Faith Curricula Library: Common Read: A Community for Learning and Reflection

The UU Common Read

A graphic of nine human avatars arranged in a zoom window format, next to the words Common Read

When we do a UU Common Read together, we share in reflection, learning, and action. A Common Read can take us on a powerful journey into what it means to be human and accountable in a world filled with both pain and joy.

2026–27 UU Common Read

Love at the Center: Unitarian Universalist Theologies

Book cover for "Love at the Center: Unitarian Universalist Theologies." Sofía Betancourt is the editor. The book cover has a deep pink circle in the middle with a purple background surrounding it and pink circles of increasing size radiating out of the central circle.

Love at the Center

Purchase Love at the Center from InSpirit: the UU Book and Gift Shop

The UUA’s Common Read for this year is the collection of essays, “Love at the Center: Unitarian Universalist Theologies,” edited by Rev Dr Sofía Betancourt.

We may agree that love is central, but what does that mean to us and what does it require of us? It is in that spirit that we asked more than two dozen leaders in our movement the question of what it means to put love at the center of our faith.

In these pages, you’ll find personal testimony to love’s power, reminders of the centrality of love throughout the long histories of Universalism and Unitarianism, and theologies of love drawn from many different expressions of Unitarian Universalism—from the natural world to the justice rally, to a loved one’s deathbed, to the quiet moment before a worship service begins. May Love at the Center serve as an invitation to deepen your own understanding and practices of love.

In past years, we have offered “book club” style discussion guides. For the 2026–27 Common Read, a significantly expanded collection of resources will be released in June 2026, including:

  • a full lifespan curriculum series (ages 7+)

  • committee-specific discussion guides

  • a collection of quotes for use in worship; and

  • a printable interactive mystery game, “The Mystery of the Slightly Sentient Chalice” that is designed for intergenerational play!

Browse UU Common Read Selections

  • A book cover for Social Change Now! by Deepa Iyer shows a graphic representation of her Ecosystem model, including bright colored circles set off by spokes from a central circle.

    Social Change Now! A Guide for Reflection and Connection (Skinner House) by Deepa Iyer

    Study Guide | May 5, 2025 | From Common Read
    Tagged as: Adult Faith Development, Faith Development, Racial Justice
  • A book cover with the words "Authentic Selves: Celebrating Trans and Nonbinary People and their Families. Interviews by Peggy Gillespie." And the quote from Jazz and Jeanette Jennings, "Love glows from every page." The background is a swirl of colors that look like watercolor paints.

    Welcome to the UU Common Read of Authentic Selves. The book offers life stories and portraits of trans and nonbinary people, alongsidetheir partners, parents, children, siblings, and chosen family members. Through interviews and photo portraits, the subjects of this book invite readers into their…

    June 10, 2024 | From Common Read
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  • The cover of the book "On Repentance and Repair: Making Amends in an Unpaologetic World," by Danya Ruttenberg has a beige background with grey lines like cracks in a hard surface, with the title words over this. There is also a medallion that says "National Jewish Book Awards Winner."

    The workshops explore repentance and repair in (1) interpersonal relationships, (2) communal spaces, such as our congregations, and (3) wider communities, such as nations, and systems we are part of.

    Study Guide | By Alison Miller, Susan Dana Lawrence | June 13, 2023 (reviewed June 2025) | For Adults | From Common Read
    Tagged as: Accountability, Adult Faith Development, Empathy, Faith Development, Forgiveness, Grace, Judaism, Justice, Personal Inspiration, Racial Justice, Reconciliation, Redemption, Responsibility, Rosh Hashanah, Spiritual Practice, Yom Kippur
  • Cover of Mistakes and Miracles: Congregations on the Road to Multiculturalism

    Engaging with this book can help UU congregations grapple with our movement’s charge to dismantle white supremacy in ourselves, our communities, and our world. 4 Sessions.

    Study Guide | By Susan Dana Lawrence, Karin Lin, Nancy Palmer Jones | October 20, 2022 | For Adults | From Common Read
    Tagged as: Adult Faith Development, Diversity & Inclusion, Multiculturalism, Racial Justice, Transformation
  • Defund Fear book title on orange graphic background with UUA logo

    The book explores what has gone wrong, and why, and who has been most harmed by repressive and racist policing systems. Norris offers a new blueprint for public safety that holds people accountable while still holding them in community.

    Study Guide | June 13, 2022 | From Common Read
    Tagged as: Adult Faith Development, Faith Development, Justice, Racial Justice
  • Cover of Breathe: A Letter to My Sons by Imani Perry

    Breathe offers a broad meditation on race, gender, and the meaning of a life well lived as well as an unforgettable lesson in Black resistance and resilience. Includes materials for a BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) UU group, or other congregational group.

    Study Guide | October 4, 2021 | For Adults | From Common Read
    Tagged as: Adult Faith Development, BIPOC Experiences, Faith Development, Identity Formation, Microaggressions, Parenting
  • covers of Indigenous Peoples' History of the US and young people's version

    This book challenges readers to learn US history through a narrative that centers the story, the experiences, and the perspectives of Indigenous peoples, and upends myths and misinformation that have been taught by leaders and media.

    Study Guide | October 8, 2020 | For High School, Adults | From Common Read
    Tagged as: Adult Faith Development, Faith Development, High School-Aged Youth Faith Development, Identity, Indigenous American, Indigenous Rights, White Supremacy Culture
  • Copies of the book Justice on Earth arranged on a wooden bench

    Justice on Earth explores the ways in which racial justice, environmental justice, and economic justice are intertwined.

    Study Guide | June 27, 2018 | For Adults | From Common Read
    Tagged as: Climate & Environmental Justice, Faith Development
  • side by side covers of the two 2017-18 Common Read selections: Daring Democracy and Centering

    Centering offers help with the inner work of today’s Unitarian Universalism; Daring Democracy provides a vision and practical guidance for advancing our justice-making work in the public square.

    Study Guide | June 13, 2018 | From Common Read
    Tagged as: Faith Development, Racial Justice & Multicultural Ministries, Religious & Civil Liberties
  • The Third Reconstruction paperback cover

    The Third Reconstruction: How a Moral Movement is Overcoming the Politics of Division and Fear by The Rev. Dr. William Barber II and Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove (Beacon, 2016), was chosen as the 2016-17 Unitarian Universalist Common Read. Unitarian Universalists were electrified at General Assembly…

    Study Guide | June 14, 2017 | From Common Read
    Tagged as: Faith Development, Racial Justice