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Wisdom of Solomon

(Encyclopedia)Wisdom of Solomon or Wisdom, early Jewish book included in the Septuagint and the Vulgate but not in the Hebrew Bible. The book opens with an exhortation to seek wisdom, followed by a statement on wor...

Ben-Gurion, David

(Encyclopedia)Ben-Gurion, David bĕn-go͞oˈrēŏn [key], 1886–1973, Israeli statesman, b. Plońsk, Poland, as David Grün. He settled in Palestine in 1906, but lived for periods of time in Istanbul, London, and ...

blasphemy

(Encyclopedia)blasphemy, in religion, words or actions that display irreverence toward or contempt for God or that which is held sacred. Blasphemy is regarded as an offense against the community to varying degrees,...

Sixtus IV

(Encyclopedia)Sixtus IV sĭkˈstəs [key], 1414–84, pope (1471–84), an Italian named Francesco della Rovere (b. near Savona); successor of Paul II. He was made general of his order, the Franciscans, in 1464 and...

Philo

(Encyclopedia)Philo jo͞odēˈəs [key] [Lat.,=Philo the Jew], c.20 b.c.–c.a.d. 50, Alexandrian Jewish philosopher. His writings have had an enormous influence on both Jewish and Christian thought, and particular...

purgatory

(Encyclopedia)purgatory pûrgˈətôrˌē [key] [Lat.,=place of purging], in the teaching of the Roman Catholic Church, the state after death in which the soul destined for heaven is purified. Since only the perfec...

Essenes

(Encyclopedia)Essenes ĕsˈēnz [key], members of a small Jewish religious order, originating in the 2d cent. b.c. The chief sources of information about the Essenes are Pliny the Elder, Philo's Quod omnius probus ...

Abravanel, Judah

(Encyclopedia)Abravanel or Abarbanel, Judah, c.1460–c.1523, Jewish philosopher, physician, and poet, son of Isaac Abravanel, b. Lisbon; he is also known as Leone Ebreo. He fled (1483) from Portugal to Spain with ...

Galilee

(Encyclopedia)Galilee gălˈĭlē [key], region, N Israel, roughly the portion north of the plain of Esdraelon. Galilee was the chief scene of the ministry of Jesus. The Sea of Galilee (see Galilee, Sea of), the co...

Jaffa

(Encyclopedia)Jaffa jăfˈə, yäˈfä [key], Heb. Yafo, part of Tel Aviv, W central Israel, on the Mediterranean Sea. Originally a Phoenician city, Jaffa has been historically important largely because of its port...