Unitarian Universalists honor and celebrate a wide range of holidays and occasions over the course of a year. Unlike other faith traditions that use a single lectionary (a collection of scripture readings appointed for a given day or occasion), the topics and themes for Unitarian Universalist worship services are usually chosen independently by worship leaders in congregations. These include unique UU traditions, like the Flower Ceremony, as well as holidays from other faith traditions, such as Christmas or Beltane.
View and download the 2023-24 UUA Worship Calendar (PDF), which includes faith-based and secular holidays that UU congregations often celebrate. The calendar also includes monthly worship themes used in popular theme-based ministry programs. To download or print, follow the link and use the File menu, then select the Landscape layout option.
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My beloved people, I cannot pretend, And so I will not tell you, That everything is okay right now. That there is no reason to be angry, That you must be optimistic Or at peace. I cannot pretend these things, And so I won't tell them to you. But now our chalice is lit, And so all I ask in this...Chalice Lighting | By Rev. Molly Brewer | October 10, 2018 | From WorshipWebTagged as: Anger, Disaster or Crisis, Fear, Love, Transcendence, Universalism -
Let us be a faith that gathers, reaching for one another through the walls of hate others build, through the cages of ignorance and arrogance, and through the fear that burns city streets....Opening | By Heide Cottam | October 8, 2018 | From WorshipWebTagged as: 2nd Principle (Justice, Equity, & Compassion), 3rd Principle (Acceptance & Spiritual Growth), 6th Principle (World Community), Anti-Oppression, Faith, Inclusion, Purpose, Service, Unitarian Universalism -
Note: The Minister or Director of Education narrates this pageant with help from two youth leaders and three “guest stars.” The entire congregation participates as prompted. Congregants remain in their seats but there are three opportunities for children to join the leaders on the chancel. No...Script | By Norman Allen | October 6, 2018 | From WorshipWebTagged as: Christianity, Christmas Eve / Christmas, Tradition, Unitarian Universalism -
Did you notice that in the story of Christmas there are lots of journeys? Mary and Joseph have to go on a journey. The shepherds have to go on a journey. And those angels must have gone on a journey to find the shepherds....Script | By Kathy Schmitz | October 5, 2018 | From WorshipWebTagged as: Children, Christmas Eve / Christmas, Direct Experience, Generations, Imagination, Journey, Relationships -
Emotional tempests aren’t always easy to weather — pain, grief, disappointment, even love — but the flatness of life without such currents is the slow silence of drowning.Reflection | By Lindasusan Ulrich | October 3, 2018 | From Braver/WiserTagged as: Brokenness, Hope, Pain -
It has been a difficult week in the news, and as always, we have silent personal struggles in the midst of everything else. And so I invite you into a spirit of prayer....Prayer | By Lisa Bovee-Kemper | September 28, 2018 | From WorshipWebTagged as: Body, Brokenness, Healing, Violence, Vulnerability, Women -
I trusted the woman at the pharmacy to be capable of hearing hard truth. Bless her wounded heart with its internalized misogyny. She just wants women to love and support each other. Thank you. Me too.Reflection | By Misha Sanders | September 26, 2018 | From Braver/WiserTagged as: 1st Principle (Worth & Dignity), 2nd Principle (Justice, Equity, & Compassion), 3rd Principle (Acceptance & Spiritual Growth), 4th Principle (Truth & Meaning), Anger, Anti-Oppression, Body, Direct Experience, Fat Liberation, Men, Mothers, Self-Care, Violence, Women
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On my worst days, it is gravity I am most grateful for: the way the earth pulls at me from her core, yearns for me, keeps me pressed tightly against her surface. When my own core is hollowed out, when I have no more mass than a leaf dead on the branch, still this is enough for the earth to find me.Meditation | By Jess Reynolds | September 19, 2018 | From WorshipWebTagged as: 3rd Principle (Acceptance & Spiritual Growth), Contemplation, Direct Experience, Earth, Earth-Centered, Letting Go, Nature, Patience, Silence, Spiritual Practice -
Our family prays at mealtime to practice gratitude in our lives. I love that my children are taking it as their own, finding their own meaning.Reflection | By Christian Schmidt | September 19, 2018 | From Braver/WiserTagged as: 4th Principle (Truth & Meaning), Children, Direct Experience, Parents, Playfulness, Unitarian Universalism -
