Among other wonders of our lives, we are alive with one another, we live here in the light of this unlikely world that isn’t ours for long. May we spend generously the time we are given. May we enact our responsibilities as thoroughly as we enjoy our pleasures....

Hallelujah! is a dangerous word, especially in the mouths of the creatively maladjusted.* Hallelujah! is a dangerous word, for it comes always with an exclamation point. Hallelujah!...

“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.

Holy One, Emmanuel, You are with us and we with You, now on the eve of a birth like no other, and a birth exactly like all others. We ponder the dreams and foretelling—royalty, savior, the light of the world. Revolution and possibility wrapped in helplessness and vulnerability.…

I wanted so badly to break free and let loose—but I just couldn't. I was stuck in my own false ideas of the congregation's expectations of me. Luckily, there’s still time.

Hold fast to summer. Enjoy with heightened appreciation these still-warm September days. Create more memories, take more pictures. Enjoy a bit of denial. Suck all the summer sweetness out of your sun-warmed garden tomatoes. Smile at someone. Squeeze a hand. Put up some jam or pickles....

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

“It takes a village to raise a child. It takes a child with autism to raise the consciousness of the village.” —Elaine Hall, educator and parenting coach My three-year-old is almost completely nonverbal. Every day when she gets off the bus, I ask her the same question: I ask her how her day...

Fire consumes, and casts a bright light. May our chalice flame consume our regrets for the past, our fears about the future, and our worries about today. May it light for us a path of joy and peace.

Joy Unspeakable is not silent, it moans, hums, and bends to the rhythm of a dancing universe…. For our free African ancestors, joy unspeakable is drum talk… For enslaved Africans during the Middle Passage, joy unspeakable is the surprise of living one more day… For Africans in bondage in the...

Life is full of seesaws: it offers us moments of extreme wonder and moments of fear. Sometimes you have to live through the fear for the wonder to arrive.

At last, we are here. After a long winter, we can say enthusiastically and without second thought, alleluia! Alleluia, spring is here in all her glory. New life begins, the earth and its creatures are resurrected from their dens of hibernation and dark slumber....

Come into this place with your whole self – the parts that are raw and exposed; the part that is beaming with joy; the part that is seeking the truth, the new, the possibility. Come into this place – open your heart, lay down your burden, lift up your hope – for something new to happen. Come...

‘I hope this inspires Unitarian Universalists to really act, to resist racism, to resist homophobia, to resist hate, and to resist so many forms of injustice.’

May whatever gatherings or activities we engage in this Sunday afternoon help restore us — our connections to one another; our sense of hope, beauty, and fun in this world; our deep knowing that we have to take care of ourselves and each other with love and joy if we are to soulfully survive the...

Out of the darkness, light. Out of the light, warmth. Out of the warmth, joy. Out of the joy, togetherness. May this flame hold us for the time we are here with one another.

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...

Spirit of life and of love, Mystery that connects us all, We give thanks for this day For this gathering of bicyclists (and those who support them)—strong and vibrant. On this day, as they set out on their ride, we pray that they will be safe....

Spirit of life and love, may we find appreciation today, and in our lives, for our embodiment. We are physical creatures: mind, spirit and soul housed within our bodies. Our bodies, our physical form, allow us to experience the world: Taste—chocolate chip cookies fresh from the oven. Touch—the...

This prayer's author suggests that for each paragraph of the prayer, an accompanist (on piano or some other instrument) softly play the hymn that's indicated at stanza's end. For clarity, these instructions are included below....