“Welcome to First Parish in Hingham, Unitarian Universalist, known as Old Ship Church.
We are a liberal Unitarian Universalist community of about 250 members of all ages. We worship in an historic Meeting House and we hold religious education classes and gather after services in our Parish House across the street. Our interim minister, Rev. Erin E. Splaine, joined us on Aug. 1, 2022.”
Profile last refreshed Aug 11, 2026
Sermons over time
Every audio sermon week across the years we have — a filled cell is a week with an upload, darker blue means richer topics. A steady weekly cadence shows as a solid band across years.
LessMore·no upload·known, not transcribed
Each cell is one week · darker blue = richer topics (clean, sermon-only audio scores higher) · pale = thin, faint = no upload · gold outline = known, not yet transcribed · red outline = broken/failed file · uploaded in 19 of 38 weeks across the span (50%).
Video released
Weeks with a video upload (YouTube or livestream). These aren't transcribed, so this only marks presence — no topic coloring.
no video·video released
Each cell is one week · a filled cell is a week with a video upload (not transcribed) · video in 81 of 669 weeks across the span (12%).
How this church compares
Against other uu and against every sermon on the site. Signals are approximate and grow more reliable as more of the archive is scored.
●this church┃peer average┃site average
Emotional rangenoticeably narrower
Its sermons travel noticeably narrower in feeling than a typical peer congregation, and noticeably narrower than the site overall.
site avg 0.12
narrowerpeer avgwider
Emotional intensitynoticeably higher
The peaks run noticeably higher than peers, noticeably higher than the site.
site avg 0.64
lowerpeer avghigher
Among uu churches with enough scored sermons, it ranks #188 of 243 for emotional range.
On the words themselves, it reads as characteristically uu.
These touch the widest range of themes — often the richest listening.
1-16-2022 Sunday Worship
appears in 3 different topics
260322 Acknowledgements & Aspirations
appears in 3 different topics
10-17-2021 Sunday Worship
appears in 2 different topics
2-27-2022 Sunday Worship
appears in 2 different topics
12-12-2021 Sunday Worship
appears in 1 different topics
2-13-2022 Sunday Worship
appears in 1 different topics
Sermons included
06-12-2022 Sunday Worship
Jun 19, 2022 · hope and light, the beloved community
Gender & Sexuality / InclusionIdentity & Worth
“org again welcome a couple of announcements at noon today as i probably don't need to tell most of you our pride day celebration begins we're all set…”
05-22-2022 Sunday Worship
Jun 2, 2022 · hope and light, the beloved community
Bible & ExpositionChurch Life & MembershipIdentity & Worth
“<br> is with me is <br> good morning everyone on this beautiful not too hot yet may morning summer morning in may be safe welcome to old-timers newco…”
05-15-2022 Sunday Worship
Jun 2, 2022 · unitarian universalism
Church Life & MembershipUnitarian Universalist Identity
05-01-2022 Sunday Worship
May 11, 2022 · power between ideas
The Kingdom of GodWorship & Praise
05-08-2022 Sunday Worship
May 11, 2022 · hope and light, the beloved community
Worship & PraiseJoy & Gratitude
04-24-2022 Sunday Worship
May 11, 2022 · hope and light, the beloved community
Doxology & BenedictionCreation Care
04-03-2022 Sunday Worship
Apr 10, 2022 · hope and light, the beloved community
Mar 27, 2022 · hope and light, the beloved community
Creation CareWorship & Praise
03-13-2022 Sunday Worship
Mar 27, 2022 · power between ideas
Racial JusticeInterdependence & Nature
2-27-2022 Sunday Worship
Mar 12, 2022 · hope and light, the beloved community
Church Life & MembershipWorship & PraiseStewardship & Giving
“org again welcome and i neglected to tell you if you are new who i am i'm ken reed brown the minister of the church and my pronouns are he him and hi…”
2-20-2022 Sunday Worship
Mar 12, 2022 · hope and light, the beloved community
Stewardship & Giving
2-13-2022 Sunday Worship
Feb 20, 2022 · hope and light, the beloved community
Stewardship & GivingPoverty & CompassionProphecy & End Times
“can we just sit and listen to you for an hour christopher would that be okay that's beautiful thank you to make and dance number two come into this p…”
“people in the meeting house it's so good to see you and it's good to see you too on our screens wherever you are whatever houses you find yourselves…”
Racial JusticePoverty & CompassionFaith & Civic Life
“b du bois langston hughes zora neale hurst and of course to dr king and more recently to the leaders of black lives matter movement to the black vote…”
Dec 25, 2021 · hope and light, the beloved community
Advent & Christmas
“ah bye me <br> good evening my name is jenny perelson i'm the president of the board of trustees of first parish in hingham old ship church unitarian…”