We ignite this flame, symbol of our faith, to beckon us into community, warm our hearts with love, and give us a light to follow as we carry our faith into action.Chalice Lighting | By Chrystal Hogan | September 14, 2018 | From WorshipWebTagged as: 2nd Principle (Justice, Equity, & Compassion), 4th Principle (Truth & Meaning), 6th Principle (World Community), Community, Faith, Living Our Faith, Love, Unitarian Universalism -
We light this chalice to honor our work, to celebrate our community, and to bring hope and determination to our mission in the wider world....Chalice Lighting | By Chrystal Hogan | September 14, 2018 | From WorshipWebTagged as: Leadership, Ministerial Transition, Ministry, Purpose, Service, Teamwork, Vision, Work -
As we go forward into this frightening, exhilarating, confusing, miraculous world, may we offer our comfort to the afflicted our love to those who are lonely and our wish for all to be safe.Closing | By Cheryl Block | September 14, 2018 | From WorshipWebTagged as: 1st Principle (Worth & Dignity), 2nd Principle (Justice, Equity, & Compassion), 3rd Principle (Acceptance & Spiritual Growth), 6th Principle (World Community), 7th Principle (Interconnected Web), Caring, Community, Compassion, Living Our Faith, Service
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It is not by chance that you arrived here today. You have been looking for something larger than yourself. Inside of you there is a yearning, a calling, a hope for more, A desire for a place of belonging and caring. Through your struggles, someone nurtured you into being, Instilling a belief in a...Opening | By Kimberlee Anne Tomczak Carlson | September 14, 2018 | From WorshipWebTagged as: 1st Principle (Worth & Dignity), 3rd Principle (Acceptance & Spiritual Growth), Abundance, Acceptance, Caring, Coming Out, Commitment, Community, Flower Communion, Home, Homecoming / Ingathering, New Member Ceremony, Unitarian Universalism, Water Communion
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Happy new year! Happy new year for our beloved community. Happy new school year....Opening | By Debra Haffner | September 14, 2018 | From WorshipWebTagged as: 1st Principle (Worth & Dignity), 2nd Principle (Justice, Equity, & Compassion), 3rd Principle (Acceptance & Spiritual Growth), 4th Principle (Truth & Meaning), 7th Principle (Interconnected Web), Beginnings, Community, Homecoming / Ingathering, Inclusion, Judaism, Rosh Hashanah, Unitarian Universalism, Vision, Water Communion -
May all our hours together be blessed as this one has been: by open-hearted sharing, learning from one another, and making beautiful harmonies together. And may we greet everyone we encounter with the same acceptance and grateful kinship, until we meet again. Blessed be.Closing | By Amy Zucker Morgenstern | September 14, 2018 | From WorshipWebTagged as: 3rd Principle (Acceptance & Spiritual Growth), 6th Principle (World Community), Acceptance, Community, Honesty, Relationships, Service, Unitarian Universalism, Water Communion -
Who are the angry birds in my life? What are the sticks I carry in my heart so as not to be hurt again?Reflection | By Yuri Yamamoto | September 12, 2018 | From Braver/WiserTagged as: 1st Principle (Worth & Dignity), 2nd Principle (Justice, Equity, & Compassion), 3rd Principle (Acceptance & Spiritual Growth), America, Animals, Anti-Oppression, Community, Direct Experience, Earth, Earth-Centered, Fear, Inclusion, Nature, Prophetic Words & Deeds, Race/Ethnicity, Self-Respect -
It's an impulse of the human self to be known fully, and that’s almost never possible unless we risk the conversations that help us see past our initial impressions.Reflection | By Amanda Poppei | September 5, 2018 | From Braver/WiserTagged as: 1st Principle (Worth & Dignity), 3rd Principle (Acceptance & Spiritual Growth), Anti-Oppression, Connections, Direct Experience, Empathy, Family, Humanism, Humility, Identity, Individualism, Listening, Playfulness, Secular -
I like to think that after many years of living together, our family has developed a certain sense of equilibrium, a certain ease with each other. From time to time, of course, differences arise and sometimes, and, occasionally, an act of outright rebellion....Reading | By Carl Scovel | September 4, 2018 | From WorshipWebTagged as: 2nd Principle (Justice, Equity, & Compassion), Christianity, Christmas Eve / Christmas, Direct Experience, Power -
Calling all who cannot wait any longer for joy, for hope and some good news (even a little). The time has come, the waiting is over....Opening | By Gretchen Haley | September 4, 2018 | From WorshipWebTagged as: 4th Principle (Truth & Meaning), Christianity, Christmas Eve / Christmas -
Welcome to [name of your congregation]. I want to take a moment to extend a very warm welcome to everyone who's visiting us. Rather than gathering because we all have the same beliefs, we are an intentional community gathered around our shared promise to support each other’s individual spiritual...Welcome | By Joanna Fontaine Crawford | September 4, 2018 | From WorshipWebTagged as: Children, Connections, Generations, Hospitality