To search for resources that support March's Soul Matter theme of Transformation, toggle the red arrow below and search for Spiritual Themes of: Transformation, Change, Endings, Beginnings, Searching.
Toggle to filter resultsAvailable filters:
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 - 50 of 55
-
Fear not, the angels would text me. Hallelujah, I’d write back.Reflection | By Marcus Liefert | December 20, 2023 | From Braver/WiserTagged as: Advent, Awe, Children, Christianity, Christmas Eve / Christmas, Direct Experience, Family, Hope, Parents, Wonder, Worship -
What’s your most memorable story about getting lost? What do you remember about finding your way home?Reflection | By Erika Hewitt | March 15, 2023 | From Braver/WiserTagged as: 4th Principle (Truth & Meaning), Connections, Despair, Direct Experience, Home, Hope, Humanism, Journey, Searching, Worship -
Our family secret is soul-sucking depression.Reading | By Kate Landis | October 18, 2022 | From WorshipWebTagged as: Depression, Direct Experience, Family, Healing, Hope, Love, Mental Health, Secular, Truth, WorshipWeb, Worship -
I am afraid and exhausted from the constant fear. I don’t know who to trust for information about the virus.Ritual | By Kate Landis | March 16, 2021 | From WorshipWebTagged as: #COVID19, Brokenness, Death, Direct Experience, Disaster or Crisis, Grief, Healing, Hope, Secular, Solidarity, WorshipWeb, Worship -
The stories remind us there is still and always joy in this world, but it usually comes right alongside the struggle.Reflection | By Elea Kemler | December 16, 2020 | From Braver/WiserTagged as: Advent, Christianity, Christmas Eve / Christmas, Direct Experience, Hope, Joy, Searching, Worship -
I hope that this Great Silence, which has come alongside the suffering, holds the beginnings of our healing.Reflection | By Elea Kemler | May 6, 2020 | From Braver/WiserTagged as: 1st Principle (Worth & Dignity), 2nd Principle (Justice, Equity, & Compassion), 4th Principle (Truth & Meaning), Balance, Beauty, Body, Direct Experience, Earth-Centered, Hope, Humanism, Imagination, Nature, Presence, Prophetic Words & Deeds, Secular, Spring -
I’m confident in our human ability to together muscle our way into renewing our world.Reflection | By Aram Mitchell | April 1, 2020 | From Braver/WiserTagged as: #COVID19, 4th Principle (Truth & Meaning), 7th Principle (Interconnected Web), Community, Direct Experience, Doubt, Fear, Hope, Humanism, Interdependence, Searching, Secular -
Here I am, God, here I am. Here I am with the dishes in the sink, the dust on the shelves, the skin on my hands which is drying out and starting to crack. My appetite has gone, without any other bodies to remind my body of itself. I can pray for salvation but my bones know this is all there is....Poetry | By Peregrine Morkal-Williams | March 31, 2020 | From WorshipWebTagged as: #COVID19, Brokenness, Direct Experience, God, Hope, Presence -
We're grateful to Linda Hirschhorn for sharing her song, created in March 2020 and inspired a Bertolt Brecht quote: "In the dark times will there also be singing? Yes, there will also be singing about the dark times.” Linda invites your feedback...Music | By Linda Hirschhorn | March 23, 2020 | From WorshipWebTagged as: #COVID19, 4th Principle (Truth & Meaning), Arts & Music, Direct Experience, Hope, Humanism, Secular, Spiritual Practice -
Thresholds. We cross them every day. From room to room, from outside to inside, and back again, from here to there, from anywhere to everywhere, from age to age. Each threshold offers an opportunity for change, for renewal, for transformation, from what we were and what we are to what we can be....Opening | By Arlen Goff | January 2, 2020 | From WorshipWebTagged as: 1st Principle (Worth & Dignity), 3rd Principle (Acceptance & Spiritual Growth), 4th Principle (Truth & Meaning), Beginnings, Change, Community, Direct Experience, Ending, Hope, Humanism, Progress, Secular, Transformation -
