{"product_id":"the-magic-of-ritual-our-need-for-liberating-rites-that-transform-our-lives-and-our-communities","title":"The Magic of Ritual: Our Need for Liberating Rites That Transform Our Lives and Our Communities","description":"\u003cp\u003eIn this captivating book  Tom F. Driver presents a new and radical understanding of the role and meaning of ritual. According to Driver  our contemporary culture is in urgent need of renewal or rebirth - a sense of ritual and meaning that has been lost to the age of modern rationalism. Our rituals  or what is left of them  lack any vital connection with the struggles for freedom and expression that individuals and groups are engaged in. Recognizing the chronic boredom of contemporary society and the impotence of todays religious services and even modern theater  Driver sees a void in our culture that is being filled  or at least hidden  by poor and sometimes dangerous substitutes. All of us  in Drivers eyes  share a critical need for ritual participation. With moving and colorful descriptions of ritual ceremonies from Haiti  Papua New Guinea  Japan  Turkey  Korea  and other locales  Driver approaches ritual as performance  an action that has unique effectiveness and often expresses more than words can. He shows the necessary role ritual plays in the cohesion and transformation of cultures and societies. The making and maintaining of order  the deepening and strengthening of communal bonds  and the bringing about of both personal and social transformation are  according to Driver  rituals three great social gifts. Ritual is also something humans share with other species  linking us with the natural habitat and our evolutionary past. Lying at the core of our capacity to adapt  survive  and grow  ritual is essential to all efforts for justice and the establishment of good relationships. To be fully alive and whole  Driver contends  we need to engage creatively in ritual performance. Whether in rites of passage - for birth  adulthood  marriage  death - in ceremonies of healing  grieving  or celebration - in political performances aimed at changing society - we should be active participants taking possession of our rituals and opening them up to a truly transform\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"My Store","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":44968092729397,"sku":"ByrdShop_006062096X","price":28.37,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0627\/8139\/0901\/files\/9780060620967.jpg?v=1770646313","url":"https:\/\/atxbooks.com\/products\/the-magic-of-ritual-our-need-for-liberating-rites-that-transform-our-lives-and-our-communities","provider":"ATX Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}