To search for resources that support March's Soul Matter theme of Transformation, toggle the red arrow below and search for Spiritual Themes of: Transformation, Change, Endings, Beginnings, Searching.
Toggle to filter resultsAvailable filters:
Changing a filter will refresh results (and remaining options) immediately. Searching by keyword or changing the number of items per page requires use of the "Search" button.
Displaying 1 - 50 of 51
-
Spirit of the divine masculine, grant us the strength to nurture in ourselves, and in every young person we have the privilege to know, the gifts of patience, curiosity, and compassion.Prayer | By AJ van Tine | February 29, 2024 | From WorshipWebTagged as: Character, Children, Coming of Age, Coming-of-Age, Community, Gender, Growth, Identity, Youth/Teens, WorshipWeb, Worship -
You can’t be a Unitarian Universalist and believe anything you want.Reading | By Alex Jensen | September 20, 2023 | From WorshipWebTagged as: Character, Identity, Integrity, Unitarian Universalism, WorshipWeb, Worship -
If I’m not cultivating an open heart and watching for the helpers, the teachers, and the angels, I may miss them when I need them the most.Reflection | By Sue Ferguson | May 24, 2023 | From Braver/WiserTagged as: Caring, Character, Compassion, Direct Experience, Gratitude, Hospitality, Trust, Worship -
You have given us a day unique from any other.Prayer | By Adam Slate | March 9, 2023 | From WorshipWebTagged as: Calling, Challenge, Character, God, Growth, Living Our Faith, Purpose, Unitarian Universalism, WorshipWeb, Worship -
We gather to honor our covenant and engage in congregational life.Chalice Lighting | By Emily Richards | October 18, 2022 | From WorshipWebTagged as: Business Meetings, Character, Democracy, Leadership, Purpose, Work -
Out of mystery we are born, and mystery receives us when we die.Blessing | By Michelle Buhite | March 24, 2022 | From WorshipWebTagged as: Character, Death, Ending, Memorial Services, Mystery, WorshipWeb, Worship -
Taking what we need and leaving the rest behind isn’t only a one time thing. We can do it anytime.Reading | By Jen Crow | March 24, 2022 | From WorshipWebTagged as: 4th Principle (Truth & Meaning), Character, Growth, Humanism, Integrity, Psychology, Secular, Self-Care, Self-Respect, WorshipWeb, Worship -
We already have everything we need within us to meet the life that is before us.Reflection | By DanaLee Simon | November 10, 2021 | From Braver/WiserTagged as: Animals, Character, Earth-Centered, Growth, Limitations, Nature, Purpose, Worship -
May I speak from my learning and not from my habit.Meditation | By Deb Cannon | July 26, 2021 | From WorshipWebTagged as: 4th Principle (Truth & Meaning), Change, Character, Growth, Integrity, WorshipWeb, Worship -
Why do we so readily hand over what's priceless for a meager sum of money—or a major sum, for that matter?Reading | By Jill Duffield | March 5, 2021 | From WorshipWebTagged as: Character, Christianity, Ethics, Integrity, Leadership, Lent, Money, WorshipWeb, Worship -
At the core of American racism is the belief that the things we the Blacks desire, the fact that we the Blacks desire, are perversions.Reading | By Imani Perry | October 27, 2020 | From WorshipWebTagged as: #BlackLivesMatter, America, Anti-Oppression, Challenge, Character, Imagination, Race/Ethnicity -
We teach girls to be likeable, to be nice, to be false. And we do not teach boys the same. This is dangerous.Reading | By Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie | October 22, 2020 | From WorshipWebTagged as: 1st Principle (Worth & Dignity), Beginnings, Character, Children, Coming-of-Age, Direct Experience, Education, Freedom, Gender, Generations, Humanism, Secular, Self-Respect, WorshipWeb, Worship -
Black men are not a species. They, you, belong to humanity.Reading | By Imani Perry | October 19, 2020 | From WorshipWebTagged as: #BlackLivesMatter, America, Character, History, Race/Ethnicity, WorshipWeb, Worship -
It is now, when we are called to act on our values, not to hide, not to fear, but to be bold and loud.Opening | By Tania Márquez | October 19, 2020 | From WorshipWebTagged as: 2nd Principle (Justice, Equity, & Compassion), 6th Principle (World Community), Activism, Character, Courage, Direct Experience, Humanism, Justice, Living Our Faith, Responsibility, Secular, WorshipWeb, Worship -
