(Encyclopedia) patriarchpatriarchpāˈtrēärk [key], in biblical tradition, one of the antediluvian progenitors of the race as given in Genesis (e.g., Seth) or one of the ancestors of the Jews (e.g.,…
(Encyclopedia) Bel and the Dragon, customary name for chapter 14 of the Book of Daniel, a passage included in the Septuagint and the Apocrypha. It was written possibly in the 1st cent. b.c. as a…
(Encyclopedia) U, 21st letter of the alphabet, corresponding to the Greek upsilon [Gr.,=u without the aspirate]. Until the late Middle Ages the capital was V, the minuscule u, no distinction being…
(Encyclopedia) Benedict the Black, Saint, d. 1589, Sicilian friar. Born a slave, he became a hermit and later a Franciscan lay brother. Although illiterate, his humility and extraordinary powers as…
(Encyclopedia) Washington-on-the-Brazos, former town, S central Tex., on the Brazos River; settled 1821. It was the scene of the Texas declaration of independence from Mexico on Mar. 2, 1836, and in…
(Encyclopedia) Yeomen of the Guard, bodyguard, now ceremonial in function, of the sovereign of England. When the guard was originated by Henry VII in 1485, its members had numerous duties as…
(Encyclopedia) Berea or BeroeaBeroeaboth: bērēˈə [key]. 1 Town near Jerusalem, mentioned in First Maccabees. It is probably identical with Beeroth (1.) 2 See Véroia, Greece. 3 See Aleppo, Syria.
