The Power of Ritual
Casper ter Kuile, cohost of the Harry Potter and the Sacred Text podcast, makes a friendly case for turning ordinary practices into sacred ones. Reading, eating, exercise, time with friends: each can become a ritual when approached with intention, repetition, and reflection. He draws on his work at Harvard's How We Gather project, which studied secular communities that function like religious ones. The book is structured around four kinds of connection: to self, to others, to nature, and to the transcendent. Each chapter offers concrete practices, from sabbath meals to solo walks, that readers can borrow without subscribing to any tradition. The tone is generous rather than prescriptive, more invitation than instruction. A useful read for anyone feeling unmoored from inherited religion but still hungry for depth.
What you might want to know about The Power of Ritual
The questions readers send us most often, answered without spoilers.
A Harvard Divinity researcher argues that everyday habits can be rebuilt as rituals that bring meaning and connection.
The Power of Ritual was written by Casper ter Kuile, published in 2020 by HarperCollins Publishers.
The Power of Ritual is 224 pages in standard print editions, though page counts vary slightly between hardcover, paperback, and large-print formats.
At an average reading pace of about 250 words per minute, The Power of Ritual takes most readers 3 to 5 hours to finish.
The Power of Ritual is available in hardcover, paperback, ebook, and audiobook formats from Amazon, Bookshop.org, ThriftBooks, and most major bookstores.