Easter in a Unitarian Universalist Congregation

On Easter Sunday, churches all across the world will be filled with activity. Some will hold services of praise and worship as the sun rises, followed by a breakfast lovingly prepared by members of the congregation. Others will spend the first part of the morning in their homes, sharing readings from Scriptures regarding the resurrection of Jesus Christ before they attend services at their church. Still others will have gathered with relatives where they attend an early morning service and then complete the day by sharing it with cousins, grandparents, aunts and uncles.

All in all, these fine persons who accept traditional Christianity will gather to acknowledge and celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ, and the Christian understanding of the triumph of Christ over death.

Then there are the Unitarian Universalists…

WHO ARE THE UNITARIAN UNIVERSALISTS?

Often erroneously described as a people who believe in nothing, the Unitarian Universalist Association is a non-creedal denomination that came about through the merger of two religious bodies in 1961. Both the American Unitarian Association and the Universalist Church of America had begun as Christian bodies and were at the time of the merger still considered by many to be liberal Christians. Modes of worship in many Unitarian Universalist congregations to this day retain elements that would be easily recognizable to any Protestant Christian. Frequently hymns are used during UU services; a message is given by an ordained minister or a guest speaker. An offering is usually taken at some time during the service, with either prefatory remarks or some sort of reading afterward. Honoring the Unitarian emergence from the Congregationalists of the early 19th century, UU congregations today are autonomous in both congregational polity and modes of worship.

While many Unitarian Universalists still identify themselves as Christians, adherents of many of the worlds great religions, as well as persons who identify more closely with non-religious philosophies, have made Unitarian Universalism their spiritual home.