Rituals Bind Our Hearts To Others

What religious rituals do you observe as part of your worship? What habitual activities do you engage in with your social circle that could be anthropologically termed "rituals"? Family home evening? Roommate prayer? Mealtime?

Why do we have rituals? Consider this story paraphrased from my family class: A husband and wife exchanged love letters every day. The husband remarked that when he was given the advice to do so at the beginning of their marriage, he was also told: "If you don't have time to write one to her, write a little note and put it under her pillow that says, 'Sorry, I didn't have ten minutes to write you a love letter today.'" What an expression of love this ritual has become.

I read this story and thought of prayer and scripture study. Religion is inherently ritualistic. I think this is because the act of creating sacred time and space creates devotion and proves love. If we don't take time for rituals, it can be an expression of lack of love, as illustrated by the facetious note I just mentioned.

Many things we habitually do are rituals that we haven't recognized. Deliberate rituals are important in any relationship. Let's be more aware and intentional about our rituals that fulfill the first and second great commandments: to love.