The Story of the Flower Communion is one of great beauty and deep tragedy.

It was introduced in 1923 by Rev. Norbert Capek who had founded the Unitarian Church of Czechoslovakia a few years earlier. Rev. Capek discovered Unitarianism while in the United States as the minister of a liberal Baptist Church in the New York area for persons of Slovakian descent. Following World War I he went back to what had become the Republic of Czechoslovakia to found a Unitarian Church there. It became one of the largest Unitarian congregations ever gathered. He used the Flower Communion to bring diverse congregants together and respect their different backgrounds. He chose nature as the theme.

The deep tragedy is that in 1938 Adolph Hitler gained control of Czechoslovakia. As the most visible religious liberal in the country and a vocal opponent of the Third Reich, Rev. Capek was arrested and sent to the Dachau Concentration Camp where he was executed in 1942. His wife, Maya, who had also become a Unitarian minister, escaped to the United States. She is the one who brought the Flower Communion to American UU Churches. She asked that it be observed to celebrate the beauty of our UU faith, and to remember the ultimate sacrifice made by her husband.

All who come to our service this Sunday are invited be bring a flower, a bouquet, an annual, perennial cutting, or a packet of seeds. At the conclusion of the service everyone will be invited to take a different selection home.

 

The link to join remotely is HERE