At the bottom of this page, you'll find suggestions for this ritual's sanctuary setting. Board Chair/President: This morning, we reconnect with our commitment to this congregation and to each other as members of this church. We ask that as members of [name of congregation], you re-affirm this...

Before beginning, dramatically turn your back on the congregation and children, and place a smudge on cheek. It is important that this be a smudge that is large enough for the congregation to see, but does not cover the whole face. One cheek is good. Turn around....

To prepare, you'll need a few inflated balloons -- and to gird yourself for the improvisation required! Let’s play a game! Everyone knows how to play this game. All you have to do is get this balloon to the back of the room as fast as you can! Go!...

Blessed are we who gather with open hearts, together, in this space, today. Blessed are we: the chalice-lighters of resistance, justice, love, and faith. Blessed are we: the heretics, the outcasts, the walkers of our own way. Blessed are we: the border-crossers, the refugees, the immigrants, the...

I have never been particularly attached to the idea of family. Do you know The Swiss Family Robinson? It's the story of how a family worked together and survived. It never reached beyond a story for me. It never occurred to me that some people actually felt this way towards their blood line; that...

There's my temple! Believer, unbeliever or wild one. You are welcome! We have no definition of who we are but human. We have no code but that of respect. We have no creed but that of equality. There's my temple! Identity-seeker, sinner, stateless or not. You are welcome! We have no constraints on...

Leader: In this sacred place, we need not be alone. We seek a listening ear, a warm heart, open arms. Congregation: In this sacred place, we join together against the waves of negativity and oppression in our world. L: We are a community of individual beings, living our own lives, yet coming...

Today, you join in membership. This is a moment of excitement and possibility. And although I don’t wish to pull you out of this moment, I need to talk to you for a bit about a moment in your future....

In a free religious community, to serve is the highest expression of our commitment and love. To be asked to lead is the highest honor. This morning, the members of [your congregation] you have chosen to lead you in the coming year stand before you....

Mindful that With great power comes great responsibility, We light this chalice in the hopes that In brightest day, in blackest night, Our faith will Flame on! —Spiderman, Green Lantern, & the Human Torch (compiled by Cynthia Landrum)...

As we approach our agenda let us remember that we are doing the work of the congregation.* When we do the work of this congregation*, we touch lives. When we touch lives, we change the world. May this chalice flame we now kindle remind us throughout our meeting of our ministry and our mission....

Reader 1: The word courage comes from the Latin cor, which means heart. According to poet Mark Nepo, the original use of the word courage meant to stand by one’s core: a “striking concept that reinforces the belief found in almost all traditions that living from the Center is what enables us to...

A covenant is not a definition of a relationship; it is the framework for our relating. A covenant leaves room for chance and change, it is humble toward evolution. It claims: I will abide with you in this common endeavor, be present as best as I can in our becoming....

Bring who you are as you enter our church this morning. Bring your best self and your struggling self; bring your mistakes and your triumphs; bring your shortcomings and your recommitment to good....

The diversity of the human species is astounding. The fact that we can gather together for common experience is nothing short of a miracle. Today, let us celebrate some of those differences....

We join our voices in a holy communion of mind and heart, dedicated to the promises that bind us in compassion, one with another. In this hour we light the flame that signals our intention to find the sacred in every living thing.

(Can be preceded by singing the first verse of "Bright Morning Stars," Hymn 357 in Singing the Living Tradition) Day breaks on our gratitude for family and friends, For the freedom to find our own truth, For the company of those who gather here, And the promises we offer one another....

In gatherings we are stirred like the leaves of the fall season rustling around sacred trees, tossed hither and yon until we come to rest together, quietly, softly . . . We come to gather strength from each other. We come to give strength to each other....

“Beyond the Zero-Sum Game” excerpted from Nathan C. Walker (2014) Exorcising Preaching: Crafting Intellectually Honest Worship. St. Louis: Chalice Press. For centuries, insiders have been democratizing their religions. Incremental moments of institutional reform have led to a new era of...

We covenant together to share hope with each other and with the world.