ecclesial
Americanadjective
Etymology
Origin of ecclesial
1640–50; < Latin ecclēsi ( a ) ecclesia + -al 1; compare French ecclésial
Explanation
Anything ecclesial is related to a Christian church. You might go to Sunday services with your friend to find out what ecclesial offerings his church has. The adjective ecclesial derives from the Greek ekklesiastes, "speaker in a church" and its root ekkalein, "to call out." It's specifically used to talk about the Christian religion. If someone mentions ecclesial institutions, they mean churches, and a reference to an ecclesial service is the same as talking about a sermon in a Christian church. Catholics sometimes use the phrase "ecclesial community" to refer to non-Catholic churches.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Indeed, in summary “Search” sounds weirdly ecclesial and culinary, like Marilynne Robinson with a light vinaigrette.
From Washington Post ● May 3, 2022
The Church's most senior ecclesial figure on the island, Elder Inoke Kupu, said: "There is only one colour in Tonga right now, and that is a dark dust."
From BBC ● Jan. 19, 2022
Francis, who blames abuse of power by priests for many of the church’s ills, argued that the way forward rested in “the growth of a specific ecclesial culture that is distinctively lay.”
From New York Times ● Feb. 12, 2020
The CDF serves as the central processing center for abuse cases as well as an appeals court for accused priests under the church’s canon law, a parallel legal system that dispenses ecclesial justice.
From Seattle Times ● Dec. 19, 2019
The inevitable result of this was to create two classes of prelates—one of lay, the other of ecclesial investiture.
From The Truce of God A Tale of the Eleventh Century by Miles, George Henry
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
