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Abstract
Utilizing accounts compiled by other researchers and information obtained through field research, I explore the ways in which ritual serves particular religions and the individuals involved. Beginning with a broad understanding of ritual presented by Catherine Bell, subsequent chapters explore rituals by practitioners of Cuban Santera, Brazilian Candombl, Haitian Vodou, and Shia Islam. The initiation rituals of African Derived Religions are approached from an outsider perspective while the Ashura rituals of Shia Islam take a far more personal approach.