Edit Header for Worship Holidays Search
An unlit chalice on a church altar

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.

LEADER RESOURCE 2 Rituals to Welcome a New Child
a medieval window from the Burrell Collection in Glasgow, Scotland, depicting the Nativity
Islamic prayer beads or Subha inside the Süleymaniye Moque (Istanbul).
An altar filled with candles, photos, and flowers

Search Words for Worship Services

Changing a filter will refresh results (and remaining options) immediately. Searching by keyword or changing the number of items per page requires use of the "Search" button.

Displaying 1 - 50 of 347

  • Four Advent candles in a row in front of a deep black background. All four are lit. The third from the left is pink, and the others are purple.
    Prayers to be said on the four Sundays of Advent while lighting the Advent candle wreath.
    Prayer | By Elizabeth Mount | March 29, 2024 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Advent, Christianity, Hope, Joy, Love, Patience, Peace, WorshipWeb, Worship
  • A hand holding a piece of chalk against a blank green chalkboard, as if poised to write. The hand is pale-skinned, and the part of the arm we see is clothed in a white shirt with cuffs.
    Let this year be a clean slate for new beginnings.
    Prayer | By Addae Ama Kraba | March 29, 2024 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Beginnings, Courage, Creativity, Empathy, New Year, Peace, WorshipWeb, Worship
  • A silhouette of six or seven young people against a cloudless sky, which ranges from pale blue near the bottom to deep blue at the top of the image.
    Spirit of the divine masculine, grant us the strength to nurture in ourselves, and in every young person we have the privilege to know, the gifts of patience, curiosity, and compassion.
    Prayer | By AJ van Tine | February 29, 2024 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Character, Children, Coming of Age, Coming-of-Age, Community, Gender, Growth, Identity, Youth/Teens, WorshipWeb, Worship
  • A frozen soap bubble rests on snowy ground, with the sun setting on the horizon in the background.
    As we repent in full body and form, secure our names and the generations to come as you have done through time. God who blessed the womb of life, save us once again.
    Prayer | By Julie Yeeun Kim | January 21, 2024 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Advent, Christianity, Faith, Generations, Interdependence, Patience, Redemption, Salvation, Wisdom, WorshipWeb, Worship
  • A Black man's hand is holding a mirror, in which we see a partial reflection of his face. Our point of view is from over his shoulder, so in the foreground we see a slightly out-of-focus portion of the back of his head.
    In this heartbreak what we carry forth is our humanity in newly revealed form—our hearts tender and delicate.
    Prayer | By Vanessa Titang | December 12, 2023 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Brokenness, Community, Compassion, Disaster or Crisis, Grief, Healing, Trauma, WorshipWeb, Worship
  • A delicate pink flower on a white background, with a prism of light reflecting underneath
    We pray for those with power to create peace
    Prayer | By Lara Cowtan | November 13, 2023 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Disaster or Crisis, Peace, Violence, War
  • An elderly person with short curly white hair adjusts their glasses so they can wipe away tears with a tissue.
    May you be tender and gentle with yourself
    Prayer | By Katie Sivani Gelfand | September 13, 2023 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Brokenness, Disaster or Crisis, Grief, Love, Self-Care, Self-Respect, Stress, Transformation, WorshipWeb, Worship
  • A full range of dolls from the Toy Story movie series is arranged on a porch, backs to the viewer, watching a small child wearing a backpack leave the house
    By giving your church home here a chance to bless your school supplies, you're carrying their good intentions with you when you go to school.
    Blessing | By Tiffany Sapp | August 4, 2023 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Backpack Blessing, WorshipWeb, Worship
  • Seen from slightly behind, a person with long hair gestures with their hands while talking.
    May we view each other as partners, comrades, friends on the journey
    Prayer | By Christin Green | August 1, 2023 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Business Meetings, Community, Living Our Faith, Purpose, WorshipWeb, Worship
  • A small vase of red Gerbera daisies, a lit taper, and a wooden angel are on a window sill, outside of which there's a grey winter day.
