ritual

(noun)

Rite; a repeated set of actions

Related Terms

Examples of ritual in the following topics:

  • Rituals

    • A ritual is a set of actions performed mainly for their symbolic value.
    • The purposes of rituals are varied.
    • The social function of rituals has often been exploited for political ends.
    • Rituals can help create a firm sense of group identity.
    • Ritual actions are not only characteristic of human cultures; animal rituals exist as well.

  • The Elements of Religion

    • A conventional social scientific view understands religion as a group's collective beliefs and rituals relating to the supernatural.
    • A third social scientific perspective views religion as the collective beliefs and rituals of a group relating to the supernatural.
    • However, when belief and rituals of a group relating to the supernatural are coupled together, the scope seems appropriately narrowed.

  • Transitional Adulthood

    • It can be a simple legal convention or can be part of a larger ritual.
    • Coming of age initiation rituals can occur in various professional organizations.
    • Universities in Chile follow an annual ritual called "Mechoneo" (the act of pulling somebody's hair).
    • In the United States, these sorts of initiation rituals are most commonly found in fraternities and sororities.
    • Discuss how a young person "comes of age", particularly in the context of religion or rituals

  • Religious Symbols

    • Religions view religious texts, rituals and works of art as symbols of compelling ideas or ideals.
    • This is especially true when religion is considered the creation of a superhuman agency or agencies, usually involving devotional and ritual observances containing a moral code governing the conduct of human affairs.
    • The choice of suitable acts and objects is narrow enough that it would not be easy to avoid the appearance of an imitation of other traditions, even if there had been a deliberate attempt to invent an entirely new ritual.

  • Definitions of Religion

    • The third social scientific definition views religion as the collective beliefs and rituals of a group relating to supernature.
    • This view of religion draws a sometimes ambiguous line between beliefs and rituals relating to empirical, definable phenomena and those relating to undefinable or unobservable phenomena, such as spirits, god(s), and angels.
    • Yet because the beliefs and rituals are understood to be shared by a group, this definition could be argued to exclude atheists.

  • Defining Boundaries

    • According to sociologists, it is "only when symbolic boundaries are widely agreed upon can they take on a constraining character… and become social boundaries. " Thus, rituals and traditions to define boundaries are extremely influential in determining how groups interact.
    • Rituals, whether secular or religious, were for Durkheim the means by which groups maintained their symbolic and moral boundaries.

  • The Symbolic Interactionist Perspective

    • The interactionist perspective emphasizes that families reinforce and rejuvenate bonds through symbolic mechanism rituals such as family meals and holidays.

  • The Nature of Religion

    • Sociolgists can imply that religious rituals can spark social interactions among community members.

  • Mass Hysteria

    • Hysteria is often associated with movements like the Salem Witch Trials, the Red Scare, McCarthyism, and Satanic ritual abuse, where it is better understood through the related sociological term of moral panic.

  • Culture

    • Culture is the set of beliefs, values, symbols, rituals, fashions, etiquette, foods, and art that unite a particular society.
    • Culture is the set of beliefs, values, symbols, means of communication, religion, logics, rituals, fashions, etiquette, foods, and art that unite a particular society.