Flower Ceremony, as well as holidays from other faith traditions, such as Christmas or Beltane.

View and download the 2023-24 UUA Worship Calendar (PDF), which includes faith-based and secular holidays that UU congregations often celebrate. The calendar also includes monthly worship themes used in popular theme-based ministry programs. To download or print, follow the link and use the File menu, then select the Landscape layout option.

LEADER RESOURCE 2 Rituals to Welcome a New Child
a medieval window from the Burrell Collection in Glasgow, Scotland, depicting the Nativity
Islamic prayer beads or Subha inside the Süleymaniye Moque (Istanbul).
An altar filled with candles, photos, and flowers

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  • An abstract, fluid pattern of pale ripples dashed with vibrant cords of color: violet, gold, hot pink, etc.
    I love you because your transness is not something you overcame—it is something you are.

    Affirmation | By Jami Yandle | April 10, 2026 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Acceptance, Anti-Oppression, Awe, Beauty, Identity, Joy, Lesbian/Gay/Bisexual/Transgender/Queer, Solidarity, Worship
  • An 18th-century colored drawing from Germany, showing an angel appearing to a sleeping shepherd. The angel is clothed in a pink robe and gold cape. The shepherd, in brown pants and a blue coat, rests his head against a stone bench.
    This is the Christmas of trumpets and trembling, of a universe tilted by a single birth, of a holiness that descends like a meteor and lands in a manger. But there is another way the story might be told…
    Homily | By Aaron Payson | April 9, 2026 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Balance, Change, Christmas Eve / Christmas, Compassion, Contemplation, Courage, Growth, Revelation, Sacred, Worship
  • In a crowd in a darkened area, about 20 people hold lit taper candles in the air. We see the hands and arms of the people with candles, but not their faces. The most prominent candle, and the one most in focus, is held by a white person with a bracelet on their arm.
    We remember that holiness has never belonged only to the mighty or the certain, but to the vulnerable, the weary, the seekers, and to all who dare to love in difficult times.
    Prayer | By Aaron Payson | April 8, 2026 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Christmas Eve / Christmas, Community, Compassion, Courage, Fear, Grief, Hope, Justice, Love, Worship
  • In a darkened room, many lit candles of various types — tapers, pillars, votives in glass or stone holders — are positioned on a polished wooden table. The light from the candles is reflected on the table’s surface. At the far end of the table there is a higher altar-like surface with more candles and a chalice that holds a votive.
    In this hour of candlelight, we remember that holiness is not far away. It is here— in breath shared, in hope rekindled, in the quiet courage to begin again.
    Offering | By Aaron Payson | April 8, 2026 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Christmas Eve / Christmas, Community, Compassion, Courage, Generosity, Gratitude, Hope, Presence, Sacred, Worship
  • Two people standing just inside a barn door. The barn is unlit, so we see only the silhouette of the people against the green, sunlit meadow outside the door.
    Take this as an invitation to cross thresholds of challenge, not on our own, not for ourselves alone, but side by side…
    Benediction | April 8, 2026 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Beginnings, Challenge, Change, Community, Courage, Growth, Searching, Teamwork, Worship
  • Four leaves float on very calm water. The leaves, perhaps from a beech tree, are shades of yellow, red, and orange.
    Golden leaves and harvest cheer, We gather close as frost draws near. But whispers rise from warming seas; A planet pleads beneath the trees…
    Blessing, Poetry, Prayer | By Brian C. Lee | April 8, 2026 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Autumnal Equinox, Earth, Environment, Fall, Interdependence, Thanksgiving, Worship
  • Frederick Franck’s sculpture “Seven Generations.” The sculpture consists of six consecutively smaller metal sheets standing upright in a straight line. The outer edge of each dark gray sheet is in the form of a simplified human silhouette, but inside each sheet there is a smaller cutout in the same shape, through which the next sheet is visible. The smallest sheet does not have the interior cutout, but instead has a red shape representing generations yet unborn.
    Each Sunday we light the chalice of our religious heritage. We do this for our ancestors… We do this for our children… We do this for ourselves…
    Chalice Lighting | April 7, 2026 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Beginnings, Children, Connections, Generations, History, Journey, Parents, Tradition, Worship
  • About 20 identical lit votive candles sitting on a dark textured surface. The candles completely fill the frame.
    When political violence is no longer a rhetorically-based thing but rather happening in front of our very own eyes, it can be hard to know what to do next.
    Prayer | By Lisa Schilansky | April 7, 2026 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Community, Connections, Disaster or Crisis, Fear, Peace, Politics, Violence, Worship
  • In a room with white walls we see a rectangular wooden dining table, with six blue placemats, five of which hold place settings, and one of which is empty. There are wooden chairs at the places with settings, but no chair at the empty placemat. In the background there are some sideboards, and there are small framed pieces of art on the walls.
    How, each morning after you left this earth, did the sun decide to rise once again?
    Blessing | By Laura McGuire | April 5, 2026 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Courage, Death, Grief, Healing, Letting Go, Mystery, Sorrow, Worship
