The oldest stories tell us we came from the dust, and to dust we will return. But dirt? That’s different. Dust is fine, often even sterile. Dirt, on the other hand, is made up of messier stuff.

We are the recipients of an incredible gift and a beautiful vision.

A script for commissioning an affiliated community minister.

Let us bless these candles with our tender hopes for the coming year.

Today we celebrate the new name that reflects a truth long-hidden, now revealed.

The circle of evergreens reminds us that life and love will never end.

We give thanks to the Sacred, woven in and among us, for the teachers, youth advisors, youth mentors, and parents in our community.

May you feel the freedom to stretch fully into your most true self.

Your contributions are a tangible commitment to the mission and vision of this congregation.

We scatter these remains to the earth returning creation unto itself.

Now is the time for our financial offering. [Particular donation info, e.g. Donations can be made directly into the baskets being passed around, or online through our website, by mail, or by email. If you donate to the loose collection, then half of your donation will go to the congregation while...

May we know that the infinite web of life and love holds us all and holds all the stories.

May you know that your care is powerful.

Writing in a book—a hardback book! with pen!—goes against everything we’ve been taught, but now is the time to do it.

I am afraid and exhausted from the constant fear. I don’t know who to trust for information about the virus.

You are sacred, and that energy runs through your hands, through the hands of all Unitarian Universalists. You are part of that interdependent network.

Let’s breathe and remember that it is not the device that has value; the value is found in the connections which the device allows us to sustain.

Minister: At this time, we would like to introduce a special ritual. The holidays can be an especially poignant time of year. Alongside the joy in these present moments, we may recall fond memories of past celebrations with our loved ones....

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic is real for all of us, whether we are touched by it directly or indirectly. Some of us know people who have the virus, and its impact is getting closer as we learn of second cousins and friends of friends who have died of COVID-19....

Today we kick off Religious Education classes with [over number registered] children and youth in our congregation. [Number of volunteers] adult volunteers carry the sacred privilege and responsibility of journeying beside them on our behalf....

This ritual begins by lighting a candle from the chalice, and placing it in position. A list of supplies is at the end of this resource. One: Fire. Source of warmth and life for our ancestors; and for humans still today....

Note: This was written and led by co-ministers to celebrate the installation of a third minister in a different congregation. Please change pronouns as necessary. Leader 1: What a joy it is to be here today… and to celebrate the shared ministry of this congregation. It is, indeed shared ministry,...

Minister: The cultural and ethnical diversity in our region shapes our mission of providing religious education that is meaningful and relevant to our members and community. Our faith is a living one, co-created by the promises we make and keep. It is enlivened when we lift up all of the voices,...

This was written as a blessing for pouring out the Water Communion waters onto a memorial garden. Like water that swells rivers and fills the ocean, the memories of those we have loved rush through us. Sometimes they are quiet, almost as if we have forgotten—and then suddenly, they flood our...

Each week until Christmas, we light a new candle on the Advent wreath, a circle of evergreens.

Set up for this ritual: It's especially meaningful to have a congregant bake bread for communion. (If that’s not possible, store bought bread will do.) Cut the bread into cubes and place in baskets lined with napkins. Have a basket of gluten-free crackers available as well. To hold the juice, one...

First Sunday of Advent Minister: Unitarian Universalism is a faith with roots in Christianity. Some UUs today identify as Christians, others don’t; yet during the season of Advent we all have something we can find illuminating, comforting, challenging, or fulfilling by reinterpreting old...

In a few moments, there will be a splendid party celebrating (name)’s passage into young womanhood. At that time, she will receive a series of traditional gifts, symbolizing the duties as well as the privileges of her new status....

Presentation of quinceañera by parents: (Minister’s name), I, (parent), and I, (parent), present to the congregation of [congregation's name] and of our family and friends, our daughter, (name), upon the occasion of her 15th birthday. Today we acknowledge her transition from the role of our...

Let us ground ourselves in gratitude: using the colorful paper and something to write with, we prepare for our Gratitude Confetti ritual. Buddhist teacher Sharon Salzberg https://www.sharonsalzberg.com/on-being-column-the-hardship-we-accept/"…; I encourage myself to remember that being grateful...

We lean in expectation into all that is being born in us at this Holy time of the year...

May love guide us and be a creating force in our lives.

During Advent, we listen and keep vigil for the promise of things to come.

May this time of waiting inspire our courage.

Week by week, the candles remind us that fear and hopelessness recede as more warmth enters the world.

Every day in our world, people are feeling vulnerable, frightened, and heartbroken. For those [of us] who are Black, Indigenous, or people of color, the effects of racism and oppression are an everyday lived reality — and these feelings are not new....

While they were eating the Passover meal, Jesus took the bread in his hands and began to speak. “I am working to create infinite Justice, and I will never stop as long as I live.” He looked around at them. “But you know as well as I do that ‘as long as I live’ isn’t going to be very...

Introduction This ritual is a beginning, a starting point, a first step taken towards each other. You will blend words, music, and movement while embracing the power of elements taken from the natural world....

At the bottom of this page, you'll find suggestions for this ritual's sanctuary setting. Board Chair/President: This morning, we reconnect with our commitment to this congregation and to each other as members of this church. We ask that as members of [name of congregation], you re-affirm this...

The offering that we take each Sunday isn't just a stale habit: it's an opportunity to recommit to this place, and to this people. Our offering is an affirmation—a “yes.” When we give, we say yes to something we value. With our gifts, freely given, may we say yes to the values of our faith.

As we approach the time for our offering, give what you will: for the church that has meant so much to you, for the church that meant so much to those who came before you, and for the church that will mean so much to people you will never know. Give what you will, for you are a generous people.

This Releasing of Covenant was created to end the final worship service of a settled ministry. Minister: For [number] years you have offered me your free pulpit and the freedom of creativity in worship, gifts for which I’m grateful. I hereby return the ministry of worship to your able hands. Use...

This hands-on ritual could be used to celebrate Earth Day, a Solstice, or an Equinox. Before the service begins, set up a table or two (or more) with several stations for people to plant seeds....

I come on Sunday feeling weary, having worn out the snooze button on my alarm clock. I come on Sunday feeling frightened, having seared my eyes reading the latest news. I come on Sunday feeling burdened, having fretted about my work day worries....

We give to remind ourselves how many gifts we have to offer. We give to remember that we are part of something bigger than ourselves. We give because we believe in music and sacred space. We give with the faith that, together, we have enough.

This religious community exists by its mission as a fire exists by burning. But a fire cannot burn without fuel. And it is the time, the energy, the imagination, the vision, the creativity, the compassion, the love, and the financial support of the members and friends of this community that fuels...

A religious community is like a river formed from the many streams of our lives that meet and merge and flow to the sea....

The light of our chalice would soon flicker and die without the oil that nourishes its flame. And just as this flame cannot burn without oil, this religious community cannot survive or thrive without the financial, as well as personal, support of its members and friends—the oil that keeps the...

The new year calls us forward, filled with mystery. As we turn toward that new year, we take a final glimpse of the past year, and reckon with all that it held for us. There are baskets moving through the aisles with pens and something called flash paper. It’s specially treated paper that...

Our [congregation name] ancestors are the ones who physically bought this land*, built some of our buildings, raised the money to create this space. They're also the ones who made sure there was a safe and welcoming community, who created a religious education program to promote justice and...