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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  • We gather together this morning tenderly—like drops of dew on a leaf of grass hopefully—like gathered raindrops in a cloud gleefully—like water rushing in a stream to the sea deeply—like groundwater pulled up from a well We gather from every direction, for another year of growth and depth,...
    Opening | By Molly Housh Gordon | September 4, 2019 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Beginnings, Community, Earth, Earth-Centered, Homecoming / Ingathering, Interdependence, Nature, Water Communion
  • Recognizing the beauty around us and within us, in voice and spirit, we gather to light our chalice. May we savor the beauty of our abundance and diversity, always cherishing one another and our earth. May we remember to inhale the lushness in life knowing that we are a people of beauty.
    Chalice Lighting | By Kimberlee Anne Tomczak Carlson | August 7, 2019 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Beauty, Earth, Earth-Centered, Humanism, Imagination, Nature
  • On a holy night In 1969, In an Inn, also known as a bar, Called the Stonewall Inn, A basement— which had no running running water, Nor safe fire exits— Queer people, of many colors and kinds, Danced together, For it was the only place Where they were allowed to dance, At least, permitted to, by...
    Opening | By Otto O’Connor | June 11, 2019 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 1st Principle (Worth & Dignity), 2nd Principle (Justice, Equity, & Compassion), 6th Principle (World Community), Activism, America, Anti-Oppression, Coming Out, History, Identity, Lesbian/Gay/Bisexual/Transgender/Queer, National Coming Out Day, Pride Sunday, Prophetic Words & Deeds
  • We light our chalice flame For those who lived their lives in closets of shame; For those who furtively visited the bars, where nobody knew your name; For the Stonewall riot—and the fierce transwomen who fought; For the plague, which still takes far too many, too young, too soon. So many gone. So...
    Chalice Lighting | By Lori Gorgas Hlaban | June 6, 2019 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 1st Principle (Worth & Dignity), 2nd Principle (Justice, Equity, & Compassion), Anti-Oppression, Coming Out, Direct Experience, Generations, History, Humanism, Lesbian/Gay/Bisexual/Transgender/Queer, National Coming Out Day, Pride Sunday, Prophetic Words & Deeds, Secular
  • We speak so often of brokenness in religious life, Let us speak today of wholeness....
    Opening | By Sharon Wylie | May 28, 2019 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 1st Principle (Worth & Dignity), Acceptance, Anti-Oppression, Beauty, Coming Out, Gender, Humanism, Lesbian/Gay/Bisexual/Transgender/Queer, National Coming Out Day, Pride Sunday, Secular, Self-Respect, Wholeness
  • Oh, divine Love, With the kindling of this flame, may we realize and love our true selves: Our true, round belly selves. Our true, bags under our eyes, selves. Our true, naturally hairy, selves. Our true, wrinkles on our skin, selves. May our self-love help keep our chalice ablaze.
    Chalice Lighting | By Cooper Garrett | May 27, 2019 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 1st Principle (Worth & Dignity), Acceptance, Body, Compassion, Courage, Dignity, Love, Self-Respect, Shame, Truth, Vulnerability
  • We light this chalice—symbol of our faith alive in this world— naming our vision of collective liberation, and daring to re-member each other into beloved community.
    Chalice Lighting | By Deanna Vandiver | May 27, 2019 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 1st Principle (Worth & Dignity), 6th Principle (World Community), Anti-Oppression, Commitment, Community, Faith, Freedom, Hope, Justice, Living Our Faith, Oppression, Vision
  • You are welcome here no matter who you are, no matter where you come from, no matter what your background. You are welcome here to join us as we proclaim worth in our spiritual journeys. You are welcome to join us as we sing songs that uplift our very beings....
    Welcome | By Dan Lambert | April 25, 2019 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Community, Humanism, Purpose, Secular, Unitarian Universalism
  • We are a People of Memory. As inheritors of our ancestors’ legacy, we hold their stories tenderly. Gleaning wisdom from diverse journeys; united in hope for the future. Guide us to trust in love as we kindle this flame together.
    Chalice Lighting | By Kimberlee Anne Tomczak Carlson | March 27, 2019 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 1st Principle (Worth & Dignity), 2nd Principle (Justice, Equity, & Compassion), 3rd Principle (Acceptance & Spiritual Growth), Compassion, Courage, Covenant, Diversity, Faith, Hope, Journey, Living Our Faith, Love, Tradition
  • Deeper than DNA, more fundamental than molecules or quarks, at our living core, we are wholeness and transfiguring love. We often forget that power, becoming lonely or resentful, comparing ourselves to others, acting out of our fears rather than our living our glory....
