On reimagining rituals
For the last 6 months or so, I’ve had the same morning ritual. After pouring my first cup of coffee, I sit down, light a candle, practice some slow-deep breathing, journal some reflections, then offer myself this lovingkindness meditation:
May I be loved.
May I be free.
May I be peaceful and at ease.
May I be present and connected each moment of this day.
Thank You, thank You, thank You.
It’s been a very life-giving meditation & morning ritual. I noticed recently, though, that I’ve started moving through it with a little less intention and a little more rote-ness. This is usually a sign that it’s time to make some tweaks.
When it comes to the rituals we practice as a faith community, this can also be true. The point of reimagining rituals is not to strip them of meaning, but to make sure their meaning is not lost - to help us remember why we do them in the first place.
Yesterday, we gathered at the beach to celebrate baptism and to reflect on the meaning of this ancient ritual. Part of our time was spent offering words of blessing, encouragement and gratitude with the one preparing to enter the water. Some of the words shared with her were: “You are loved”, “we have a lot to learn from you”, “you are a light”, “you are good.” It was a beautiful time of reminding this 10-year-old that baptism is not about making her more beloved or more worthy; it is simply a step in her journey of walking the Way. It’s an important step that deserves attention, intention and care - and it also deserved some new words to help us all remember what this Way is all about.
Here are the words we read together:
Today, we meet in the wild to remember, to celebrate and to reflect on baptism.
These waters remind us of who we are:
We are beloved children of God, created by Love and for love.
These waters remind us of the Way we are choosing to live:
We are choosing the way of Jesus - the downward way of love, freedom, joy, compassion, justice and peace.
These waters remind us of what we are choosing
to let go of and to let die:
We are letting go of shame, hatred, greed, prejudice, supremacy, revenge, violence and anything else that keeps us from loving our neighbors and ourselves.
These waters remind us of our place
in the great big scheme of things:
We are creatures, not consumers,
we are part of creation, not the whole.
We are invited back to where we belong,
we are invited to learn to swim with the
Current for the sake of the world*.
These words are incomplete and I’m sure we will tweak them again as we keep learning, practicing & becoming, but for now, I’m grateful for a community that dares to reimagine in a way that brings more depth & more meaning & a deeper sense of why we’re here & why we gather.
I look forward to more & more of this in the days ahead.
~ Susan
—
*This phrase “swim with the current for the sake of the world” comes from Aaron Niequist’s book, The Eternal Current and this adapted reading:
“There is a great and mighty River flowing throughout history toward the healing and restoration of all things. Jesus called it the kingdom of God [we might call it the dream of God]. But Jesus didn’t say ‘Believe about this River.’ He invited us to join him in it and to learn how to swim with the Current for the sake of the world.”