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Chalice and Advent Wreath on UU chancel.

A chalice and advent wreath share the altar at Starr King UU Church in Hawyard, CA.

Advent is a season of expectant waiting and preparation for the celebration of the nativity of Jesus. The name derives from the Latin adventus, meaning "coming." Marked over the course of the four Sundays before Christmas, Advent is traditionally celebrated with an advent wreath: a ring of evergreen with three purple candles and one pink one (or four purple candles) that represent: Hope, Love, Joy (pink) and Peace.

(In Eastern Orthodox churches, which use the Julian calendar, Advent begins earlier and lasts 40 days rather than four weeks.)

Faith Without Borders

For everything there is a season—a time to die and a time to be born. With the arrival of winter’s low dark sky, communities around the world look to the miracle of light as a sign of rebirth and a source of hope. We celebrate the promise of new life and recommit ourselves to the protection of everyone’s right to his or her own radiant humanity.

Celebrating the winter holidays, thus, is an excellent opportunity for Unitarian Universalist congregations to express their commitment to our Sixth Principle: We covenant to affirm and promote the goal of world community with peace, liberty and justice for all. See Sixth Principle Resources for winter holidays.

Unitarian Universalist Perspectives

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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6

  • A light-skinned Black person's arms cradle a tiny infant whose bare foot soles face the camera.
    Fear not, the angels would text me. Hallelujah, I’d write back.
    Reflection | By Marcus Liefert | December 20, 2023 | From Braver/Wiser
    Tagged as: Advent, Awe, Children, Christianity, Christmas Eve / Christmas, Direct Experience, Family, Hope, Parents, Wonder, Worship
  • With white Christmas lights strung in the background, and lit candles, a paper Advent calendar on a table has open doors.
    This year, the Advent season seems particularly seized by a spirit of the expected, the longing.
    Reflection | By Robin Tanner | December 2, 2020 | From Braver/Wiser
    Tagged as: #COVID19, Advent, Children, Christianity, Hope, Living Our Faith, Parents, Purpose, Worship
  • A newborn baby's hand is held gently by an adult hand.
    Once upon a time, a baby was born. Even before that baby was born, there were people waiting and wishing and hoping for that baby. The people who were waiting and wishing and hoping for that baby didn’t know exactly what that baby would be like. And so, they wondered: Would the baby have a smile...
    Time for All Ages | By Gwen Matthews | January 23, 2018 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Advent, Awe, Child Dedication, Children, Christmas Eve / Christmas, Family, Fathers, Generations, Humanism, Mothers, Parents, Secular, Tradition
  • Stained glass detail from the Dominican church of St Vincent Ferrer in New York, showing Jesus in a manger surrounded by Mary and Joseph.
    “‘God did it’ isn’t an explanation,” said Joseph. He got no account for the baby’s chromosomes, No description of the mechanism that Transmuted the divine shadow into royal blood. “‘The devil made me do it’ would have sounded better to me,” said Joseph, Though it never did him...
    Poetry | By Jim Burklo | December 6, 2016 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Advent, Christianity, Christmas Eve / Christmas, Faith, Family, God, Love, Mystery, Parents, Trust
  • Detail from a stained-class window in St Mary's Episcopal Cathedral in Edinburgh, of Mary.
    Mary: Hi! Are you on the way to the hill country, too? I’m going to the hill country. I'm on my way to see my cousin Elizabeth. I can’t wait to tell her what happened: the Angel Gabriel came to me and said that I’m going to have a baby, and that I should name him Jesus. The angel said, “He...
    Script | By Lyn Cox | December 21, 2015 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Advent, Children, Christianity, Christmas Eve / Christmas, Family, Mothers, Parents
  • Unitarian Universalist Association Chalice
    A voice was heard in Ramah, wailing and loud lamentation, Rachel weeping for her children; she refused to be consoled, because they are no more. ~ Matthew 2:18 I read those words aloud from the pulpit once a year, on Christmas Eve: a night when we celebrate the birth of hope and possibility and...
    Meditation | By Lisa Doege | December 3, 2015 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 1st Principle (Worth & Dignity), 2nd Principle (Justice, Equity, & Compassion), 6th Principle (World Community), Advent, Birth, Brokenness, Children, Christianity, Christmas Eve / Christmas, Hope, Judaism, Parents, Peace, Violence