    Invocation | By Chip Roush | February 11, 2019 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Community, Faith, Fear, Growth, Humanism, Love, Mystery, Sacred, Spirituality, Transformation, Unitarian Universalism, Wholeness
  • [for 2-3 voices, alternating] On this eve of mystery and magic, let us enter into the Christmas story as if we were there on the holy night. What part will we play this year? Are you the mother, trusting your body to know what to do when the time of birth comes?...
    Opening | By Shari Woodbury | January 21, 2019 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Awe, Birth, Christianity, Christmas Eve / Christmas, Compassion, Dignity, Faith, Family, Hope, Hospitality, Journey, Love
  • What is it That calls you here That calls you onward That calls you inward That leads you homeward? What is it That gives you the power To make that change To ask that question To take that journey?...
    Opening | By Monica Jacobson-Tennessen | January 20, 2019 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 2nd Principle (Justice, Equity, & Compassion), 4th Principle (Truth & Meaning), 6th Principle (World Community), Authority, Contemplation, Covenant, Journey, Living Our Faith, Relationships, Unitarian Universalism
  • We light this chalice, the symbol of our faith, knowing that this morning many others across this land and around the world are doing the same. For us and for our far-flung kin it is a light of peace, of justice, and of love....
    Chalice Lighting | By Ben Soule | January 7, 2019 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Commitment, Connections, Faith, Hope, Interdependence, Justice, Living Our Faith, Love, Peace, Sacred, Unitarian Universalism, Worship
  • We feel the season turning. The early sunset glancing through the red-tinged leaves. The newspaper arriving in the cool morning air. The flock of migrating swallows. A feeling of being on the edge of something new. These are the Days of Awe. A time to welcome a new year and a time to make the old...
    Opening | By Ben Soule | January 7, 2019 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 3rd Principle (Acceptance & Spiritual Growth), Awe, Conscience, Contemplation, Judaism, Mindfulness, Peace, Reconciliation, Rosh Hashanah, Sacred, Wonder, Worship, Yom Kippur
  • We gather together on this Christmas Eve as fellow sojourners looking for light, for hope, for peace, and for love. We gather as people from many backgrounds, many faiths, many cultures, and many spiritual paths. But as we light this chalice, we gather as one body looking to the Nativity for its...
    Chalice Lighting | By Dan Lambert | December 20, 2018 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 2nd Principle (Justice, Equity, & Compassion), 3rd Principle (Acceptance & Spiritual Growth), Christianity, Christmas Eve / Christmas
  • Voice One, Elder (with chalice): Across the generations we have carried the flame. We fought the injustice, sang the songs, spoke for truth, and built something lasting. We join in the line and we carry the flame forward. (pass chalice and mic to next speaker) Voice Two, Active Leader (with metal...
    Chalice Lighting | By Douglas Taylor | December 7, 2018 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: 2nd Principle (Justice, Equity, & Compassion), 3rd Principle (Acceptance & Spiritual Growth), Bridging, Bridging Ceremony, Building/Space Dedication, Coming of Age, Coming-of-Age, Commitment, Faith, Family, Generations, Justice, Leadership, Stewardship, Unitarian Universalism, Unity
  • We gather as many drops, each winding our own path down life’s surfaces and ruts. Here we pool together as a single body, flowing together for a time. Together we are a stream, at times even a river, for with our shared force we can travel toward oceans of meaning and seas of connection.
    Chalice Lighting | By Leslie Takahashi | December 7, 2018 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Community, Connections, Earth, Earth-Centered, Meaning, Nature, Playfulness, Unitarian Universalism, Water Communion
  • We welcome you. We know you come here for different reasons—to find community, to seek your spiritual and personal truths, to question, to nurture your heart and soul, to be nurtured, to explore new ideas, to find comfort, and perhaps to find the answers to some of your bigger questions. We...
    Welcome | By Marilyn Falkowski | December 7, 2018 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Acceptance, Community, Diversity
  • In recognition of Labor Day, we light this flame to honor all work, including the work of our hands and our backs, in gratitude for all the labors that support our world, and for all those who boldly continue the work of justice, equity, and peace.
    Chalice Lighting | By Florence Caplow | December 5, 2018 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Community, Gratitude, Interdependence, Labor Day, Responsibility, Secular, Service
  • We light this chalice to remember the miracle of the oil that burned for eight days.
    Chalice Lighting | By DC Fortune | December 5, 2018 | From WorshipWeb
    Tagged as: Earth-Centered, Hanukkah, Hope, Judaism, Mystery, Winter, Winter Solstice / Yule, Wonder