The wellspring of decency is loving this life in which people die, people suffer, there are limits, and we make mistakes. The wellspring, then, of moral action is not utopia, not a counterfactual vision, not a declaration that the world could and should be otherwise....Reading | By Sharon D. Welch | August 31, 2019 | From WorshipWebTagged as: Activism, Balance, Character, Commitment, Direct Experience, Ethics, Gratitude, Hope, Integrity, Justice, Purpose, Seven Principles -
Spirit of Life and Love, Justice and Peace, The spectacle of foolish pride is ever before us in these times. Indeed, pride has seldom looked so foolish in our lifetimes. So many people in positions of public trust and responsibility have lost their authority and our confidence spectacularly. And...Prayer | By Paul R Beedle | April 27, 2019 | From WorshipWebTagged as: Acceptance, Anti-Oppression, Authority, Character, Compassion, Democracy, Discernment, Forgiveness, Humility, Trust -
One: On Labor Day we honor our work, physical and mental, paid and unpaid, joyous and heartbreaking. Many: We give thanks for work’s gifts, suffer its difficulties, and strive to make labor just and joyous for all. One: Our work can build our society, provide for our material needs, and give our...Responsive Reading | By Amanda Udis-Kessler | December 7, 2018 | From WorshipWebTagged as: Character, Direct Experience, Gratitude, Integrity, Labor Day, Living Our Faith, Meaning, Purpose, Service, Unitarian Universalism, Work -
If a friend were in my situation, I would have seen their failings as human. So why hold someone to an unforgiving standard just because that someone is me?Reflection | By Kat Liu | August 8, 2018 | From Braver/WiserTagged as: 1st Principle (Worth & Dignity), 3rd Principle (Acceptance & Spiritual Growth), Character, Children, Compassion, Direct Experience, Forgiveness, Friendship, Humility, Kindness, Love, Prophetic Words & Deeds, Self-Care, Self-Respect -
We seekers are on a quest: A quest to discover truth and meaning. Sometimes we think we’ve found it— Wrapped up, glimmering with newness Straight off the intellectual assembly line. All the answers right here for us And others, if they’d only listen. But truth has a way of coming in disguise,...Opening | By Jason Cook | June 18, 2018 | From WorshipWebTagged as: 3rd Principle (Acceptance & Spiritual Growth), 4th Principle (Truth & Meaning), Character, Children's / Religious Education Sunday, Direct Experience, Growth, Humanism, Leadership, Meaning, Prophetic Words & Deeds, Revelation, Searching, Secular, Teacher Dedication, Teacher Recognition, Transformation, Truth, Wisdom
-
Mystery of the Universe – Ground of our very Being, Truly it is said that you make the sun rise, and the life giving rains fall, on both the just and the unjust And in that way, yours is an abounding grace, and we give our thanks. But it is also true that none of us are ever really spared –...Prayer | By Kyle Johnson | June 18, 2018 | From WorshipWebTagged as: 3rd Principle (Acceptance & Spiritual Growth), Buddhism, Challenge, Change, Character, Patience, Presence -
Liking somebody, even loving somebody, is not enough to protect them from shade that you cannot even see, much less understand.Reflection | By Teresa Honey Youngblood | January 10, 2018 | From Braver/WiserTagged as: 1st Principle (Worth & Dignity), 4th Principle (Truth & Meaning), Anti-Oppression, Character, Children, Coming-of-Age, Direct Experience, Humanism, Race/Ethnicity, Secular, Truth -
My oldest child was confused: why would no one stop and help us? Even though people weren’t stopping to help us, my son said, he wanted to be more like me and stop to help someone anyway.Reflection | By Rayla D. Mattson | January 3, 2018 | From Braver/WiserTagged as: 1st Principle (Worth & Dignity), 2nd Principle (Justice, Equity, & Compassion), Caring, Character, Children, Compassion, Conscience, Direct Experience, Generations, Integrity, Living Our Faith, Mothers, Parents -
I long for progressive religious communities that are confessing communities—places where we admit our wrongdoings, are held accountable, and called back into covenant.Reflection | By Robin Tanner | May 3, 2017 | From Braver/WiserTagged as: 3rd Principle (Acceptance & Spiritual Growth), 4th Principle (Truth & Meaning), Character, Christianity, Community, Conscience, Direct Experience, Honesty, Humility -
