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Displaying 1 - 50 of 51

  • “[Democracy] is not merely majority rule based on the fact that the majority has the physical force to prevail…"
    Quote | By W.E.B. Du Bois | February 20, 2024 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 5th Principle (Conscience & Democracy), America, Covenant, Democracy, Governance, Interdependence, Leadership, Politics, Rights, WorshipWeb, Worship
  • We light this chalice, so that by its light we may read ALL the books…
    Chalice Lighting | By Julie Conrady | December 13, 2023 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Anti-Oppression, Arts & Music, Democracy, Freedom, Human Rights, Humanism, Unitarian Universalism, WorshipWeb, Worship
  • We call for the freedom and the right for all stories to be freely shared.
    Blessing | By Michelle Collins | December 12, 2023 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Anti-Oppression, Arts & Music, Democracy, Freedom, Human Rights, WorshipWeb, Worship
  • May we be active participants in the liberatory potential of democracy.
    Reflection | By Shaya French | June 21, 2023 | From Braver/Wiser
    Tagged as: 5th Principle (Conscience & Democracy), Choice, Conflict, Conscience, Democracy, Unitarian Universalism, Young Adults, Worship
  • we protest what others cherish
    Poetry | By Lucas Hergert | March 3, 2023 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 5th Principle (Conscience & Democracy), Activism, Conflict, Democracy, Justice
  • democracy, today we will love you alive
    Benediction | By Lucas Hergert | March 3, 2023 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Activism, Democracy, Humanism, Justice, Secular, Seven Principles
  • May our spirits be guided by our values.
    Prayer | By Christin Green | January 27, 2023 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: America, Caring, Democracy, Integrity, Justice, Living Our Faith, Solidarity, Unitarian Universalism, WorshipWeb, Worship
  • Of all the things "faith" can mean, to me it means believing in us.
    Reflection | By Erika Hewitt | November 9, 2022 | From Braver/Wiser
    Tagged as: Choice, Democracy, Living Our Faith, Power, Unitarian Universalism, Worship
  • We face a challenge to democracy.
    Chalice Lighting | By Pat Uribe-Lichty | October 18, 2022 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Challenge, Democracy, Hope
  • We gather to honor our covenant and engage in congregational life.
    Chalice Lighting | By Emily Richards | October 18, 2022 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Business Meetings, Character, Democracy, Leadership, Purpose, Work
  • When disability is understood as dependency, disability is posited in direct contrast to American ideals of independence and autonomy.
    Reading | By Kim Nielsen | February 17, 2022 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: America, Body, Democracy, Disability, History, Identity, Justice, Multiculturalism, Oppression, Secular
  • Black Queens saved our democracy. We owe them a great deal.
    Reflection | By Carol Thomas Cissel | January 20, 2021 | From Braver/Wiser
    Tagged as: America, Democracy, Humanism, Prophetic Words & Deeds, Race/Ethnicity, Women, Work, Worship
  • Holding people accountable for the impact of their behavior is not revenge; it’s what makes change and growth possible, and no real healing in community can come without it.
    Reflection | By Kristin Grassel Schmidt | January 13, 2021 | From Braver/Wiser
    Tagged as: America, Conflict, Democracy, Disaster or Crisis, Forgiveness, Humanism, Redemption, Responsibility, Seven Principles, Universalism, Worship
  • The soul of America has yet to be born.
    Reading | By Peggy Clarke | November 16, 2020 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 5th Principle (Conscience & Democracy), America, Democracy, Generations, History, Humanism, Indigenous Peoples Day, July 4th, Prophetic Words & Deeds, Secular
  • Uncertain as the world feels right now, love will bear whatever lies ahead.
    Reflection | By Julie Fanselow | November 4, 2020 | From Braver/Wiser
    Tagged as: America, Body, Brokenness, Democracy, Direct Experience, Healing, Health, Humanism, Marriage, Secular, Worship
  • Life is political, not because the world cares about how you feel, but because the world reacts to what you do.