This is the beauty and sparkle of spiritual communities: needs arise and beloveds appear to ask, “How can I help?” There’s no fixed timeline, just the spiritual practices of generosity and stewardship.Reflection | By Rebekah Savage | October 16, 2019 | From Braver/WiserTagged as: 4th Principle (Truth & Meaning), Balance, Direct Experience, Discernment, Hope, Humanism, Interdependence, Purpose, Responsibility, Secular, Stewardship, Unitarian Universalism -
The wellspring of decency is loving this life in which people die, people suffer, there are limits, and we make mistakes. The wellspring, then, of moral action is not utopia, not a counterfactual vision, not a declaration that the world could and should be otherwise....Reading | By Sharon D. Welch | August 31, 2019 | From WorshipWebTagged as: Activism, Balance, Character, Commitment, Direct Experience, Ethics, Gratitude, Hope, Integrity, Justice, Purpose, Seven Principles -
What could you accomplish this week if you knew you had a ground team wishing you well? Who are the other explorers around you, needing a word of encouragement that would mean so much coming from you?Reflection | By Monica Dobbins | March 13, 2019 | From Braver/WiserTagged as: 3rd Principle (Acceptance & Spiritual Growth), 4th Principle (Truth & Meaning), Community, Direct Experience, Friendship, Hope, Humanism, Relationships, Science, Secular, Vulnerability -
This is a story of in-the-middle for those wondering how their story ends.Reflection | By Robin Tanner | August 29, 2018 | From Braver/WiserTagged as: 3rd Principle (Acceptance & Spiritual Growth), 4th Principle (Truth & Meaning), Choice, Direct Experience, Fear, Hope, Humanism, Illness, Limitations, Parents, Psychology, Searching, Secular, Solidarity, Worry -
Spirit of Love, hold us in your embrace. Offer comfort to [NAME] and all who love [her/him/them] as [she/he/they] move[s] through [her/his/their] final days. Help us look upon What Has Been with compassion and remind us that every minute of life is one more than we’ve been promised. Spirit of...Prayer | By Lindasusan Ulrich | May 30, 2018 | From WorshipWebTagged as: 1st Principle (Worth & Dignity), 7th Principle (Interconnected Web), Change, Death, Direct Experience, Ending, Grief, Hope, Humanism, Secular, Sorrow, Transcendence, Unitarian Universalism -
In real life, we can only place the pieces, one by one, and see what kind of picture we create. Sometimes we turn out to have chosen the wrong piece. Sometimes the picture is wildly unexpected.Reflection | By Amanda Poppei | April 4, 2018 | From Braver/WiserTagged as: Bridging Ceremony, Calling, Choice, Coming of Age, Coming-of-Age, Contemplation, Courage, Direct Experience, Discernment, Hope, Humanism, Journey, Playfulness, Searching, Secular -
You whose hearts are broken, come in. You whom pain has touched, and sorrow, and shock. You who have cried this week, and read the news with sadness. You whom loss has shadowed. You who grieve. Come in, come in. You with hearts open to joy and hope, come in. You whom love has touched, and...Opening | By Sharon Wylie | November 21, 2017 | From WorshipWebTagged as: 1st Principle (Worth & Dignity), 2nd Principle (Justice, Equity, & Compassion), 3rd Principle (Acceptance & Spiritual Growth), Brokenness, Challenge, Community, Despair, Direct Experience, Disaster or Crisis, Hope, Inclusion, Interdependence -
We light our flaming chalice as a beloved people united in love and thirsting for restorative justice. May it melt away the tethers that uphold whiteness in our midst. May it spark in us a spirit of humility. May it ignite in us radical love that transforms our energy into purposeful action....Chalice Lighting | By Rebekah Savage | October 15, 2017 | From WorshipWebTagged as: Anti-Oppression, Commitment, Community, Direct Experience, Hope, Integrity, Living Our Faith, Multiculturalism, Race/Ethnicity, Reconciliation, Unitarian Universalism
