Central to every religion are rites and rituals, the sacred practices that connect the devoted to the divine. So, too, are books about rites and rituals central to many religion publishers' programs. That position seems secure, as consumers, facing an increasingly confounding post—September 11 atmosphere, seem to be turning to these books for solace and direction. "It is about the perennial need for structure in people's lives," says Michael West, editor-in-chief of Fortress Press. "Rituals are comforting."

One indication of this topic's strength is its presence across the spectrum, from Judaism's 6,500-year-old practices to the newly minted devotions of New Age religions, from the altars of Roman Catholicism to the kitchen recipes of neo-pagan spells. Such a range reflects a growing trend, says Georgio Simeon, publicist for New Page Books. "People are looking to understand other religions and incorporate the best of what they find," she says. "They are pulling the golden nuggets and incorporating them into their own spirituality."

Connecting to the Past

Judaism's rites and rituals have been performed for thousands of generations, yet this market shows one of the strongest surges in these titles. Many new books take a look at home-based practices, like the sabbath and morning prayers. Stuart Matlins, publisher of Jewish Lights, credits this to the desire of many American Jews to go deeper. "Many people are turning to traditional practices and adapting them to their own lives," he says. New from Jewish Lights is 7th Heaven: Celebrating Shabbat with Rebbe Nachman of Breslov (Mar.) by Moshe Mykoff , a look at this 18th-century Hasidic rabbi's teachings. Jossey-Bass is also bullish on the category, offering The Miracle of the Seventh Day (Mar.) by Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz and Ask the Rabbi: The Who, What, When, Where, Why and How of Being Jewish (Oct.) by Ron Isaacs. "There is more emphasis on home rituals," says Alan Rinzler, Jossey-Bass's executive editor. "What I am seeing is the need to make these rituals more meaningful within the traditions of your own family." J-B parent Wiley will capitalize on that with a whole series of how-tos for Jewish rituals, including weddings, seders and bar and bat mitzvahs, scheduled for 2004.

Another trend in the Jewish market is a re-examination of lifecycle rituals from birth to death. Altie Karper, editorial director of Schocken Books, links this to the aging boomer's need to reconnect with tradition. "When you discover spirituality is important, you look for form and structure and ways to bring that into your life," she says. Schocken has A Book of Life (Aug. 2002) by Rabbi Michael Strasfeld, a look at how rituals offer access to the divine, and Living a Year of Kaddish (Aug. 2003) by Ari L. Goldman, a chronicle of formal mourning. Also in this category is The Covenant of Circumcision: New Perspectives on an Ancient Jewish Rite (Brandeis Series on Jewish Women), edited by Elizabeth Wyner Mark, from Brandeis University Press/University Press of New England (Apr.), and Bar Mitzvah and Bat Mitzvah (May) by Arnine Cumsky Weiss from Jason Aronson.

Staying the Course

Rites and rituals are a mainstay of traditional Christianity, but only recently have they moved out of the exclusive control of the clergy and into the hands of the laity. Catholic publishers report doing more titles about rites and rituals since Vatican II, many of them aimed at the person in the pew. Ligouri Press has A Time to Heal: 50 Services of the Eucharist for Use with the Sick and Homebound (Feb.), edited by John McQuiggan, which can be used by laity, and Mysteries of Light: Meditations on the Mystery of the Rosary with John Paul II (Mar.) by Pope John Paul II, written for the average Catholic. And Liturgical Press's Toward Ritual Transformation: Remembering Robert Hovda (June), edited by Gabe Huck, focuses on the transformative quality of ritual. Crossroad has Living the Mysteries: Stories of the Miraculous Power of the Rosary from Around the World (May) by Robert H. Hopcke and Labyrinths: Into a Mysterious World (Apr.) by G.T. Candolini. Other Catholic publishers report such books have been foundational to their programs, driven by the need for faith formation of the young. "It is an evergreen category," says Bob Hamma, editorial director of Ave Maria Press. "It is part of the ongoing religious formation process to immerse young people in the rites and rituals of the church." Ave Maria's new titles include Send Out Your Spirit: A Confirmation Candidate's Handbook and Send Out Your Spirit: Preparing Teens for Confirmation, both by Michael Amodei and both published in February. For seminarians, Liturgical Press has Sacrament of the Eucharist (Jan.), edited by John D. Laurance, and Paulist Press offers Child's Guide to First Holy Communion (Jan.) by Elizabeth Ficocelli.

Roots and Retooling

This market is looking forward and back, with many titles digging up the roots of these practices, while others seek to adapt them for modern use. Michelle Rapkin, Doubleday's v-p and director of religious publishing, explains this interest as coming from both the Catholic and Protestant experience. "There is a greater interest these days in formal worship, particularly among Christians who come from less liturgical traditions," she says. "[And] those who are in more liturgical denominations, like Catholicism, seem to be more interested in the individual's experience within rites and rituals." Doubleday has two titles this year, Sacred Passages: Bringing the Sacraments to Life by Bert Ghezzi (July) and Lord, Have Mercy: Confession and the Christian's Life Story by Scott Hahn (March).

