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Decius

(Encyclopedia)Decius (Caius Messius Quintus Decius) dēˈshəs [key], 201–51, Roman emperor (249–51), b. Pannonia. He was sent by Philip (Philip the Arabian) to quell a mutiny, but when the soldiers hailed him ...

Septuagint

(Encyclopedia)Septuagint sĕpˈtyo͞oəjĭnt [key] [Lat.,=70], oldest extant Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible made by Hellenistic Jews, possibly from Alexandria, c.250 b.c. Legend, according to the fictional l...

Silva, Antonio José da

(Encyclopedia)Silva, Antonio José da əntôˈnyo͝o zho͝ozĕˈ dä sēlˈvə [key], 1705–39, Portuguese playwright, b. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. He belonged to a family of “New Christians” (Jews forced to con...

wake

(Encyclopedia)wake, watch kept over a dead body, usually during the night preceding burial. Ancient peoples in various parts of the world observed the custom. As an ancient ritual, it was rooted in a concern that n...

Corinthians

(Encyclopedia)Corinthians kərĭnˈthēənz [key], two letters of the New Testament. They were written to the church at Corinth by Paul whose stay in Corinth is recorded in the Acts of the Apostles. First Corinthia...

Revelation

(Encyclopedia)Revelation or Apocalypse əpŏkˈəlĭps [key], the last book of the New Testament. It was written c.a.d. 95 on Patmos Island off the coast of Asia Minor by an exile named John, in the wake of local p...

Martin, Saint, c.316–397, bishop of Tours

(Encyclopedia)Martin, Saint, c.316–397, bishop of Tours. Born a heathen in Pannonia (in modern Hungary), the son of a soldier, he became a convert and refused to fight Christians. He went (c.360) to St. Hilary of...

Hatay

(Encyclopedia)Hatay hätīˈ [key], formerly sanjak of Alexandretta, province, 2,141 sq mi (5,545 sq km), S...

Hebrews, book of the New Testament

(Encyclopedia)Hebrews, an anonymous New Testament homily with closing greetings normally associated with the letter genre, written before c.a.d. 96. It is addressed to Jewish Christians who were being pressured to ...

incarnation

(Encyclopedia)incarnation, the assumption of human form by a god, an idea common in religion. In early times the idea was expressed in the belief that certain living men, often kings or priests, were divine incarna...