-
We, the willing, follow the threads to one another; past rightness and quips and tweets. We will find one another and persist past sunrise.Reflection | By Robin Tanner | October 4, 2017 | From Braver/WiserTagged as: 1st Principle (Worth & Dignity), 2nd Principle (Justice, Equity, & Compassion), Children, Despair, Direct Experience, Disaster, Disaster or Crisis, Hope, Humanism, Parents, Salvation, Secular, Unitarian Universalism, Violence, Vision -
One: Despair is sapping our spirits, damaging our souls, hurting our hearts. Many: We need to be resurrected into hope, faith, and trust. Today, may we be resurrected. One: Violence is shortening our lives and robbing us of our joy. Many: We need to be resurrected into peace and its many blessings.Responsive Reading | By Amanda Udis-Kessler | September 12, 2017 | From WorshipWebTagged as: 3rd Principle (Acceptance & Spiritual Growth), Brokenness, Despair, Direct Experience, Failure, Good Friday, Grace, Hope, Redemption, Salvation -
When the angel Gabriel brought to Mary the news that she would give birth to a son, Luke records that “she was much perplexed by his words and pondered what sort of greeting this might be.” The angel said to Mary, [response:] Do not be afraid. When an angel appeared before the shepherds living...Responsive Reading | By Andrew Millard | August 18, 2017 | From WorshipWebTagged as: Awe, Christianity, Community, Despair, Direct Experience, Faith, Fear, Hope, Solidarity, Tradition, Unity -
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/WiserTagged as: Activism, Agnosticism, America, Atheism, Commitment, Community, Democracy, Direct Experience, Hope, Humanism, Interdependence, Race/Ethnicity, Secular, Solidarity -
As we enter another week of uncertainty in the world, let us remember that there is only one side – that of humanity, and planet Earth. May we pray for peace; may we raise our voices with our elected officials and engage as we can in acts of resistance; and may we remember to take very good care...Closing | By Debra Haffner | August 12, 2017 | From WorshipWebTagged as: 2nd Principle (Justice, Equity, & Compassion), 6th Principle (World Community), 7th Principle (Interconnected Web), Activism, Direct Experience, Fear, Hope, Living Our Faith, Love, Secular, Unitarian Universalism -
"Hopelessness is the enemy of justice." —Bryan Stevenson, in his 2017 Ware Lecture...Quote | By Bryan Stevenson | June 27, 2017 | From WorshipWebTagged as: 2nd Principle (Justice, Equity, & Compassion), 6th Principle (World Community), Anti-Oppression, Despair, Direct Experience, Hope, Humanism, Justice, Living Our Faith, Purpose, Secular, Unitarian Universalism
-
I am not alone. I don’t have to face the world alone and I don’t have to fix the world alone. When I need hope, I find it in on the faces of my people. All we need is hope... and for that, we have each other.Reflection | By Sean Parker Dennison | June 7, 2017 | From Braver/WiserTagged as: Activism, Community, Connections, Direct Experience, Hope, Relationships -
Believe that further shore Is reachable from here. Believe in miracle And cures and healing wells. —Seamus Heaney, “The Cure at Troy” With a name like mine, it’s easy to guess I’m Irish. My forebears were among the millions who struggled to escape Ireland’s disastrous Potato...Reflection | By Maureen Killoran | March 22, 2017 | From Braver/WiserTagged as: Direct Experience, Family, Generations, History, Hope, Immigration -
There we were, two strangers idling at the red light―but I felt seen, and blessed, by a stranger.Reflection | By Erika Hewitt | March 15, 2017 | From Braver/WiserTagged as: 4th Principle (Truth & Meaning), Body, Courage, Direct Experience, Healing, Hope, Humanism, Illness, Interdependence, Kindness, Mystery, Secular -
