An Episcopal Dictionary of the Church

Glossary of Terms


Founding of a Church, The

The BOS provides a form for the Founding of a Church. It includes prayers for the ground breaking, collects, a reading from scripture (Gn 28:10-17, Jacob's dream at Bethel), antiphons and psalms, the Lord's Prayer, and prayers for the laying of a cornerstone. Before the service, stakes are set in the ground at the corners […]

Fourth Day

” The day after a three-day Cursillo weekend is completed. The “fourth day” is a symbol for the rest of one's life. The “fourth-day community” is the larger body of all who have completed a Cursillo weekend. Cursillo participants join the “fourth-day community” on completion of the weekend. See Cursillista.

Fraction

The breaking of one bread into many pieces for communion. Christ broke the bread at the Last Supper, and “the breaking of the bread” became a name for the entire liturgy (Acts 2:42). Throughout the history of the church the manner and location of the fraction have varied. The 1662 Prayer Book directed that the […]

Fraction Anthem

The anthem at the fraction, sometimes called the confractorium, a term borrowed from the Ambrosian rite. The BCP prints two anthems but permits others. Rite 1 prints both Pascha nostrum (Christ our Passover) (adapted from a similar anthem in the 1549 Prayer Book) and Agnus Dei (O Lamb of God). It allows either or both […]

Francis of Assisi

(1181 or 1182-Oct. 3, 1226). Thirteenth-century saint and founder of the Franciscan order. He was born in Assisi in central Italy and named Giovanni Bernardone. His father changed his name to Francesco, “the Frenchman,” after a visit to France. Francis's gradual conversion began in the spring of 1205. He gave generously to the poor and […]

Franciscan Spirituality

St. Francis of Assisi (1181 or 1182-1226) initiated a form of life centered on the practice of evangelical poverty as a means and sign of a spiritual poverty that can be filled only by divine grace. Franciscan spirituality is also characterized by an attitude of reverence for God in all things and a deep appreciation […]

Free Church

A church that is not an established church or a state church, and in that sense it is “free” from governmental control. The term emphasizes the contrast or distinction relative to the established church. In England, those who did not conform to the doctrine, discipline, and polity of the established Church of England were known […]

Free Pew

The renting of pews was the primary way that churches of many denominations collected funds. Pew renting persisted into the nineteenth century. The use of free pews began first in city missions for work among the poor in the larger cities. These missions were supported by dioceses and missionary societies. It appears that the first […]

Freeman, George Washington

(June 13, 1789-Apr. 29, 1858). Missionary Bishop. He was born in Sandwich, Massachusetts. After Freeman moved to North Carolina around 1822, he studied for the ordained ministry. He was ordained deacon on Oct. 8, 1826, and priest on May 20, 1827. For two years, 1827-1829, he was a missionary in North Carolina. In 1829 he […]

Frensdorff, Wesley

(July 22, 1926-May 17, 1988). Bishop and advocate of “total ministry.” He was born in Hanover, Germany. He received his B.A. from Columbia University in 1948 and his S.T.B. from the General Theological Seminary in 1951. He was ordained deacon on Mar. 31, 1951, and priest on Nov. 3, 1951. He had an extensive ministry […]

Friar

The term is from the French, frère, and the Latin, frater, both meaning “brother.” Friars were members of mendicant (begging) orders that were founded in and after the thirteenth century. The mendicant friars wandered freely. They were not bound to a particular monastery or abbey by a vow of stability. This mobility freed them for […]

Front Row/Back Row

A newsletter published by the Committee on Pastoral Development of the House of Bishops. It was originally called The Front Row. It began publication in Nov. 1979. It was started by the Rt. Rev. John Raymond Wyatt, the retired Bishop of Spokane. Wyatt wanted the newsletter to maintain contact among retired bishops after they stopped […]

Frontal

Covering for the front of an altar, often made of silk or brocade cloth and matching the liturgical color of the season of the church year. Altar hangings were once on all sides of the altar. As altars were placed against back walls of churches in the later middle ages, only the front of the […]

Frontlet

See Frontal.

Full Communion

The mutual recognition of the members and ministry of two or more churches and the common recognition of the validity of the sacraments of the churches. Churches so related remain canonically distinct and need not assent to all the doctrines, customs, and practices of each other. Such communion is found among the churches of the […]

Fulton, John

(Apr. 2, 1834-Apr. 24, 1907). Editor and church historian. He was born in Glasgow, Scotland. Fulton studied at Aberdeen, Scotland, and came to the United States in 1853. He was ordained deacon on May 27, 1857, and priest on May 23, 1858. He was successively rector of Christ Church, Mobile, Alabama; St. Paul's Church, Indianapolis; […]

Fundamentalism

Laws put forward these fundamentals as moderately conservative proposals, in a spirit which today might be called "evangelical" or "neo-evangelical." In the course of time, however, the word has come to describe the most extreme, closed-minded, militant opposition to a changing liberal theology. By extension, the term has also been applied to militant or extreme […]

Funeral

Ceremony or service for the burial of the dead. The term may be used as an adjective to indicate something that concerns the burial of the dead, such as a funeral procession. See Burial of the Dead.

Gablet

A small gable or gable-shaped canopy over a tabernacle.

Gabriel the Archangel

Archangel accorded the highest rank after Michael the Archangel in Jewish theology. The Book of Daniel (chs. 8 and 9) records that Gabriel helped Daniel to understand his visions. Gabriel tells Zechariah of the coming birth of his son John the Baptist and announces the conception of Jesus to Mary (Lk 1). In the 1549 […]

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Glossary definitions provided courtesy of Church Publishing Incorporated, New York, NY,(All Rights reserved) from “An Episcopal Dictionary of the Church, A User Friendly Reference for Episcopalians,” Don S. Armentrout and Robert Boak Slocum, editors.