The 7 Jobs Capitalism Asks of All of Us: 1. Measure Self Worth by Work: Don’t believe in the inherent goodness of people. Instead decide that everyone’s worth is only as much as they achieve. 2. Accept that Oppression is the Norm: This starts with adultism the moment we are born and conditions...Reading | By Talia Cooper | April 20, 2017 | From WorshipWebTagged as: Activism, Arts & Music, Character, Direct Experience, Healing, Integrity, Relationships, Secular, Self-Respect -
We humans have both a natural desire and a spiritual need to feel connected and to grow roots, even if those roots aren't necessarily tied to a geographic place.Reflection | By Marisol Caballero | April 19, 2017 | From Braver/WiserTagged as: 4th Principle (Truth & Meaning), Character, Commitment, Direct Experience, Discernment, Family, Home, Humanism, Identity, Secular -
Someone called me a "bleeding heart liberal." It was not intended as a compliment. However, I will always consider it one of the biggest compliments of my life. My heart bleeds for the underdog. My heart fights for those who can't fight. My heart rejoices in seeing others overcome adversity. My...Meditation | By Sara Sutherland Dean | November 8, 2016 | From WorshipWebTagged as: 2nd Principle (Justice, Equity, & Compassion), 6th Principle (World Community), Activism, Character, Compassion, Courage, Direct Experience, Empathy, Humanism, Integrity, Living Our Faith, Love, Secular, Solidarity -
October 5, 2016 "The heart was made to be broken." ― Oscar Wilde I'm sitting here broken-hearted. I could try to convince you that it’s about the state of the world with its tragedies, suffering, and seeming lack of compassion, but it’s not. I’m broken-hearted because a relationship that had...Reflection | By Sean Parker Dennison | October 5, 2016 | From Braver/WiserTagged as: Brokenness, Character, Conflict, Healing, Hope, Integrity, Love, Relationships -
I have a voice. It is a small voice, perhaps, but it will not be silenced. When you call for black people to be beaten, and excluded, and even removed—I will say no. When you attempt to silence Latinx voices—I will say no. When you mock the disabled and threaten the oppressed—I will say no.Reading | By Amy Petrie Shaw | September 29, 2016 | From WorshipWebTagged as: Activism, Anger, Anti-Oppression, Character, Commitment, Democracy, Direct Experience, Justice, Limitations, Nonviolence, Oppression, Secular -
Kids, I want you to do something special: I want you to put on your backpacks, if you brought them, leaving the back pocket open just enough for us to drop in a small gift...and I want you to stand up on your pews....Blessing | By Jen Crow | August 2, 2016 | From WorshipWebTagged as: 1st Principle (Worth & Dignity), 3rd Principle (Acceptance & Spiritual Growth), Backpack Blessing, Caring, Character, Children, Courage, Family, Growth, Individualism, Integrity, Journey, Parents -
"Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter." This quote, attributed to Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr., is likely a paraphrase of original language that was slightly different. The closest statement your WorshipWeb Curator could find is this excerpt from Rev. King's...Quote | By Martin Luther King, Jr. | June 1, 2016 | From WorshipWebTagged as: Activism, Anti-Oppression, Character, Commitment, Courage, Democracy, Integrity, Living Our Faith, Prophetic Words & Deeds, Self-Respect, Seven Principles -
Have patience with everything unresolved in your heart and try to love the questions themselves as if they were locked rooms or books written in a very foreign language. Don't search for the answers, which could not be given to you now, because you would not be able to live them....Responsive Reading | By Rainer Maria Rilke | August 19, 2015 | From WorshipWebTagged as: 4th Principle (Truth & Meaning), Challenge, Change, Character, Discernment, Doubt, Growth, Humanism, Wonder -
You get up in the morning, you brush your teeth, and you help another human being.Quote | By Paul Eisemann | June 25, 2015 | From WorshipWebTagged as: Activism, Caring, Character, Choice, Meaning, Purpose, Relationships, Service -
