Mystery and Magic

In a time of global transformation, uncertainty, and awakening, our Unitarian Universalist tradition calls us to be both deeply rooted and boldly rising. This congregational year, Rooted & Rising: Faith for a Changing World invites us to explore how our spiritual lives, values, and communities can ground us while inspiring courageous action.

Monthly Reflection

Where have I stopped noticing the mystery—and how can I learn to see the world again with wonder?

In the long dark nights of winter, we return to the ancient invitation of mystery—the not-knowing, the wonder, the awe. Magic, in this sense, is not illusion, but the quiet unfolding of sacred possibility: in candlelight, in starlight, in the spark of hope when we thought all was lost. Mystery reminds us that not everything needs to be solved or explained; some truths are meant to be felt, held, or simply marveled at. This month, we allow ourselves to believe in things unseen and to be enchanted by the world again.

Significant Dates

12/01 World AIDS Day
12/08 Bodhi Day
12/14 Hanukkah
12/17 Thomas Starr King Day
12/21 Winter Solstice
12/24 Christmas Eve
12/25 Christmas
12/26 Kwanzaa
12/31 New Year’s Eve

Celebrating Diversity: “Light Across Lands: Global Festivals of Hope and Renewal”

Each week in December will explore a different facet of how societies use light, music, ritual, and community to shape meaning:

– Week 1: Light in the Long Night: Winter Solstice Traditions Around the World
– Week 2: Flames of Freedom: Festivals of Resistance, Resilience & Liberation
– Week 3: Songs of Joy: Musical Traditions That Brighten the Season
– Week 4: Community as Constellation: Gatherings that Sustain Spirit & Culture
– Week 5: New Year Radiance: Welcoming Renewal Across Cultures

Sunday Celebrations Overview

NOTE: BridgesUU does not host Sunday Celebrations. We offer resources including monthly and weekly blurbs, Celebration Outlines, Sunday Scripts, Musical Selections, Celebrating Our Youth Stories, Activies, and Resources, as well as, Multimedia Decks.

The world is full of mystery – shining in the stars of a winter sky, humming in traditions carried through generations, and stirring in the quiet moments when we open our hearts to wonder. In a time when life can feel heavy and hurried, we pause to notice the magic that still surrounds us. This month, we ask: Where have I stopped noticing the mystery – and how can I learn to see the world again with wonder?

From the honesty of a Holiday Blues Music Sunday, to honoring the legacy of Thomas Starr King, to celebrating Solstice and Christmas Eve, we gather to rekindle awe, gratitude, and light. We end the month with a Burning Service, releasing 2025 and welcoming the new year with open hearts.

Sunday Celebrations

Sun, Dec 07, 2025 – Music Sunday: “Holiday Blues”
The holidays are not always easy. This Music Sunday offers songs of longing, lament, and hope, creating space for grief and tenderness during a season often framed only in joy. Through music, we honor the complexity of the season and the healing power of shared sound.

Sun, Dec 14, 2025 – “The Welcome of Thomas Starr King”
As we approach the birthday of Thomas Starr King, we celebrate his life and legacy as both Unitarian and Universalist. King’s commitment to inclusion, welcome, and courage in turbulent times reminds us that wonder is not only found in beauty – it is also found in acts of justice and community. His example calls us to widen our welcome and deepen our covenant.

Sun, Dec 21, 2025 – “Mystery of the Solstice”
On the longest night, we turn to light, story, and song. This Solstice service includes presentations from participants in our Constructive Theology and Creative Expression program, who share their theological reflections on the mystery of creating community. Together, we honor the turning of the year and the magic of collective meaning-making.

Sun, Dec 28, 2025 – Burning Service: “Letting Go, Welcoming In”
As the year ends, we gather for a ritual of release and renewal. Through fire, reflection, and song, we let go of the burdens of 2025 and prepare our spirits for the year ahead. This service reminds us that even in letting go, there is mystery and magic – new beginnings rising from the embers.

Creative Arts

Each month we are creating our music that align with our theme for the month. All of our music is available for unlimited use by BridgesUU Covenanting Communities. If you are interested in becoming a BridgesUU Covenanting Community or licensing one of our songs, please let us know. We will be happy to provide sheet music as well as audio and video files.

Song of the Month:

BridgesUU: 3006: Of Dark and Of Light
Written & Composed by Paul Ermisch

Sing now of dark, stillness abides
Darkness is here, sing soft and clear.
Here in this stillness, cool stillness we wait
Seeds of new life waiting for the new year.

Sing now of light, spirit arise,
Stars and the moon, begin anew.
Bright glowing orbs, orbs of yellow and gold.
Ancient light guiding us gently and true.

So shall we sing of dark and of light.
Here at the edge of old and of new.
Voices united in cold and in fire,
Holding the darkness, the light shining through.

Additional Musical Selections:
The following musical selections align with our theme for the month.

STLT: 335: Once When My Heart Was Passion Free
STLT: 337: Have I Not Known
STLT: 343: A Firemist and a Planet
STJ: 1003: Where Do We Come From?
STJ: 1052: The Oneness of Everything

LifeSpan Learning

Together we’ll explore the wonder and awe that live in everyday moments from the sparkle of stars to the questions we can’t quite answer. Through stories, play, and creativity, we’ll celebrate the magic of imagination and the mystery of being alive, learning that sometimes, not knowing is part of the adventure.