The value of ritual | QuirkyKnitGirl

So, as I read about Wicca and paganism, I’m finding that there are things about myself that sometimes put me at odds with other pagans. For one, I like ritual–and by that I mean, pretty structured, formalized ritual. Obviously, there are occasions where someone is spontaneously inspired to act, but what I’m talking about is regular worship (sabbats, esbats, daily practice, etc.).

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying that spontanaiety should be stifled, or that improvisation is bad. Certainly, I would never suggest that free-form worship is bad–I don’t think Diety cares much less about whether or not people say the “right” words or follow the “correct” faith as much as the intentions behind words and action–but for regular worship personally I don’t find it as fulfilling as ritual.

I think part of this comes from growing up as an Episcopalian, since the Episcopal church is pretty liturgical. This may be surprising to some, but I really did like church. I liked the incense and the processional and the hymns, but as I got older and began to actually understand things, I just wasn’t quite able to get behind the actual theology. I did, however, carry an attachment to ritual.

I think there can be a tendency for people to abandon ritual. Rather than looking at it as a valuable spiritual experience, people see it as a contstraint, a rule. But there’s also something incredibly powerful about it. Haivn the structure of knowing certain ceremonial elements frees your mind–you aren’t worried about keeping up, or wondering what comes next–and it also inspires an incredible sense of connenctedness. To know that not only are you performing these actions, but so are hundreds or thousands of other people around the world who share your faith.

Is it possible to be too caught up in ritual? Absolutely. If you’re worrying that you can’t do your full moon ritual because your candle isn’t the perfect shade of silver or you ran out of herbs, or if you’re yelling at anyone who stumbled over a word you’re probably clinging a little bit too tightly. But I think complete free-form worship overlooks a certain ceremonial feeling that can greatly enhance spirituality.

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Thora

i was absolutely delighted to read this!
i myself am a practicing episcopalian (episcopagan is the running joke), and one of the things i love most about the episcopal church is their attachment to and reverence of ritual.
i was raised fundamentalist evangelical in the south, and so grew up with a very bare sort of church, and lots of praise-chorus type music, and altar calls, all that sort of thing. ritual was seen as hollow, because people thought you could “tune out” if you knew what was happening, whereas if you were being moved by the spirit, things would be spontaneous.
for me it was always the exact opposite. ritual is what helps me focus, what draws me in. finding the episcopal church was revolutionary for me, because they did things that i had always missed but didn’t know how to talk about. likewise with paganism. whether it’s a pagan ritual or a christian ritual, i love the motions and the script and the transcendence that comes with moving through a sacred liturgy.
of course ritual can, like anything, be taken too far. if you’re worried that your full moon candle is the wrong color, that’s a problem, just as much as getting upset because the priest stumbled over a word is a problem. when ritual must be perfect for it to be effective for you, it’s time to re-evaluate. but as a tool for mediation and for reaching the numinous, i have always found ritual to be absolutely indispensable.