Recent Stories
E.E. Cummings’s ‘firstness’
Cummings proclaimed the primacy of individual experience.
In Selma, 'we are your partners forever'
More than 500 Unitarian Universalists join 50th anniversary march in Selma.
Why Black History Month matters
As a Unitarian Universalist, I draw courage and inspiration from Black History Month.
Selma at the cinema
An important film introduces Unitarian Universalists Reeb and Liuzzo, but doesn't mention their faith.
A life lesson from Hollywood
In 'Selma,' James Reeb offers a compelling lesson in being a racial justice ally.
The radical Martin Luther King we don't know
Does America have the capacity to heed the radical Martin Luther King Jr., or must America sanitize King in order to evade and avoid his challenge?
Selma's challenge
In the past, our religious forebears had stood on the brink of making a difference in racial justice, and had wavered. Not this time.
James Lord Pierpont and the mystery of 'Jingle Bells'
The debate over where the Unitarian wrote the holiday favorite rages on.
A tree remembers
A children's book tells Anne Frank's story from the perspective of the tree outside her hiding place.
Josiah Wedgwood: Beyond the table
The 'father of English potters' was also a Unitarian and an anti-slavery advocate.
Challenging the surveillance state
First Unitarian Church of Los Angeles is suing the National Security Agency.
Our visit to Chernobyl
Sabbatical travel allowed us to see history with our own eyes.
Go on a Unitarian Universalist pilgrimage
We may not have shrines, but Unitarian Universalists visit the scenes of our tradition's great stories.
Beyond comprehension
Visiting Auschwitz, the imagination can only handle so much.
Spiritual landmarks: Exploring Boston's churches
Three historic churches are home to Unitarian Universalist congregations in downtown Boston.
Sankofa Ghana: A spiritual journey home
What did I need to retrieve from a visit to the slave ships' point of departure?
UUA holds farewell ceremony for 25 Beacon St.
Beacon Benediction guests look through contents of 1926 time capsule.
UUA sells Beacon Hill buildings to residential developer
Sea-Dar Construction will convert 25 Beacon St., Pickett & Eliot Houses into residences.
Unitarian Charles Follen and the Christmas tree
A champion of religious freedom and the abolition of slavery is best known for Christmas trees.
Time capsule unearthed from 25 Beacon St. cornerstone
Engraved copper box will be unsealed at farewell celebration in February.
Who gets to tell Jesus's story?
A single story may win, but the alternate stories do not fully disappear.
Light a candle or two this Thanksgivukkah
Where are you in the stories of the two holidays that just happen to coincide this year?
Frank Lloyd Wright's 'Beautiful' book
The famous architect designed a rare book by the Unitarian minister William Channing Gannett.
Book to note: 'Muhammad: The Story of a Prophet and Reformer'
New book for children shares stories from the life of Islam's founder.
Olympia Brown: pioneering minister, women's suffragist
Ordained in 1863, Brown was the first woman ordained with full denominational authority in America.
Laura Matilda Towne: A quiet revolutionary
Laura Matilda Towne devoted her life to a school for former slaves.
Farewell, 25 Beacon Street?
As the UUA looks for a more modern headquarters, Unitarian Universalists reflect on the symbolic meaning of its perch on Boston’s Beacon Hill.
UU-UNO marks fifty years at the United Nations
Unitarian Universalist voice for human rights at the UN since 1962.
The Unitarian ministry
In 1944, the author protested Unitarian discrimination against women in the ministry.
Barack Obama's Unitarian Universalist connection
Where to learn more about President Obama's family history with Unitarian Universalism.
Beloved quotes produced by the UU rumor mill
Francis Dávid didn't say, 'We need not think alike to love alike.'
Book to note: 'An Introduction to the Unitarian and Universalist Traditions'
From Servetus to Second Life.
May Sarton, 'our poet,' at 100
May Sarton felt a strong affinity for Unitarians, who continue to revere her work.
Common elements in Unitarian Universalist congregational names
The ten most common elements of a Unitarian Universalist congregation's name.
