We ask you, urgently: don't scroll past this
Dear readers, Catholic Online was de-platformed by Shopify for our pro-life beliefs. They shut down our Catholic Online, Catholic Online School, Prayer Candles, and Catholic Online Learning Resources essential faith tools serving over 1.4 million students and millions of families worldwide. Our founders, now in their 70's, just gave their entire life savings to protect this mission. But fewer than 2% of readers donate. If everyone gave just $5, the cost of a coffee, we could rebuild stronger and keep Catholic education free for all. Stand with us in faith. Thank you.Help Now >
Ritual is a gift for every soul
FREE Catholic Classes
By Mary Regina Morrell
Catholic Online
"Where ritual is absent, the young ones are restless, or violent, there are no real elders and the adults are bewildered." Mahdoma Some, African medicine man (with two Ph.Ds and three master's degrees) quoted in The New American Spirituality
When I was a little girl, at least once a month or so, my mother would get me dressed in my finest, complete with little white gloves and a hat to match my coat. We would catch the bus on Whitehall Road and ride to downtown Albany. Here we would spend the day shopping in a time when there were no malls. The buildings were impressive, with ornate carvings in stone or gargoyles peering down from the corners .Sometimes we would stop to eat at my uncle's little out-of-the-way basement restaurant. It was always good to be related to the owner! All the regulars would know our names and I could order anything I wanted off the menu.
One of my favorite places to go was Whitney's, a very nice clothing store where the salespeople were more like personal shopping assistants and everyone treated you with great respect. I often wondered if it was because of my white gloves.
My mother would always take me to lunch in the restaurant on the lower level. I would order a turkey sandwich on white bread with mayonnaise and was always amazed that they would cut off the crusts. People were starving in China, you know. Still, with ceramic plates and teacups arranged elegantly on a white tablecloth, I felt like a real lady eating finger sandwiches in an exclusive restaurant.
Ah, the perceptions of childhood.
Today, when I remember those times or recall other memories that are strongest in my mind, I realize that almost all of them had been created around a ritual.
Everyday rituals can be as mundane as tooth brushing, as cherished as donning little white gloves or as significant as those surrounding events like the Olympics.
For humanity, ritual is as instinctive as the dance of metamorphosis, wings beating against a cocoon until a new creature emerges. Ritual is our dance of life. When we execute the steps, all our memories, our connections, are elevated to the realm of consciousness, helping us to remember who we are and from whence we came.
When our rituals are undertaken to invoke an awareness of the presence of God, then we have created a sacred ritual and sacred space.
These are gifts for the soul - and the most meaningful for Catholics is the ritual of the Mass. Every action of the liturgy, every symbol, every reading, every prayer, every song, has great meaning.
Here we are connected again and again to the community of faith, past and present, and, most importantly, to our Lord, Jesus, present in the Eucharist. Here we are reminded to see Christ in the "other" who partakes in the same ritual. Here, our souls enter into the dance of metamorphosis, emerging as new creatures sent forth to love and serve the world.
Human ritual nourishes our humanity. Sacred ritual feeds our faith.
Now that I think about it, there was another memory of donning little white gloves that is strong in my mind - when I went to Mass with my parents every Sunday.
It was a gift they generously gave to my young soul that continues to nourish my faith until this very day.
Contact
Diocese of Metuchen
http://www.diometuchen.org
NJ, US
Mary Regina Morrell - Associate Director, Office of Religious Education, 732 562-1990
mmorrell@diometuchen.org
Keywords
ritual, gift, soul, Mass
More Catholic PRWire
Showing 1 - 50 of 4,716
A Recession Antidote
Randy Hain
Monaco & The Vatican: Monaco's Grace Kelly Exhibit to Rome--A Review of Monegasque-Holy See Diplomatic History
Dna. Maria St. Catherine Sharpe, t.o.s.m., T.O.SS.T.
The Why of Jesus' Death: A Pauline Perspective
Jerom Paul
A Royal Betrayal: Catholic Monaco Liberalizes Abortion
Dna. Maria St.Catherine De Grace Sharpe, t.o.s.m., T.O.SS.T.