No matter how weak or how frightened we may feel, we each have gifts that can make a difference in the world. In this coming week, may you do at least one thing to support the broken; to welcome the stranger; to celebrate what is worthy; to do the work of justice and love. Be strong. Be connected.Benediction | By Maureen Killoran | February 7, 2017 | From WorshipWebTagged as: 1st Principle (Worth & Dignity), 2nd Principle (Justice, Equity, & Compassion), 6th Principle (World Community), Calling, Caring, Challenge, Direct Experience, Hope, Prophetic Words & Deeds, Service, Unitarian Universalism -
Give voice to sorrow and fear — the wracking sobs at family betraying family the shock at the chasm separating neighbors “What will you do in the days ahead?” one asked. “Hide in an attic,” another replied, her eyes as wide and dark as Anne Frank’s. Already the assaults on bodies have...Meditation | By Lindasusan Ulrich | January 19, 2017 | From WorshipWebTagged as: 1st Principle (Worth & Dignity), 2nd Principle (Justice, Equity, & Compassion), 5th Principle (Conscience & Democracy), 7th Principle (Interconnected Web), America, Anti-Oppression, Community, Courage, Direct Experience, Dissent, Fear, Hope, Living Our Faith, Politics, Prophetic Words & Deeds, Solidarity, Unitarian Universalism -
“Suddenly summoned to witness something great and horrendous, we kept fighting not to reduce it to our own smallness.” —John Updike, “Tuesday, and After,” The New Yorker, September 24, 2001 We sat on the back steps watching transfixed as hundreds of rust-red spiders, big as thumbs, dropped...Reflection | By Teresa Honey Youngblood | January 18, 2017 | From Braver/WiserTagged as: 2nd Principle (Justice, Equity, & Compassion), 7th Principle (Interconnected Web), Balance, Brokenness, Courage, Despair, Direct Experience, Earth-Centered, Hope, Nature, Solidarity, Unity, Violence -
(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 WorshipWebTagged as: 2nd Principle (Justice, Equity, & Compassion), 5th Principle (Conscience & Democracy), America, Democracy, Direct Experience, Hope, Secular, Service, Spiritual Practice -
Christmas doesn’t wimp out when times are hard – it comes anyway, even if there are hardly any presents.Reflection | By Kendyl L. R. Gibbons | November 22, 2016 | From WorshipWebTagged as: 2nd Principle (Justice, Equity, & Compassion), 3rd Principle (Acceptance & Spiritual Growth), 4th Principle (Truth & Meaning), 6th Principle (World Community), Activism, Advent, Anti-Oppression, Change, Christianity, Christmas Eve / Christmas, Creativity, Direct Experience, Hope, Tradition -
How is it with your soul? This is the question that John Wesley, Anglican priest and the founder of Methodism, was known to ask of participants in small reflection groups. I ask you because, for me, this has been a hard week. So, beloveds, how is it with your souls?...Affirmation | By Ashley Horan | November 9, 2016 | From WorshipWebTagged as: 1st Principle (Worth & Dignity), 7th Principle (Interconnected Web), Activism, Anti-Oppression, Community, Despair, Direct Experience, Disaster or Crisis, Hope, Interdependence, Self-Care, Self-Respect, Spirituality, Unitarian Universalism, Unity -
We light this chalice in honor of Life’s sacred dance of living and dying. May its flame remind us of those who have passed to us fragments of holiness. May it remind us that we too are participants in the dance. inspired by Wendell Berry and Sara Moores Campbell...Chalice Lighting | By Joanne Giannino | November 4, 2016 | From WorshipWebTagged as: Commitment, Death, Direct Experience, Generations, History, Hope, Humanism -
This welcome was written for a Sunday after a national crisis. Whether you’re here because worshiping with us is part of your routine or whether you feel like our country has been stopped in its tracks and it’s impossible to return to normalcy, on this morning we gather to proclaim that we...Welcome | By Erika Hewitt | July 10, 2016 | From WorshipWebTagged as: 3rd Principle (Acceptance & Spiritual Growth), Anger, Balance, Connections, Despair, Direct Experience, Disaster or Crisis, Hope, Humanism, Mourning, Pain, Purpose, Relationships, Transcendence, Unitarian Universalism -