  • In front of a glass wall facing an airport runway where a plane takes off, a line of diverse passengers lines up with luggage as if preparing to board a flight.
    These people: they are mine and I am theirs.
    Reflection | By Karen G. Johnston | March 18, 2026 | From Braver/Wiser
    Tagged as: Worship
  • alt text: Alt text: a close-up of a person's outstretched arms and hands. They're wearing a brown fleece jacket, and their palms are facing the sky as if in surrender or prayer.
    In contemplating what's beyond my control, I surrender to The Universe that which I can not accomplish.
    Reflection | By Mary Shelden | March 11, 2026 | From Braver/Wiser
    Tagged as: 4th Principle (Truth & Meaning), Acceptance, Creativity, Faith, Mystery, Personal Stories, Power, Spiritual Practice, Trust, Vulnerability, Wisdom, Worship
  • Against a black background, a the outline of a heart shape made by a person moving a pink sparkler while the camera’s shutter is open for a long exposure.
    With the lighting of this flame let us shine upon the hearts of all those who suffer, who yearn, and who crave the joyful noise of community–all Beings, not one left behind.
    Chalice Lighting | By Sangye Hawke | March 10, 2026 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Community, Hope, Inclusion, Joy, Worship
  • View looking down a pedestrian bridge made from wooden planks suspended by poles hanging from a pair of cables. There is perhaps 50 feet of bridge, which ends at two support posts on either side of a wooden staircase heading up the side of a hill. The bridge is surrounded by bushes and trees.
    For a long time, both villages existed separately, across the canyon, happily humming along in life. They knew the other was there, but never had much cause to interact.…
    Time for All Ages | By Sara LaWall, Gem Emerson Paige | March 10, 2026 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Caring, Community, Connections, Creativity, Generations, Imagination, Interdependence, Leadership, Progress, Teamwork, Worship
  • A knobby yellow safety tread panel, of the kind used near curb cuts or at the edge of subway platforms, seen from above. The shoes of the photographer visible at the edge.
    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.
    Responsive Reading | By Laura McGuire | March 8, 2026 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: #DisabilityJustice, Anti-Oppression, Body, Community, Dignity, Equity, Human Rights, Inclusion, Interdependence, Oppression, Privilege, Worship
  • The Milky Way in the night sky, with a bright star or planet slightly below it.
    Hope resides in the promise that love can always expand, always meet us, always teach us to cast down the mighty, raise up the broken, and rekindle the truth of our interdependence.
    Opening | By Valerie Freseman | March 8, 2026 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Christmas Eve / Christmas, Hope, Immanence, Interdependence, Love, Simplicity, Worship
  • A flock of 50 or so birds, silhouetted against a somewhat cloudy sky. Near the top of the image the sky is blue and the clouds are white, but the clouds behind the birds are glowing deep red from the setting sun.
    Spirit of Life and Love, may we offer our humble, if not sometimes begrudging, gratitude for the miracle of moments taken for granted— for minutes that feel like hours, for the miracle of mountain tops and coral reefs, the miracle of survival and ancient olive trees…
    Prayer | By Helen “HP” Rivers | March 7, 2026 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Abundance, Beauty, Grief, Joy, Love, Mental Health, Nature, Spring, Transcendence, Worship
  • Three floors of shelving in the Stockholm public library, filled with books, viewed from a walkway on the third floor. The wood-panelled room has curved walls, and the shelving follows the gentle curve away from the viewer.
    In the spirit of the ever-searching mind and the deep questioning soul, we call to mind beloved books and their wisdom.
    Responsive Reading | By Emily R. Mace | March 6, 2026 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Arts & Music, Community, Connections, Courage, Creativity, Joy, Justice, Love, Vision, Wisdom, Worship
  • A wave crashing explosively against a rocky coastline. Most of the frame is filled with the white splashing water, but in the background there is light blue sky and dark blue ocean.
    Aarav Arikara reads his reflection “I Reclaim My Power,” about the challenges and joys of being a trans man.
    Reflection | By Aarav Arikara | March 6, 2026 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Coming Out, Gender, Gratitude, Growth, Identity, Joy, Lesbian/Gay/Bisexual/Transgender/Queer, National Coming Out Day, Personal Stories, Pride Sunday, Worship
  • A large crowd of protesters, many holding signs with slogans like "Neighbors Say ICE Out," on a Minneapolis, Minnesota, city street on a cold winter day.
    Blessed are all who hunger and thirst for liberation, for we shall inherit the future. 
    Affirmation | By Ashley Horan | March 6, 2026 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Activism, Anti-Oppression, Human Rights, Imagination, Living Our Faith, Politics, Power, Purpose, Rights, Solidarity, Worship
  • In a tunnel-like passageway, three women of different ethnicities are walking away from the camera, holding hands with their arms in the air. Their body language suggests joy and playfulness.
    Help me to give grace when it’s needed, both to myself and to others.
    Reflection | By Becca Morse | March 4, 2026 | From Braver/Wiser
    Tagged as: 1st Principle (Worth & Dignity), 2nd Principle (Justice, Equity, & Compassion), 3rd Principle (Acceptance & Spiritual Growth), 4th Principle (Truth & Meaning), Belief, Friendship, Grace, Personal Stories, Playfulness, Power, Self-Care, Self-Respect, Solidarity, Worship