Religious Education

TOPIC: UU Identity: Chalice
AGE: Adult

Why Do We Light A Chalice?
The Inspiration from Jan Hus

Opening Words

It is from our history that we draw permission to continue our search for truth.
It is from the legacy of those who have gone before that we understand the importance of being examples.
It is from the commitment of those who have gone before that we light the flame, committing ourselves to passing this flame on to others.

Check-In
Opportunity for a each participant to share what is happening for them, or each can give a few words to describe that the symbol of the flaming chalice means to them.

Topic/story
Quest June 2002, REsources for Living, by Betsy Hill Williams, Director of Religious Education, CLF

Jan Hus (or John of Husinec) was born in the small village of Husinec in Southern Bohemia in 1369. Coming from a poor family, he worked hard and was an exemplary student of theology at Prague University. During those years, he developed a strong affiliation with the poor and common people of the city.

From his earliest appointment as preacher in the Bethlehem Chapel, Jan supported practices that engaged and encouraged the participation of ordinary parishioners. He criticized the self-aggrandizing and immoral practices of the clergy and the church at the time, especially the common practice of selling indulgences-documents of personal forgiveness from the Pope that were sold for exorbitant prices to raise money for the crusades and other church battles. He conducted services in Czech, not Latin, and he read from the Bible in the common language. Hus was excommunicated from the Catholic Church in 1412, not for heresy, but for insubordination.

Quoting another reformer, John Wyclif of England, Hus argued that "sinful authority ceases to be an authority." He firmly believed that God's truth is truth for all-the common laboring people, as well as the clergy. Hus garnered much support for these liberal religious views and practices among the people of Bohemia. The Bethlehem Chapel became a rallying place for reform, and Hus became the leader of a protest movement against the doctrinal positions of the Roman clergy and hierarchy. So sure was Hus that reasonable people would understand and support his point of view that he traveled to the Council of Constance in 1415 to defend his position. There he was accused of heresy and burned at the stake.

Hus's martyrdom intensified religious dissent in Bohemia. Hus's followers insisted that all Christians receive communion in both "kinds." At that time the laity received simply the bread (the Host) during communion; only priests were allowed to receive the wine (the Chalice). The chalice survives to this day as a symbol of freedom and independence.

Prague-the "Golden City"-was rich in silver and gold in the 13th century, rich in leadership and reform in the 15th century, and is rich in history and symbolism for Unitarian Universalists today. Situated in the heart of Bohemia (the main province of the Czech Republic), Prague was traded to the Nazis in an infamous agreement between Chamberlain and Hitler, providing it protection from wartime destruction. Ironically, monuments like the one of Jan Hus and the chalice in Old Town Square, stand undisturbed, testaments to religious freedom and national independence that the Czech Republic is enjoying once again.

Additional note:
Jan Hus is connected with Unitarian Universalism today through the symbol of the chalice. The flaming chalice was adopted by the Unitarian Service Committee in 1941. Hans Deutsch was an Austrian refugee who lived in Paris until France was invaded in 1940. Deutsch joined the staff of the Unitarian Service Committee and was asked to design a symbol for the Committee. The Flaming Chalice was created in response to this request and given to the Committee by Deutsch in appreciation of its humanitarian work. The inspiration is said to have come from the life of Jan Hus.

Things to consider
What influence does the example of Jan Hus have on the meaning of the flaming chalice?
When we light the chalice for a service or for meditation, what meaning does it have for you?
Take time to create a poem, or draw a flaming chalice, describing the symbolic meaning.

Closing Words:
“At times our own light goes out and is rekindled by a spark by another person. Each of us has cause to think with deep gratitude of those who have lighted the flame within us.” Albert Schweitzer (from Singing the Living Tradition, #447)

Last updated June 12, 2005