The Messengers, being typically a very individualistic bunch, rather than a well structured Concord, have few rituals that they will observe frequently. However, those rituals that they do observe are very important, and detaining a Messenger from the completion thereof is a very drastic offense.

Additionally, almost every Messenger ritual is a private ritual. Since the Messengers can't count on having enough others to help them at the appropriate time, they structure the rituals so that a single person is all that they take. However, groups can undergo the rituals together, and the bonds between a group that does this are often very strong, as they see each other at many very important moments.

The four most important rituals to the average Messenger are:

* The Scribing of The Code

When a wraith wishes to join the Messengers, this is the ritual he undergoes. The first step is for the fledgling to seek out a Messenger who can take him in and induct him into the Concord. Next, the Messenger he seeks out asks for the initiate's name, discards it, and then gifts him with a new name, derived from one of the tenets of The Code, such as Life-Is-Sacred.

After this, the newly renamed initiate must follow the Messenger around during his duties for 96 days. During this time, the initiate must speak out as a staunch advocate of whichever tenet he is named after. Once the Messenger feels that his initiate has served enough time with a particular tenet, he repeats the renaming ceremony, naming the initiate for a different tenet.

At the end of the 96 days, the initiate is renamed once again with whichever name he chooses. This is most often his old name, but not always. At the end of that, final renaming ceremony, the new Messenger is asked to recite The Code, while advanced Regis arts are used to imprint the words in the back of his mind, so that they spring up whenever the new Messenger acts contrary to them, flooding his mind with guilt.

After this, the mentor and the new Messenger bid each other farewell. This could be as ritualistic as a recounting of bold deeds and a grand ceremony, or as simple as a handshake before they both walk off in separate directions.

* Gratitude

Gratitude is a celebration which occurs whenever a Messenger Ascends, either through her own actions, or by being helped along by a Ferryman. The first of these is much rarer than the second, but they are both very rare occurrences.

The first day of the ceremony is a celebration of the accomplishments of the Messenger in question. His exploits are shouted to the wind, written into song, painted into pictures, whispered in the darkness, or any other way which the celebrating Messenger feels is appropriate.

On the second day, the celebrating Messenger goes about her daily life as if she was the departed Messenger, protecting the departed's territory as if it were her own.

On the third, and final day, the celebrator goes back to living her own life, but acts more like the departed wraith. At the end of the day, she records, in some fashion, a lesson which ought to be learned by the actions of the Ascended Messenger.

* Grief

This ritual is much like Gratitude, but is a mourning for those wraiths who fall through the Barrier. The three days proceed in the same fashion, but instead of celebrating the merits of the departed, their faults are desecrated, denounced, and berated. And instead of acting like the departed, the celebrator is supposed to act like themselves, taking care to avoid the faults of the departed. The lesson learned ought to be recorded in the same fashion.

* Rejuvenation

Two hundred seventy days after a Messenger's Scribing or his most recent Rejuvenation, he must partake of this ritual.

The ritual itself is very simple. The wraith must immerse themselves fully in a body of water, and, upon emergence, they must recite the Code.

The ritual represents a rebirth. The wraith must be reborn, and, once again, confirm his faith in order to carry on as a Messenger. Those who don't, find that the Code will be more present in their awareness, constantly repeating itself in the back of their minds. The longer they wait before undergoing Rejuvenation, the louder it gets.