Ritual

The past four sermons at church have been on ritual.  When I first sat down and read the topic, a few things came to mind: sacrifice, religion, and even evil.  Of course I didn't think the pastor would get on stage and teach about witchcraft, but I honestly wasn't thinking on the right plain of intellect.  In fact, the last thing that came to mind was tradition, habit, and recurrence.  Now that the term ritual has broadened, I've begun to think about the importance of ritual inside our home.  What traditions or practices do we keep, and why are they important to us?
Just this past weekend, I went to a Christmas party.  There, the hostess, a good friend of mine, shared with all of us a family tradition she's continued on in her own home.  Growing up as an Army Brat (as she likes to call herself), her family moved frequently. One year, their move was around Christmas, and the packed-up decorations didn't make it to their new home in time.  Karen's mom decided the girls should bake and decorate cookies to hang on the Christmas tree that year.  Every Christmas since then, their family has baked and hung their cookies on the tree along with the other ornaments.  After the Christmas party, we were each encouraged to take a cookie home with us as a reminder...little did Karen know that her cookie reminds me about a lot more than just a fun loving tradition...it reminds me of other rituals more important: blessing, gifts of love, Christ's sacrifice, and family.