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• established church
  established church

  noun

  a church that is recognized by law, and sometimes financially supported, as the official church of a nation.
• Established Church
  Established Church

  noun

  a Church that is officially recognized as a national institution, esp the Church of England

established church

American  

noun

1. a church that is recognized by law, and sometimes financially supported, as the official church of a nation.

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Established Church British  

noun

1. a Church that is officially recognized as a national institution, esp the Church of England

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established church ¹ Cultural  

1. A church supported by the government as a national institution. The Church of England is an established church in England, as is the Lutheran Church in the countries of Scandinavia and the Presbyterian Church in Scotland.

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established church ² Cultural  

1. A religious denomination that receives financial and other support from the government, often to the exclusion of support for other denominations. (See under “World Literature, Philosophy, and Religion.”)

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Etymology

Origin of established church

First recorded in 1650–60

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

established church Established Church

Before it was formed after the American Revolution, Anglicanism was the established church of the Virginia colony.

From Washington Post ● Aug. 14, 2022

When the United States was founded, most countries around the world had an established church or religion—an officially sponsored set of religious beliefs and values.

From Textbooks ● Jul. 28, 2021

It started with the Anglican Church, or Church of England, the first established church of the Virginia colony.

From Washington Times ● Aug. 8, 2020

An academic theologian, rather than a parish priest, he became for many, the symbol of modernisation and liberal ideas in the established church.

From BBC ● Sep. 4, 2016

Religion.—There is no established church in Canada, but in the province of Quebec certain rights have been allowed to the Roman Catholic church ever since the British conquest.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 5, Slice 2 "Camorra" to "Cape Colony" by Various

She could only hope that if she married outside the Established Church, of which her sister the Queen is head, even the church itself might in time prove forgiving.

From Time Magazine Archive

England's Established Church has little to do with nonconformists on the one side, Roman Catholics on the other.

From Time Magazine Archive

When romance conflicts with the canons of the Established Church, and with the Briton's inbred view of royalty, it is no easy role.

From Time Magazine Archive

After about 180 executions, including the Jesuit Robert Southwell, Elizabeth said that if her council wanted to convert more Catholics to the Established Church, they should do so by the example of their lives.

From Time Magazine Archive

There are several day and night schools belonging to the Established Church — viz.,

From Antigua and the Antiguans, Volume II (of 2) A full account of the colony and its inhabitants from the time of the Caribs to the present day by Anonymous