1/16/26
I heard the term “ritual officials” for the first time a month ago, while at a lovely bar mitzvah service.
As you’d expect, it means the individuals who help make a service flow smoothly. In this particular moment, the rabbi used it to refer specifically to the volunteer assistants, not the clergy.
Even though I didn’t know these people, it was apparent that they are warm, kind, supportive humans.
Pondering the term and the beautiful qualities it engenders, I immediately thought,
Everyone should become a ritual official for their own life.
I believe this for two reasons:
Being conscious of integrating (small) rituals into one’s life inherently cultivates more meaning, beauty, and therefore overall contentment.
Being warm, kind, and supportive to oneself is just good practice (that isn’t so common).
I was inspired to introduce this idea today, as I remember my mom on her birthday. She died just over a year ago, so this post itself serves as a ritual to honor her memory. She was a deeply spiritual person, so I think she would’ve appreciated a discussion about people being their own ritual official.
And since she loved being in the water, be it a bath, pool, or natural body of water, I will most assuredly engage in some small ritual at the beach to celebrate her.
Summoning the energy to be our own ritual official might be a challenge…it seems, though, that connecting with our personal angel(s) makes it easier.