    May we remember that we each carry inside of us a spark of the Divine.
    Blessing | By Beth Monhollen | July 24, 2023 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Acceptance, Beginnings, Grace, New Year, WorshipWeb, Worship
  • A tiny infant is cradled gently against the chest of a man, seen from the neck down, with muscular arms.
    We hold space for all that Father's Day may mean to us.
    Prayer | By Amy Jones | April 13, 2023 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Children, Father's Day, Fathers, Parents, WorshipWeb, Worship
  • Against a white background, several flower bulbs and one upright bulbs with shoots of green rising from its top.
    Beneath the crust of earth, seeds and bulbs lay in store.
    Meditation | By Jennifer Johnson | March 10, 2023 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Earth, Earth-Centered, Imagination, Nature, Patience, Spring, Vernal Equinox, Winter, WorshipWeb, Worship
  • A large tree, in silhouette, against an indigo sunset sky.
    As you go forth into this new phase of your life’s adventure...
    Blessing | By Julia Corbett-Hemeyer | October 18, 2022 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Earth, Earth-Centered, Installations, Leadership, Nature, Ordinations
  • Delicate snowdrop flowers begin to bloom on a frosty ground.
    Beneath the snow, life is bursting, preparing for the next season.
    Meditation | By Sharon Delgadillo | August 24, 2022 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Change, Earth, Earth-Centered, Humanism, Imagination, Nature, Secular, Spring, Vernal Equinox, WorshipWeb, Worship
  • A low angle photo to give an unusual perspective of the wild daisies which appear every spring along the West Coast in South Africa.
    May we open our hearts to the abundance of creation.
    Prayer | By Vanessa Rush Southern, Alyson Jacks | August 8, 2022 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Balance, Connections, Earth Day, Easter, Hope, Joy, Vernal Equinox, WorshipWeb, Worship
  • A gender fluid male, with very short hair, an earring, and makeup, with skirt fluttering in air
    We bless today all the masculinities with us and within us.
    Blessing | By Kye Flannery | June 9, 2022 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Anti-Oppression, Father's Day, Fathers, Freedom, Gender, Lesbian/Gay/Bisexual/Transgender/Queer, Men, Transformation, WorshipWeb, Worship
  • A single powerful red-orange flame glows in the darkness around it.
    Hold us gently as we gather closer together, comforting each other, healing each other.
    Prayer | By Vanessa Titang | May 26, 2022 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Community, Disaster or Crisis, Transcendence, WorshipWeb, Worship
  • A spring of green leaves rests on a cut of tree trunk, revealing many rings of growth
    May we reconnect to our life-giving, breath-freeing connection
    Prayer | By Leslie Takahashi | May 1, 2022 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 7th Principle (Interconnected Web), Beauty, Earth, Earth Day, Earth-Centered, Nature, Responsibility, Climate Justice, WorshipWeb, Worship
  • Dried stalks of cotton, against a similarly beige landscape.
    Out of mystery we are born, and mystery receives us when we die.
    Blessing | By Michelle Buhite | March 24, 2022 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Character, Death, Ending, Memorial Services, Mystery, WorshipWeb, Worship
  • Against a blue sky, a branch with delicate yellow blossoms.
    Sing in our hearts all the stirrings of compassion for the oppressed, for those who are scared and hurting.
    Prayer | By Nica Eaton-Guinn | March 10, 2022 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Compassion, Disaster or Crisis, Justice, Living Our Faith, Unitarian Universalism, WorshipWeb, Worship
  • In the middle of a Pride parade, a trans woman in a white cowboy hat poses with a rainbow fan.
    May the rainbow of love enfold you; may your fluidity never be hindered.
