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“Every day, my grandpa on my dad’s side sends me his blessings and a Bible verse in the morning, and I write it down every day in my notebook and I say three things that I’m grateful for and I also say well like what I guess the Bible like means to me so yeah that’s like a ritual or tradition of my faith that I do.”
Context
Having grown up in a family of devout Christians, IK explains that the daily routine of sending blessings and a Bible verse is one that his grandpa does for all members of his family. For IK personally, he also adds saying his appreciations and the meaning of the Bible to his daily routine as a way to honor his faith and start off each day strong.
Analysis
This is an example of a ritual in IK’s life that exemplifies his belief, which in this case is his Christian faith, and is an example of Kaptchuk’s ritual theory as repeated routines that create some emotional change. It represents a core piece of his family lore that has been passed from his grandfather to every member of his family and that he will continue to share to his kids and grandkids. This ritual also serves a specific function, as for IK the blessings, Bible verses, and appreciations are a way for him to honor his faith before the start of each day and go into each day with the strength of God behind him. For IK, this routine is not just a habit, it is a ritual that serves a specific powerful purpose each morning. As a Christian myself, this story strengthened my place in the Christian folk group because my mom and my grand uncle also send me daily Bible verses, and it’s cool to see that it is a common practice and one that I should continue to honor and eventually pass down to my kids.
Tag Archives: family
Rosca de Reyes/Wreath of the Kings
Context: The Rosca de Reyes/Wreath of the Kings is a sweet bread commonly made/consumed during January 6th, the Day of the Three Kings
“Every year on January 6th, many who are Catholic celebrate the Day of the Three Kings following Christmas. Because of this, we have a yearly tradition where we eat la Rosca de Reyes (Wreath of the Kings), in which it is a sweet bread that’s super good. You usually eat it with either hot chocolate or champurrado. However, the tradition also comes with a fun game. Inside of the bread are a few little white babies that represent Jesus when he was born. If your slice of bread happens to have a little baby Jesus, you usually have to make tamales the month afterwards. I don’t know if it’s the same for everyone though, I think some people make different foods.”
Analysis: La Rosca de Reyes seems to be a common tradition in many Mexican-Catholic Communities where many continue to celebrate the birth of Jesus after Christmas. The Biblical story of the Three Kings explains how the Three Wise Men traveled to see the birth of Jesus in order to deliver him gifts. Because of this, many celebrate this day with different foods, one of the foods being The Wreath of the Kings.
Novena/Novenario
Context:
“So a tradition in Mexican Catholic families is when someone passes away there’s something called a novena or novenario. And this occurs right after someone is laid to rest. Family and friends gathers at a home [a relative’s] and will pray. They’ll use the rosary and say prayers. I don’t really remember which prayers are used or if it’s specific only to Mexican catholic families.”
Q: Did you or anyone in your family ever participate in this tradition?
“I think I only ever participated in it once. It was when one of my [aunts] died and we went to her home and stayed the entire night. I don’t really remember what happened though since it was a long time ago.”
Q: Have you ever partook in the tradition in recent time?
“No, not in recent time…I actually don’t know if people still do this tradition actually. I know my mom’s side of the family was super religious and would do this.”
Analysis: As the informant, NG, describes, a Novena/Novenario is a common tradition in Mexican-Catholic communities in which after the death of a family remember, the rest of the friends and family will travel to the person’s home (or a relative’s) and begin to pray for the deceased. Based off the information NG describes, a Novena/Novenario is done in order to pay respects to the recently deceased and to hope that they are well in another life.
Lifting your feet over the drawbridge
Interviewer: “Ever since I could remember, whenever we drove over a drawbridge, you always told my brother and me to lift our feet over a drawbridge. Could you please explain why?”
D: “It’s always been that way. My dad had told me my whole life as well; it was just a thing, you cross over a drawbridge, so you lift your feet. I had to pass it on to my family as well.”
Interviewer: “Do you have any idea what it means, why you do it?”
D: “It’s for luck, not necessarily luck for your day, but more so luck for your future drives. You don’t want your feet touching the car floor when you feel the bumpy road from the texture of the bridge. Even I lift my feet up. Sure, I’ll have a little bit on the gas pedal, but otherwise I’m lifting my feet until the road is flat again.”
Context: Ever since I was a little kid I remeber driving with my dad. Anytime we would pass over a draw bridge, you had to lift your feet up. No matter how long or short the bumps of the bridge lasted. He would start with a warning by saying “ok get ready to lift your feet up!” and then when we hit the bridge said “Go!” and everyone in the car would lift both their feet off of the ground. Sometimes it would be difficukt to hold them up for a while – as an impatient child, but it would be over soon enough, and no way was anyone letting their feet touch the car floor. As soon as the car left the brdige he would say “good” and everyone would put their feet back down immediatly. I am unsure where this supersition came from, but from the interview I gathered my dad had done it his own life and took it on from his dad. My grandpa would say it to all of his 9 kids whenever passing over a draw bridge. This would take place most often from the drives from upstate NY to NYC, but happened anytime there was a drawbridge.
Analysis: This tradition is a form of family folklore that uses superstition and ritual to create a shared sense of meaning during an otherwise ordinary activity. The act of lifting feet over a drawbridge, framed as bringing “luck” for future drives, reflects how belief does not need a clear origin or logic to feel important. This supersition not only prvoides luck for the rest of the drive and future drives, but acts as a shared identity within the family.
Opłatek
CL: “Me and my family are very Polish. Though, despite that, we don’t really have many time-long Polish traditions that usually correlate with it. We don’t speak any Polish other than certain phrases, um, for certain occasions. Though one thing that we have done for the majority of my life is that around Christmas, um, in a pseudo-religious fashion, sort of an extension of Thanksgiving, to share thanks with our family members, and with those close around us we would break this sort of, like, wafer called opłatek, um, and give it to another family member that then you both would basically trade pieces. You would eat them, and then you would say something thankful about the other person. And, like, we’ve done that for the majority of my life, and, yeah, it’s just always been, like, a very time-honored thing.
Interviewer: Is that a rite of passage for your family?
CL: “It’s more so like a… It’s sort of just like a sort of favor or other thing to perpetuate tradition in that sense. So, it’s a, like, recurring ritual in that sense.”
Interviewer: “Do you know any other people who do that? Is that, like, a long-standing, family tradition?”
CL: “I know it was initially on my mother’s side. My entire mother’s family line has done this. As long as I have known. And, yeah, we’ve just been continuing to do it as I’ve grown up. It’s been a little bit harder to do it now, just because it’s actually harder to get. the wafers, but it’s still nice to always say things and sort of reiterate this symbolization of it around that time.”
Context: When discussing traditions in class, CL and I came around their family tradition of breaking opłatek around the holidays. It symbolizes thanks when given to a family member or loved one after being broken. It is a positive way to stay close to CL’s Polish roots and be connected to their culture.
Analysis: This tradition is a good example of how cultural practices can stay meaningful even when other parts of that identity aren’t as prominent in someone’s life. Still practicing and being a part of the culture, even if it is not your immediate culture, but your family’s line. The use of opłatek shows a direct connection to Polish heritage, even though CL’s family doesn’t speak much Polish or follow many other traditions. Breaking and sharing the wafer, along with saying something thankful, turns the moment into more than just a holiday activity; it becomes a way to express appreciation. The fact that it has been passed down through the mother’s side of the family also shows how traditions continue through generations, even if they become harder to maintain (like accessing the wafers). Overall, it highlights how traditions don’t have to be strictly religious or widely practiced to matter, but they can be simple and serve as a great way to help people feel connected to their family and cultural background.