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Articles on Rituals

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Daoism, which emphasizes harmony with nature, can inform individuals on their relationship with the environment. Ma Yuan 'Walking on Path in Spring.' National Palace Museum via Wikimedia Commons

What Taoism teaches about the body and being healthy

A scholar of Daoist rituals explains how the indigenous tradition of China understands the human body as being part of the larger cosmos.
People gather for Pagan sunrise celebrations in Ireland, on the morning of the winter solstice. Brian Lawless/PA Images via Getty Images

Yule – a celebration of the return of light and warmth

Yule, celebrated by Wiccans and many other Pagans in the Northern Hemisphere on Dec. 21, the day of the winter solstice, is a time for reflection.
Hindu devotees prepare to scatter ashes of the deceased into the sea as part of Ngaben, a mass cremation ceremony, in Surabaya, Indonesia. Juni Kriswanto/AFP via Getty Images

From India and Taiwan to Tibet, the living assist the dead in their passage

Across cultures, death rituals give mourners a chance to grieve. But they also offer one last opportunity to help the deceased as they transition to the next stage of existence.
Children trick or treat and wear Halloween costumes for a full week during Day of the Dead season in Mexico. FG Trade Latin/Collection E+ via Getty Images

Day of the Dead is taking on Halloween traditions, but the sacred holiday is far more than a ‘Mexican Halloween’

Halloween’s influence is transforming popular festivities around Día de los Muertos and its ceremonial customs in rural and urban areas of Mexico in some fascinating ways.
Each year, services on St. Francis’ feast day draw humans and animals alike to the Cathedral of St. John the Divine in New York. Lokman Vural Elibol/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images

Birds, worms, rabbits: Francis of Assisi was said to have loved them all – but today’s pet blessings on his feast day might have seemed strange to the 13th century saint

Medieval monastics were often discouraged from owning companion animals, which were viewed as a distraction, a religion scholar explains.
AI-created sermons have proved controversial for some religious leaders. Daniel Vogl/picture alliance via Getty Images

Can chatbots write inspirational and wise sermons?

Not quite, writes an expert on Christian worship. Chatbots do not have human experience of love – and, above all, they lack a soul.

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