Our faith, Unitarian Universalism, is a spiritually alive and justice-centered religion.
Unitarian Universalists search for truth along many paths. Instead of centering our religion on specific beliefs, we gather around shared moral values that include the inherent worth and dignity of every person.
If you were to visit a Unitarian Universalist congregation, you would probably find our religious observances to be familiar. Most congregations have regular worship services facilitated by ordained ministers, religious education classes for our children, religious music, study groups, community work, and much more.
There are seven principles which Unitarian Universalist congregations affirm and promote:
The inherent worth and dignity of every person;
Justice, equity and compassion in human relations;
Acceptance of one another and encouragement to spiritual growth in our congregations;
A free and responsible search for truth and meaning;
The right of conscience and the use of the democratic process within our congregations and in society at large;
The goal of world community with peace, liberty, and justice for all;
Respect for the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part.
Our Symbol: The Flaming Chalice
A flame within a chalice represents the Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) and is a symbol of the Unitarian Universalist (UU) faith.
“At the opening of Unitarian Universalist worship services, many congregations light a flame inside a chalice. This flaming chalice has become a well-known symbol of our denomination. It unites our members in worship and symbolizes the spirit of our work.” -Dan Hotchkiss
Hans Deutsch, an Austrian artist, first brought together the chalice and the flame as a Unitarian symbol during his work with the Unitarian Service Committee during World War II. To Deutsch, the image had connotations of sacrifice and love. Unitarian Universalists today have many different interpretations of the image. To many, the cup represents religious community, while the flame represents ideas including the sacrificial flame, the flame of the spirit, and more.
The flaming chalice image has changed many times over the past 65 years. There is no single interpretation of today’s flaming chalice symbol. Modern chalice designs often incorporate two overlapping circles which, for many people, represent our Unitarian and Universalist heritages. Other images include additional elements, some of which are merely decorative and others which are very meaningful.
Our current official UUA logo was designed to offer a visual representation of a modern and dynamic faith. Unitarian Universalist congregations are free to use the UUA’s logo in their congregational work, but they are not required to do so. Because of this, you may see many different styles of flaming chalices and other images used by UU congregations.
