MARCIA MCFEE
I am a ritual artist.
My background in the performing arts and stagecraft collided with a Masters in Theology and a PhD in Ritual Studies and what popped out was someone insatiably curious about how and why we humans create meaning. For over 20 years I've had a big appetite for creating and enacting ritual art in all kinds of settings.
I believe that when people dive deep into meaning and purpose for their lives through intentional spiritual journeys, they end up transforming not only themselves, but the world they inhabit.
Spiritual Care Encounters offers guidance for rituals in a variety of settings to deepen our exploration of meaning and purpose.
CURRENT SCE PROJECTS
Visit www.covidprayers.org to add your prayer or intention
Download a table ritual and multigenerational activities at www.covidheartstogether.com
MORE ABOUT SCE & DR. MARCIA McFEE
I’m into what’s called the “phenomenology of lived experience” and love to both study and create ritual experiences that draw on our human yearning. My mantra is “go deep or go home.” At such a time as this, we cannot afford to stay on the surface. This is not antithetical to joy and fun and play… in fact sometimes that’s the way to get “sneaky deep.” Getting in touch with ourselves and what makes us light up, getting in touch with others and creating more community and compassion in the world, getting in touch with the holy “other”–whether you call that Love, Universe, God/dess or whatever (the thing that feels bigger than all of us)–is the way humans have been pulling themselves out of the mire ever since we became humans. Exploring, learning and growing is our life's work. So let’s get to it.
My favorite ritual scholar, Ron Grimes, defined ritual this way:
“Ritual transpires as animated persons enact formative gestures in the face of receptivity during crucial times in founded places.”
Yeah, it takes a bit to unpack that (which I love to do in my keynote speaking and workshops) but suffice it to say that when you attend to time and space and word, media, gesture with intention, you are going to create meaning of some sort. 'Cause we're made for it.
I am something of a neuroscience geek and I know that our brains are wired for meaning. We can’t help ourselves. We like to create, observe and interpret–at least we do if no one has told us that there’s only one “right” way to experience something. This mind/body/spirit mashup we call humanity has a craving for purpose. If we don’t have rituals in our lives, we’ll create them. Even if it is that cup ‘o joe every morning or the jewelry we choose for the day or the candle we buy and place in just the right spot at home. It could be as simple as writing something special on a birthday card or listening to music as we go to work. No matter what it is, we are creating ritual and meaning anytime we make intentional choices that invite reflection.
I love creating “sacred” (to set apart) space and time, sound and light, word and action–whether in a small room, hospital chapel, cathedral, huge conference convention center or anything in between and I've been doing it for over 20 years. As an artist, I know how environment effects our experience, drawing us deeper into whatever we say, sing or do in that space. I studied and interviewed filmmakers for my last book on creating sensory-rich ritual because they understand deeply how music makes a mood and color palette sets a tone and when to say something and when to simply let a gesture make the statement. Telling stories and creating ritual are so very close. Think about it. Our earlier humanoid ancestors knew what they were doing. They sat around a fire (dramatic lighting) in caves (enhanced sound) surrounded by petroglyphs (symbolic art) and told their stories and danced their dances. And what neuroscientists and ritual theorists know now is that these shared experiences bound these early humans together for the good of the whole–not just for survival, but for quality of life and meaning.
I am a symbolist. Every religion has its set of symbols and narratives to use in ritual. But the cool thing about symbols is that they will always mean different things to different people based on context and experience. Yep, that’s the good news. I believe we can use common human symbols in shared space with people from different faiths or no faith. Washing, eating, letting go, walking, dancing, creating, destroying… all stuff that can become portals to the deep stuff.
Ritual artists know how to do that. I have the great joy of working with a team of ritual artists of different sorts… visual, media, music, word, dramatic… in creating unforgettable experiences that soak the soul and spark the mind and then send people out to be changed and make change.
I hope you enjoyed these photos of just some of the work we've been up to lately. I would love to talk to you about what this is sparking for you.
Dr. McFee has designed and led ritual at gatherings around the world, taught at more than 15 seminaries and is the Creator and Visionary of Spiritual Care Encounters and the Worship Design Studio that resources organizations all over US and Canada.
• Keynote speaking for religious or secular groups
• One or multiple-day workshops
• Ritual design and leadership for Christian or non-religious-specific gatherings
• Multi-day retreat design and leadership
• Conference design
• Consultation on design for ritual space
Dr. McFee produces leader-led or self-led ritual meditations for various situations and places and trains personnel to implement them. Dr. McFee's team also produces day-long or evening-length experiences for groups that include multi-media, music, speaking, circle drumming and singing that immerses, motivates and inspires individuals to spiritual growth and deeper understanding of self and others for the purpose of making the world a better place.
Contact me at [email protected]
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Many of the visual art settings pictured on this page are collaborations with
Todd Pick, Ted Lyddon Hatten, and Alexandra Childs
Interested in Worship Design Studio, Dr. McFee's online resource for churches?
GO HERE for more information.