Conventicle

Conventicle
Conventicle Con*ven"ti*cle, n. [L. conventiculum, dim. of conventus: cf. F. conventicule. See {Convent}, n.] 1. A small assembly or gathering; esp., a secret assembly. [1913 Webster]

They are commanded to abstain from all conventicles of men whatsoever. --Ayliffe. [1913 Webster]

2. An assembly for religious worship; esp., such an assembly held privately, as in times of persecution, by Nonconformists or Dissenters in England, or by Covenanters in Scotland; -- often used opprobriously, as if those assembled were heretics or schismatics. [1913 Webster]

The first Christians could never have had recourse to nocturnal or clandestine conventicles till driven to them by the violence of persecution. --Hammond. [1913 Webster]

A sort of men who . . . attend its [the curch of England's] service in the morning, and go with their wives to a conventicle in the afternoon. --Swift. [1913 Webster]


The Collaborative International Dictionary of English. 2000.

Игры ⚽ Нужен реферат?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • conventicle — index collection (assembly) Burton s Legal Thesaurus. William C. Burton. 2006 …   Law dictionary

  • conventicle — (n.) from L. conventiculum a small assembly, dim. of conventus (see CONVENT (Cf. convent)) …   Etymology dictionary

  • conventicle — [kən ven′ti kəl] n. [ME < OFr conventicule < L conventiculum, dim. of CONVENT] 1. a religious assembly held illegally and secretly by certain Protestant sects that disputed the authority of the Church of England in the 16th and 17th cent. 2 …   English World dictionary

  • Conventicle — A Covenanters convecticle by Roger Griffith. A conventicle is a small, unofficial and unofficiated meeting of laypeople, to discuss religious issues in a non threatening, intimate manner. Philipp Jakob Spener called for such associations in his… …   Wikipedia

  • Conventicle Act 1664 — A sermon in the mountains A Covenanters Conventicl …   Wikipedia

  • Conventicle Act — The Conventicle Act can refer to any of the following English Acts of Parliament: Conventicle Act of 1593 Conventicle Act 1664 Conventicles Act 1670 A similar law was enacted in Norway in 1741 (see Haugean) This disambiguation page lists articles …   Wikipedia

  • Conventicle Act of 1593 — The Law= The Conventicle Act of 1593 was an English law requiring separatists to convert to Anglicanism. Those who refused to convert were to be executed or most likely exiled. [ The Western Heritage . 8E. Donald Kagan, Steven Ozmet, Frank M.… …   Wikipedia

  • conventicle — noun Etymology: Middle English, from Latin conventiculum, diminutive of conventus assembly Date: 14th century 1. assembly, meeting 2. an assembly of an irregular or unlawful character 3. an assembly for religious …   New Collegiate Dictionary

  • conventicle — conventicler, n. conventicular /kon ven tik yeuh leuhr/, adj. /keuhn ven ti keuhl/, n. 1. a secret or unauthorized meeting, esp. for religious worship, as those held by Protestant dissenters in England in the 16th and 17th centuries. 2. a place… …   Universalium

  • conventicle — noun a) a secret, unauthorized or illegal religious meeting b) the place where such a meeting is held …   Wiktionary

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
… Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”