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On rites of passage.......
Jun. 14th, 2004 01:43 pmThis past weekend, ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
filkerdave's first son had his Bar Mitzvah. He did well. Mazel Tov!
I believe the Jewish Bar Mitzvah ceremony is the only formalized initiation into manhood in current Western society. The Catholic Sacrament of Confirmation, which I had in 1979, certainly didn't feel like an initiation into manhood to me. I stood in line, the Bishop anointed me with oil on his thumb, and that was it. (Little-known fact: I took my grandfather's name as my confirmation name; if my grandmother were alive at the time I was born, I certainly would have been named after my grandfather.)
For girls' initiation into womanhood, the Jewish Bat Mitzvah ceremony and the Mexican "Quinceaños" (15th birthday) ceremony are the only two that come to mind.
( Now, our American culture has a whole series of events.... )
( As opposed to tribal cultures, which have formalized rituals... )
Would our society be better off if we had such rites for our young men or women today? While a person's physical age may imply that they're grown up, their emotional processes would indicate that the person is not old enough. I've seen and heard too many college stories about people who weren't emotionally mature enough to handle college, or real life, and either self-destructed or destroyed others. And I know there are lots of things I'd love to tell my 20-year-old self, if I could only go back in time to do so. Back then, I lacked the self-confidence and self-discipline that I have now.
filkerdave's first son had his Bar Mitzvah. He did well. Mazel Tov!I believe the Jewish Bar Mitzvah ceremony is the only formalized initiation into manhood in current Western society. The Catholic Sacrament of Confirmation, which I had in 1979, certainly didn't feel like an initiation into manhood to me. I stood in line, the Bishop anointed me with oil on his thumb, and that was it. (Little-known fact: I took my grandfather's name as my confirmation name; if my grandmother were alive at the time I was born, I certainly would have been named after my grandfather.)
For girls' initiation into womanhood, the Jewish Bat Mitzvah ceremony and the Mexican "Quinceaños" (15th birthday) ceremony are the only two that come to mind.
( Now, our American culture has a whole series of events.... )
( As opposed to tribal cultures, which have formalized rituals... )
Would our society be better off if we had such rites for our young men or women today? While a person's physical age may imply that they're grown up, their emotional processes would indicate that the person is not old enough. I've seen and heard too many college stories about people who weren't emotionally mature enough to handle college, or real life, and either self-destructed or destroyed others. And I know there are lots of things I'd love to tell my 20-year-old self, if I could only go back in time to do so. Back then, I lacked the self-confidence and self-discipline that I have now.
