Part 2: Rituals

Lifetime Rituals/ Rites of Passage
      The three sacraments of initiation, baptism, first communion, and confirmation, are considered to be the rites of passage for Christians, specifically Catholics. Baptism is meant to clean a Christian of Original Sin and mark their entrance to the church, and is undergone by pouring water on/dunking the baby in water. The significance of the ritual is that it provides a connection with Christ for the follower as they are undergoing a parallel ritual.
       First Communion is the second sacrament that emphasizes taking in the gifts of Christ by having the followers drink wine as the blood of Christ and eat unleavened bread as his body. It is believed that they actually become these things through transubstantiation.This is directly linked to the foundational figure, Jesus.
       Confirmation is the reaffirmation of a followers belief in the church as an adult, and is meant to confirm a believer when they actually have the choice, as opposed to a baby who cannot choose.

Festivals:
Lent/Easter
Lent is the forty day season starting with Ash Wednesday until Easter Sunday (Sundays are not counted in the day count). The period is typically associated with fasting, repentance, or giving something up in order to practice spiritual discipline and to reflect on the suffering of Jesus Christ.  Lent is mostly observed by the Lutheran, Methodist, Presbyterian, Anglican, and by Roman Catholics. The season of lent is concluded with Good Friday, marking the day Jesus was crucified and died, and with Easter, the day of the Resurrection. The holiday works to create a communal identity among believers, as it creates a commonality in their lives such as what they gave up for lent, and marks them as Christians when they celebrate the holiday. The ritual is directly linked with Jesus Christ, and it focuses on the most important events of His life. The significance as a whole is that the basis of the holiday, the belief in Christ as the Messiah, is one of the defining features of the celebration.