What makes us human beings so uniquely wonderful in this puzzling universe is that we never give up on love. Against all odds, with no guarantee of being loved in return, out of the hate and hurt so often handed us, in the face of the sad suffering history has let us see, we go on loving....Quote | By David Richo | May 19, 2016 | From WorshipWebTagged as: 1st Principle (Worth & Dignity), 3rd Principle (Acceptance & Spiritual Growth), Beginnings, Connections, Courage, Direct Experience, Hope, Love, Meaning, New Child, New Year, Relationships, Respect, Self-Respect, Valentine's Day, Wonder -
For all those who celebrate the resurrection of Jesus, may this day be another affirmation of divine love and promise; For all those who see the eternal story of new spring and life beginning anew, may you breathe deeply of a season of promise and hope. For all who are experiencing despair or...Closing | By Alex Holt | April 4, 2016 | From WorshipWebTagged as: 3rd Principle (Acceptance & Spiritual Growth), 4th Principle (Truth & Meaning), Acceptance, Beginnings, Christianity, Courage, Direct Experience, Easter, Hope -
If we lived in another climate Our souls might speak other languages We might speak oasis or permafrost, dry season or monsoon But our souls speak spring Our souls speak green shoots pushing through last year’s leaves Our souls speak flower buds stretching to sun Our souls speak mud puddle and...Opening | By Evin Carvill Ziemer | March 23, 2016 | From WorshipWebTagged as: 7th Principle (Interconnected Web), Direct Experience, Earth, Earth-Centered, Easter, Growth, Hope, Nature, Passover (Pesach), Spring, Vernal Equinox -
Today we share in a blessing for losers, risk-takers, all failures far and wide.... Blessed are they who fall in the mud, who jump with gusto and rip the pants, who skin the elbows, and bruise the ego, for they shall know the sweetness of risk. Blessed are they who make giant mistakes, whose...Blessing | By Robin Tanner | February 2, 2016 | From WorshipWebTagged as: 3rd Principle (Acceptance & Spiritual Growth), Compassion, Courage, Direct Experience, Failure, Forgiveness, Hope, Humility, Integrity, Justice, Kindness, Wisdom -
Holy grandparents of the Universe...energies of creation...endless mysteries of life: You are the music that sounded before our world was born, sound and silence woven throughout the ages, far beyond the most profound wisdom humanity has been able to touch....Prayer | By Maureen Killoran | January 25, 2016 | From WorshipWebTagged as: 7th Principle (Interconnected Web), Awe, Connections, Direct Experience, Earth-Centered, Hope, Humility, Paganism, Prayer Practices, Presence, Transcendence, Wonder, WorshipWeb -
Spirit of Life, Source of all, to this beautiful place to this hallowed time and in the midst of this kindred company we bring hearts broken yet again by senseless violence....Prayer | By Kristin Grassel Schmidt | December 1, 2015 | From WorshipWebTagged as: 2nd Principle (Justice, Equity, & Compassion), 6th Principle (World Community), Brokenness, Despair, Direct Experience, Disaster or Crisis, Grace, Hope, Terrorism, Unitarian Universalism -
A man sits on the rubble— not just in the rubble, but on the pile of what remains. No people in the bombed-out houses. No dogs. No birds. Just ragged hunks of concrete and loss. And on his perch he is playing an instrument constructed of what is left—an olive oil can, a broom handle, a bowed...Poetry | By Lynn Ungar | November 20, 2015 | From WorshipWebTagged as: Arts & Music, Direct Experience, Grief, Healing, Hope, Humanism, War, Wholeness -
