Intriguing Questions from a Chance Meeting (part 2 of 3)

Yesterday I mentioned a conversation I had on an airplane with a Christian fellow. He e-mailed me several questions a few days back. Here's the second question, and my (lengthy) response.

Have you seen the church minimize the act by making it rote or mundane, therefore causing the body to make it more of a ritual than a very sincere act of worship?

First of all, however, I'd like to make an observation. Your question about ritual and worship seems to presume that all ritual is rote or mundane. Actually, ritual can be - should be - an important part of human life. Rituals are actions that serve as symbols – they help us express our beliefs, values and deepest concerns (e.g. the Olympic games express the natural human desire to be ‘faster, higher, stronger’, as well as our desire for peace. In the Olympics we are for a time united in games we share, the athlete's commitment to a goal, and respect for other cultures.) Christmas dinner is often a loose ritual: gathering of generations, remembering the past, celebrating our love, enjoying our bounty.
By the way, I should say a few words about symbols: they are powerful conveyors of meaning and thus are suited to describing experiences of faith. Jesus used symbols when he said "the Kingdom of God is like a mustard seed..." or compared the kingdom to a wedding feast. A good symbol has a variety of meanings and possible interpretations. There's a richness to them that goes beyond a sign, which points to one and only one thing. Symbols, like a cross, or an altar, or even a kiss, take a difficult concept and expresses it in more understandable realities. Thus symbols are used to help us recognize the sacred. It is a contemporary bias that says something is ‘just’ a symbol. Why then are we showing the flag everywhere? Why was it such a powerful moment in September, 2001 to raise the flag over ground zero? Symbols can be quite powerful!

Now, back to ritual... Some actions are practical – walking to school – these would be routines. Other similar actions are rituals – walking in the street in a parade, a protest march, a procession: these actions symbolize an important reality: community pride, solemnity of occasion, right to free speech, solidarity with another group. Eating is a practical action, and can be a routine. Saying grace before meals can be a ritual that reminds us of the gift of food and the beauty of sharing it. But grace before meals can become another routine if it’s rushed and hurried through without thinking of the significance of the prayer. So, too, a kiss between husband and wife before one or the other or both leave the home in the morning can be a wonderful ritual symbolizing their mutual devotion, or it can become a routine. We humans have a real struggle staying rooted in the present moment - especially in our hyperactive, ADHD-inducing culture.

I hope you begin to see rituals are important in life - essential, really

1) they are movements and gestures with meaning (shaking hands, applause, bowing)

2) they are repeated because the event is significant (an annual visit to a grave)

3) they are symbolic celebrations that break the routine of life (the Olympics)

4) rites connect us to important events (the first shovelful of dirt at a groundbreaking)

5) they often are accompanied by significant words (the words of a toast)

6) they link us to the past (4th of July parades and fireworks)

7) They are communal actions (graduation. Imagine celebrating Thanksgiving in China where no one else has heard of it!)

8) They require people’s wholehearted participation (There's a ritual I love on Saturday afternoons in Eugene, OR - attending an Oregon Duck football game. When you hear the crowd roar, and can't hear yourself think, you've experienced wholehearted participation! Have you attended a Japanese tea ceremony? It's a celebration of the beauty of life’s daily routine)

So I think the problem with regular communion isn't that it can become a ritual. It is a ritual! The problem is in the participants of the ritual! The problem is our lack of consciousness, our lack of focus and attention to the present moment. Prayer, meditation, and especially contemplation are meant to help us be grounded in the present, which is the only moment in which we can respond to God's initiative in our lives.

The quick answer is, no, I don't believe the church has made communion (and by this I mean the celebration of the Mass in which Catholics receive communion) mundane by repeating it each Sunday, or even daily. The problem, I believe, is addressed in my answer to your third question. But for that, you'll have to come back tomorrow!