To prepare for this activity, place umbrellas in the pews. Instruct people to open the umbrellas when the man in the story receives the umbrella. Today we have a very special item in our very special Mystery Box. This item is going to teach us more about sanctuaries....Story | By Tim Atkins | June 19, 2015 | From WorshipWebTagged as: 7th Principle (Interconnected Web), Caring, Character, Children, Empathy, Generosity, Interdependence -
Dear God of Sorrow and Love— Are there no places of safety from hate? Are there no sanctuaries from racism? Are there no walls fortified with love that can withstand violence? We pray this day for the nine members of Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church of Charleston who were senselessly...Prayer | By Sarah Lammert | June 18, 2015 | From WorshipWebTagged as: #BlackLivesMatter, Anti-Oppression, Character, Direct Experience, Humanism, Prophetic Words & Deeds, Race/Ethnicity, Unitarian Universalism, Unity -
It is the day before the election as I write these lines, and whatever the outcome, I will be glad when it’s over. Some will be elated by the results, and others will feel dejected, but regardless of who wins or loses, our world will still be broken and suffering from ills that government is...Meditation | By Gary Kowalski | June 3, 2015 | From WorshipWebTagged as: 5th Principle (Conscience & Democracy), Brokenness, Character, Freedom, Generations, Governance, Living Our Faith, Politics, Power, Responsibility, Suffering
-
Each of us is meant to have a character all our own, to be what no other can exactly be, and do what no other can exactly do.Quote | By William Ellery Channing | April 26, 2015 | From WorshipWebTagged as: Character, Identity, Purpose
-
Once upon a time, a mother and her daughter were carrying bags of food to a neighboring village where people were hungry and had no food of their own. The two had to travel a great distance, which made them very tired, so they stopped to rest. As they sat down they heard a voice call out to them.Story | By Christopher Buice | April 14, 2015 | From WorshipWebTagged as: Caring, Character, Discernment, Integrity, Kindness
-
Once upon a time in a little village, there appeared a sign that said: Beauty Contest to be held this Saturday at the fair grounds. There will be a surprise guest judge. All the young girls in the village were very excited about being in a beauty contest, and they began to prepare for the big day.Story | By Christopher Buice | April 14, 2015 | From WorshipWebTagged as: Beauty, Character, Discernment, Integrity
-
“So...what do you want to do with your life???” There was a time when this question haunted me like an existential crisis. Some might call it being in my twenties, but I certainly didn’t feel that such pain was just “to be expected.” I remember pouring over inspirational books. I found few...Reading | By David Ruffin | March 23, 2015 | From WorshipWebTagged as: 4th Principle (Truth & Meaning), Challenge, Character, Direct Experience, Identity, Purpose, Searching, Unitarian Universalism, Youth/Teens
-
Life does not call us merely to do over and over again what we have already done; nor does it call us to act out, as puppets, parts already assigned to us. No. In the midst of a situation which is itself ever changing, we are free to bring into realization new relationships of understanding and...Quote | By Frank O. Holmes | March 9, 2015 | From WorshipWebTagged as: Change, Character, Choice, Courage, Freedom, Growth, Integrity
-
To repent means to turn in a new direction—not just to admit what we have done wrong, but to resolve to be a better person.Quote | By Jeanne Harrison Nieuwejaar | March 9, 2015 | From WorshipWebTagged as: Character, Choice, Growth, Integrity, Psychology, Transformation, Unitarian Universalism
-
To outgrow the past but not extinguish it; To be progressive but not raw, Free but not mad, critical but not sterile, expectant but not deluded; To be scientific but not to live on formulas that cut us off from life; To hear amidst clamor the pure, deep tones of the spirit; To seek the wisdom tha...Poetry | By William Laurence Sullivan | March 9, 2015 | From WorshipWebTagged as: 4th Principle (Truth & Meaning), Aging, Change, Character, Growth, Meaning, Peace, Secular, Wisdom
-
