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Pew Charitable Trusts

(Encyclopedia)Pew Charitable Trusts, philanthropic foundation established (1948) by the children of Sun Oil Company founder Joseph N. Pew (1886–1963) of Philadelphia to provide funds for “general religious, cha...

badminton

(Encyclopedia)badminton bădˈmĭntən [key], game played by volleying a shuttlecock (called a “bird”)—a small, cork hemisphere to which feathers are attached—over a net. Light, gut-strung rackets are used....

Unitarianism

(Encyclopedia)Unitarianism, in general, the form of Christianity that denies the doctrine of the Trinity, believing that God exists only in one person. While there were previous antitrinitarian movements in the ear...

levitation

(Encyclopedia)levitation lĕvĭtāˈshən [key], the raising of a human or other body in the air without mechanical aid. The idea is ancient; holy men, both pagan and Christian, were reputed to have had the power o...

Ebionites

(Encyclopedia)Ebionites ēˈbēənītsˌ, ĕbˈē– [key] [Aramaic,=poor], Jewish-Christian sect of rural ancient Palestine, of the first centuries after Jesus. There were two groups, according to Origen. The Juda...

Lepanto, battle of

(Encyclopedia)Lepanto, battle of lĭpănˈtō [key], Oct. 7, 1571, naval battle between the Christians and Ottomans fought in the strait between the gulfs of Pátrai and Corinth, off Lepanto (Návpaktos), Greece. T...

Abed-nego

(Encyclopedia)Abed-nego əbĕdˈnēgō [key], in the Book of Daniel, one of the Three Young Men, educated with Daniel in the court of Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon. With his three companions, Abed-nego was thrown into ...

Borel, Petrus

(Encyclopedia)Borel, Petrus, pseud. of Joseph-Pierre Borel D'Hauterive, 1809–59, French novelist, poet, and translator. Although trained as an architect, he soon turned to writing. Borel was the most extreme of t...

Delmedigo, Elijah ben Moses Abba

(Encyclopedia)Delmedigo, Elijah ben Moses Abba dālmĕˈdēgō [key], c.1460–1497, Jewish philosopher and Talmudist, b. Crete, known also as Elijah Cretensis. He emigrated to Italy as a young man. He studied the ...

Ronaldo, Cristiano

(Encyclopedia)Ronaldo, Cristiano (Cristiano Ronaldo dos Santos Aveiro), 1985–, Portuguese soccer player. A forward, he began professional play in 2001 with Sporting Portugal. With Manchester United from 2003, he ...