These opening words are formatted for two readers, as indicated below....

Sit and rest for a minute. Take several deep breaths in and out again, calling your attention to this space. Attention. Pay attention. Pay attention to where you are right now. I mean where you are, Where you are, And where you are....

We light this chalice in honor of the animal realm, Furred and hoofed, two-legged, four-legged, many-legged, Fanged and clawed, gentle and fierce, wild and tame. May we remember that all animals are our relatives, Worthy of our care and respect.

Goddess, Make me an instrument of peace Where there is hatred, let me know love Where there is injury, healing Where there is doubt, reassurance Where there is challenge, compassion Where there is pain, rest O Divine Mother, Grant that I may Not so much seek to control as to co-create, To be...

• 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...

Welcome! What you bring—who you are—enriches us all. We say “Welcome” to your joy, your hope, your pride. We say “Welcome” to your grief, your fear, your anger. And the parts of you that are not yet ready to be seen and heard— Welcome to them as well. For we are people of faith: Faith...

Ironically, Americans who self-identify as not racist—whether they're conservatives, moderates, liberals, radicals, progressives—they don't realize… that we are connecting ourselves to a history of slave traders who self-identified as not racist (although they didn't use that term). We're...

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....

When you’re the only black man in a sea of whiteness, purses still get clutched, and people still cross the street, and hellos still get lost in the void.

A seed knows how to wait. Most seeds wait for several years before starting to grow; a cherry seed can wait for a hundred years with no problem. What exactly each seed is waiting for is known only to that seed. Some unique trigger-combination of temperature-moisture-light and many other things is...

The first time I was told that I was too queer to be a congregation's minister, they asked, "What will the neighbors think?,” as if it were the most natural question in the world. It was then that I understood how grace works: it’s costly. It requires us to be uncomfortable, to get outside...

We honor the great mystery of the universe, the source of all, which deems everything sacred by its power to unite us...

[Written for two voices, here set for Worship Association (WA) and Minister (M)] WA: Perhaps some here have outgrown mystery. Maybe you have doubts about Santa, Or have forgotten the magic of a newborn child. M: One might easily lose touch with awe, In the struggle to do it all, Or simply to...

For the new year, just days old, beginning today, always beginning: We light our chalice, symbol of faith, perseverance, and hope, in astonished thanksgiving and irrepressible praise. For beginnings that emerge out of endings, appear amidst continuity, become visible in hindsight: We light our...

We are never numbers to be tallied for turnout. We are more than a sum. Together, we are the hope and courage.

Spirit of Life and Love, Holy God, Source Eternal, in our midst yet still ever so elusive: To breathe your sacred name is a blessing. Your world become, Your will be done here, on Earth, inspired by our aspirations to do and be better people. May we have all that we need to survive, live, and...

Today we kick off Religious Education classes with [over number registered] children and youth in our congregation. [Number of volunteers] adult volunteers carry the sacred privilege and responsibility of journeying beside them on our behalf....

This story is great to be acted out by four women (of applicable ages for each direction) around a large bowl/vessel....

As we light this chalice [this evening], may it serve to give us clarity of purpose and illumine our way as we set about doing the work of this congregation, in commitment, in cooperation, and in love.

The word liturgy is a fancy word meaning the formulation of a religious service. Its etymology tells us that it means “the work of the people.” In many Unitarian Universalist contexts, the verb worship is intransitive. We do not worship something or someone. We claim the act of worship as...