12-12-2021 Sunday Worship
Dec 24, 2021 · hope and light, the beloved community
Identity & WorthEarth-Centered SpiritualityCreation Care
“gathered gathered in these days of increasing cold gathered in these shorter days longer nights but in the midst of increasing cold here we find warm…”
12-5-2021 Sunday Worship
Dec 6, 2021 · hope and light, the beloved community
Friendship & BelongingStewardship & GivingFaith & Civic Life
“are we in search of miracles may we look no further than the next sunrise look no further than into our neighbor's eyes for miracles abound if we pay…”
Thanksgiving Interfaith Service 2021
Dec 3, 2021 · hope and light, the beloved community
Nov 9, 2021 · hope and light, the beloved community
Church Life & MembershipCreation Care
10-31-2021 Sunday Worship
Nov 1, 2021 · hope and light, the beloved community
Grief & Lament
10-24-2021 Sunday Worship
Oct 30, 2021 · hope and light, the beloved community
Thanksgiving & Harvest
10-17-2021 Sunday Worship
Oct 25, 2021 · hope and light, the beloved community
Church Life & MembershipStewardship & GivingCreation Care
“n conference on climate change on the climate crisis coming up at the first week in november i know i don't have to lay out for you the science about…”
10-03-2021 Sunday Worship
Oct 10, 2021 · power between ideas
Worship & PraisePsalm 23 / The Shepherd
9-26-2021 Sunday Worship
Oct 3, 2021 · hope and light, the beloved community
Gender & Sexuality / InclusionChurch Life & Membership
Found on this church’s websiteOther UU churchesAll churches
The percentage is how many UU churches’ websites state that value; the bar turns orange where this church’s website states it too.
of UU sites
This church
LGBTQ+ affirming
64%
✓
Creation care / climate
42%
✓
Anti-racism / racial justice
41%
✓
Economic justice & mutual aid
39%
Open to people of all faiths
34%
✓
Radical hospitality & accessibility
30%
✓
Immigrant & refugee welcoming
19%
Reproductive justice
13%
Indigenous relations / land acknowledgment
12%
✓
Peace & nonviolence
10%
Prison ministry & restorative justice
9%
Disability justice
6%
Mental health
5%
Children & youth
80%
✓
Online worship
66%
✓
Small groups
58%
Financial & governance transparency
37%
Child safety policy
10%
Languages / interpretation
4%
Website & sermons online
This church: video only — like 38% of UU churches.
Audio + videoAudio onlyVideo onlySite, no sermonsFeed without audioJS-only siteBlocked / timeoutDead or hijackedNo website
Website completeness, all churches: a rough score of how complete and easy-to-navigate the church’s own website is.
Among the 3,012 churches with a readable, rated website (scores of 0 and 100 left out), this one scores higher than about 58%.
Values stated, within UU churches: how many of the 29 values we track each church’s website states. This one states 9 — ahead of 65% of UU churches (the typical one states 7).
What their website says
Justice & social positions
✓
Anti-racism / racial justicesourceThe Social Justice Council focuses on racism, dismantling white supremacy, climate justice and protecting democracy.
✓
LGBTQ+ affirmingsourceOld Ship Covenant Old Ship welcomes and affirms persons of diverse backgrounds and interests, regardless of race, class, ethnic background, sexual orientation, or political belief.
✓
Open to people of all faithssourceIt describes us as people of all ages, people of many backgrounds , and people of many beliefs .
✓
Radical hospitality & accessibilitysourceThe Meeting House has a sound enhancement system and our facilities are wheelchair accessible.
✓
Creation care / climatesourceActive for many years, Green Sanctuary has recently held educational forums, helped plan greening projects for buildings, and hosted community dinners emphasizing the relationship between climate justice and the food we eat.
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Not found on the pages we checked: Immigrant & refugee welcoming, Economic justice & mutual aid
Belonging & practical
✓
Children & youthsourceFor information about nursery care for babies and toddlers, and our religious education program for children and youth, please contact Lisa Beck, our Church Administrator.
✓
Online worshipsourceAll meetings are open and all are welcome to participate in person or via zoom .
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Not found on the pages we checked: Languages / interpretation, Small groups
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Invite your members to build their own personal theology on Divining — and see, over time, which of your past sermons resonate most.
Most-saved moments
Coming soon. Once listeners begin saving sermons and passages, the moments your congregation returns to most will appear here.
