Edit Header for Worship Opening Search

Unitarian Universalists use different terms for the words that begin a worship service, including call to worship, invocation, and opening words. These words invite the congregation from their separate lives and to the common place and time of the worship hour.

(In Unitarian Universalist worship if there are Opening Words there is generally not an Invocation, and vice versa.)

Search Words for Worship Services

Changing a filter will refresh results (and remaining options) immediately. Searching by keyword or changing the number of items per page requires use of the "Search" button.

Displaying 1 - 20 of 29

  • Close-up photo of the veins and midrib of a green leaf.
    We come from many places—along different paths, bringing different truths.
    Chalice Lighting | By Pat Uribe-Lichty | March 31, 2024 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Community, Diversity, Healing, Justice, Peace, Unity, Wholeness, WorshipWeb, Worship
  • In a shadowed forest, a path through the trees is bathed in golden light.
    We are stronger together because we are different, and because we are one.
    Chalice Lighting | By Frances Koziar | March 1, 2022 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Balance, Beauty, Conflict, Diversity, Earth-Centered, Relationships, Unitarian Universalism, WorshipWeb, Worship
  • Unitarian Universalist Association Chalice
    We are one people of many beliefs, many origins, sexualities, and genders.
    Welcome | By Rachael Hayes | February 23, 2022 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Diversity, Hospitality, Inclusion, WorshipWeb, Worship
  • Unitarian Universalist Association Chalice
    We are all able In different ways With various strengths and talents. We are all holy Part of the universe And the interdependent web. We light this chalice Cherishing our differences And holding each other in sacredness.
    Chalice Lighting | By Cindy Fesgen | April 17, 2021 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Diversity, Inclusion, WorshipWeb, Worship
  • US Army Chaplain Rev. Chris Antal lights the chalice at the Service of the Living Tradition at General Assembly 2014
    We are a People of Memory. As inheritors of our ancestors’ legacy, we hold their stories tenderly. Gleaning wisdom from diverse journeys; united in hope for the future. Guide us to trust in love as we kindle this flame together.
    Chalice Lighting | By Kimberlee Anne Tomczak Carlson | March 27, 2019 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 1st Principle (Worth & Dignity), 2nd Principle (Justice, Equity, & Compassion), 3rd Principle (Acceptance & Spiritual Growth), Compassion, Courage, Covenant, Diversity, Faith, Hope, Journey, Living Our Faith, Love, Tradition
  • A circle of people, from above, with hands extended into the center of a circle.
    Voice 1: You are beloved and you are welcome here Voice 2: Whether tears have fallen from your eyes this past week or gleeful laughter has spilled out of your smiling mouth Voice 1: You are beloved and you are welcome here Voice 2: Whether you are feeling brave or broken-hearted; defiant or...
    Opening | By Joan Javier-Duval | January 16, 2019 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 1st Principle (Worth & Dignity), Acceptance, Brokenness, Caring, Community, Compassion, Diversity, Inclusion, Love, Unitarian Universalism, Wholeness, Worth, Worship
  • Four hands, each making a letter, spell the word "LOVE." In the background is water and sky.
    We welcome you. We know you come here for different reasons—to find community, to seek your spiritual and personal truths, to question, to nurture your heart and soul, to be nurtured, to explore new ideas, to find comfort, and perhaps to find the answers to some of your bigger questions. We...
    Welcome | By Marilyn Falkowski | December 7, 2018 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Acceptance, Community, Diversity, WorshipWeb
  • Sunlight streams through a rounded window.
    Come into this place, bringing all you hold with you. though your heart be heavily burdened, whether you be on the brink of tears or burn with unquenchable rage this community can hold you and your strongest emotions, yes, even the messy ones are welcome here. Come in if you sing just a bit too...
    Invocation | By Elizabeth Mount | December 13, 2017 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 1st Principle (Worth & Dignity), 3rd Principle (Acceptance & Spiritual Growth), Connections, Creativity, Direct Experience, Diversity, Faith, Humanism, Inclusion, Living Our Faith, Purpose, Sacred, Unitarian Universalism, Wholeness
  • A large gray rock is cracked down the middle, where many small colorful stones are caught
    We seek our place in the world and the answers to our hearts’ deep questions. As we seek, may our hearts be open to unexpected answers. May the light of our chalice remind us that this is a community of warmth, of wisdom, and welcoming of multiple truths.
    Chalice Lighting | By Julianne Lepp | December 8, 2017 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 3rd Principle (Acceptance & Spiritual Growth), 4th Principle (Truth & Meaning), Acceptance, Direct Experience, Diversity, Hospitality, Mystery, Searching, Truth, Unitarian Universalism, Wonder
  • Religious leaders at multifaith Turning Toward Truth service
    We light this chalice remembering and honoring our own tradition and celebrating the rich diversity of traditions among us. As we search for justice, meaning, and purpose, may we remember that justice, meaning, and purpose live first in deeply listening to one another. This chalice lighting was...
    Chalice Lighting | By David Breeden | August 21, 2017 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 2nd Principle (Justice, Equity, & Compassion), 4th Principle (Truth & Meaning), Connections, Diversity, Hospitality, International, Living Our Faith, Meaning, Multiculturalism, Purpose, Tradition, Unitarian Universalism
