Glossary of Terms

Matthews, Sister Eva Mary

Matthews, Sister Eva Mary (Feb. 9, 1862-July 6, 1928). Founder of the Community of the Transfiguration. She was born in Oakencroft, near Glendale, Ohio, and raised a Presbyterian. Matthews studied at Wellesley College in 1880-1881. She decided to follow her clergyman brother Paul into the Episcopal Church during a visit to Oxford University in 1890. […]

Matthias the Apostle, Saint

Nothing is known about the life of Matthias except the one mention of him in the Book of Acts. After the Ascension of Christ and the death of Judas, when some followers of Jesus met in the Upper Room, Peter asked the group to (Acts 1:12-26). Matthias is commemorated in the Episcopal calendar of the […]

Maundy Thursday

The Thursday in Holy Week. It is part of the Triduum, or three holy days before Easter. It comes from the Latin mandatum novum, “new commandment,” from Jn 13:34. The ceremony of washing feet was also referred to as “the Maundy.” Maundy Thursday celebrations also commemorate the institution of the eucharist by Jesus “on the […]

Maurice, Frederick Denison

(Aug. 29, 1805-Apr. 1, 1872). English theologian and proponent of Christian Socialism. He was born in Normanstone, England, the son of a Unitarian clergyman. In 1823 Maurice entered Trinity College, Cambridge University, to study law. However, he was denied his degree because as a Nonconformist he refused to subscribe to the Thirty-Nine Articles of Religion. […]

May, James

(Oct. 1, 1805-Dec. 18, 1863). Seminary professor. He was born in Chester County, Pennsylvania. May received his B.A. in 1823 from Jefferson College. He entered Virginia Theological Seminary in 1826, and left in that same year to finish his theological studies with the Rev. George Boyd in Philadelphia. May was ordained deacon on Dec. 24, […]

McCarty, John

(June 7, 1789-May 10, 1881). First Episcopal priest in the Washington Territory. He was born in Rhinebeck, New York. He practiced law for three years and then decided to enter the ordained ministry of the Episcopal Church. McCarty was ordained deacon on Dec. 23, 1825, and priest on Oct. 26, 1827. He was a chaplain […]

McClenachan, William

(c. 1710-1766). Church of England leader in the American Great Awakening. McClenachan (sometimes spelled Mcclenachan or Macclenaghan) was born in Armagh, Ireland. He was ordained in the Presbyterian Church. He settled in Georgetown, Maine, in 1734, and officiated there until 1744, when he moved to Chelsea, Massachusetts. While in Boston, he was attracted to the […]

McConnell, Samuel David

(Aug. 1, 1845-Jan. 11, 1939). Church historian. He was born in West Moreland County, Pennsylvania. McConnell received his B.A. from Washington and Jefferson College in 1869. He was ordained deacon on June 18, 1871, and priest on June 12, 1872. McConnell was rector of Christ Church, Watertown, Connecticut, 1873-1876; of Holy Trinity Church, Middletown, Connecticut, […]

McGarvey, William Ignatius Loyola

(Aug. 14, 1861-Feb. 27, 1924). Episcopal priest and later a Roman Catholic priest. Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, McGarvey studied at the General Theological Seminary and then Nashotah House. He was ordained deacon on June 20, 1886, and priest on Aug. 22, 1886. He began his ordained ministry as a curate at the Church of the […]

McGuire, George Alexander

(Mar. 26, 1866-Nov. 10, 1924). Founder of the African Orthodox Church, a body for Negro Episcopalians dissatisfied with the Episcopal Church. He was born in Antigua, British West Indies, and graduated from the Moravian Theological Seminary, St. Thomas Island. He came to the United States in 1894, and was ordained deacon on June 29, 1896, […]

McIlvaine, Charles Pettit

(Jan. 18, 1799-Mar. 13, 1873). Bishop and foremost leader of the evangelical party in the Episcopal Church during the mid-nineteenth century. He was born in Burlington, New Jersey. McIlvaine graduated from the College of New Jersey (now Princeton University) in 1816 and studied theology at Princeton Seminary privately between 1816 and 1820. After being ordained […]

Meade, William

(Nov. 11, 1789-Mar. 14, 1862). Presiding Bishop of the Confederate Church during the Civil War. Born in Frederick County, Virginia, Meade entered the junior class of the College of New Jersey (Princeton) in 1806, and graduated in 1808 as valedictorian. He studied for the ordained ministry under the Rev. Walter Addison of Maryland. He was […]

Mealy, Norman Carleton

(June 22, 1923-Mar. 12, 1987). Church musician, editor, and educator. Born in Troy, New York, Mealy received his B.S. in 1946 from the State University of New York at Potsdam. He studied at the Episcopal Theological School, 1957-1958. He was ordained deacon on Nov. 28, 1959, and priest on May 28, 1960. He was director […]

Meditation

The practice, usually in silence, of fixing attention on a specific word, phrase, image, sound, or text. Some meditative practices produce an emptying of thoughts and emotions. Meditation may lead to an experience of union between the one who meditates and the object of meditation. Meditation practices are known in most of the major religious […]

Melisma

A series of notes in plainchant assigned to one syllable of the text.

Memorial Acclamations

An acclamation of the people after the institution narrative in the eucharist. For example, in Prayer B, the memorial acclamation is “We remember his death/ We proclaim his resurrection/ We await his coming in glory” (BCP, p. 368). All four Rite 2 eucharistic prayers include a memorial acclamation. In Eucharistic Prayers A, B, and D, […]

Mendicant, Mendicant Friar

See Friar.

Mensa

A flat stone inlay or other solid material that forms the top of an altar. The term is from the Latin for “table.”

Merbecke or Marbeck, John

(c. 1510-c. 1585). English composer and theologian. He is best known as the composer of The booke of Common praier noted (1550) in which he set Prayer Book services to plainsong-like melodies in strict acknowledgment of Archbishop Cranmer's admonition, “for every syllable a note” (see The Hymnal 1982, S 67, S 90, S 113, S […]

Mercer, George, School of Theology

See George Mercer, Jr., Memorial School of Theology.

An Episcopal Dictionary of the Church

Glossary of Terms