Now updated for CSW19. New words, if any, and new inflections of existing words, are shown in red.
| abthane | a monastic region of the old Irish church. |
| advowson | a right of presentation to a church living. |
| altarage | a payment to a priest for mass; offerings at an altar. |
| ann | (Scots) the half-year's stipend payable to a minister's wife on his death. |
| annat | (Scots) the half-year's stipend payable to a minister's wife on his death. |
| annates | (Hist.) the first year's profits of a spiritual preferment, anciently paid by the clergy to the pope. |
| archbishopric | the see or province over which an archbishop exercises authority. |
| archdeaconry | the district or residence of an archdeacon. |
| archdiocesan | relating to archdiocese. |
| archdiocese | the diocese of an archbishop. |
| archpriesthood | the office of archpriest. |
| autocephalic | of a bishop, independent of any higher governing body. |
| autocephalous | of a bishop, independent of any higher governing body. |
| bayyan | (Arabic) an official declaration. |
| benefice | an ecclesiastical office to which revenue is attached; (verb) to endow with a benefice. |
| besaint | (Arch.) to make a saint of. |
| caesaropapism | control of the church by a secular ruler. |
| canonisation | the act of canonising. |
| canonise | to make a saint. |
| canonize | to make a saint. |
| canonry | the benefice, office, or status of a canon. |
| cardinalate | the office or dignity of cardinal; the cardinals collectively. |
| catholicate | the jurisdiction of a catholicos. |
| clericalism | a policy of maintaining or increasing the power of a religious hierarchy. |
| clericalist | one who favors maintained or increased ecclesiastical power and influence. |
| coenobium | a religious community; a colony of unicellular organisms. |
| collative | having the power of conferring; of livings where the bishop and patron are one and the same person. |
| collegialism | the theory that the church is independent from the state. |
| collegiality | the process of making decisions, taking actions etc. shared by all the bishops of a church. |
| colportage | (Fr.) the distribution of religious books, tracts, etc., by colporteurs. |
| commendam | (Lat.) a vacant living or benefice commended to a cleric (usually a bishop) who enjoyed the revenue until a pastor was provided. |
| consistorial | relating to a consistory, a solemn assembly or council. |
| consistorian | relating to a consistory, a solemn assembly or council. |
| consistory | a solemn assembly or council; a church tribunal. |
| corody | an allowance; a pension; orig the right of the lord to claim free lodging from the vassal. |
| decretal | a papal decree deciding a point of church law. |
| decretalist | one who studies decretals. |
| defrock | to deprive of priestly frock or ecclesiastical rank. |
| deodate | (Obs.) a gift to or from God. |
| dischurch | (Obs.) to deprive of church rank or privileges. |
| disendow | to deprive of an endowment, as a church. |
| donative | a benefice presented to church without reference to a bishop. |
| ecumenic | general; universal; in ecclesiastical usage, that which concerns the whole church. |
| ecumenical | general; universal; in ecclesiastical usage, that which concerns the whole church. |
| ecumenically | (Adv.) ECUMENICAL, concerning the whole church. |
| ecumenics | the study of ecumenicism. |
| eirenics | eirenical theology, concerned with promoting peace between churches. |
| encyclic | a letter sent by the pope to multiple bishops. |
| encyclical | a letter sent by the pope to multiple bishops. |
| episcopacy | government of the church by bishops. |
| episcopal | governed by bishops; as, an episcopal church. |
| episcopalism | episcopalian government and doctrine. |
| episcopally | (Adv.) EPISCOPAL, governed by bishops. |
| excommunication | an ecclesiastical censure depriving a person of the rights of church membership. |
| excommunicative | relating to excommunication. |
| excommunicator | one who excommunicates. |
| excommunicatory | of or relating to excommunication. |
| fabrique | a parish group that deals with church property. |
| fatwa | (Arabic) an Islamic religious decree; (verb) to issue an Islamic religious decree. |
| fatwah | (Arabic) an Islamic religious decree; (verb) to issue such a decree. |
| fetwa | (Arabic) an Islamic religious decree. |
| glebe | the land belonging to a parish church or ecclesiastical benefice. |
| glebeless | without a glebe, the land belonging to a parish church or ecclesiastical benefice. |
| gospelise | to evangelize; to square with gospel. |
| gospelize | to evangelize; to square with gospel. |
| gospellise | to evangelize; to square with gospel. |
| gospellize | to evangelize; to square with gospel. |
| hudna | (Arabic) in Islam, a truce or ceasefire for an agreed duration. |
| hudud | (Arabic) a set of laws and punishments specifed in the Koran. |
| ijtihad | (Arabic) the use of reasoning in Islamic law. |