    Quote | By Timothy Snyder | September 27, 2020 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 5th Principle (Conscience & Democracy), Activism, America, Democracy, Justice, Meaning, Politics, Secular, WorshipWeb, Worship
  • It often feels like we’re shouting into the void. It was a gift to be reminded that sometimes someone is listening.
    Reflection | By Jodi Cohen Hayashida | July 8, 2020 | From Braver/Wiser
    Tagged as: 1st Principle (Worth & Dignity), 2nd Principle (Justice, Equity, & Compassion), 6th Principle (World Community), Activism, America, Belief, Democracy, Direct Experience, Imagination, Justice, Prophetic Words & Deeds, Race/Ethnicity, Solidarity, Truth
  • Jesus had no political power. He lived his whole life in the shadow of the Roman empire, and that empire killed him. Yet Jesus healed the sick, he listened, he moved among the ordinary people, in the lowly places.
    Reflection | By Myke Johnson | April 8, 2020 | From Braver/Wiser
    Tagged as: #COVID19, 4th Principle (Truth & Meaning), Calling, Caring, Christianity, Democracy, Easter, Evil, Good Friday, Healing, Hope, Power, Prophetic Words & Deeds, Responsibility
  • Spirit of Life and Love, Justice and Peace, The spectacle of foolish pride is ever before us in these times. Indeed, pride has seldom looked so foolish in our lifetimes. So many people in positions of public trust and responsibility have lost their authority and our confidence spectacularly. And...
    Prayer | By Paul R Beedle | April 27, 2019 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Acceptance, Anti-Oppression, Authority, Character, Compassion, Democracy, Discernment, Forgiveness, Humility, Trust
  • Spirit of Life, God of Love, hear this cry which begins with gratitude for the human ability to take action to right the wrongs of our kin. If you are the force of Love, be loving to these dear ones who would rid the world of hatred and greed. If you are the force of Possibility, seed opportunity...
    Prayer | By Leslie Takahashi | July 3, 2018 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 2nd Principle (Justice, Equity, & Compassion), 5th Principle (Conscience & Democracy), 6th Principle (World Community), Activism, America, Democracy, God, Hope, Justice, Power, Prophetic Words & Deeds, Solidarity, Unitarian Universalism
  • I choose to believe in community. I choose to believe in the difficult, slow work of building a common life.
    Reflection | By Elea Kemler | May 16, 2018 | From Braver/Wiser
    Tagged as: 1st Principle (Worth & Dignity), 2nd Principle (Justice, Equity, & Compassion), 3rd Principle (Acceptance & Spiritual Growth), Challenge, Community, Conflict, Democracy, Direct Experience, Humanism, Interdependence, Relationships, Secular, Seven Principles, Unitarian Universalism
  • “Those of us who have in our history the commonality of suffering from hate, we know that those who won the day are those who chose love in the midst of hate.”...
    Quote | By William J. Barber II | September 27, 2017 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Activism, America, Anti-Oppression, Democracy, Love, Race/Ethnicity
  • On this hallowed day, We remember. We remember those who are no longer present with us here, but who remain forever present in our hearts and who live on in our memories. We embrace....
    Benediction | By Gregory Jones | September 27, 2017 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: America, Democracy, Direct Experience, Grief, History, Humanism, Leadership, Secular
  • Spirit that runs through us all, help me to remember all the ways in which I am connected to others.
    Reflection | By Aisha Ansano | August 16, 2017 | From Braver/Wiser
    Tagged as: Activism, Agnosticism, America, Atheism, Commitment, Community, Democracy, Direct Experience, Hope, Humanism, Interdependence, Race/Ethnicity, Secular, Solidarity
  • Holy One, known by many names and beyond all names—Spirit of Life, Spirit of Love, Spirit of Community, Spirit of Justice: We ask your blessings on the people who have been called to lead the community in which we live and work and play. Help them as leaders to not ask first “How do we fix...
