Holidays and Traditions
The liberal religious tradition draws from many sources, including teachings and rituals from many religions and cultures. We do not adhere to to a single set of traditions, therefore most of our holiday observances have blended influences of ancient traditions and contemporary reflection. For example, even though we do not have a or fixed prescription of how to celebrate Christmas, we usually have a Carols and Candles service on Christmas Eve and often have an all-family Christmas pageant just before the holiday. On many other holidays, such as Halloween and Thanksgiving, we celebrate with multi-generational services.
In addition to traditional holidays, we like to observe and celebrate the changing of the seasons, especially around solstices and equinoxes. Again, we tend to blend ancient pagan-inspired ritual with contemporary celebration on these occasions.
Two of our most-loved traditions are great examples of this kind of blending: In early fall, usually right after Labor Day, we celebrate our in-gathering with a Water Communion service, in which people are encouraged to bring small amounts of water to pour into our common bowl. The water represents for each person some aspect of his or her spiritual growth, which is then blended to form the larger spiritual essence of our community. Then, usually in the spring, we celebrate Flower Communion, in which people each bring flowers to share, and then take with them a different flower to symbolize how being in community can change us.