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celibacy

(Encyclopedia)celibacy sĕlˈĭbəsē [key], voluntary refusal to enter the married state, with abstinence from sexual activity. It is one of the typically Christian forms of asceticism. In ancient Rome the vestal ...

Shenouda III

(Encyclopedia)Shenouda III, 1923–2012, pope of the Coptic Orthodox Church (see Copts), 1971–2012; successor of Cyril VI. Born Nazeer Gayed, he attended Cairo Univ. (B.A. 1947) and the Coptic Orthodox Theologica...

Sliven

(Encyclopedia)Sliven slēˈvĕn [key], city (1993 pop. 106,958), E central Bulgaria, at the foot of the Balkan Mts. A textile center, it also produces carpets, wood and metal products, foodstuffs, and wine. Sliven ...

cardinal, in the Roman Catholic Church

(Encyclopedia)cardinal [Lat.,=attached to and thus “belonging to” the hinge], in the Roman Catholic Church, a member of the highest body of the church. The sacred college of cardinals of the Holy Roman Church i...

icon

(Encyclopedia)icon [Gr. eikon=image], single image created as a focal point of religious veneration, especially a painted or carved portable object of the Orthodox Eastern faith. Icons commonly represent Christ Pan...

Eastern European Mutual Assistance Treaty

(Encyclopedia)Eastern European Mutual Assistance Treaty: see Warsaw Treaty Organization. ...

Organization of Eastern Caribbean States

(Encyclopedia)Organization of Eastern Caribbean States: see under West Indies Federation. ...

Volodymyr-Volynskyy

(Encyclopedia)Volodymyr-Volynskyy vŭlˌədyēˈmyĭr-vəlyĭnˈskyē [key], Pol. Włodzimierz, Rus. Vladimir-Volynski, city (1989 pop. 38,000), NW Ukraine. It was founded in the 9th cent. and supposedly refounded ...

Slavophiles and Westernizers

(Encyclopedia)Slavophiles and Westernizers, designation for two groups of intellectuals in mid-19th-century Russia that represented opposing schools of thought concerning the nature of Russian civilization. The dif...

Nikon

(Encyclopedia)Nikon nēˈkōn [key], 1605–81, Russian churchman, patriarch of the Russian Orthodox Church (1652–66). He undertook an extremely vigorous reform of church discipline and ritual with a view to purg...