    Prayer | By John Saxon | April 6, 2017 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Activism, Community, Democracy, Humanism, Inclusion, Leadership, Secular, Service, Unitarian Universalism
  • .I want liberty and justice for all in my country. That will ask of me—and of many of you—the discipline of discomfort.
    Reflection | By Jake Morrill | January 11, 2017 | From Braver/Wiser
    Tagged as: 4th Principle (Truth & Meaning), 5th Principle (Conscience & Democracy), America, Challenge, Change, Democracy, Direct Experience, Humanism, Integrity, Politics, Secular, Strength
  • May you be safe. May you be free from all harm. As the road or skies carry you toward your fellow pilgrims, may you sense the presence of those who travel with you in spirit, whose hopes and hearts are tucked into your pockets, who name your journey’s purpose as sacred. May you encounter...
    Blessing | By Erika Hewitt | January 10, 2017 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 1st Principle (Worth & Dignity), 2nd Principle (Justice, Equity, & Compassion), 4th Principle (Truth & Meaning), 5th Principle (Conscience & Democracy), 6th Principle (World Community), Activism, America, Anti-Oppression, Connections, Courage, Democracy, Direct Experience, Diversity, Human Rights, Humanism, Journey, Living Our Faith, Secular
  • Loving and Transforming Grace, Source of creation who some know as God -- Be with us now. We have endured the hard night of struggle for our nation’s soul for lo these many months, and find ourselves looking inward, to each other, to all fonts of wisdom, for guidance....
    Prayer | By Deborah Weiner | November 28, 2016 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 5th Principle (Conscience & Democracy), 6th Principle (World Community), America, Brokenness, Democracy, Despair, Secular, Unitarian Universalism, Unity
  • (written for the Presidential Election, 2016) I walk in, as on pilgrimage. The altar cloths are red, white, and blue the ushers are the women who have been running these things who have been running everything since before I was born. I’m handed the ballot like a scroll because the questions seem...
    Poetry | By Luke Stevens-Royer | November 25, 2016 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 2nd Principle (Justice, Equity, & Compassion), 5th Principle (Conscience & Democracy), America, Democracy, Direct Experience, Hope, Secular, Service, Spiritual Practice
  • November 16, 2016 "Well, the only chains we can stand / Are the chains between hand and hand Keep your eyes on the prize / Hold on" —Adapted lyrics to “Gospel Plow,”* attributed to Alice Wine Holding on does not come easy to me. As a teenager who left home and bounced around, I am talented at...
    Reflection | By Robin Tanner | November 16, 2016 | From Braver/Wiser
    Tagged as: America, Anti-Oppression, Commitment, Democracy, Despair, Hope, Relationships, Secular
  • Welcome, you who come in need of healing, you who are confused, or have been betrayed. Welcome, with your problems and your pain. Welcome, too, your joys and your wonderings, welcome your need to hope, your longing for assurance. Instead of answers, here may you find safety for your questions.
    Opening | By Maureen Killoran | November 11, 2016 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 1st Principle (Worth & Dignity), 4th Principle (Truth & Meaning), Acceptance, Caring, Courage, Democracy, Despair, Disaster or Crisis, Humanism, Trauma, Unitarian Universalism
  • Spirit of Life and Love, In this time of uncertainty Of fear and angst Our nation holds its collective breath In this time When rhetoric blusters about And words are used as weapons Our nation clenches its fists Tightens its shoulders Eyes squeezed shut Some are preparing for a fight May we remem...
    Prayer | By Sara Eileen LaWall | November 7, 2016 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: America, Democracy, Diversity, Interdependence, Unity
  • On this sacred day of choosing—with gratitude to those who entrusted us with this honored task, who struggled and suffered that we might have the power to choose—may we choose well. May we choose love over fear, wisdom over cleverness, courage over cowardice, life over death, kindness over...
    Prayer | By Amy Zucker Morgenstern | November 7, 2016 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Activism, America, Democracy, Discernment, Generations, Humility, Living Our Faith, Secular, Unitarian Universalism
  • Help us to live in peace together and serve one another and to see the holy light in everyone, even when those holy lights are especially hard to see.