Historical inspirations
UU World asked: What historical Unitarian, Universalist, or UU most speaks to you?
How old are Unitarian Universalist congregations?
Some date back to the 1600s, but 59 percent were founded in the last sixty years.
Academia, ministry intersect in UU history post
Meadville Lombard appoints the Rev. Dr. Nicole Kirk to endowed chair of UU history.
Cynthia Grant Tucker rescues women's voices from archives
'I wanted to give a voice to all of this experience that has generally been disregarded.'
The empowerment tragedy
Unitarian Universalists remain unreconciled over the 'black empowerment' controversy.
Forty years of UU sexuality education
Our congregations are recognized leaders in comprehensive sex ed, grounded in UU values.
The spiritual heritage of the Occupy movement
The Occupy protests have much in common with political movements of the 1840s, 1890s, and 1930s—including a spiritual dimension.
Robert Gould Shaw and his regiment of 'hope and glory'
25-year-old Unitarian led the first regiment of free blacks in the Union Army.
Henry Bergh: 'The great meddler'
The Unitarian who founded societies for the prevention of cruelty to animals and children.
The life of the spirit
We are discovering Universalism's theological bounty.
The unfulfilled dream
We neglected the Universalist challenge of restating our core convictions in contemporary terms.
UUA membership growth, 2001 to 2011
Over the past decade, Unitarian Universalism has grown in 33 states and D.C.
Unitarians and Universalists together: A good and positive venture
Despite difficulties, Unitarians and Universalists have forged a new identity together.
Key moments in UUA history
Prophetic witness, institutional challenges, and cultural change.
The UUA at 50: Rooted and growing
The Unitarian Universalist Association
celebrates its golden anniversary.
Doors opened to women in UU ministry
As women entered the ministry, language and habits changed.
Spiritual landmark, Summer 2011
The focal point of the Unitarian Universalist Society of Syracuse, N.Y., is a window depicting the world's religions.
Everything changes, and we must, too
Central to our faith tradition is our willingness to leave behind what no longer serves us.
A faith for the few?
Unitarian Universalists are torn between pride in our elite history and aspirations to be a religion for all.
Nordic strands of our living tradition
The story of Icelandic, Norwegian, and Finnish Unitarians in North America.
Heritage and history groups sponsor conference together
'History and Heritage Convocation' unites four independent organizations.
Gordon Martin, civil rights lawyer
UUA parliamentarian's book chronicles African Americans' efforts to vote in 1960s Mississippi.
The story of Ephraim Nute
New book chronicles life of frontier Unitarian minister.
Remember the pro-censorship Unitarians?
Boston's elite saw censorship as part of their larger social reform agenda.
Unitarian values underscore Elizabeth Gaskell's novels
Victorian novelist wrote about social issues, role of women.
Heroes and mentors: Reclaiming Krypton
Why a generation that grew up with Buffy and the Power Rangers will demand a different Unitarian Universalism.
Book review of 'The Antiracism Trainings'
A former editor of this magazine satirizes the Unitarian Universalist Association.
Meet the founders of the UU Service Committee
A new book shares the stories of the founders of the UUSC.
Theodore Parker, radical theologian
2010 is the bicentennial of the most influential Unitarian minister who ever lived.
James Freeman Clarke transformed congregational life
The bicentennial legacy of James Freeman Clarke.
Margaret Fuller's bicentennial legacy
Margaret Fuller, the forgotten heart of the Transcendentalist movement and the first American theorist of women's equality.
Unitarian inspired popular nursery rhyme
In her childhood, Mary Elizabeth Sawyer Tyler had a little lamb.
Events to mark Margaret Fuller’s bicentennial
Dozens of events scheduled nationwide to celebrate the legacy of noted feminist, journalist, and Transcendentalist.
Unitarians worked to 'save' Ute Indians
In the 1870s, the American Unitarian Association oversaw a Ute reservation in Colorado.
The religious left
An old tradition for a new day.
Seeing Joseph Priestley whole
He's more than just the discoverer of oxygen and soda water.
