Celebrate life’s sacred passages through ritual, ceremony

“RITUAL IS A CELEBRATION of life’s passages,” explains Sister Roseann Giguere, CSJ, M.Div. “Humans are symbol makers. We love metaphor and celebration. If we consider that the Holy—God—is in everything, then by celebrating the ordinary we can touch the Divine or extraordinary. Ritual provides a means to do that.”

Roseann was raised in the Roman Catholic Church, which she claims “is rich in beautiful ritual.” Her path toward this area of study began when she became a Sister of St. Joseph in the 1950s—a process that involved many historical rituals. “My love for the Church’s rituals—Eucharist, Easter Vigil, baptisms, weddings and funerals—compelled me to delve into the history of ritual. I found that the Church’s liturgical year is closely related to the earth celebrations that the paganus or heathens (the people of the countryside who lived off the land) had established long before.

“All religions have rituals. Eastern religions typically relate to the lunar seasons marked by a new or full moon. Western religions attend to the sun’s energy by celebrating the winter and summer solstice. (In prevatican II days, we called these Ember Days.) In October, for example, we celebrated Halloween and All Saints Day. At that time, we dedicated ourselves to moving into darkness and letting go of light. On Dec. 21, we celebrate the winter solstice—the coming of the light. Christmas, Dec. 25, marks the first measurable increase in daylight; an interesting choice to celebrate the birth of Jesus who is, for many, the Light. Easter, for example, is the first Sunday after the full moon after the equinox. May is the month of Mary, the mother of Jesus. It is also the month of Maia—goddess of spring.

“Internationally, we experienced rituals from around the world during the millennial celebrations. Nationally, we celebrate fireworks on the fourth of July, and the placing of wreaths on Memorial Day. The Tomb of the Unknowns is an ongoing ritual and the upcoming inauguration will be filled with ritual.”

Roseann’s passion for ritual is shared with an ever-widening group of sojourners at Wisdom Ways Center for Spirituality (www.wisdomwayscenter.org) in St. Paul where she offers a variety of programs in ritual and spirituality, including spiritual direction.

“Wisdom Ways is a place for spiritual seekers—people who love community and care about creation, who love story and conversation and who seek to connect with the Divine,” explains Rev. Barbara Lund, Wisdom Ways’ director. “Our programs cover a wide spectrum of ritual that includes the labyrinth, silent meditation, drumming circles, and in-depth study programs in art, theology or gospel studies. They are rooted in both ancient and contemporary spiritualities and provide an opportunity to look at one’s own experience as a source that can lead to the realization that life is not a maze, but rather a journey.”

“People are hungry for rituals,” continues Roseann. “They rise up from the people and become markers for the seasons, coming-of-age transitions and life events. Together, we are learning how to celebrate these passages. It’s recognizing in a real way what’s already going on. As I say, ‘it’s happening anyway so we might as well celebrate it.’ A great example of this was the I-35W bridge collapse. We were celebrating a ritual for St. Brigid. Someone got a phone message and told us what was happening. We stopped what we were doing, turned toward the bridge, raised our hands in blessing and called forth all the angels and prayed. All of a sudden, our planned ritual transformed into a ritual of blessing and concern. It was so powerful. It reminded me of Peter Mayer’s delightful song, “Holy Now,” where he sings, ‘When holy water was rare at best, I barely wet my fingertips. But now I have to hold my breath, like I’m swimming in a sea of it.’ The experience and the song speak to the realization that ritual is a way of claiming that everything is Holy.”

“Ritual really becomes a powerful manifestation of people’s individual experience connected to the universal experience through creativity and spirituality,” says Barbara. “Ritual grounds it in a wider experience that can be lived out in justice and peace in our world. Ritual awakens awareness so that we can remember what has been, what is and what may be. Ritual is about recognizing and celebrating the holiness of all that is and integrating our spiritual journey in work and life and the world in which we live.”

To learn more about program offerings in sacred ritual, theology and spirituality, including those offered by Roseann, visit www.wisdomwayscenter.org