    Reflection | By Daniel Gregoire | November 2, 2016 | From Braver/Wiser
    Tagged as: 1st Principle (Worth & Dignity), 4th Principle (Truth & Meaning), 5th Principle (Conscience & Democracy), America, Choice, Democracy, Direct Experience, Discernment, Humanism, Secular
  • Spirit of Life, if you have a lesson for us, it is that all life is beautiful. We are each born into this world who we are, tall or short, with our own colour of skin, with our own sexual orientation....
    Prayer | By Brian Kiely | October 7, 2016 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 1st Principle (Worth & Dignity), 2nd Principle (Justice, Equity, & Compassion), 6th Principle (World Community), Acceptance, Anti-Oppression, Democracy, Gender, Lesbian/Gay/Bisexual/Transgender/Queer, Pride Sunday, Privilege, Secular, Unitarian Universalism, Wholeness
  • Spirit of Wisdom, As we prepare to elect new citizens to lead us, in our communities, town and cities, in our counties, states, and our heart-torn nation, grant us wisdom and discernment so that we may choose those of peaceful heart, of competent mind and of servant spirit. Spirit of the Harvest,...
    Prayer | By Tess Baumberger | October 6, 2016 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 5th Principle (Conscience & Democracy), America, Community, Democracy, Discernment, Leadership, Secular, Unity, Wisdom
  • I have a voice. It is a small voice, perhaps, but it will not be silenced. When you call for black people to be beaten, and excluded, and even removed—I will say no. When you attempt to silence Latinx voices—I will say no. When you mock the disabled and threaten the oppressed—I will say no.
    Reading | By Amy Petrie Shaw | September 29, 2016 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Activism, Anger, Anti-Oppression, Character, Commitment, Democracy, Direct Experience, Justice, Limitations, Nonviolence, Oppression, Secular
  • "Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter." This quote, attributed to Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr., is likely a paraphrase of original language that was slightly different. The closest statement your WorshipWeb Curator could find is this excerpt from Rev. King's...
    Quote | By Martin Luther King, Jr. | June 1, 2016 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Activism, Anti-Oppression, Character, Commitment, Courage, Democracy, Integrity, Living Our Faith, Prophetic Words & Deeds, Self-Respect, Seven Principles
  • We are hungry We are eating our daily bread and bowing our heads and yet we are hungry We are thanking the farmer and the farm worker and yet we are hungry We are speaking in spaces for food that is healthy and still we are hungry We are tiring of slogans that say Feed the Children and mean feed ...
    Meditation | By Debra Smith | February 11, 2016 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 1st Principle (Worth & Dignity), 2nd Principle (Justice, Equity, & Compassion), 6th Principle (World Community), 7th Principle (Interconnected Web), Christianity, Communion (Christian), Democracy, Direct Experience, Food, Food Justice, Generosity, Human Rights, Humanism, Justice, Justice Sunday, Poverty, Prayer Practices, Prophetic Words & Deeds, Spiritual Practice, Table Grace, Thanksgiving, Transcendence, Transformation, WorshipWeb
  • On a spring day in Farmington, Maine, as I was walking downtown, I made my way through a line of cars that were waiting for the light. In front of me was a large Confederate flag flying from the back of a white pick-up. I crossed the street, not looking at who was driving the truck, and went into...
    Meditation | By Jabari S. Jones | August 31, 2015 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: #BlackLivesMatter, America, Anti-Oppression, Democracy, Direct Experience, Freedom, History, Identity, Prophetic Words & Deeds, Race/Ethnicity
  • This chalice burns with twin flames. The first flame burns for those who seek and defend the right to a free and responsible search for truth and meaning so that each person may live according to conscience in a democratically elected society. The second flame burns for the defenders of freedom,...
