All of us here are, in some form or fashion, cigar smokers. Whether you light up yourself or you participate by extension, through a friend or family member, you are familiar with the lingo, the rhythm, and the culture. No matter where you land, you’re familiar with the ceremonial nature of smoking a cigar.
What do I mean by that?
Well, let’s look at the word ceremony itself. By definition, a ceremony involves ritual observances and procedures performed as part of a religious or formal occasion—typically one celebrating a particular event or anniversary. When it comes to smoking cigars, there are similar notes and chords that make the melody familiar.
To stay ahead of myself, I’ll refer to cigar smoking as being ritualistic—but let me draw some distinctions. A ceremony is generally a broader event that may involve various rituals within it. To be more precise: a ritual is one of the specific actions that make up the overall ceremony.
Take a wedding, for example. The ceremony includes rituals like walking down the aisle, the couple holding hands, the reciting of vows, the exchanging of rings, the kiss, the reception, the consummation, and so on.
So, when I say ritualistic in terms of cigar smoking, I don’t mean to imply that there’s any sort of inherent paganism or religiosity embedded in the act. I’m simply pointing to the intentionality built into the cigar smoking experience. From the location and atmosphere to the cutting, the lighting, and even the act of smoking itself, everything is marked by deliberate action and choice. Taken together, these elements shape something that feels almost liturgical in nature.
- Choosing the right cigar
- Choosing your preferred cutter
- The precise cutting
- The cold draw, with its first taste and scent
- Choosing your preferred lighter
- Toasting the cigar
- The first pull
- Then, the slow, contemplative smoke
Even without partaking of a cigar, it’s easy to see how intentional and purpose-driven each step is. Most of us can recognize how ritualistic, ceremonious, or dare I say it, religious, the experience of smoking a cigar can be.
As Christians, the Reformed kind anyway, we understand worship not as something casual or spontaneous, but as something ordered and rooted in God’s Word. We gather weekly under the ordinary means of grace: the reading and preaching of Scripture, the sacraments, and prayer. There is a flow, pattern, and an order to how we come before our God. We don’t invent our own way of worshiping, we follow the form He has given us. And that form is beautiful.
- The call to worship
- The confession of sin
- The assurance of pardon
- The singing of psalms and hymns
- The hearing of the Word
- The partaking of the Lord’s Supper
- The benediction and sending out
Each part is distinct (ritual), yet all are bound together (ceremony, liturgy). More pointedly, each part is intentional.
And in a much smaller and far less glorious way, the ceremonial experience of enjoying a cigar reflects that same structure. While not sacred in itself, the order of smoking a cigar (Ordo Fumandi) echoes something sacred: the value of intentional time, the beauty of slowness, and the setting apart of a moment—not for productivity, but for reflection, gratitude, and shared joy. It becomes, in a way, a shadow of the greater rhythms that shape our worship and our life before God.
Here at Patriarch Cigar Co., we aim to intentionally bring these two, similar but clearly different, truths together. Our desire is to take the intentional, liturgical nature cigar culture is familiar with and use it to point more clearly to the truths of God and the order by which He is to be glorified and praised.
We believe that all of life, in all its aspects and categories, is to be lived coram Deo, before the face of God, to continue in proper Reformed order. We don’t and indeed cannot compartmentalize the sacred from the everyday. We walk in a world created by God and governed by His providence. Everything can be approached with reverence and thanksgiving.
So, the next time you light a cigar, don’t do it out of habit. Do it with intentionality.
- Choose the cigar with care.
- Prepare your space.
- Make the cut clean.
- Savor the cold draw.
- Light it with steadiness.
- Reflect deeply.
Let it be a moment of gratitude that reminds you of the greater ceremony, the greater liturgy, and the greater joy we have in Christ.
Smoke not to escape—but to remember who God has called us to be, and to give thanks for his eternal graciousness.
And remember: while a cigar can be smoked in solitude, as with worship, it finds even greater joy and richness in the company of brothers.
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