ecclesiastical court

American  

noun

1. a church court in ecclesiastical matters, presided over by members of the clergy and usually having no compulsory jurisdiction.

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Etymology

Origin of ecclesiastical court

First recorded in 1675–85

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

ecclesiastical court

The matter be decided at a consistory court hearing, which is an ecclesiastical court dealing with matters of law relating to the Church - mainly in relation to its buildings.

From BBC ● Jan. 24, 2022

Wendt was tried by an ecclesiastical court for disobeying the bishop’s orders.

From Washington Post ● Sep. 5, 2019

Church spies hauled everyday people into ecclesiastical court for infractions such as eating meat during Lent, and priest-judges passed sentence.

From Seattle Times ● Aug. 16, 2018

This does not mean that he did not act alone; it does mean that he did not come to such sources as 16th-century ecclesiastical court records by himself.

From Salon ● Jul. 22, 2018

As soon as the ecclesiastical court had pronounced him a heretic and handed him over, the laws against heresy operated of themselves.

From A History of The Inquisition of The Middle Ages; volume II by Lea, Henry Charles