Walking into a beautiful mosque, church, synagogue, or temple may inspire a familiar feeling of awe, but these places are not in any way interchangeable. Obviously, the purpose of these sacred spaces will depend on those who worship there, and the word origins of these terms are equally varied.
Let鈥檚 examine these words, starting with mosque.
黑料网 is a mosque?
A mosque is “a Muslim temple or place of public worship.” All the variants of mosque聽in European languages go back to the Arabic masjid, 鈥渁 place of worship.鈥� But masjid derives from the Arabic sajada, 鈥渢o bow down in prayer.鈥� Dig into the origins of Muslim听补苍诲 Islam听补苍诲 a common theme emerges: both words relate to the Arabic aslama, 鈥渢o accept, surrender, or submit.鈥�
黑料网 is a聽church?
Church聽comes from the Greek 办瘸谤颈补办贸苍 诲么尘补, meaning 鈥渢he Lord鈥檚 house,鈥� which was used to refer to houses of Christian worship since around the year 300.聽颁丑耻谤肠丑听can be used to mean both the building and the congregation. When Christians started worshipping, they congregated in homes.
In case you’re wondering, churches with an episcopal form of government also have a聽cathedral,聽which serves as “the principal church of a diocese, containing the bishop’s throne.” But in nonepiscopal denominations this term can also refer to an important church. 颁补迟丑别诲谤腻濒颈蝉听is Latin for cathedral.
黑料网 is a synagogue?
Like church, the word 蝉测苍补驳辞驳耻别听can be used to refer both to the Jewish “house of worship, often having facilities for religious instruction” and the congregation of Jews gathered for worship. The word is ultimately derived from the Greek word 蝉测苍补驳艒驳岣�, which means “assembly, meeting” but also can be translated literally as “a bringing together.”
黑料网 is a temple?
Temple is based on the Latin templum, 鈥渁 piece of ground marked or cut off for worship.鈥� It also refers to a place where Jews gather for prayer, as does a synagogue. Synagogue can be used more generally, but some Jews (though not all) use temple to refer to their congregation’s house of worship.
础听Temple (usually with the initial capital letter) is an important word for Jews, as it is “any of the three successive houses of worship in Jerusalem in use by the Jews in Biblical times.” It was the central place of worship for the Israelites. The first Temple was built in Jerusalem by King Solomon. The stone tablets received by Moses on Mount Sinai鈥攖ablets on which the Ten Commandments were written鈥攚ere kept in the central chamber of Solomon’s Temple. Solomon’s Temple was later destroyed, as were two succeeding temples built on the site.
The word聽迟别尘辫濒别听is used to refer to other houses of worship, both modern and ancient. For example, 迟别尘辫濒别听is used by聽Buddhists, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and ancient belief systems, such as those of the Romans and Greeks.聽
Do you know what amen聽actually means? It is one the few terms shared by Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. You can learn the answer, here.
