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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Maundy Thursday means that followers of Jesus serve.Reading | By Jill Duffield | March 3, 2021 | From WorshipWebTagged as: Christianity, Humility, Lent, Service, WorshipWeb, Worship -
"There are two moments that matter. One is when you know that your one and only life is absolutely valuable and alive. The other is when you know your life, as presently lived, is entirely pointless and empty. You need both of them to keep you going in the right direction. Lent is about both. The...Quote | By Richard Rohr | February 25, 2021 | From WorshipWebTagged as: Balance, Christianity, Connections, Humility, Lent, Limitations, Self-Respect, Spirituality, WorshipWeb, Worship -
Impermanence, mortality, ashes, dust: this is the truth of being human.Reflection | By Lora Brandis | February 17, 2021 | From Braver/WiserTagged as: 1st Principle (Worth & Dignity), 4th Principle (Truth & Meaning), 7th Principle (Interconnected Web), Christianity, Death, Discernment, Grief, Humility, Lent, Love, Spiritual Practice, Worship -
As we move deeper into the season, There are some things we know. Fall brings a growing darkness That we cannot escape. The nights become cooler And take on winter’s chill. The leaves on the trees and blades of grass Try on new suits of yellow, orange, red and brown....Responsive Reading | By Viola Abbitt | January 2, 2020 | From WorshipWebTagged as: 7th Principle (Interconnected Web), Autumnal Equinox, Awe, Beauty, Earth, Earth-Centered, Humility, Letting Go, Nature, Transformation -
Spirit of Life that goes by so many names… Spirit of Love that has taken so many shapes on our earth over the millennia of human habitation here… we open our hearts to make room for you. With the innocence and imagination of a child, help us to hear the beauty and the magic in the Christmas...Prayer | By Shari Woodbury | January 21, 2019 | From WorshipWebTagged as: Beginnings, Christmas Eve / Christmas, Community, Contemplation, Courage, Empathy, Faith, Healing, Hope, Humility, Love -
No hot house flowers, these, bred for perfection, dyed and trimmed, and arranged to order, clothed in ribbons and bows. Not these. No, these are hardy, raw and wild. Grown under the sky, they’ve weathered the wind and the rain and the heat. These drew nutrients from the neighborhood soil and...Meditation | By Lisa Doege | June 22, 2016 | From WorshipWebTagged as: 1st Principle (Worth & Dignity), Abundance, Beauty, Direct Experience, Earth-Centered, Flower Communion, Humility, Nature, Spring, Vulnerability, Wonder, WorshipWeb -
Holy grandparents of the Universe...energies of creation...endless mysteries of life: You are the music that sounded before our world was born, sound and silence woven throughout the ages, far beyond the most profound wisdom humanity has been able to touch....Prayer | By Maureen Killoran | January 25, 2016 | From WorshipWebTagged as: 7th Principle (Interconnected Web), Awe, Connections, Direct Experience, Earth-Centered, Hope, Humility, Paganism, Prayer Practices, Presence, Transcendence, Wonder, WorshipWeb -
I heard the Second Brandenburg Concerto played in honor of Bach’s 300th birthday, and I was swept away. I remembered a story about the people who send messages into outer space. Someone suggested sending a piece by Bach. The reply was “But that would be bragging.” Some say we get what we...Reading | By Robert Walsh | November 18, 2015 | From WorshipWebTagged as: Arts & Music, Awe, Beauty, Direct Experience, Gratitude, Humility, Thanksgiving, Wonder, Worth -
Now the autumn shudders In the rose's root, Far and wide the ladders Lean among the fruit. Now the autumn clambers Up the trellised frame And the rose remembers The dust from which it came. Brighter than the blossom On the rose's bough Sits the wizened orange, Bitter berry now; Beauty never...Poetry | By Edna St. Vincent Millay | August 26, 2015 | From WorshipWebTagged as: Autumnal Equinox, Beauty, Death, Earth-Centered, Fall, Humility, Samhain -
Spirit of Life, God of Love, who are we to know how you moved over the waters when all was new? We were not there when you parted them and formed dry land. We didn't hear you cry with joy when earth gave birth to life, or when love began to grow in the human heart....Prayer | By Stephen M. Shick | March 17, 2015 | From WorshipWebTagged as: 7th Principle (Interconnected Web), Earth, Earth Day, Earth-Centered, Humility, Nature, Responsibility, Stewardship, Climate Justice -
In this new year, let us be amazed. Let us search for new life and hope in our midst. Let us nurture creativity in every form. Let us be reminded that new insights of the universe are always being made. In this new year, let us be amazed.Prayer | By Aaron Stockwell Wisman | February 20, 2015 | From WorshipWebTagged as: 3rd Principle (Acceptance & Spiritual Growth), 4th Principle (Truth & Meaning), Christianity, Creativity, Direct Experience, Humility, Nature, New Year, Revelation, Reverence, Science, Searching, Secular, Twelfth Night / Epiphany
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To be shared after the flowers have been distributed... Within our hands we hold the resurrection of the world. Transient and imperfect, these blossoms are still gifts of infinite value. Like ourselves. Too often we seek permanence and perfection. Resisting change, blind to our shortcomings, We...Meditation | By Thomas Rhodes | January 21, 2015 | From WorshipWebTagged as: Flower Communion, Humility, Transformation, Unitarian Universalism
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You Birds of the Air, Hawk, Sparrow, and laughing Jay You embody freedom itself, delight us with your song, astound us with feats of migration Grant us your perspective, for too often our horizon is limited and we are blind to the full results of our actions....Meditation | By Thomas Rhodes | January 21, 2015 | From WorshipWebTagged as: 7th Principle (Interconnected Web), All Saints Day, Animal Blessing, Animals, Connections, Earth, Earth Day, Earth-Centered, Humility, Love, Nature, Relationships -
I invite you now into a quiet time, a time for spoken and silent contemplation. Spirit of Life, we have come into each other's presence this day seeking a part of ourselves, knowing that we do not live alone, and knowing we cannot live fully if we are for ourselves alone....Prayer | By Wayne B. Arnason | January 21, 2015 | From WorshipWebTagged as: Commitment, Connections, Humility, Martin Luther King, Jr. Sunday -
When I was a child, the day after Thanksgiving was steeped in ritual. Every year my family would travel to Chicago for the holiday festivities. Our tour was always the same: We'd tromp up and down Michigan Ave., admiring store windows with animated mechanical dolls that served as actors for the...Meditation | By Kaaren Solveig Anderson | January 21, 2015 | From WorshipWebTagged as: Christmas Eve / Christmas, Generosity, Humility, Service