    Blessing | By Cricket Hall | March 1, 2022 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 1st Principle (Worth & Dignity), Acceptance, Anti-Oppression, Direct Experience, Identity, Inclusion, Lesbian/Gay/Bisexual/Transgender/Queer, Pride Sunday, WorshipWeb, Worship
  • Unitarian Universalist Association Chalice
    On this darkest night, may we observe the stars.
    Meditation | By Mary Gear | January 20, 2022 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Winter Solstice / Yule
  • Unitarian Universalist Association Chalice
    The story tells of a woman heavy with child, traveling with her partner to be counted in a census declared by a distant ruler unaware of the lives disrupted or the life that is to come....
    Meditation | By Mary Gear | January 20, 2022 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Christianity, Christmas Eve / Christmas, WorshipWeb, Worship
  • Transgender Day of Remembrance, with the multigender icon
    May we find the care in our community to keep grieving and keep loving and keep living.
    Prayer | By Laura Conkle | January 19, 2022 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Lesbian/Gay/Bisexual/Transgender/Queer, Transgender Day of Remembrance, WorshipWeb, Worship
  • In a sunny church sanctuary, rows of empty red velvet and wooden pews
    We are leaving a space that has been made holy.
    Prayer | By Julie Taylor | January 3, 2022 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Building/Space Dedication, Ending, Gratitude, WorshipWeb, Worship
  • Unitarian Universalist Association Chalice
    Ask yourself, in your heart: What or who are you grateful for?
    Meditation | By Susan Frederick-Gray | November 23, 2021 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Body, Connections, Gratitude, Spiritual Practice, Thanksgiving, WorshipWeb, Worship
  • A purple and pink sky, at twilight, with a burning sun setting behind dry, wintry stalks of grain.
    And still, we are grateful.
    Prayer | By Connie Simon | November 22, 2021 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: #COVID19, Gratitude, Thanksgiving, WorshipWeb, Worship
  • A white pillar candle is lit against a dark blue background.
    May we whisper thank you for all that is good in our lives. (Thank you) May we shout thank you! for the abundance of blessings. (Thank you) May we feel thank you, thank you, thank you, deep within our hearts and around us right now. May we be thankful, down to our bones, for this time together....
    Prayer | By Debra Haffner | November 16, 2021 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Abundance, Direct Experience, Gratitude, Thanksgiving, WorshipWeb, Worship
  • Unitarian Universalist Association Chalice
    When you doubt yourself or feel afraid; when you fail, as we all do at times, remember that spark—always there sustaining and revitalizing you.
    Blessing | By Rita Capezzi | July 28, 2021 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Bridging Ceremony, Young Adults, Youth/Teens, WorshipWeb, Worship
  • A man in US Navy dress whites stands on the grass in a military cemetery looking at the headstones
    We collectively share the sorrow of those individuals in the armed services who lost their lives in war.
    Prayer | By Jennifer Cottrill | July 27, 2021 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Death, Memorial Day, Military, WorshipWeb, Worship
  • A hand holds a slide up to the light, on which is a dated image of a woman and man posing outside.
    Sometimes it feels like Father’s Day is more about enshrining a myth than it is about facing the realities of fatherhood.
    Meditation | By Ryan Urie | July 26, 2021 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Children, Direct Experience, Family, Father's Day, Fathers, Generations, History, Parents, Secular, WorshipWeb, Worship
  • A black-and-white photo of an infant, whose hand is holding the gnarled hand of his great-grandmother.
    Breathe in for caregivers of all kinds who give of themselves to make other people’s lives better, more whole.
    Prayer | By Sara Goodman | June 2, 2021 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Caring, Family, Generations, Grief, Imagination, Mother's Day, Responsibility, Unitarian Universalism
  • the silhouette of a person, taken from some distance, under a bright night sky with the Milky Way stars in bright colors.
    Spirit of Life, spirit of earth, spirit of all that breathes and all that is: we love you.
    Prayer | By Laura Horton-Ludwig | May 3, 2021 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Earth, Earth Day, Earth-Centered, Nature, Responsibility, Stewardship, WorshipWeb, Worship
  • Unitarian Universalist Association Chalice
    It can be a lonely time for those of us whose arms are empty.
