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DESIGNING RITUALS OF ADOPTION FOR THE RELIGIOUS AND SECULAR COMMUNITY



TABLE OF CONTENTS
  1. INTRODUCTION
  2. RELIGIOUS RITUALS Religious rites: Why invent tradition? Therapeutic rituals Adoption rituals can be teaching tools What about open adoption? The entrustment ceremony Ritualizing the adoption finalization ceremony
  3. THE RELIGIOUS ADOPTION CEREMONY
  4. JEWISH ADOPTION RITUALS
    Entrustment ceremony
    Entrustment/naming ceremony of a baby girl
    Suggested readings and symbolic actions
  5. CHRISTIAN ADOPTION RITUALS
    Baby dedication ritual (Assembly of God)
    Thanksgiving for a newly adopted child (Catholic)
    Thanksgiving for the adoption of a child (Episcopal in English and Spanish)
    An ecumenical service of adoption
    Thanksgiving for the gift of a child (Anglican - New Zealand)
    Dedication of a child (Universalist/Unitarian)
    Service for giving a child in love
    A hospital chapel entrustment ceremony
    A Christian and Lakota adoption celebration
    Christian: Suggested readings and symbolic actions
  6. SECULAR RITUALS
    Designing a ritual carries its own meaning
    Who leads?
    Choosing a setting
    Gifts marking the adoption journey
    Gifts marking the country and/or family of origin
    Gifts which mark the adoption
    Content: Symbolic and literal
    A song to celebrate open adoption
    Grounding the ritual
    A case for repeating rituals
    Ritualizing grief
    Ritualizing adoption disruption and adoption dissolution
    "The Sacrifice Flower" by Sister Jose Hobday
    Adoption placement ceremony
    "The Medicine Bag" by Sister Jose Hobday
    A ritual to recharge the love batteries
    Commonly used symbols
    Cultural considerations
    Music
    Readings and words spoken from the heart
    Keepsakes and gifts
    Flowers, herbs, and trees
  7. SUMMARY


AUTHOR INFORMATION
As an adopted person and adoptive mother, Mary Martin Mason is a nationally known speaker, trainer and writer in adoption.

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