ritual murder

American  

noun

1. a human sacrifice made to appease a deity.

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Etymology

Origin of ritual murder

First recorded in 1945–50

Example Sentences

For sociologist Peter Berger, communism and capitalism both adopted a "sacrificial" conception of development in which myths of "progress" and "growth" claimed their share of victims, much as Aztec priests had once used ritual murder to propitiate the gods and save their civilization.

From Salon

“The African may well believe in witchcraft and primitive magic, practise ritual murder and polygamy; his wealth is in cattle,” he wrote.

From Seattle Times

Farmer takes the reader through many fascinating episodes: the early “back to Africa” movement in the 1800s that led to the founding of Freetown and the nation of Liberia itself; the centuries-long obsession with the Human Leopard Society, an underground network of shape-shifting Africans that supposedly practiced cannibalism and ritual murder; Harvey Firestone’s successful attempt to circumvent the British monopoly on rubber that turned Liberia into the United States’ primary supplier of latex.

From New York Times

Salazar is called back to the village she grew up in to investigate the apparently ritual murder of a teenage girl.

From The Guardian

In 2005, members of the Russian Parliament signed an open letter urging that Jewish organizations be banned on the grounds that they are “anti-Christian” and “inhumane” and practice ritual murder.

From New York Times