    Meditation | By Amy Williams Clark | March 18, 2021 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 1st Principle (Worth & Dignity), 4th Principle (Truth & Meaning), Children, Direct Experience, Grief, Mother's Day, Mothers, Searching, Secular
  • Majestic Tree with strong roots
    A movement meditation for all ages
    Meditation | By Kimberlee Anne Tomczak Carlson | March 18, 2021 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 4th Principle (Truth & Meaning), Body, Children's / Religious Education Sunday, Children's Sabbath, Direct Experience, Earth-Centered, Growth, Imagination, Nature, Strength, WorshipWeb, Worship
  • A gold leaf is held, suspended, by the delicate green needles on an evergreen tree.
    Like the sun moving toward the shortest day, each moment arises—and is gone before we know it.
    Meditation | By Lori Gorgas Hlaban | October 13, 2020 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 7th Principle (Interconnected Web), Autumnal Equinox, Balance, Earth, Earth-Centered, Nature, WorshipWeb, Worship
  • A white church amidst a graveyard, with clouds and mountains behind.
    Spirit of Life, Spirit of Love, we come today carrying our grief, our memories, and our love. We gather around screens and devices, reaching out with our minds and hearts to join in this most ancient of human customs: honoring one whom we loved who has died....
    Prayer | By Laura Horton-Ludwig | July 1, 2020 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: #COVID19, Death, Grief, Love, Memorial Services
  • In a green meadow, a person pushes a wheelchair occupied by an elderly woman.
    As my body begins to loose its hold On this life, this earth, this entirety, May I lay my past to rest And face the unknowable With courage and curiosity. May those to whom I am connected gather. May they recall me as I am and have been....
    Prayer | By Tess Baumberger | January 16, 2020 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 1st Principle (Worth & Dignity), 3rd Principle (Acceptance & Spiritual Growth), Death, Direct Experience, Gratitude, Grief, Humanism, Meaning, Memorial Services, Mystery, Prophetic Words & Deeds, Remembrance Day, Secular
  • A dreidel in front of candlelight
    We honor the great mystery of the universe, the source of all, which deems everything sacred by its power to unite us...
    Blessing | By Lorenzo Bassman | January 8, 2020 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Hanukkah, Judaism, Unitarian Universalism
  • A long exposure, stacked image of the Pole Star and the light trail caused by the planets rotation.
    Spirit of Life, ancestor of the stars and the sun, you who embrace the vastness of space and us along with it, be with us today. Hold us in our worry, our exhaustion, our grief. Keep us close as we sit with our truth, whatever that may be....
    Prayer | By Lyn Cox | January 2, 2020 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 4th Principle (Truth & Meaning), Autumnal Equinox, Awe, Contemplation, Courage, Earth-Centered, Nature, Summer Solstice, Vernal Equinox, Vulnerability, Winter Solstice / Yule, Wonder
  • Red pomegranates on a table.
    Spirit of Life, Source of Love, you who know our struggles and failures as well as we know them ourselves, be with us as we enter into this time of reflection. Give us the courage to travel through a moral inventory of our lives, to notice the places where we have missed opportunities to live our...
    Prayer | By Lyn Cox | October 16, 2019 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 7th Principle (Interconnected Web), Community, Conscience, Ethics, Failure, Judaism, Reconciliation, Responsibility, Rosh Hashanah, Transformation, Yom Kippur
  • Red helium heart-shaped balloons float into a blue sky
    I was a foster parent long before I was a mom, and an inside look at families "in the system" reveals pretty quickly that love and parenthood are two different qualities, and the relationship between them is neither straightforward nor guaranteed....
    Meditation | By Lisa Doege | September 9, 2019 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Children, Love, Mothers, Parents, Relationships, Valentine's Day
  • In a sunlit sanctuary, a person sits in a wooden pew.