| impropriate | to transfer ecclesiastical revenue to a layman. |
| incardinate | to make cardinal; to receive (priest) from another diocese. |
| incardination | acceptance by a diocese of clergyman from another diocese. |
| indult | a special temporary dispensation granted by the Catholic church. |
| kashrus | (Hebrew) the laws of kosher-ness. |
| kashrut | (Hebrew) the laws of kosher-ness. |
| kashruth | (Hebrew) the laws of kosher-ness. |
| ketubah | (Hebrew) a contract that states the obligation in Jewish marriages. |
| laic | pertaining to lay people rather than clergy (noun) a lay person |
| laical | of or pertaining to a layman or the laity. |
| laically | (Adv.) LAICAL, of or pertaining to a layman or the laity. |
| laicisation | the process of returning a clergyman to lay status. |
| laicise | to make lay. |
| laicity | the state of being lay. |
| laicization | the process of returning a clergyman to lay status. |
| laicize | to make lay. |
| mitsvah | (Hebrew) a precept; a duty, an obligation, a good deed. |
| mitzvah | (Hebrew) a precept; a duty, an obligation; a good deed. |
| murshid | in Sufism: a spiritual guide who initiates into a mystical order a postulant wishing to follow the Sufi path to God. |
| nonkosher | not kosher; (noun) food that is not kosher. |
| notitia | (Lat.) a roll, list or register. |
| oecumenic | general; universal; in ecclesiastical usage, that which concerns the whole church. |
| oecumenical | general; universal; in ecclesiastical usage, that which concerns the whole church. |
| oecumenically | (Adv.) OECUMENICAL, general; universal. |
| parish | a subdivision of a diocese, usually having its own church and a priest or pastor with spiritual responsibility for the people living in the area. |
| plenarty | the fact of a church living's being occupied; the state of having an incumbent. |
| prebend | a stipend furnished by a cathedral to a chapter canon. |
| prebendal | relating to prebends, stipends issued by a church. |
| presbyterianism | the form of church government by presbyters. |
| primitiae | (Lat.) the first year's revenue of a benefice. |
| primitial | of or relating to primitiae, the first year's revenue of a benefice. |
| primitias | (Spenser) the first year's revenue of a benefice. |
| prothonotariat | the college constituted by the twelve apostolical prothonotaries (bishops and senior members of the curia) in Rome. |
| protonotariat | the college constituted by the twelve apostolical prothonotaries (bishops and senior members of the curia) in Rome. |
| recusance | the state of being recusant, one who refuses to attend Catholic church services. |
| recusancy | the state of being recusant, one who refuses to attend Catholic church services. |
| regalism | the doctrine of the monarch's supremacy in church affairs. |
| rescript | the answer of pope or emperor to any legal question; an edict or decree; (verb) to issue an edict or decree. |
| riba | (Arabic) interest or usury, as forbidden by the Koran. |
| rota | (Lat.) a roster; a tribunal in the Roman Catholic church. |
| sangh | (Hindi) an association promoting unity between different groups in Hinduism. |
| semibull | a bull issued by a pope in the period between his election and coronation. |
| shoora | (Arabic) the Islamic principle of (rule by) consultation; an Islamic consultative council. |
| shura | (Arabic) the Islamic principle of (rule by) consultation; an Islamic consultative council. |
| spiritualty | being spiritual. |
| succursal | subsidiary; (noun) a branch or subsidiary establishment, esp religious. |
| succursale | subsidiary; (noun) a branch or subsidiary establishment, esp religious. |
| synod | an ecclesiastical assembly or council. |
| synodal | of or like a synod; (noun) a payment made by a clergyman on the occasion of a synod. |
| synodic | enacted or made by or at a synod. |
| synodical | enacted or made by or at a synod. |
| synodically | (Adv.) SYNODICAL, enacted or made by or at a synod. |
| talak | (Arabic) in Islamic law, divorce, esp by the husband's verbal repudiation of his wife in the presence of witnesses. |
| talaq | (Arabic) in Islamic law, divorce, esp by the husband's verbal repudiation of his wife in the presence of witnesses. |
| tithe | a tenth part; a tax payable to the church; (verb) to impose this as a tax. |
| tythe | a tenth part; a tax payable to the church; (verb) to impose a tax of a tithe. |
| ultramontanism | supporting the supremacy of the Pope. |
| unbishop | to deprive of the status of bishop. |
| uncanonize | to deprive of canonical authority. |
| undeify | to deprive of the nature of a god. |
| unfrock | to deprive of priestly frock or ecclesiastical rank. |
| unpope | to divest of popedom. |
| unpriest | to deprive of priesthood; to unfrock. |
| unsaint | to deprive of saintship; to deny sanctity to. |
| wakf | (Arabic) the donation of land, property or money for charitable or pious purposes. |
| waqf | (Arabic) the donation of land, property or money for charitable or pious purposes. |