About Us
At First Unitarian Portland, our passion stems from deeply held convictions moving us to seek meaning and relationship. As a spiritual community, and as people who choose to follow their spiritual path in genuine and meaningful ways, we yearn for a transformed world. We recognize faith without works is empty.
We draw upon a long heritage of social activism. Since our founding in 1866, our community’s leadership has been instrumental in establishing many of Portland’s cherished civic institutions, and we continue to provide progressive leadership today.
We seek common places where we can grow as a community, and work for a more just and compassionate world. And, our vision and message is carried beyond Portland and into the wider world.
Ours is a free religious faith. We embrace the rich diversity of beliefs weaving through the fabric of our contemporary world. These, in turn, inform our rich schedule of programs, events, and activities throughout the year.
First Unitarian Portland is a dynamic community of individuals who share a spiritual journey. We welcome you to join us.
“We need not think alike to love alike.” – Francis David (1510 – 1579)
Honoring of Land & People
First Unitarian Church is located in the heart of downtown Portland. We honor the indigenous people on whose traditional and ancestral land we sit. We recognize the Multnomah, Clackamas, Clowwewalla (or Willamette-Tumwater) and Cascades (or Watlala) bands of Chinookan peoples, and the Tualatin Band of Kalapuya.
These indigenous peoples signed the Willamette Valley Treaty of 1855 and were later forcibly removed from their homelands to the Grand Ronde Indian Reservation; their descendants live today as members of the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde. Many other indigenous nations of the Columbia River have connections to this place as well, and their descendants also live on.
We acknowledge the ancestors and survivors of this place and recognize that we are here because of the sacrifices forced upon them. We honor their legacy, their lives, and their descendants who carry on Tribal traditions for present and future generations.