Fifty years after the vote to form the UUA
The Unitarian and Universalist consolidation process continues to this day.
John Murray's conversion to Universalism
How an 18th-century Calvinist was converted to Universalism.
Peace Network rallied UUs against nukes
We didn't have to declare ourselves a traditional peace church to be strong advocates for peace and nuclear disarmament.
Natural faith
How Darwinian evolution has transformed liberal religion.
Watching the evidence change
A meditation on the inauguration of President Barack Obama, in honor of Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
Adlai Stevenson, the original egghead
The last Unitarian nominated for president of the United States.
Ethical Culture's humanist legacy
An Ethical Culture Society joins the Unitarian Universalist Association.
A bench by the road
The author of 'Beloved' wrote her novel because there was 'no suitable memorial' to slaves.
Early Christians emphasized paradise, not crucifixion
How we can reclaim a theology of earthly paradise.
Transcendentalism divided
Some Transcendentalists emphasized self-reliance, but others stressed social reform.
Our congregationalist heritage
Unitarian Universalists have held fast to one aspect of their Puritan roots: congregational polity.
The fellowship movement
A look back at the lay-led congregations that transformed Unitarianism.
Unfinished with Christianity
Most Unitarian Universalists live in tension with Christianity. I wish we talked about this more.
Adapting to children's needs for 200 years
How Unitarian and Universalist religious education evolved over two centuries.
Was your town a sundown town?
How to find out if your community intentionally excluded African Americans.
Book to note, Spring 2008
Gary Kowalski's new book.
Forgotten story of America's whites-only towns
James Loewen documents the rise of 'sundown towns' and their enduring legacy.
'Twilight Zone' writer challenged prejudice
Rod Serling, a Unitarian, confronted prejudice with innovative television scripts.
America's original battle over church and state
Competing visions of divine order and sacred liberty.
Quillen Shinn, Universalist circuit rider
Our Universalist forebears ranged far and wide.
Liberal theology, vibrant but hidden
Unitarian Universalism was liberal theology's first home, but we have neglected it lately.
Louisa May Alcott's Unitarian legacy
Did 'Little Women' plant the seeds of my own Unitarian Universalism?
Thirty years of feminist transformation
The 1977 Women and Religion resolution transformed the Unitarian Universalist Association.
America's first cemetery, Unitarian-style
Boston's 175-year-old Mount Auburn Cemetery reflects Unitarian views of death.
What is Unitarian Universalist Buddhism?
The history of UU engagement with Buddhism and its growing significance.
Golden age of Unitarian growth
One person inspired eight new churches in a dozen years.
Pilgrims' 400-year legacy
Unitarian Universalists celebrate the Pilgrims' historic covenant.
Lewis Latimer, African American inventor and Unitarian
Son of slaves invented key elements of lightbulb.
Why the Pentagon Papers still matter
Why Beacon Press's Pentagon Papers still matter.
Unitarian statue loses spot in U.S. Capitol
Thomas Starr King statue to be replaced by one of Ronald Reagan.
Old Ship Church celebrates 325 years
Hingham, Mass., church dates to Puritan era.
St. Louis, first Unitarian outpost in the West
First Unitarian church west of the Mississippi River formed in 1835.
Heroes' dilemma: How much would you sacrifice?
The complex moral legacy of Martha and Waitstill Sharp.
The quest for the historical Mary Magdalene
The church fathers and 'The Da Vinci Code' both get Mary Magdalene wrong.
Marriage in the nineteenth century
The complexities of women's lives in Unitarian Boston.
How the UU Principles and Purposes were adopted
A history of Unitarian Universalism's Principles.
Counterculture and liberal religion
20th-century transformations of liberal religion.
UU Service Committee led on Central American human rights
Fifteen years of advocacy in El Salvador.
Reviving a 227-year-old church
How the oldest Universalist church in America came back to life.
Church celebrates members' World War II heroism
At celebration of Unitarians who saved refugees from Nazism, a challenge: Who will help the victims of genocide in Darfur?
Ebenezer Scrooge's conversion
Charles Dickens's Unitarian 'Christmas Carol.'
