Once upon a time, there was a small village on the edge of a river. Life in the village was busy. There were people growing food and people teaching the children to make blankets and people making meals....

Have you ever thought of our faith as an ancestral tree? It can be awe-inspiring to see the numerous roots and branches that make up our religious family. The "roots" of the tree are the values we hold dear, such as reason, tolerance, and freedom, hope, faith and love....

(Leader: Invite the group to join you in singing the chorus of "Follow the Drinking Gourd." Teach the words and tune, if needed. Tell them that any time during the story they hear you start to sing, they should join in.) ...

Session 14 has been removed from the Love Will Guide Us program while UUA staff evaluate it for revision. The session, focused on a Universalist missionary who worked in India, was in conflict with the UUA's commitment to dismantling white supremacy.

Adapted from Stories in Faith by Gail Forsyth-Vail, a Tapestry of Faith Toolkit book (Boston: UUA, 2007). Used with permission. Once there was a little girl named Cecilia who fell in love with the universe....

About two hundred years ago, lots of people in North America and in Europe were discovering all kinds of wondrous things in the ground. They found coal to burn for fuel, iron for making machinery, nickel for creating tools and candlesticks and other useful items....

Activity time: 15 minutes Preparation for Activity Invite a long-time member of your congregation to come share recollections of the congregation's history. Explain the Rev. David Pettee's story of seeking his family's truth, and give them the story "Hard Truths" to read. Make sure the guest is...

Activity time: 15 minutes Materials for Activity A copy of the story, "Joseph Tuckerman's Revolution" Preparation for Activity Read the story several times so you are comfortable telling it to the group. Review the discussion questions and choose those that will best help the children share their...

Activity time: 20 minutes Materials for Activity Long roll of blank paper Different colors of permanent markers Paper and pencils Church history resources, such as newsletters, annual reports, or one or two adults who can tell about events over a significant period of time Adhesive to hold the...

I want to tell you the story of Adin Ballou. He was born over two hundred years ago. He grew up to be a peacemaker and a Universalist minister, but he didn't start out wanting to be either. When Adin was seven years old, he went with his family to watch a company of militia out for a parade. They...

In 1779, more than two hundred years ago, a girl named Maria Cook was born in New York State. When she was born, the Americans were fighting the British in the War for Independence. The Americans wanted to have their own country where they could be independent and free to make their own decisions...

Clyde had finished his farm chores. Now he was free to spend the rest of the evening doing his favorite thing: stargazing. He got out his telescope and he looked up into the night sky. While he looked at the moon and the stars he wondered about the universe....

One morning, more than a hundred years ago on the island of Jamaica, a boy named Ethelred Brown went to church. Usually at this church, the people sang their creed, their list of what they believed....