How does a Tradition or a Ritual work?

Traditions. Rituals. What do these two words mean? Wikipedia tells me that these are passed from one generation to the next, but how?




Last night, Grand Council asked us to perform all of our ritual ceremonies for them. We set up, practiced, and took them through four of our ceremonies. This is the most special part about being in a sorority. The seven of us were all members of seven different chapters across the country; however, when asked to do ritual, we did the exact same thing. How does that happen? One sister is from California. How does she do ritual the exact same as a chapter from small town, South Carolina? The answer is simple. Our founders developed a secret tradition that is passed from one generation to the next. It is shared only with those who have qualified for membership, but to me, Ritual is more than just a ceremony. In order to really appreciate a tradition, you must make it personal. You must feel it in your heart, and I believe that is why our ritual has been able to withstand the test of time and distance. It was really amazing last night when we were doing my most favorite ceremony and all of my sister LCs did it the exact same way with the same amount of reverence.



This may all sound silly to a person who is not an initiated member, but think of a tradition you have that you hold near and dear to your heart. Maybe it’s running while listening to oldies (or pop tunes, depending on the year you graced the world with your presence). Some people may think that you can’t run to oldies, but you have internalized it and know that when you hear “Caroline in My Mind” by James Taylor, you just want to set a pace and run for miles. It might be a yearly meal you share with your family on Christmas Eve that consists of shrimp, hash brown casserole, and yeast rolls (what a random array of foods). It sounds crazy, but that’s all you’ve ever known, and the holiday isn’t complete without that meal shared with your family. It might also be your faith that you have passed on to your children. You can share that faith with your children, but they must believe it with their hearts. They will find how the faith applies to their lives. Traditions come in all shapes and sizes, and I am so fortunate to share such a special tradition with thousands of women around the world that has existed for 159 years.

OBIC.