Unitarian Universalists use different terms for the words that begin a worship service, including call to worshipinvocation, and opening words. These words invite the congregation from their separate lives and to the common place and time of the worship hour.

(In Unitarian Universalist worship if there are Opening Words there is generally not an Invocation, and vice versa.)

Search Words for Worship Services

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  • Spirit of life and love, we have gathered here in search of answers to hard questions. We have come in search of understanding, in search of community. We have come in search of hope and healing.Let this be a place not only of searching, but of discovery. Let this be a place of learning, but of...
    Opening | By Sue Ayer | January 21, 2015 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 3rd Principle (Acceptance & Spiritual Growth), Forgiveness, Trust
  • Spirit of life and hope, we turn our minds and hearts again toward thee. Awaken us again to the mysteries that humble us, the realities that orient us, the truths that judge and guide us, the beauty that informs and ravishes us, the love that nurtures us, the fellowship that sustains us, the...
    Opening | By Clarke Dewey Wells | January 21, 2015 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Mystery, Wholeness
  • Out of the earth Rises light, Rises life, Rises spring. May we join with the miracle that is springtime, and enter into life with lightness and joy. Out of the spirit Rises faith, Rises hope, Rises love. May we join with the miracle that is Easter time, and enter into life with hope and love....
    Opening | By Elizabeth M Strong | January 21, 2015 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Christianity, Easter, Transformation
  • One of the old ones stood up into the morning light and spoke to those who had come back to the river: "Now we have come again to this place; it is a good thing. My life apart from you is not as strong. "Yes, I have danced and I have told the stories at my own fire and I have sung to all the six...
    Opening | By Barbara J Pescan | January 21, 2015 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Buddhism, Connections, Friendship
  • May we come into this building hallowed by generations of thoughtful worship. May we come into the company of this congregation, enlightened by reason and moved by concern. May we come with open minds and warm hearts....
    Opening | By Kenneth R Warren | January 21, 2015 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Service, Transformation, Unitarian Universalism
  • Let there be joy in our coming together this morning. Let there be truth heard in the words we speak and the songs we sing. Let there be help and healing for our disharmony and despair. Let there be silence for the voice within us and beyond us. Let there be joy in our coming together.
    Opening | By Carl Seaburg | January 21, 2015 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Joy, Redemption, Silence
  • Leave aside the little thoughts that distract you from the depths of your soul, For this is a holy place, and now is a holy time. Join with the others in this room, this community of seekers, and together, let us find our Sabbath.
    Opening | By John Gibb Millspaugh | January 21, 2015 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Community, Reverence, Sacred, Searching
  • In this quiet hour may our spirits be renewed. In this gathering of friends may we be ready to extend ourselves to those in need, and with trust to receive the hand that is offered. In this community of ideals may we remember the principles that guide us and reflect upon those things that give...
    Opening | By Gary Kowalski | January 21, 2015 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Service, Spirituality, Unitarian Universalism
  • Deep calls unto deep, joy calls unto joy, light calls unto light. Let the kindling of this flame rekindle in us the inner light of love, of peace, of hope. And "as one flame lights another, nor grows the less,” we pledge ourselves to be bearers of the light, wherever we are.
    Chalice Lighting | By Gordon B McKeeman | January 21, 2015 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Calling, Caring, Commitment, Community, Covenant, Hope, Journey, Joy, Love, Peace
  • For holy days on which we recall the old stories, we light the flame. For Passover which reminds us of the courage and strength of those seeking freedom in the past, we light the flame. For Easter which reminds us that love is our greatest challenge, we light the flame....
    Chalice Lighting | By Dillman Baker Sorrells | January 21, 2015 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Challenge, Christianity, Community, Courage, Easter, Freedom, History, Judaism, Love, Passover (Pesach), Sacred, Searching, Strength, Tradition, Unitarian Universalism
  • We are here today to recognize the completion of your program of study for this Coming of Age ceremony and to celebrate with you the faith you have come to accept through this year of questioning and investigating. Some of you were brought to a Unitarian Universalist church to be Dedicated and...
    Opening | January 21, 2015 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Coming of Age
  • We seek life’s meaning in the wonder of morning In the freshness of springtime, And in each others hearts and minds. Yet still we hope for something more, A break in the ordinary, An infusion of the unexpected, An explosion of glory, A miracle, Revealing more than we hope to understand.
    Opening | By Charles F Flagg | January 21, 2015 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Easter, Mystery
  • We bid you welcome on this first Sunday of the new year. Like Janus we gather with part of us looking backward and part of us looking forward. We gather on the edge of the new year saddened by our losses, cherishing our joys, aware of our failures, mindful of days gone by....
    Opening | By Sylvia L Howe | January 21, 2015 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Change, Community, Ending, Hope, Letting Go, New Year, Unitarian Universalism
  • The Bridging Ceremony celebrates the transition of our youth from their high school experience into young adulthood. It is a time of tremendous change—and stress—for our youth. It is a time when many of them will leave our particular church community to travel to other cities, into higher...
    Opening | By Jeff Liebmann | January 21, 2015 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Youth/Teens
  • (May be read responsively) We are not alone. We are this flame, ancient as the stars, new as the vulnerable spark. We are not alone. We are this chalice, rimmed by the spiral dance of searching. We are not alone. We are the light soaring, the shadow deepening, the dance between them. We are not...
    Chalice Lighting | By Michael DeVernon Boblett | January 21, 2015 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 7th Principle (Interconnected Web), Awe, Connections, Generations, Prophetic Words & Deeds, Wonder
  • Let this purest of flames kindle in each of our hearts A pledge to justice, a commitment to freedom, And a reverent awe for the crystalline glories That sparkle along our footpaths...
    Chalice Lighting | By Martha Kirby Capo | January 21, 2015 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Freedom, Justice
  • Each of the stars in the heavens is unique, an individual, yet together they form the night sky; Each of us here is unique, an individual, yet together we are a congregation; Each of our congregations is unique, an individual, yet together we are an Association....
    Chalice Lighting | By Erik Walker Wikstrom | January 21, 2015 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Awe, Caring, Connections, Diversity, Gratitude, Identity, Individualism, Nature, Purpose, Relationships
  • Through the week this chalice abides, cupped and silent, Softly it gleams in a dimly lit room, complete unto itself. Today, we come together as a community of faith, joyful and free, Our individual energies combine to spark the flame of Truth....
    Chalice Lighting | By Martha Kirby Capo | January 21, 2015 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 2nd Principle (Justice, Equity, & Compassion), 6th Principle (World Community), Commitment, Community, Faith, Justice, Living Our Faith, Meaning, Presence, Reverence, Tradition, Truth
  • We light this chalice for all who are here, and all who are not; For all who have ever walked through our doors, for those who may yet find this spiritual home, and for those we can't even yet imagine. For each of us and for us all, may this flame burn warm and bright.
    Chalice Lighting | By Erik Walker Wikstrom | January 21, 2015 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 1st Principle (Worth & Dignity), Acceptance, Caring, Community, Generosity, Hospitality, Inclusion, Journey, Unity
  • For some, the chalice cup is a communion cup, freely offered to all who would seek the greater Truth. Others see the circle of fellowship in its embracing sides....
    Chalice Lighting | By Martha Kirby Capo | January 21, 2015 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 4th Principle (Truth & Meaning), Abundance, Acceptance, Challenge, Community, Compassion, Inclusion, Love, Multiculturalism, Sacred, Unitarian Universalism, Wisdom