  • a close-up of two people's arms, and their linked hands.
    As we create and share sacred space together, let us reflect upon what brings us here. We have all come here for different reasons, from different decisions, faced different challenges and shared different love. And yet all of our differences have led us to this space, right here, right now. Some...
    Opening | By Ella Boyer | July 13, 2017 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 3rd Principle (Acceptance & Spiritual Growth), Awe, Diversity, Generations, Love, Purpose, Transcendence, Unitarian Universalism, Unity
  • Through an intricate but clear cathedral window, sky and the vibrant red leaves of a tree are visible.
    Here is where we gather in the presence of the Sacred. Here is where we gather to experience the Holy Here is where, together, we face the unanswerable questions and acknowledge that not knowing is as sublime as it is frustrating....
    Opening | By Patricia Shelden | February 27, 2017 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 3rd Principle (Acceptance & Spiritual Growth), Community, Direct Experience, Diversity, Sacred, Unitarian Universalism, Unity
  • A close-up on the detail of a mosaic, with vivid lines of pink, yellow. and blue chips.
    Welcome to this space, this sanctuary of peace where we come to not only create our best selves, but to also do the work of creating a beloved community....
    Opening | By Jo VonRue, Linette Lowe | January 26, 2017 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 1st Principle (Worth & Dignity), 4th Principle (Truth & Meaning), 7th Principle (Interconnected Web), Acceptance, Brokenness, Community, Direct Experience, Diversity, Hospitality, Humanism, Inclusion, Interdependence, Multiculturalism, Presence, Secular, Unitarian Universalism, Wholeness
  • Several people standing with their arms around each other, photo taken from behind, so that the composition is a tangle of backs and arms.
    In the houses of the holy, the world pauses. In the hearts of the holy, Love abides. In the havens of the holy, Hope comforts. In the hearths of the holy, Spirit refreshes. Come then, one and all, gather in. Come then, one and all, gather here. Bring here all of your heart, Bring here all of your...
    Opening | By Andrea Hawkins-Kamper | November 28, 2016 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 1st Principle (Worth & Dignity), 2nd Principle (Justice, Equity, & Compassion), 3rd Principle (Acceptance & Spiritual Growth), Acceptance, Brokenness, Community, Direct Experience, Diversity, Hospitality, Inclusion, Prophetic Words & Deeds
  • In front of a wheatfield backdrop, the silhouette of a person holding up an old-fashioned lantern (from a 2011 production of "The Wizard of Oz")
    Note: this was written for a worship service with a Wizard of Oz theme. Come you accidental pilgrims, you who find yourself on a journey of surprise and wonder. Come you who emerge into this place as an act of liberation. Come you who seek a life of mindfulness and a place to test your thoughts.
    Invocation | By Lyn Cox | September 22, 2016 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 3rd Principle (Acceptance & Spiritual Growth), 4th Principle (Truth & Meaning), Courage, Diversity, Generations, Homecoming / Ingathering, Inclusion, Journey, Teamwork, Trust, Unitarian Universalism
  • A monarch butterfly on a flower
    We gather to worship, our hearts alive with hope that here we will be truly seen, that here we will be welcomed into the garden of this community, where the simple and the elegant, the fluted and frilled, the shy and the dramatic complement one another and are treasured....
    Welcome | By Meg Barnhouse | March 16, 2016 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 3rd Principle (Acceptance & Spiritual Growth), 4th Principle (Truth & Meaning), Acceptance, Community, Diversity, Inclusion, Purpose
  • A hand and foot print, against a glass surface, shot from below.
    Your body is welcome here, all of it. Yes, even that part. And that part. And yes, even that part. The parts you love, and the parts you don’t. For in this place we come with all that we are All that we have been, And all that we are going to be. Our bodies are constantly changing, cells die and...
    Opening | By Sean Neil-Barron | June 5, 2015 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 1st Principle (Worth & Dignity), Body, Connections, Direct Experience, Diversity, Intimacy, Joy, Sacred, Self-Care, WorshipWeb
  • Unitarian Universalist Association Chalice
    The diversity of the human species is astounding. The fact that we can gather together for common experience is nothing short of a miracle. Today, let us celebrate some of those differences....
    Opening | By Dawn Skjei Cooley | March 27, 2015 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 1st Principle (Worth & Dignity), 3rd Principle (Acceptance & Spiritual Growth), Community, Covenant, Diversity, Sacred, WorshipWeb
  • Unitarian Universalist Association Chalice
    The Persian poet Rumi challenges us: "Come, come, whoever you are: wanderer, worshiper, lover of leaving: Ours is no caravan of despair, come, yet again come." And we come, from rich heritages of liturgy and pomp; We come, from burning legacies of angry gods and threats of hell-fire....
    Opening | By Anne Slater | January 21, 2015 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Acceptance, Diversity, Islam, Unitarian Universalism
  • Purple iris blossom.
    We come in a variety of colors, shapes, and sizes. Some of us grow in bunches. Some of us grow alone. Some of us are cupped inward, And some of us spread ourselves out wide. Some of us are old and dried and tougher than we appear. Some of us are still in bud....
    Opening | By Thomas Rhodes | January 21, 2015 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Beauty, Diversity, Earth, Earth-Centered, Flower Communion, Humanism, Imagination, Nature, Secular, Unitarian Universalism