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sacramental

(Encyclopedia)sacramental, in the Roman Catholic Church, aid to devotion that is not a sacrament. Sacramentals are commonly divided into six classes: prayer, anointing, eating, confession, giving, and blessings. Ac...

anointing of the sick

(Encyclopedia)anointing of the sick, sacrament of the Orthodox Eastern Church and the Roman Catholic Church, formerly known as extreme unction. In it a sick or dying person is anointed on eyes, ears, nostrils, lips...

Northlake

(Encyclopedia)Northlake, city (1990 pop. 12,505), Cook and Du Page counties, NE Ill., a suburb of Chicago; inc. 1949. Its has various manufactures. St. John Vianney Roman Catholic Church, which is shaped like a fis...

Dies irae

(Encyclopedia)Dies irae dēˈās ēˈrā [key] [Lat.,=day of wrath], hymn of the Roman Catholic Church. A part of the Requiem Mass, it is a powerful description of the Judgment and a prayer to Jesus for mercy. Sugg...

Wyszynski, Stefan

(Encyclopedia)Wyszynski, Stefan stĕˈfän vĭzĭnˈskē [key], 1901–81, Polish prelate, cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. Ordained in 1924, he received (1929) a doctorate in sociology and canon law from the...

Gregory of Narek, Saint

(Encyclopedia)Gregory of Narek, Saint, c.950–1003, Armenian monk, mystic poet, and theologian, Doctor of the Church. He entered monastic life at an early age, becoming a priest at age 25. Gregory wrote letters, o...

Mary, the mother of Jesus

(Encyclopedia)Mary, in the Bible, mother of Jesus. Christian tradition reckons her the principal saint, naming her variously the Blessed Virgin Mary, Our Lady, and Mother of God (Gr., theotokos). Her name is the He...

Peter's pence

(Encyclopedia)Peter's pence, in the Roman Catholic Church, the annual voluntary laymen's contribution to the support of the pope. Formerly Peter's pence was a yearly tax of a penny levied by the Holy See on every h...