We, all of us, build houses for our dreams.. The masonry and lumber, glass and tiles, A solid form, wherein we see our hopes, A shelter and protection for our growth....Blessing | By Dori J. Somers | October 15, 2015 | From WorshipWebTagged as: 1st Principle (Worth & Dignity), 3rd Principle (Acceptance & Spiritual Growth), 4th Principle (Truth & Meaning), Building/Space Dedication, Community, Courage, Dignity, Direct Experience, Growth, Home, Hope, Inclusion, Integrity, Love, Relationships, Unitarian Universalism -
And so we gather, from the ebb and flow of our lives Thirsty for connection to ourselves Thirsty for connection to others Thirsty for connection to the larger life. As we light this chalice May all who gather here be filled: Filled with joy and hope Filled with compassion and love Here, may we be...Chalice Lighting | By Gregory Pelley | September 15, 2015 | From WorshipWebTagged as: 1st Principle (Worth & Dignity), 2nd Principle (Justice, Equity, & Compassion), 3rd Principle (Acceptance & Spiritual Growth), 6th Principle (World Community), Agnosticism, Body, Community, Compassion, Connections, Direct Experience, Earth, Homecoming / Ingathering, Hope, Humanism, Joy, Love, Nature, Searching, Secular, Unitarian Universalism, Water Communion, WorshipWeb -
This is a ritual of caring for one another, couched in terms of struggle and hope.Ritual | By Erika Hewitt | July 24, 2015 | From WorshipWebTagged as: 3rd Principle (Acceptance & Spiritual Growth), 4th Principle (Truth & Meaning), Connections, Direct Experience, Hope, Pain, Relationships, Strength, Vulnerability -
This is a house of reflection and contemplation, of joy and sorrow, friendship, sharing and laughter. We light this chalice in remembrance of what we have been and in the hope of what we may become.Chalice Lighting | By Dale Hudson | June 19, 2015 | From WorshipWebTagged as: Commitment, Community, Connections, Direct Experience, Friendship, History, Hope, Joy, Reconciliation, Relationships, Sorrow -
Spirit of life and death, Thou who art as present to us in our suffering As in our wellbeing, Abide with us in this permeable time Between dusk and dark. Soothe the secret pains we carry. Bless us with the courage to move toward our grief And not away. When all is hidden— When we find ourselves...Prayer | By Celie Katovitch | June 12, 2015 | From WorshipWebTagged as: Brokenness, Christianity, Direct Experience, Doubt, Faith, God, Good Friday, Grief, Hope, Mourning, Shadow, WorshipWeb -
We traveled long We traveled far To be right here Where we are Reach out a hand No need to fear 'Cause all we need Right HereMusic | By Sam Turton | May 28, 2015 | From WorshipWebTagged as: Abundance, Community, Connections, Direct Experience, Hope, Humanism, Love, Purpose, Relationships, Strength, Unity
-
I’m going to talk about something really powerful today: HOPE. And first, I have a question. Have you ever hoped for something? … and did the thing you hoped for happen? [Take responses.] I think that hope is kinda like these: [Pass around basket of acorns and invite children to take one to hold...Time for All Ages | By Martha Dallas | May 12, 2015 | From WorshipWebTagged as: 3rd Principle (Acceptance & Spiritual Growth), 4th Principle (Truth & Meaning), Autumnal Equinox, Caring, Change, Direct Experience, Earth-Centered, Growth, Hope, Lammas, Self-Care, Summer Solstice, Transformation, Vernal Equinox, WorshipWeb -
This was created as a Message for All Ages for a service honoring Yom Ha’Shoah, the Jewish holiday for Holocaust Remembrance. In 2016, Yom Ha'Shoah begins on the evening of Wednesday, May 4th and ends on the evening of Thursday, May 5th. Once there was a place that was very bleak and dreary. All...Time for All Ages | By Martha Dallas | May 12, 2015 | From WorshipWebTagged as: Beauty, Connections, Direct Experience, Food, Generosity, History, Holocaust Remembrance / Yom Ha'Shoah, Hope, Judaism, Prophetic Words & Deeds, Secular, WorshipWeb