    Chalice Lighting | By Tracy Bleakney | March 25, 2015 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 1st Principle (Worth & Dignity), 2nd Principle (Justice, Equity, & Compassion), 4th Principle (Truth & Meaning), 5th Principle (Conscience & Democracy), 7th Principle (Interconnected Web), Activism, America, Anti-Oppression, Commitment, Democracy, Freedom, July 4th, Justice Sunday, Memorial Day, Oppression, Power, Responsibility, Rights, Secular, Unitarian Universalism, WorshipWeb
  • This image was created by Ellen Rockett, a Unitarian Universalist (UU) young adult, to accompany the seven separate images/smartphone wallpapers also found on WorshipWeb....
    Image | By Ellen Rockett | March 13, 2015 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Acceptance, Caring, Democracy, Interdependence, Justice, Prophetic Words & Deeds, Seven Principles, Unitarian Universalism, Worth
  • Support democracy: the image on the right may be used as wallpaper for a smartphone or tablet. The 5th Principle of Unitarian Universalism is the right of conscience and the use of the democratic process within our congregations and in society at large. The Seven Principles by Ellen Rocket...
    Image | By Ellen Rockett | February 27, 2015 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 5th Principle (Conscience & Democracy), Democracy, Human Rights, Unitarian Universalism
  • I like congregational meetings. More than any other facet of church life, more than the worship or music or potlucks, these exercises in democratic decision-making go to the heart of our religious heritage....
    Opening | By Gary Kowalski | January 25, 2015 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 5th Principle (Conscience & Democracy), Business Meetings, Community, Democracy, History, Unitarian Universalism
  • We gather on this beautiful morning, the anniversary of a day painful to remember but impossible to forget ... We remember all the heroes and heroines of that day, the firefighters and emergency responders who demonstrated such courage in the midst of crisis....
    Meditation | By Gary Kowalski | January 25, 2015 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 6th Principle (World Community), America, Democracy, Nonviolence, Peace
  • A child I know, when asked this week whether she would answer the call of her elementary school principal to wear red, white and blue clothes on Thursday, was in a quandary. She put down the crayon with which she was painstakingly trying to squeeze the words Peace is Possible onto the white bars...
    Sermon | By Victoria Safford | January 21, 2015 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 6th Principle (World Community), Brokenness, Democracy, Nonviolence, Terrorism, War
  • To me democracy is an exciting, living practice, what we do every day. To most democracy doesn’t relate to our daily lives and it sure isn’t much fun. I now see that to engage in democracy, to jump into this living practice we all need something tangible to act on... Because food is our most...
    Quote | By Frances Moore Lappe | January 21, 2015 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Commitment, Democracy, Direct Experience, Food, Food Justice, Meaning
  • "If the only prayer you ever say in your entire life is 'Thank You,' it will be enough" — Meister Eckhart Today we have set aside time to publicly say thank you to our siblings who have served in the Air Force, Army, Coast Guard, Navy and Marines; to say 'Thank You' to all who served, whatev...
    Meditation | By Wren Bellavance-Grace | January 21, 2015 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Democracy, Healing, Service, Veterans Day, War
  • On April 25, the Supreme Court of the United States began hearing oral arguments about the constitutionality of Arizona’s S.B. 1070 law, a law that broadly targets undocumented immigrants. Many across the country, including Unitarian Universalists and other people of faith, anxiously awaited the...
    Meditation | By Marta I. Valentín | January 21, 2015 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 1st Principle (Worth & Dignity), 5th Principle (Conscience & Democracy), Compassion, Courage, Democracy, Freedom, Hope, Humanism, Immigration, Justice, Living Our Faith, Responsibility, Solidarity, Unitarian Universalism, Immigration
  • Once upon a time, there were these two pirates name of Calico Caesar and Barnacle Betty, and their parrots Flag and Sail. It was actually the parrots, which the pirates carried for good luck, who introduced these two pirates to one another. Because one day in Cayo Hueso (Key West), sitting on the...
    Story | By Naomi King | January 21, 2015 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 3rd Principle (Acceptance & Spiritual Growth), 5th Principle (Conscience & Democracy), Democracy, Generosity, Governance

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