    As we begin a new year together, let us offer our blessing to the lay leaders who invest their time and care in the well-being of this congregation. If you help lead a ministry here, I invite you to rise in body, in spirit, in all the ways that we do. And I invite all of us to enter a spirit of...
    Prayer | By Lindasusan Ulrich | September 9, 2019 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Gratitude, Homecoming / Ingathering, Leadership, Unitarian Universalism
  • From above, a river cuts through an evergreen forest
    The strength of water takes on many, many forms—just as each of you has a unique and necessary strength that you bring to our community and to the work of love. Take a moment now to drop down into the deep wellspring of your own spirit and bathe yourself in the strength that is the groundwater of...
    Meditation | By Jamila Batchelder , Molly Housh Gordon | September 4, 2019 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Earth, Earth-Centered, Imagination, Nature, Self-Respect, Strength, Water Communion
  • Two baby lambs snuggling in the hay, asleep
    As I go to sleep tonight, Please, love, hug my family tight. With stars and moon so big and bright Love shines round me like a light. As I go to sleep tonight, Please, love, hug my family tight. Can be sung to the tune of "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star"...
    Blessing | By Kathleen Green | July 27, 2019 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 4th Principle (Truth & Meaning), Children, Direct Experience, Family, New Child
  • An arc of Earth's surface, blue oceans and swirling white clouds, taken from space
    We pray to you, Mother Earth, with gratitude For your holding and sustaining love For the air, water, and soil that feed us For the mountains and rivers and oceans that calm our spirits For loving and supporting all beings and all creation. We pray to you, Mother Earth, with humility Help us to...
    Prayer | By Lucy Bunch | June 20, 2019 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 7th Principle (Interconnected Web), Abundance, Beauty, Connections, Courage, Discernment, Earth, Earth Day, Earth-Centered, Forgiveness, Gratitude, Interdependence, Paganism, Strength
  • A table covered by papers, a notebook, and a coffee mug-- and a person's hand, writing with a pen.
    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.
    Blessing | By Alex Haider-Winnett | June 19, 2019 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 1st Principle (Worth & Dignity), Bridging Ceremony, Challenge, Choice, Commitment, Direct Experience, Education, Forgiveness, Friendship, Growth, Responsibility, Secular, Wisdom, Worth
  • From several stories above street level, a large fabric rainbow is carried between contingents at a Pride parade
    Blessed are the wanderers, Seeking affirmation. Blessed are the worshipers, Praying from closets, Pulpits, pews, and hardship. Blessed are the lovers of leaving – Leaving family and familiarity, Leaving tables Where love is not being served. Blessed are those who stay....
    Blessing | By HP Rivers | May 28, 2019 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 1st Principle (Worth & Dignity), 2nd Principle (Justice, Equity, & Compassion), 6th Principle (World Community), 7th Principle (Interconnected Web), Acceptance, Anti-Oppression, Coming Out, Compassion, Diversity, Family, Gender, Humanism, Justice, Justice Sunday, Lesbian/Gay/Bisexual/Transgender/Queer, Love, National Coming Out Day, Pride Sunday, Prophetic Words & Deeds, Secular, Sexuality
  • Easter_eggs_purple_blue_teal_green_leaves_white_basket
    Let us imagine for a moment that our lives are like the baskets that our children will use after the service to collect colorful eggs and candy. And as we welcome that imaginative connection, let us pause for a moment to accept a blessing....
    Blessing | By Lucas Hergert | May 27, 2019 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Abundance, Awe, Beauty, Community, Compassion, Easter, Family, Generosity, Gratitude, Happiness, Joy
  • A gold and green painting of conifers, mountains, and a sun.
    We gather here to remember this is our home, but not just ours....
    Meditation | By Laura Bogle | April 16, 2019 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 7th Principle (Interconnected Web), Earth, Earth Day, Earth-Centered, Generations, Indigenous Peoples Day, Nature, Responsibility, Stewardship