Ritual
 

This may be a stupid question but I am new to the idea of greek life. I was wondering exactly what ritual meant? I know you obviously can't say what your organization's ritual is, but just what does it mean? Is ritual considered what they do for initiation? Thanks and sorry if my question sounds weird haha!

In general, "ritual" could mean any ceremonial aspect of an organization that is for members only: pledge induction, member initiation, ceremonial opening and closing of meetings, ceremonies to match big siblings with little siblings, etc.

Every organization could be different and some things I listed may not be considered ritual for everyone.

Membership selection falls under "ritual" for most organizations as well. When most people talk about their ritual, though, it means a specific ceremony that reveals special meanings about their organization. For many members this is a very important part of Greek membership. For some, it's just something they have to do every once in awhile.

We sacrifice goats after the pledges make sexy time with them.

This is their passage into manhood.

You might think of it as the dogma part of the sorority/fraternity experience. In our terms it was the recital of the secret stuff during chapter meetings. It's like in church where there are a series of prayers said by the entire congregation. A statement of faith, if you will.

And the goat sacrifice.;)

On a related note, I've always thought it was too bad for the ritual to be secret until you are in. I have to assume that the stuff we say are our guiding principles vary, from a little to a lot, from other sororities. What if I'd gotten in and went "Hey, I didn't know there was going to be goat sacrifices! I want out!" I've never heard of someone quitting over the ritual, but I wonder if it ever does happen.

FWIW, I've only heard people in NPC orgs refer to membership selection as "ritual." We'd call it confidential or private, but we wouldn't call it "ritual."

I would classify ritual as the esoteric (secret) teachings of a fraternity or sorority and the ceremonies and symbols that embody or convey those teachings.

Well, she's a PNM asking about sororities, so I didn't include all the awesome non-NPC orgs!;)

Valid point, and tip of the hat accepted with appreciation. ;)

But I guess it's never to early for even a PNM to learn about the awesome variety in Greek life.

Rituals are everywhere. Ritual is a "systematic behavior."

Some are more formal - church or temple services, the act of marriage (even by a Justice of the Peace), graduation, military burials, etc. Others are less formal, like your morning routine.

Greek sorority rituals are usually ceremonies. They might recite an oath, do something symbolic like lighting a candle or drinking from a special cup, wearing certain clothing, etc.

When people refer to "ritual information" that doesn't necessarily correlate to A ritual, they often mean certain ways that things are done, such as when selecting members or ways of answering a door.

Rituals in general create an air of formality or reverence, marking the occasion as important.

An NPC chapter at an Ivy League school that went local cited the ritual of the organization as a factor. It had some religious and symbolic overtones that made many sisters of that chapter uncomfortable. But that was a pretty unusual situation.

I would say that membership selection is held to the same standards of secrecy as ritual. As with ritual, only sisters can participate, and nothing leaves the room.

To the OP, ritual would be any formal ceremony where members are given secret information about the GLO they have joined. For NPC sororities, it can include new member ceremonies, initiation, ceremonies marking the passage from active collegian to alumna, procedures for opening/closing meetings and for admission to chapter meetings if you're late, etc. In most cases, what happens during these ceremonies, and the information imparted to the new members, stays within the sisterhood.

Right, I'd agree about it being confidential. But I have seen members of NPC orgs here at GC say "membership selection is ritual," kind of using "ritual" as a synonym for "secret."

It's habit, and has been passed down. We called MS 'ritual' as well. Any of our formal chapters were as well, so realistically it probably refers as much to the MS as the meeting where it takes place.

No, I get it, and I hope I didn't sound critical about it. Just one of those phrasology things, though it did strike me as odd the first time I heard it used that way.

It's just another reminder of how, while we have many things in common, we all do things just a little differently.

^^^ Agree. We tend to refer to it as "Chapter room secrecy" although I'm sure there are some chapters/members who say "ritual" instead.