Community: The Value of Ritual

Community is important to everyone.  We all need to belong to some group who sees, values and accepts us for who we are.  In my last post, we talked about the importance of being intentional about the community you want to create.  Now, we are focusing on the importance of rituals.

Rituals are important because they become automatic cues for your community.  They can promote warmth, caring, fun and mutual support. When you are building your community carefully select rituals that support your vision.

They don’t have to be complicated.  You may have a ritual of kissing your spouse and children when you come home.  You may not even think of this as a ritual but it comes to signify the bond you share.  You will notice the strength of such a ritual when someone violates it.  If you don’t give that expected kiss you are quite likely to be asked what is wrong.

Movie Night is always at 5:30 on Sunday night.  The day has changed from time to time but not often.  It always starts with everyone sitting at a very long table (actually 2 tables end to end).  We hold hands and say grace.  Then we eat and talk.  It is often quite loud but that is a sign that everyone feels comfortable participating in the conversation.  When dinner is over everyone helps to clean up and then scatters to do whatever they choose.  We come together later for dessert.

The Movie Night rituals allow everyone to know what to expect.  They also help everyone shift into the spirit of the event.

Send a ritual you have found useful in building your community.