Rituals are memory-keepers.
We blow out the candles to remember that we were born.
We clink our glasses to remember that we made vows to one another.
We stand for the anthem to remember others’ sacrifice.
We visit a grave to remember a life that shaped our life.
We break bread and drink wine to remember that “Christ has died. Christ is risen. Christ will come again.”
We repeat these enacted memories because we easily forget. Unless we pause to intentionally remember, we tend to get mired down in the busyness of today and the concerns of tomorrow.
We engage our whole selves in purposeful remembering because today and tomorrow are are colored and shaped by yesterday.
See Exodus 12:14-28.