Illuminating Paths
When we engage in ritual, we address our to feel connected -- to ourselves, each other, and the world.
Eileen London & Belinda Recio
Eileen London & Belinda Recio
Meaning of Rituals
When we engage in ritual, we address our need to feel connected - to ourselves, to each other, and to God. Ritual binds us to the whole of creation, and it is in this bond that w
e can encounter the sacred.
Ritual works through its two fold nature - intention and action. The intention is the purpose of the ritual; the action of the ritual is what one actually does. It is a symbolic act that is sanctified by the intention.
The two aspects of ritual - intention and action - work together to focus our minds on the implications of what we are doing. By acting out our intentions, we feel them more completely - in heart, body, spirit, and mind. By acting out our intentions we pay attention to both what we are doing and why, and we become fully present in the moment. Being fully present allows us to find that place within ourselves where we can encounter the divine.
Ritual, then, is a journey; the sacred is the destination. Just as there are many different roads to any destination, there are many rituals that can lead us to the sacred.
e can encounter the sacred.Ritual works through its two fold nature - intention and action. The intention is the purpose of the ritual; the action of the ritual is what one actually does. It is a symbolic act that is sanctified by the intention.
The two aspects of ritual - intention and action - work together to focus our minds on the implications of what we are doing. By acting out our intentions, we feel them more completely - in heart, body, spirit, and mind. By acting out our intentions we pay attention to both what we are doing and why, and we become fully present in the moment. Being fully present allows us to find that place within ourselves where we can encounter the divine.
Ritual, then, is a journey; the sacred is the destination. Just as there are many different roads to any destination, there are many rituals that can lead us to the sacred.
Creating Rituals
At Illuminating Paths we craft rituals that are rooted in deep tradition and that reflect the realities of our post-modern context. These rituals might created for relationships, such as weddings or commitment ceremonies, divorce or dissolution of a relationship, or others.
Rituals for passages might include an intentional time to mark birth, adoption, entry into youth or adolescence, birthdays, serious illness, death, or others.
Marking a space is an important ritual to sacrilize entering into a new home or office, or leave-taking from a space.
Rituals for passages might include an intentional time to mark birth, adoption, entry into youth or adolescence, birthdays, serious illness, death, or others.
Marking a space is an important ritual to sacrilize entering into a new home or office, or leave-taking from a space.
Rituals Offered
We create all types of rituals at Illuminating Paths based on the needs and journey of our clients. Some examples of the rituals we have crated with folks include:
- wedding or commitment ceremony
- ceremony for divorce or separation
- funeral and memorial service
- marking a time of grief or loss
- passage into adolescence
- creating an altar space
- baptism or child blessing
- house blessing
- birthday celebration
- transition into or out of a job
- leave-taking of a home or office