CRESSONA - After forming the congregation in July, the Schuylkill Unitarian Universalists will be holding their first Christmas Eve celebration at the Stone Church on Saturday.
Deborah Miller, co-chair of the steering committee and secretary, said since the idea for the congregation was seeded in early summer and they were authorized by the Unitarian Universalist Association as a startup congregation in October, the congregation has grown to more than 80 people in its mailing list.
The congregation, currently occupying 45 S. Second St., a former Methodist Church for 150 years, is the first Unitarian church in the county.
Although there have been previous attempts to establish one over the past five years, none succeeded, and the closest neighboring congregations are Bethlehem, Reading and Harrisburg.
The Unitarian church is open to all religions and accepting of all religious doctrines and sacred writings.
"In Unitarian Universalism, we learn about other religions so that people can find the path that's right for them," Miller said.
There are about 1,000 congregations in the United States.
The Christmas Eve celebration will mark the congregation's third event. The first was an open house Oct. 30 that had 42 people in attendance and the second was a potluck with gratitude gathering Nov. 27 that had 48 people in attendance, Miller said.
Since Unitarian Universalism respects all religious beliefs, the event being held at 7 p.m. Saturday will incorporate all of the winter holidays and beliefs.
"Our winter holiday celebration is a multi-holiday celebration focusing on Christmas, Kwanzaa, Winter Solstice and Hanukkah," Miller said. "The centerpiece of the celebration is the readings of those four holidays in four voices."
Differing from Christian services, Miller said there will be a Yule Log presentation and the carols sung will be open to all religions, not favoring one over another.
There will also be various other readings, which Miller said are not necessarily religious-based readings but inspirational readings.
One of the people giving a reading Saturday will be Jan "Jesse" Rhoades, Minersville, speaking about Hanukkah.
Rhoades said she will be telling about the story of Hanukkah, how it is celebrated and exactly what it means.
"Unitarian Universalism is a mix of everything and this is just part of it," Rhoades said. "What Unitarian Universalists means is tolerance, in other words, acceptance with not all of us believing in one way. I'm part pagan, part Lutheran, part Unitarian, so I believe in a lot of different things, not just one specific (thing)."
Dr. Charlie Law, Schuylkill Haven, said he will be telling about the Winter Solstice, which is about how the shortest day of the year is a celebration of the days getting longer and winter, and will also tell about the tradition of the Yule Log.
He said that if it burns for 12 hours, you will have good luck in the coming year.
With the first year as a congregation ending, members said they will be looking forward to the celebration, including Arthur Eglington, Cressona, a retired patent attorney who has had membership with his wife in Unitarian churches as far back as 50 years in Virginia, Philadelphia and Pittsburgh.
"It will be an uplifting experience after many years of not attending a UU group since there was none available here before," Eglington said. "It's nice to get back into the holiday spirit."
On behalf of all the members, Miller said they're gratified from the wonderful response they've received this year, and while they're expecting 60 people for the Christmas Eve celebration, there could be as many as 100 people in attendance with family members.
"I think that's an extraordinary head count," Miller said. "It's a lot of work, but we're a small group of very dedicated people."
After the celebration there will be cookies and spiced cider available.
For more information about the celebration, congregation and the religion, or to contact the steering committee, email members at schuylkilluu@comcast.net.