Ablution
- Ablution
Or washing, was practised
1.) When a person was initiated into a higher state: e.g., when Aaron and his sons were set apart to the priest's office, they were washed with water previous to their investiture with the priestly robes (Lev. 8:6).
2.) Before the priests approached the altar of God, they were required, on pain of death, to wash their hands and their feet to cleanse them from the soil of common life (Ex. 30:17-21). To this practice the Psalmist alludes, Ps. 26:6.
3) There were washings prescribed for the purpose of cleansing from positive defilement contracted by particular acts. Of such washings eleven different species are prescribed in the Levitical law (Lev. 12-15).
4) A fourth class of ablutions is mentioned, by which a person purified or absolved himself from the guilt of some particular act. For example, the elders of the nearest village where some murder was committed were required, when the murderer was unknown, to wash their hands over the expiatory heifer which was beheaded, and in doing so to say, "Our hands have not shed this blood, neither have our eyes seen it" (Deut. 21:1-9). So also Pilate declared himself innocent of the blood of Jesus by washing his hands (Matt. 27:24). This act of Pilate may not, however, have been borrowed from the custom of the Jews. The same practice was common among the Greeks and Romans.
The Pharisees carried the practice of ablution to great excess, thereby claiming extraordinary purity (Matt. 23:25). Mark (7:1-5) refers to the ceremonial ablutions. The Pharisees washed their hands "oft," more correctly, "with the fist" (R.V., "diligently"), or as an old father, Theophylact, explains it, "up to the elbow." (Compare also Mark 7:4; Lev. 6:28; 11: 32-36; 15:22) (See
Washing.)
Easton's Bible Dictionary.
M.G. Easton.
1897.
Synonyms:
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ablution — [ ablysjɔ̃ ] n. f. • XIIIe; lat. ecclés. ablutio 1 ♦ Liturg. rom. Action de verser sur les doigts du prêtre du vin et de l eau après la communion. Par ext. (au plur.) L eau et le vin ainsi versés. Les ablutions de la messe. 2 ♦ Relig. Lavage du… … Encyclopédie Universelle
ABLUTION — (Heb. טְבִילָה; immersion ), act of washing performed to correct a condition of ritual impurity and restore the impure to a state of ritual purity. The ritually impure (or unclean) person is prohibited from performing certain functions and… … Encyclopedia of Judaism
ablution — ABLUTION. s. f. Action par laquelle on lave, on nettoye quelque chose, il ne se dit que pour signifier ce que l on verse d eau & de vin dans le Calice, & sur les doigts du Prestre aprés qu il a communié. Avant l ablution. aprés l ablution. le… … Dictionnaire de l'Académie française
Ablution — Ab*lu tion, n. [L. ablutio, fr. abluere: cf. F. ablution. See {Abluent}.] 1. The act of washing or cleansing; specifically, the washing of the body, or some part of it, as a religious rite. [1913 Webster] 2. The water used in cleansing. Cast the… … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
Ablution — is a term referring to washing, and can mean: * Ordinary washing: ** Hand washing ** Washing of the body ** by extension, ablutions can refer to a collection of regular activities taken to produce physical cleanliness, including washing but also… … Wikipedia
Ablution — (lat.), in der katholischen Kirche die Abspülung des Kelches mit Wein nach dem Abendmahl. wobei der Priester ebenfalls seine Finger mit Wein und Wasser abwäscht oder purifiziert … Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon
Ablution — Ablution, im allg. Waschung, eine Ceremonie von Juden, Griechen, Römern und Muhamedanern geübt. 2. Die Abwaschung des Daumens und Zeigefingers in der hl. Messe nach der Communion durch den Priester, indem er sich Wasser und Wein von dem… … Herders Conversations-Lexikon
Ablution — [zu lateinisch abluere, ablutum »abspülen«] die, / en, 1) Geologie: das Abtragen von noch nicht verfestigten Meeresablagerungen durch Strömungen. 2) katholische Kirche: die Reinigung der liturgischen Gefäße nach der Feier … Universal-Lexikon
ablution — (n.) ritual washing, late 14c., from L. ablutionem (nom. ablutio), noun of action from pp. stem of abluere to wash off, from ab off (see AB (Cf. ab )) + luere wash, related to lavere (see LAVE (Cf. lave)) … Etymology dictionary
ablution — [n] washing bath, cleansing, decontamination, lavation, purification, shower, showering; concepts 161,165 … New thesaurus
ablution — Ablution, f. acut. Est lavement, Ablutio, Baptismus, Lotio … Thresor de la langue françoyse