Unitarian couple honored for World War II heroism
Israel honors cofounders of UU Service Committee.
Boston honors Selma's civil rights activists
Unitarian Universalists cosponsor march, remember civil rights martyrs.
Tombaugh discovered Pluto, co-founded church
At 24, Clyde Tombaugh discovered the elusive ninth planet.
Congregational anniversaries, 2004-2005
UU churches celebrate their beginnings.
Hosea Ballou's Universalist manifesto
The pioneering theologian Hosea Ballou challenged the doctrine of damnation.
South Carolina kids honor MLK
Greenville, S.C., UU Fellowship cooperates with Presbyterian church.
William Ellery Channing's public faith
'I thank God that my own lot is bound up with that of the human race.'
Ephraim Nute, free-state minister
New England Unitarians and other abolitionists helped found Lawrence, Kansas.
The wellspring of American nature writing
'Walden' remains uncannily 'addressed to our condition exactly,' 150 years after its publication.
Gay rights timeline
Major social, political, and religious milestones on the road to equality.
Clarence Bertrand Thompson: Famous consultant, forgotten minister
A Unitarian minister who became a management expert and a biochemist.
Liberal Religious Youth merged fifty years ago
Universalist and Unitarian youth organizations merged eight years before their denominations did.
Adin Ballou's influential utopianism
The Universalist-Unitarian who influenced Tolstoy, Gandhi, and King.
Theodore Parker, heretical prophet
Theodore Parker did more to establish our justice-seeking heritage than anyone else.
Ralph Waldo Emerson's Unitarian legacy
What do we see in Ralph Waldo Emerson on his 200th birthday?
Sophia Lyon Fahs, revolutionary educator
Starting in 1937, Fahs helped lead a Unitarian religious education revival.
It came upon a Unitarian midnight clear
Edmund Hamilton Sears's beloved carol longs for peace.
Childhood memories of a Unitarian fellowship
The cartwheels, the parade, the presents for poor people.
The bold experiment of the fellowship movement
The do-it-yourself fellowship movement spread Unitarian congregations far and wide.
A. Powell Davies, preacher to the nation
Unitarian minister was 'in the forefront of every assault upon intolerance and racial discrimination and injustice.'
Bob West led the UUA through a stormy period
Bob West is regarded by many as the 'unsung hero of the UUA.'
A step toward racial reconciliation
A Cincinnati church reaches out to the family of a black Unitarian minister it rejected many years ago.
'His rightful place'
The Rev. W.H.G. Carter's great-granddaughter shares a family's living tradition.
An urgent encounter with Islam
A reading list in the aftermath of 9/11.
Unitarian and Universalist roots of the American Red Cross
Two volunteer organizations led by Unitarians and Universalists set a foundation for the American Red Cross.
Pacifists and pragmatists
We are not a peace church. We are not a war church.
UUA supported publication of Pentagon Papers
Beacon Press and the Pentagon Papers.
Wartime origins of the flaming chalice
The flaming chalice was first used by the Unitarian Service Committee.
Unfinished journey: Selma 1965
Unitarian Universalists responded to Martin Luther King Jr.'s call to Selma. Two gave their lives.
Memoir of King's eulogy for James Reeb
A witness's diary captures the torment and magic of James Reeb’s eulogy.
Timeline of the Selma civil rights campaign
From Selma to the Voting Rights Act of 1965.
Witness to Reeb's death looks back
A witness to Selma's tragedies revisits the path of tears and learns to dry his own.
Unitarian Universalists and Rissho Kosei-kai Buddhists
Greeley and Niwano's great friendship transcended national identity, culture, religion.
UU publishing roots grow deep
UU World magazine descends from periodicals going back to 1819.
The UUA meets black power
BAC vs. BAWA, 1967-1971.
Stories from Universalist history
Stories of Universalists.
Universalism: 200 years and growing
The spirit of Universalism and the future of Unitarian Universalism.
Inside the UUA time capsule
Mementos from two earlier headquarters buildings.