Embrace every moment as sacred time
Mary Regina Morrell
My Dad
JoMarie Grinkiewicz
Letting go is simple wisdom with divine potential
Mary Regina Morrell
Father Lombardi's Address on Catholic Media
Catholic Online
Pope's Words to Pontifical Latin American College
Catholic Online
Prelate: Genetics Needs a Conscience
Catholic Online
State Aid for Catholic Schools: Help or Hindrance?
Catholic Online
Scorsese Planning Movie on Japanese Martyrs
Catholic Online
2 Nuns Kidnapped in Kenya Set Free
Catholic Online
Holy See-Israel Negotiation Moves Forward
Catholic Online
Franchising to Evangelize
Catholic Online
Catholics Decry Anti-Christianity in Israel
Catholic Online
Pope and Gordon Brown Meet About Development Aid
Catholic Online
Pontiff Backs Latin America's Continental Mission
Catholic Online
Cardinal Warns Against Anti-Catholic Education
Catholic Online
Full Circle
Robert Gieb
Three words to a deeper faith
Paul Sposite
Relections for Lent 2009
chris anthony
Wisdom lies beyond the surface of life
Mary Regina Morrell
World Food Program Director on Lent
Catholic Online
Moral Clarity
DAN SHEA
Pope's Lenten Message for 2009
Catholic Online
A Prayer for Monaco: Remembering the Faith Legacy of Prince Rainier III & Princess Grace and Contemplating the Moral Challenges of Prince Albert II
Dna. Maria St. Catherine Sharpe
Keeping a Lid on Permissiveness
Sally Connolly
Glimpse of Me
Sarah Reinhard
The 3 stages of life
Michele Szekely
Sex and the Married Woman
Cheryl Dickow
A Catholic Woman Returns to the Church
Cheryl Dickow
Modernity & Morality
Dan Shea
Just a Minute
Sarah Reinhard
Catholic identity ... triumphant reemergence!
Hugh McNichol
Edging God Out
Paul Sposite
Burying a St. Joseph Statue
Cheryl Dickow
George Bush Speaks on Papal Visit
Catholic Online
Sometimes moving forward means moving the canoe
Mary Regina Morrell
Action Changes Things: Teaching our Kids about Community Service
Lisa Hendey
Easter... A Way of Life
Paul Spoisite
Papal initiative...peace and harmony!
Hugh McNichol
Proclaim the mysteries of the Resurrection!
Hugh McNichol
Jerusalem Patriarch's Easter Message
Catholic Online
Good Friday Sermon of Father Cantalamessa
Catholic Online
Papal Address at the End of the Way of the Cross
Catholic Online
Cardinal Zen's Meditations for Via Crucis
Catholic Online
Interview With Vatican Aide on Jewish-Catholic Relations
Catholic Online
Pope Benedict XVI On the Easter Triduum
Catholic Online
Holy Saturday...anticipation!
Hugh McNichol
Come Grow With Us
Sign up and walk the Catholic journey with millions around the world.
Receive inspiring emails on saints, daily readings, and free faith-building resources—no cost, ever.
Sister Sara Has One Message for Every Catholic Family This June
- Easter / Lent
- 5 Lenten Prayers
- Ash Wednesday
- 7 Morning Prayers
- Mysteries of the Rosary
- Litany of the Bl. Virgin Mary
- Popular Saints
- Popular Prayers
- Female Saints
- Saint Feast Days by Month
- Stations of the Cross
- St. Francis of Assisi
- St. Michael the Archangel
- The Apostles' Creed
- Unfailing Prayer to St. Anthony
- Pray the Rosary
Copyright 2026 Catholic Online. All materials contained on this site, whether written, audible or visual are the exclusive property of Catholic Online and are protected under U.S. and International copyright laws, © Copyright 2026 Catholic Online. Any unauthorized use, without prior written consent of Catholic Online is strictly forbidden and prohibited.
Catholic Online is a Project of Your Catholic Voice Foundation, a Not-for-Profit Corporation. Your Catholic Voice Foundation has been granted a recognition of tax exemption under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. Federal Tax Identification Number: 81-0596847. Your gift is tax-deductible as allowed by law.