You have given us a day unique from any other.

If we believe in the promise of our faith, we must continue pushing forward.

Change can be uncomfortable. Like any time we learn a new technology, it can take a little while to adjust.

We face a challenge to democracy.

We hold in our hearts those who aspire to move from age-ing to sage-ing.

May we tend our Soul Fire through these challenging and trying times

White supremacy culture tells me that I’m only "good" if I’m perfect, treating all falls as hard stops.

Grief is welcome, a sacred part of the mourning.

We light this chalice today as a people dedicated to personal growth.

Every time someone showed up for me, I learned that love is greater than skin deep.

Though we experience discomfort, we are excited to give birth to a new, just world.

Let it be said by generations to come that when the pain of our separation was revealed, we moved closer to the promised land of our beloved community.

At the core of American racism is the belief that the things we the Blacks desire, the fact that we the Blacks desire, are perversions.

This is a prayer for working parents zooming another meeting with a little face joining in; for new parents, waiting for new life without support; for the single parents, doing all this alone.

What once seemed certain is now unpredictable, even dangerous.

In every person we meet, especially those who cause us discomfort, we find an opportunity for us to grow, to learn, to go further along the path of transformation that is our purpose in life. Every single one is our teacher. May the next week bring you many such moments of meeting that help you...

This group blessing is designed to be shared by many voices or read by just one. Alex suggests creating an altar with a chalice and testing supplies (which are then distributed to students as they need them). Speaker 1: We have come to the end of the quarter/semester/year. An end to these classes.

As a hospital chaplain, I often listen to painful stories. We call it compassionate presence, but I may be crying inside. When words fail, I pray and sing.

This recipe has been tweaked over time, so adjust as necessary. Sometimes it yields more servings than anticipated. Sometimes it needs a bit more of this ingredient or that. It comes from generations who have gone before me, and I've added my own flavor along the way. A Recipe for Resilience One...

When I say go in peace, I don’t mean “go in mindless oblivion.” When I say go in peace, I don’t mean “go without challenging yourself or others.” When I say go in peace, I don’t mean “go in utter ease and comfort.” When I say go in peace, I mean “go in peace, seeking justice.”...

This Message for All Ages requires its leader to feel comfortable soliciting answers from the congregation—both children and adults—and then reframe or summarize each response for all to hear. Will you play a game of “Let’s Pretend” with me? It goes like this: You’re on a television game...

Spirit of Life, help us to be present with all that is our life, both our deepest sorrows and our greatest joys, so that we can truly live: engaging fully in our own life and in our community. Spirit of Community, Help us know how linked we are, how each one of our cares touches us all....

North, South, East, and West, Angel, visible, ahead of me, Angels hidden by forests around me, And everywhere God....

God of Many Names, Mystery Beyond All Our Naming – Lift us above the divisions, Move us beyond inaction, And heal us that we may know our wholeness, within and together. As we emerge from this week’s election, A time of regrouping, of celebration and despair, let us continue on. May the...

This work isn’t all prayers and beautiful moments, nor is it laments and trauma. It’s not even both/and, because this work is something greater than you, greater than us, greater than the whole of those we serve. This work is a calling. And we’re doing it. Day after day, night after night,...

Holy Mystery Silent Presence Uncertain Bearer of the Weight of It All In these quiet moments we listen We listen for the maybe still breathing, perhaps still whispering Faintest sign of the Universal Good We listen between the cacophony of distractions pulling us towards untruth and falsehood We...

Here’s a quiz about time travel posed by a friend of mine: Suppose you had a time machine but it only went back in time to specific events. If you used the time machine, you could only be a witness; you could not influence the events in any way and no one would be aware of your presence....

This is a prayer for when words fail, for when they are not big enough or small enough to slip into the little cracks left in our hearts by life’s unbearable pressures....

In the days ahead, many of us will gather with family and friends, people with whom we may have long and complicated relationships. It helps to prepare. Let us enter into the spirit of prayer or meditation. Dear Spirit, Great Mystery that has blessed us with Life, help us to feel grateful....

Mystery of the Universe – Ground of our very Being, Truly it is said that you make the sun rise, and the life giving rains fall, on both the just and the unjust And in that way, yours is an abounding grace, and we give our thanks. But it is also true that none of us are ever really spared –...

Spirit of Life, ever adapting and renewing, we come together this morning with yearnings that do not match: We yearn for stability, for even one moment of feeling like we know what is going on, for the ability to predict and prepare for what is coming next. Yet we also yearn for change....

We call forth the life of our faith by igniting our chalice. This spark of new beginnings invites us into a sacred space to reflect where we have been and where we are going. Even knowing that this particular flame will intentionally end with our ritual extinguishing, we fear not its end… For we...

Hallelujah! As the spring sun coaxes lilies and bluebonnets from the soil, Let us celebrate that even after murderous betrayal, After days and nights suspended in torture, When all the world has gone dark and we cried out, “Why have You forsaken me?”—even then, there is a sunrise. Even then,...

I choose to believe in community. I choose to believe in the difficult, slow work of building a common life.

“Now,” the yoga instructor said, “begin to chant GOD GOD GOD as you vigorously circle your arms.” Oh boy, I thought, Here we go. Of course it couldn’t just be arm circles.

Let us hold a quiet moment together as our chalice is lit. As the wild wind bites, so does the still flame warm us. As the deep snows block our doors, so does the gentle flame bring us out....

An adequate Christmas would have you calm and open, taking it in, accepting whatever is. Slow it all down like you might be, in some way, attuned to the pace of the Eternal. If you need, you can fake it at first.

The freedom to doubt, to question, to be content to live in Mystery is central to the liberal religious tradition. Like the process of evolution itself, the path that we follow—our practice—is not easy or simple. It isn’t without its dead ends or its disappointments. It doesn't guarantee that...

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...

How many times do I need to make mistakes before I’m ready to admit that I’m not any better at this than the bigoted and willfully ignorant?

"I went back to church thinking that it would be like an epidural, like it would take the pain away… that church would make the pain go away. Faith and church was not an epidural for me at all; it was like a midwife who just stood next to me saying, 'Push. It’s supposed to hurt a little bit.'"...

What if everything always went according to plan? At first, we might accomplish more of what we think we need to accomplish. And it may seem less stressful, at first, being able to anticipate what happens next. But after a certain amount of time (and that amount would vary person to person) the...

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.

These are anxious days. Hair-pulling, hand-wringing days. We are bombarded from all sides with new and unprecedented developments. Grave threats to our national values and institutions on one hand, and countless calls to action on the other... and then the flood of critique and analysis. Whose...

.I want liberty and justice for all in my country. That will ask of me—and of many of you—the discipline of discomfort.

We kindle a flame we trust will lead us forward as we travel in unknown lands, where the question, “Shall I ever get there?” resounds: A clear pure note in every silence. Note: this chalice lighting is based on reading #486 by Dag Hammarskjöld in Singing the Living Tradition.

In times of darkness we stumble towards the tiny flame. In times of cold we seek the warming fire. In times of repression we reach for the lamp of truth. In times of loss we pray for the comforting light. In times of joy we light a candle of celebration....

Each person (mostly children but some adults will have brought their backpacks too) comes forward with their backpack and stands in a group. The prayer follows, then worship associates give each person a “luggage tag” bearing a flaming chalice logo. Spirit of Life and Hope and Love, for many of...

Love is the aspiration, the spirit that moves and inspires this faith we share. Rightly understood, love can nurture our spirits and transform the world....

There is too much hardship in this world to not find joy, every day There is too much injustice in this world to not right the balance, every day There is too much pain in this world to not heal, every day Each of us ministers to a weary world....