Welcome! First Parish in Lexington, the church to your left, has stood on Lexington Green since 1692; church members took part in the battle here on April 19, 1775.  We celebrate the ideals for which they fought. Our faith also calls us to remember what remains unfinished. In 1775/76, Indigenous people and women had no rights. Some residents enslaved African Americans, and no one considered the rights of accessibility, inclusion, and protection from climate change.

The work that began in 1775 is ongoing. We share our values here and invite you to consider how we all can act in ways that hold love at the center of all we do.  Walk through this meditative space, rest and reflect on how we all can continue the revolution and ensure a just, equitable and sustainable world for all.

With a revolutionary spirit and our love-based values, we invite you to affirm, protect, sustain, and repair the Interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part and address the causes and effects of climate change.

When members of First Parish joined others to declare their independence in 1775/76, they affirmed their interdependence with one another. By acknowledging and expanding their awareness of the power of connecting to and working with others, they reached out to other nations – particularly France, Spain, and the Netherlands – for vital support, including military aid, financial assistance, and diplomatic backing. 

Today, our awareness of interdependence has grown wider. Our revolutionary spirit calls us now to humbly acknowledge that we are part of Earth’s great and mysterious web of life. We invite you to join us and pledge to protect Earth from exploitation and climate change, and to protect all life from abuse, injustice, and extinction.

We fought in the American Revolution (which) to put an end to the rule of Kings on this land, and gave land-owning males the power of the vote.  Today, affirming our equity-based values, we declare that every person is inherently worthy and has the right to flourish.

In 1776, the Declaration of Independence established the government of the United States of America with these words:

“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”Today, while reaffirming these truths, we have expanded our understanding of “all men.” In 1776, men without land, women, people who were enslaved, and Indigenous people were not part of the authors’ understanding of “all men.” Our Unitarian Universalist value of Equity states, “We declare that every person is inherently worthy and has the right to flourish with dignity, love, and compassion.”   How will you join us in continuing the revolution, to bring our nation closer to the ideal of securing life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness for all people?

The American Revolution foretold the promise of our nation becoming one “of, for, and by the people.”  Our value of “transformation” calls us to adapt to the changing world.  We continue to expand our understanding of “the people,” including all people, so that our nation can live up to this ideal.

The Revolution that began here on the Lexington Green transformed the rule of Kings into the democratic rule of law. This same spirit of transformation would later end slavery, and give women the right to vote and own property.  

Today we continue on the path of transformation by honoring and respecting the breadth and depth of human cultural, individual, and sexual diversity. Transformation requires us to constantly and honestly examine our past and, guided by love, learn new ways to live in right relationship with our changing world.

Today we celebrate the spirit of the Declaration of Independence by affirming that we are all sacred beings, diverse in culture, experience and theology.  In love, we embrace our differences and commonalities and seek to learn from one another through our free and responsible search for truth and meaning.

At the time of the Revolution, pluralism referred to the diversity of religious beliefs.  Emerging from a multi-sectarian society, the separation of church and state, and the freedom of religious expression are guaranteed in the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. This attracted individuals and families often fleeing religious intolerance across the world.Today we Continue the Revolution by embracing this foundational pluralism and expanding it by welcoming people of all religious, cultural, and political beliefs who share our love-centered values.  We invite you, whatever your belief, to join us in these revolutionary efforts.

The American Revolution called for many acts of selflessness and generosity. Today we are called to freely and compassionately share our presence and resources, and affirm caring relationships, as we evolve toward an inclusive democracy. 

A small but fearless group of militia fought against English troops with a dream of creating a country of interdependent people whose generosity would provide for each other without relying on the will of a king.  Our history is brimming with stories of countless people of all races and cultural backgrounds who have given generously of themselves in service to others. 

Selfishness and fear-driven messages of scarcity often undermine our commitment to the spirit of generosity. We invite you to Continue the Revolution by joining us as we seek to ensure that everyone has access to adequate health services, education, and housing and is treated with dignity and respect.  How do your own acts of generosity fuel your hope for a country where all can flourish?

The American Revolution ended an oppressive social and economic system for some. Today we work to establish diverse multicultural communities where all can thrive. Through the democratic process, we aim to dismantle racism and other forms of systemic oppression, in the pursuit of liberty and justice for ALL.

The pursuit of justice fueled the American Revolution. Feeling they were being denied fair representation and treatment under British rule, particularly through taxation without representation, the patriots of Lexington sought a government based on the principles of individual rights and self-governance and one that would assure the right to trial by a jury of one’s peers.

We are proud that our Unitarian Universalist tradition, like many others, has been at the forefront of many movements for social justice, including abolition, temperance, women’s suffrage, better treatment for prisoners and people with mental illness, opposition to Chinese exclusion and Japanese internment, Civil Rights, pacifism, and lesbian/gay/bisexual/transgender rights. We invite you to join us as we Continue the Revolution to establish diverse multicultural communities where all can thrive. We continue to affirm the words of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr, who paraphrased Rev. Theodore Parker (who was raised at First Parish Lexington): “The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice.”

“We build Beloved Community where all people thrive.”