Fortress Press titles reflect that dual interest, with From Symposium to Eucharist: The Banquet in the Early Christian World by Dennis E. Smith (Feb.) and Terror and Triumph: The Nature of Black Religion by Anthony B. Pinn (Feb), which describes African-American religion as a ritual response to the dehumanization of blacks in slavery and lynching. Fortress's West says demand for these books comes from inside and outside organized religion. "There is far more interest now in church circles in liturgy and in ritual, and the same is true in parachurch circles," he notes. From Scarecrow Press comes Language of Baptism: A Study of the Authorized Baptismal Liturgies of the United Church of Canada, 1925-1995 by William S. Kervin (May) while Smith & Helwys has Baptism: We've Got It Right and Wrong by John R. Tyler (April).

Concerns for youth are also a constant under the Protestant steeple. Pilgrim Press offers Confirmation Prayer Book (Jan.) by Stephen Lake, Confirmation Notebook: A Guide to Christian Belief and Practice (Jan.) by Hugh Montefiore and Touch the Water: 30 Children's Sermons on Baptism, the New Brown Bag (Apr.) by Phyllis Vos Wezeman, Kenneth R. Wezeman and Anna L. Liechty. Aimee Jannsohn, Pilgrim marketing and communications associate, says books on rites and rituals for children are something Pilgrim, associated with the United Church of Christ, plans to focus on. "It can be difficult to address children," she says. "You want to keep them involved as part of the congregation, but you need to catch their attention and teach them lessons from scripture." Touch the Water will be followed by two more Brown Bag titles, one on communion for this fall and one on funerals for summer 2004. Also for children is Abingdon's Happy Baptism Day (Jan.) by Judy Jolly.

A small number of books explore the ecumenical possibilities of rites and rituals. Christopher Bellitto, academic editor of Paulist Press, traces this to the openness of Vatican II. "That began conversations," Bellitto says. "When Catholics began talking about other faith traditions favorably, many other people did, too." New are Liturgical Press's Communion with Non-Catholic Christians: Risks, Challenges, and Opportunities (June) by Jeffrey T. VanderWilt and Paulist Press's Rediscovering the Eucharist: Ecumenical Conversations (May), edited by Roch A. Kereszty. Peter Dwyer, director of Liturgical Press, expects to see more titles exploring ecumenical rites and rituals, but doesn't expect them to spread from the scholarly market to the trade. "Ecumenism doesn't reach a wide market," he says. "It could be we are talking about it at too academic a level." A "breakthrough" author is nowhere on the radar, he says. But Paulist's Bellitto thinks these titles may take a new direction. "We are going to see more substantial books about individual tradition and interfaith dialogue," he believes. "But both sets of books will increasingly look at what makes religions unique as opposed to some sort of syncretism that has tended to bring all religions to a lowest common denominator."

Ritual studies titles have been a staple of the academic market, and David Brent, executive editor of the University of Chicago Press, thinks the focus may be shifting to books on diaspora religions, especially those of African and Caribbean origin. Forthcoming from Chicago is Santeria Enthroned: Art, Ritual and Innovation in an Afro-Cuban Religion (July) by David H. Brown. From Continuum comes the third book in a series, Understanding Religious Sacrifice: A Reader (Apr.), edited by Jeffrey Carter, the third volume in the Controversies in the Study of Religion series. Carter, who is also the director of the Castle Rock Institute, counts academic books on rites and rituals as a growing area. "Ritual studies is indeed receiving more attention in the last few decades," he says. "There is now a great deal of interest in what religious people do, and not simply what they believe, think, or imagine."

Alternative Approaches

Publishers of New Age and neo-paganism titles also report a rise in interest in the topic. Lisa Campbell, assistant editor at Chronicle Books, traces this to a need for personal control. "Rituals are a way of taking time out for oneself," she says. "It fulfills a need for nurturing the self." Chronicle Books has Everyday Calm: Relaxing Rituals for Busy People (May) by Darrin Zeer and Incense: Ritual, Mystery, Lore (Jan. 2004) by Gina Hyams. At New Page Books, the same trend led to how-to books on Wicca, which publicist Simeon links to people's need to consistently feel the divine. New Page offers Maiden Magick: A Teen's Guide to Goddess Wisdom and Ritual by C.C. Brondwin and Earth Magic: A Book of Shadows for Positive Witches by Marion Weinstein, both due in April, and Mastering Candle Magick (Mar.) by Patricia Telesco. New from Llewellyn is Solitary Witch: The Ultimate Book of Shadows for a New Generation (Feb.) by Silver Ravenwolf. Element Books offers The Buddha Book: Buddha's Blessings, Prayers, and Rituals to Grant You Love, Wisdom, and Healing (Apr.) by Lillian Too.

Boost for the Future

What's next for books on rites and rituals? One publisher speculated that the Catholic sex abuse scandals could boost interest in the subject. "A byproduct of the church scandals is a very strong desire and even demand on the part of laypeople to really understand their faith," says Paulist's Bellitto. "One of the things that really angered Catholics was that those in authority underestimated the ability of the people on the ground to understand substantial matters substantially. The future is going to be toward far more substantial adult faith formation than the Church has seen before." Ave Maria's Hamma says he has seen no new proposals or titles about rites and rituals specifically tied to the scandals. Instead, he predicts more women- and family-oriented titles. "There is more of an emphasis on the home as the center of prayer and faith," he says. "Just as we saw a whole movement in publishing after 9/11 of more 'nesting' books, we see that as well in the emphasis on family and family relationships."