Ritual Magic
Originally scheduled for October 23
Human beings have strange reactions to ritual behavior. One such
reaction is that the ritual contains within itself some sort of
magic — which will fix the past, correct the present, or secure the
future. Because of this human beings are rather fussy about what
goes into their rituals.
You think not? Get involved with
planning a wedding. You will quickly come up to the question of what
the “right” wedding vows might happen to be. You will also run
across the problem of whether or not communion should be served the
couple. You might even run across the problem of somebody saying
that it must be done in the church building. All these problems come
from the fact that we want our rituals to stay absolutely the same.
And they don’t.
One of the best examples of this is the white
wedding dress — practically mandatory for first time brides. The
first prominent person to wear a white wedding dress was Queen
Victoria. Before that, brides wore black. But still, we have the
drive to make our rituals done correctly, down to the last detail.
One reason for this comes from the various purposes of rituals.
Broadly speaking there are three kinds of rituals, divided by what
part of time they affect.
Some rituals state what is presently the case. For example, when a
flag is raised or lowered on a military installation there is often
be a bugle involved. At the close of the day, taps is played. Bugle
calls evolve from the system where the melody told the troops what
was going on right now.
Sometimes a ritual is designed to change things in the future, or
express belief in some future event. The same kind of bugle calls
also went into forming up a cavalry troop in preparation for action.
Communion, you will not be surprised to learn, involves all
three — past, present, future.
Communion celebrates the past, reminding us of the death of Christ
as atonement for our sins. It reminds us also of his burial and
resurrection. It tells us what he did for us. This is unchanging and
eternal.
Communion is also a very much present tense ritual. He calls us to
examine ourselves, in the present, and repent of those things of
which we need repentance. Once repented, action must follow. This
cleansing is very much in the present.
Communion also looks forward to the future, for our Lord told us
that he would not drink again of the fruit of the vine until he
returned. He shall return to judge the living and the dead; a
consequence which spurs us to take self-examination and repentance
quite seriously.
So as you partake this morning, remember
what your Lord did for us. Follow those instructions and examine
yourself, repenting as need be. Give thought to the fact that he
will return to judge the living and the dead, when you will receive
mercy and grace.
