In that day, and still to this day, religious people have their rituals and their traditions. We have our rituals as Catholics. Among the ancient Jews, the most religious observed certain ritual washings. You can see this even today among the orthodox Jews that before they eat or perform a religious observance that they wash their hands. Our own ritual with water is blessing ourselves as we enter or leave church.
Rituals are good.
They allow us to make special our praying and worshipping. They made the legalisms become more important than the hearts and souls of men and women. Many of us are at times common hypocrites. We do not always live up to what we believe and teach. However, we know the difference.