I don’t know about you, but I get a lot of yummy feelings from a good ritual. A ritual can make me feel centered when there is a lot of chaos around me. A ritual reminds me that I am just part of the circle of life and there have been people before me who have gone through these rituals and that there will be plenty of people afterwards going through them as well. A ritual helps me to be fully present and just take in the moment. And sometimes, there are parts of rituals that just make me smile.
Rituals have great power in a religious community, and even more so in Unitarian Universalism, where we don’t have outside forces telling us what rituals we should have. Even without a creed, rituals help us find the spiritual meaning in everyday life. More than that, they foster community, inspire reflection, celebrate our diversity, and affirm our values.
We have a number of rituals in Unitarian Universalism, but it happens that we are putting FIVE of them all at once in one service this Sunday: our Child Dedication, Coming of Age Graduation, Youth Bridging, New Member Ritual and Volunteer Recognition Ritual. It will be a Sunday where we fully live into the Circle Game of our lives, with gratitude, meaning and love. I hope you will join us and fill up your spirit for the week.