Once upon a time I was Now I am Some day I will become Once there was And now there is Soon there will be And some day there surely shall be Once upon a time we were Now we are And some day (Hallelujah!) we shall surely become Amen Amen...Poetry | By Margaret Williams Braxton | March 9, 2015 | From WorshipWebTagged as: 1st Principle (Worth & Dignity), 3rd Principle (Acceptance & Spiritual Growth), Change, Character, Direct Experience, Growth, Reverence
-
The question is not, “What happens when we die?” Nobody really knows. The real question is, “What happens when we stop living?” The stoicism we face on a daily basis is a symptom of a larger illness called a dually-dulled life. Our lives can be hypnotized by the monotonous commutes,...Reading | By Nathan C. Walker | February 24, 2015 | From WorshipWebTagged as: 1st Principle (Worth & Dignity), 2nd Principle (Justice, Equity, & Compassion), 3rd Principle (Acceptance & Spiritual Growth), 4th Principle (Truth & Meaning), 5th Principle (Conscience & Democracy), Belief, Calling, Challenge, Change, Character, Direct Experience, Easter, Gratitude, Homecoming / Ingathering, Martin Luther King, Jr. Sunday, Prophetic Words & Deeds, Respect, Trust, Unitarian Universalism, Worth, Yom Kippur
-
Spirit of Life and Love, we are here because we believe what we do matters. We are here because we believe how we live our life matters. That with every act of kindness or meanness, courage or fear, love or hate, we are weaving the fabric of the universe that holds us all. We are here because we...Meditation | By Laura Horton-Ludwig | February 19, 2015 | From WorshipWebTagged as: 2nd Principle (Justice, Equity, & Compassion), 4th Principle (Truth & Meaning), 6th Principle (World Community), 7th Principle (Interconnected Web), Activism, Brokenness, Challenge, Character, Choice, Commitment, Conscience, Disaster or Crisis, Prophetic Words & Deeds, Unitarian Universalism -
"All around us lies what we neither understand nor use. Our capacities, our instincts for this our present sphere are but half developed. Let us confine ourselves to that till the lesson be learned; let us be completely natural; before we trouble ourselves with the supernatural....Quote | By Margaret Fuller | January 21, 2015 | From WorshipWebTagged as: Character, Earth, History, Mystery, Power, Spirituality
-
We come together every week Bound not by a creed, Or a mutual desire to please one God Or many Gods Yet we are drawn together By a belief, that how we are in the world, Who we are together Matters. We light this chalice, together in the knowledge That love, not fear, can change this world...Chalice Lighting | By Jennifer Gracen | January 21, 2015 | From WorshipWebTagged as: Character, Community, Covenant, Growth, Hope, Identity, Integrity, Interdependence, Purpose, Vision -
If you are who you were, and if the person next to you is who he or she was, if none of us has changed since the day we came in here— we have failed. The purpose of this community— of any church, temple, zendo, mosque— is to help its people grow. We do this through encounters with the...Closing | By Erik Walker Wikstrom | January 21, 2015 | From WorshipWebTagged as: 3rd Principle (Acceptance & Spiritual Growth), 4th Principle (Truth & Meaning), Acceptance, Change, Character, Growth, Integrity, Living Our Faith, Purpose, Transformation
-
On sabbatical in East Africa, I heard a story of a people who believe that we are each created with our own song. Their tradition as a community is to honor that song by singing it as welcome when a child is born, as comfort when the child is ill, in celebration when the child marries, and in...Meditation | By David S Blanchard | January 21, 2015 | From WorshipWebTagged as: 1st Principle (Worth & Dignity), Beauty, Character, Children, Direct Experience, Individualism, Mystery, Prophetic Words & Deeds -
As we leave this community of the spirit, May we remember the difficult lesson That each day offers more things than we can do. May we do what needs to be done, Postpone what does not, And be at peace with what we can be and do. Therefore, may we learn to separate That which matters most And that...Closing | By Richard S. Gilbert | January 21, 2015 | From WorshipWebTagged as: Character, Choice, Integrity, Meaning, Mindfulness, Unitarian Universalism