Part 2: Building Ritual Teams
We’ve looked at accountability and how we can build ritual teams and partnerships. This week, I’d like to share some thoughts
This week, however, I’d like to suggest there are ways to build and structure Ritual teams.
We all want our officers and members to be proficient in the work. We also want great leaders (or potentially great leaders) to be our officers. Here’s the reality: Not all great ritualists are great administrators/leaders, and not all great administrators/leaders are great ritualists.
You know your individual Commandery better than anyone else. Seek out the great/good ritualists, especially those who might not be actively engaged right now, and ask them to take one or more roles in the work. Don’t expect one man to “iron man” all three Commander roles. If you need guys to take multiple parts, consider asking them to take one “big” role and one “smaller” role, at least initially. Wherever possible, get the major parts covered by two people, just to make sure there is coverage “just in case.”
Many of us are within an hour’s drive of at least one, and often two, other Commanderies–even if we have to cross a state line. The advantage is that we have a common Ritual (even our Prince Hall Affiliated fratres buy their books from the Grand Encampment office), so we can easily work across state lines to help one another. Creative note: The Grand Encampment Constitution, Statutes, and Decisions have no prohibition about visiting Knights filling stations in a Commandery for conferring the Orders. So, if you are on a border with another state/country with a Commandery close by, be friendly! Note, there are rules about receiving and acting upon petitions across jurisdictions, so don’t be “creative” with that. If you are rebuilding proficiency in the work, team up with one or two other Commanderies and split the initial work. One Commandery can take the lead on the Red Cross and the other the Order of the Temple, with one member of each learning the Prior role for the short form Malta. If there are three Commanderies working together, get on the Malta in full form. With this starting point, the two or three Commanderies can work together to confer all three Orders without the burden initially of having to become experts in all three at one time. Remember, this is a metaphorical elephant you are trying to eat, and you can’t eat an elephant in one bite.
Your mission, after getting this far, is to knock the dust off your Ritual books, pair up each team member with a fellow Knight, and work on the tasks of memorization, delivery, and tactics/stage movements. Memorization and delivery work hand in hand, but focus first on learning the part, and as you learn it, say it out loud. As you read and recite, make notes of where you need to take a breath, change inflection (Is it a question? If so, your voice should probably be inflecting upward.), a pause for effect or to get a response, etc. As you work with your study partner, listen to one another and offer honest and effective feedback. Tip: Think back to your Blue Lodge catechism days. You didn’t just learn the words, you learned how to say them and what they meant. That applies here, too. Tactics and movements can be practiced at home, but in many cases are best done in the Asylum room with the paraphernalia needed. When practicing with your study partner, when movements are required, describe in detail what you are going to do. For example, “I will uncover, using my left hand, placing my chapeau on my right shoulder, [actions redacted here], turn to the left and walk parallel to the edge triangle, turn to the right when I reach the base, walk parallel to the edge of the triangle, and stop one pace to the right side of the kneeling candidate.” Being specific in the description and hearing what you will be doing helps to reinforce the actions required and you will be more comfortable executing the actions when the Order is being conferred.
Create a written plan with dates, times, and places on how your Ritual team will work to master the work. Expect to have additional rehearsals outside of the usual Conclaves. Hold each other accountable for not only the learning of the words and tactics, but attendance at those rehearsals. Sometimes, the rehearsals might not require everyone to attend.
For example, break the Red Cross into two parts: The High Priest section and the Sovereign Master section. Have your Jewish guards at the High Priest section and the Persian Guard at the Sovereign Master section practices. If you do not use the optional Jewish Council spoken parts, these Knights should be encouraged, but are not required, at the section rehearsals, but should attend the final two full cast rehearsals.
At one of the early section practices, pull out the costumes, have everyone try them on. If they aren’t serviceable, replace them immediately or get them repaired. Put all the parts to each costume together, tag the hangar/garment bag with the part and performer. Once each section is working smoothly, have two more rehearsals before the conferral–one to put all the parts together and one dress rehearsal in full costume.
This is a possible model for your consideration and implementation, and can easily be adapted for the Order of Malta and Order of the Temple. Yes, it is a lot of work. Yes, it will require a lot of time. However, once you have mastered this, it is an easier process to add additional Knights to the casts and bring them up to speed than to have to start from scratch again.
This is the second part in a multi-week sequence on the Ritual and ritual proficiency. In addition to these brief messages, I will be posting some longer writings on my website that will take a deeper look at this and related topics. Watch the first posts in the next few days, then check back often for new additions!
Edit: A typo in the sub-title for this post was corrected.