Introduction to the Flower Communion Service:

The Unitarian Universalist Flower Communion service we celebrate this morning was introduced in 1923 by Dr. Norbert Capek (Chah-peck), founder of the modern Unitarian movement in Czechoslovakia.  On the last Sunday before the summer recess of the Unitarian church in Prague, all the children and adults participated in this colorful ritual, which gives concrete expression to the humanity-affirming principles of our liberal faith.   When the Nazis took control of Prague in 1940, they found Dr. Capek’s gospel of the inherent worth and beauty of every human person to be – as Nazi court records show “…too dangerous to the Reich (for him) to be allowed to live.”  Dr. Capek was sent to Dachau, where he was killed the following year. This gentle man suffered a cruel death, but his message of human hope and decency lives on through his Flower Communion, which is widely celebrated among Unitarian Universalists.  It is a noble ritual we are about to recreate.  This service will include some of the original prayers of Dr. Capek to help us remember the principles and dreams for which he died.