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

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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6

  • We all want to feel at home, somewhere, somehow....
    Reading | By Christian Schmidt | October 18, 2022 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Home, Judaism, Searching, Sukkot
  • • It takes a spark. • It takes fuel. • It takes air. • And it takes a container to hold them all. It is only with all of these things that we make fire. • It takes a call. • It takes learning and experience • It takes love. • And it takes a community to hold them all. It is only with...
    Chalice Lighting | By Christian Schmidt | January 16, 2020 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Calling, Direct Experience, Leadership, Ordinations, Relationships
  • No matter who—or what—you are, you are welcome here. Let’s be clear: Here, we welcome goblins and ghouls, saints and sinners, angels and devils, zombies and werewolves, vampires and witches. We welcome princesses and princes, paupers and farmhands, aliens and astronauts, robots and cyborgs,...
    Opening | By Christian Schmidt | September 25, 2016 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Halloween, Identity, Inclusion, Playfulness, Secular, Unitarian Universalism
  • Let us wake up. Not just from the Sunday morning exhaustion, from the wish for a few more drowsy minutes in bed. Let us wake up to this world we live in: to its beauty and wonder, and also to its tragedy and pain. We must wake up to this reality: that not all in our world have what we do, however...
    Opening | By Christian Schmidt | October 29, 2015 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: #BlackLivesMatter, 1st Principle (Worth & Dignity), 2nd Principle (Justice, Equity, & Compassion), 6th Principle (World Community), 7th Principle (Interconnected Web), Activism, Anti-Oppression, Black History / Whitney Young / James Reeb, Challenge, Direct Experience, Justice, Martin Luther King, Jr. Sunday, Privilege, Race/Ethnicity, Unitarian Universalism
  • We light this chalice for our children and youth, and for us: celebrating the flame of faith lit in each of us, honoring the light each of us bring into the world, rejoicing in the community we create together.
    Chalice Lighting | By Christian Schmidt, Alexis Capen | June 4, 2015 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Child Dedication, Children, Children's / Religious Education Sunday, Community, Direct Experience, Faith, Family, Generations, Inclusion, Interdependence, Reverence, Worth, Youth Sunday, Youth/Teens, WorshipWeb
  • A tale of salvation, ecology, and sharing. Characters Narrator Noelle Voice in a dream Noelle’s sisters Jane, Rain, and Elaine Friendly farmer(s) Ship builder(s) Numerous animals: dogs, cats, mice, cows, horses, frogs, etc. Act 1 (Noelle at center stage, sitting, covered in blanket and appearing...
    Story | By Christian Schmidt | January 25, 2015 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 3rd Principle (Acceptance & Spiritual Growth), 7th Principle (Interconnected Web), Activism, Children's Sabbath, Christianity, Direct Experience, Earth Day, Earth-Centered, Environment, God, Interdependence, Justice Sunday, Service, Water Communion