People Ask Us…
When is your Sunday Service?
We meet for worship in our sanctuary each Sunday at 10:30 a.m. Greeters will be available beforehand in the lobby to welcome you and answer your questions.
What do children do during the service?
At 10:30 am most Sundays, children in Kindergarten through Sixth Grade gather for a Children’s Worship service incorporating songs, stories, and meditation. Following this service, children go to their classes with their teachers. Specific information about our children’s classes is available here. Junior High youth begin in their classes at 10:30, and Senior High youth often attend the 10:30 worship service in the sanctuary before their Youth Group gathering at 11:45
Approximately once a month at 10:30 am, the whole community participates in Worship for All Ages, designed to engage children as well as adults. On these Sundays, all children and youth are invited to attend the worship service in the sanctuary with their parents.
May my child stay with me during the service?
Yes, and we ask that you be considerate of others if your child becomes restless.
Is child care available?
Yes, child care is available every Sunday morning.
How do I get there?
The Unitarian Church of Evanston is located on the corner of Greenwood Street and Ridge Avenue.
What do people wear to this church?
For Sunday services, adults wear everything from suits to jeans, with many wearing casual slacks or skirts. Children are encouraged to wear clothes appropriate to the (occasionally messy) activities in which they will be involved.
How large is your congregation?
We have approximately 400 adult members, and approximately 180 children and youth participate in our religious education program.
Will I be welcome in this congregation?
Yes! Everyone is welcome, whatever your age, ethnicity, color, gender, sexual orientation, physical challenge, religious background, or political affiliation.
Is your church accessible to the disabled?
Yes. We have accessible parking, entrances, and restrooms. A chair lift helps with access to our lower level where most religious education classes meet. Headsets with FM receivers broadcasting the worship service are available from the ushers.
What goes on during the Sunday worship services?
We understand the worship service as a time when we hold up those things that are of worth (following the ancient meaning of the term “worship”). Usually, the heart of each service is a sermon given by one of our ministers, with readings, music, and a time of meditation. After the service, coffee and other beverages are available. Usually we have bagels, and sometimes there is a lunch fundraiser after the service.
What is the music like at the worship services?
Music at our worship services ranges from classical to contemporary and represents diverse traditions. On one Sunday you may hear Handel or Bach; on another, African drumming or an original synthesizer composition. The choir supports the congregation in hymn singing and performs gifts of music. The choir welcomes new members.
Do you pray in your church?
Our services include a time for prayer or meditation, but the definition (and object) of prayer varies widely from person to person. One idea: “Prayer doesn’t change things. Prayer changes people, and people change things” (from Unitarian Universalist minister Lon Ray Call).
What do Unitarian Universalists believe?
We are non-creedal and non-doctrinal, meaning that individual members hold a wide variety of beliefs,
Historically, both Unitarianism (meaning that God is one) and Universalism (meaning that no one would be condemned to eternal damnation), come out of Christianity. Today, our members include those who identify themselves as humanists, agnostics, atheists, Moslems, Buddhists, Christians, pagans, and “none of the above.” Each person is encouraged to develop his or her own beliefs in keeping with experience and conscience. Our children (adults, too) are encouraged to think for themselves and to ask questions.
Have we answered your questions?
If we haven’t answered your particular question in this FAQ page, please contact the church office for more information.