Week 6: Peoples Church Unitarian Universalist

Peoples Church UU

This past Sunday (June 3rd) I joined the congregation at Peoples Church in Cedar Rapids for their Sunday service. Peoples Church is part of the Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA), a very unique religious organization. The UUA was founded with the merger of two liberal Christian denominations- The Universalist Church of America and the American Unitarian Association.

Although the UUA has its roots in Christianity, it is not a Christian religion. The UUA has no creed or single set of beliefs that members must adhere to. Personally, I would describe it as a group of people coming together to explore the meaning of life and existence, create safe and supportive spiritual communities regardless of belief, and be a force for good in the world.

Instead of a shared set of beliefs, Unitarian Universalists have a shared set of Principles (taken from the UUA website)-

1. The inherent worth and dignity of every person
2. Justice, equity, and compassion in human relations
3. Acceptance of one another and encouragement of spiritual growth in our congregations
4. A free and responsible search for truth and meaning
5. The right of conscience and the use of the democratic process within our congregations and in society at large
6. The goal of world community with peace, liberty, and justice for all
7. Respect for the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part

They also draw upon six "Sources," which include: Jewish and Christian teachings, personal experience, wisdom from all religions, Humanist teachings and ideas, and Earth-centered traditions.

All of this means that within any single UU congregation you could find a Christian, atheist, Buddhist, agnostic, pagan, etc.

Unitarian Universalism also strongly oriented towards social justice and service. More on this later.

Peoples Church UU

Old "First Universalist
Church," demolished in
2011*

Peoples used to be located in downtown Cedar Rapids, but after the 2008 flood they sold the building and moved to a residential area on the north west side of town. It's definitely not an area that I would have ever looked for a church. I remember their old building downtown and it definitely gave them more visibility in the community.

One of the first things you see when you enter is a nametag wall. This is one of my favorite things to see a church do and I wish more congregations did it. Especially when someone is new to a community, learning and remembering the names of people you usually only see once a week can be incredibly difficult. Nametags help to breakdown one of the barriers to building a community. 

Symbol associated with UU

As I entered an usher asked me if I was new and invited me to make a disposable nametag. She also let me take several brochures and gave me the order of service. 

The sanctuary itself was small. There was a chalice at the front enclosed by two connecting circles, one of the symbols of UU. The front wall had different colors of fabric hanging from the ceiling in a rainbow pattern. There were two lovely upholstered chairs and a piano in the front as well.

I counted only about 50 people in the congregation. It sounds like during the school year they have a religious education program that runs concurrent to the main service, so I would guess that there are more people during the school year  than the summer. 

Before the service began a woman who was helping to lead worship came to the front to welcome everyone and give announcements. One of the announcements that stood out to me was that there would be a meeting after the service for people who were helping with the Peoples Church table at Cedar Rapids' Juneteenth celebration. They would be discussing how they could be present at the celebration without coming off as "privileged white people." Apparently they've been reading some books on white privilege throughout the year and were going to discuss how they could put what they learned into practice. I really appreciated their awareness and sensitivity surrounding the celebration, as well as their willingness to participate in the event. I'm curious if other churches are joining in the celebration.

The Service

The service started with a couple playing traditional Irish music on their violins. If you know me you know I love traditional Irish music, and they were fantastic. I was having a hard time staying still in the pew and not tapping my hands or feet. So. Good.

After that the minister read a call to worship. They were having a Flower Communion/Ceremony this Sunday, so everything was more or less centered around flowers. After the call to worship the chalice was lit.

Following that was a hymn called "Oh, Give Us Pleasure in the Flowers Today." I don't think this hymn was suited well to a congregation singing without a choir. A small pet peeve of mine is when congregations are invited to sing a song that is difficult to sing, either because the music is difficult or the notes are hard to hit. A lot of people (myself included) did that whisper-singing thing that people do when they can't sing the song. Basically, lips were moving with a tiny bit of sound coming out. Thankfully, this was the only song where that happened. 

There was an affirmation in the program (which read like a mission statement) that everyone read, followed by a responsive reading, similar to a responsorial psalm. The response was "May our lives bloom like the flowers."

They then did a "Story for All Ages." A gentleman came forward to read a story called Miss Rumphius, which I had never heard before. It was a really cute story that fit well with the theme of the day, and the man reading it read it very well. He has a very good story telling voice. It did feel kind of long though. My guess is that it's intended to help engage children, but the kids I noticed weren't really paying attention. It probably would be a good idea to project pictures on the wall or even invite the children up to the front and have the story teller show them the pictures in the book after each page.

Following that was an offering and more violin music (traditional Scottish this time). It sounded like any extra money they were receiving that week would go to ACLU Iowa. 

There were two poems read following this- I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud by William Wordsworth and Hearts Like Wildflowers by Nikita Gill. The minister offered a reflection after this focusing on flowers and beauty. She was a fantastic speaker and it was very uplifting.

During the offering they had invited people to write down their concerns or joys. Those were used to help the minister lead the Prayers of the People. She also invited people to spontaneously share their concerns and joys. This was punctuated with the congregation singing verses from How Could Anyone that were projected onto the wall. The two components together honestly made it kind of an emotional moment, which is probably what they were going for. 

A "Flower Ceremony" followed. The minister gave a brief history of the ceremony. It is a Unitarian tradition started by Norbert Čapek, the founder of the Unitarian Church in Czechoslovakia and who was killed in a gas chamber in Dachau in WWII. The Flower Communion is supposed to emphasize the unique people coming together to form a larger group. The idea is that everyone brings a flower, which are put together in vases, and leaves with a different flower than the one they came with. It's a very neat idea.

I was a bit worried I wouldn't be able to take part since I didn't bring a flower. The usher noticed my hesitance and assured me I could join in. It really was kind of like going up for communion. I chose a lovely yellow flower to take with me (which promptly wilted when I left it in my hot car). We were also invited to light a small candle on our way back to our seats.   

De Colores was the final hymn sung before the chalice was extinguished and the violinists played one more song and the minister gave a benediction. 

Final Thoughts

This was a very positive and uplifting experience and I honestly had a great time. I think it's great that people have a place they can go to for spiritual growth when their beliefs don't line up with more traditional beliefs, or even when they have no beliefs at all. I really appreciate just how active the UUA and local congregations are in advancing social justice. The only thing I'm bummed about is that the UUA is officially pro-choice. I'm pretty much in agreement with all of their social positions accept this one, and it stinks that they officially reject one of my most important convictions. 

Regardless, my experience at their worship was amazing. I went in wondering if it was possible to have a whole serving centered around flowers, but they did it and they did it well. Nothing seemed out of place despite the many different parts of their service. You can tell when people practice and genuinely care about the worship they are leading. I would love to go back when I have the chance.

*Source: By RifeIdeas - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=14589741