Q&A The Importance of Ritual: A Conversation with Daniel L. Belnap Interview by Alan Taylor Farnes Daniel L. Belnap (daniel_belnap@byu.edu) is an assistant professor of ancient scripture at BYU. Alan Taylor Farnes (alan.taylor.farnes@gmail.com) is a senior in ancient Near Eastern Studies.
Q: We look forward to the volume
for salvation. An example of such
you are working on concerning
would be the giving of a blessing, a
repeated. Examples of singular ritu-
ritual. What kind of rituals do we
highly formalized ritual act. The
als are baptism or the temple rituals
find in the LDS Church?
third is what I call informal rituals,
because both are performed for each
such as bishops’ interviews or fathers’
person only once, even though we
interviews. These are events set apart
may do them again for others vicari-
rituals, or rituals necessary for
from normal activities, but the extent
ously. An example of a repetitive
salvation, such as baptism, temple
of the formal structure varies from
ritual would be the sacrament. I find
endowments, and so forth. The
person to person. There is a further
this distinction significant because
second is formal rituals, which have
distinction of ritual behavior: those
there also seems to be a correlation
a set structure but are not necessary
that are singular, or one-time-only
between singular ritual form and
A: I think there are three different types of ritual. The first is salvific
rituals, and those that are iterative, or
salvific ritual type.
Q: Do negative rituals ever creep into the Church?
A: I don’t think there are negative rituals. Most, if not all, rituals have negative consequences if performed unworthily, but that is part of ritual. Because ritual changes social boundaries and structures, it has both a good side (if performed correctly, it leads to inclusion or maintenance of the group) and a negative (if performed unworthily, it Daniel L. Belnap. Photo by Brent R. Nordgren.
leads to exclusion from the group).