Religion Past and Present
Get access
Subject: Religious Studies
Edited by: Hans Dieter Betz, Don S. Browning†, Bernd Janowski and Eberhard Jüngel
Religion Past and Present (RPP) Online is the online version of the updated English translation of the 4th edition of the definitive encyclopedia of religion worldwide: the peerless Religion in Geschichte und Gegenwart (RGG). This great resource, now at last available in English and Online, Religion Past and Present Online continues the tradition of deep knowledge and authority relied upon by generations of scholars in religious, theological, and biblical studies. Including the latest developments in research, Religion Past and Present Online encompasses a vast range of subjects connected with religion.
Subscriptions: see brill.com
Help us improve our service |
Religion Past and Present (RPP) Online is the online version of the updated English translation of the 4th edition of the definitive encyclopedia of religion worldwide: the peerless Religion in Geschichte und Gegenwart (RGG). This great resource, now at last available in English and Online, Religion Past and Present Online continues the tradition of deep knowledge and authority relied upon by generations of scholars in religious, theological, and biblical studies. Including the latest developments in research, Religion Past and Present Online encompasses a vast range of subjects connected with religion.
Subscriptions: see brill.com
Verschoor, Jakob
(259 words)
[German Version] (1648, Vlissingen – 1700, Middelburg), Dutch Reformed separatist. Already during his study of theology at Leiden, F. Spanheim the Younger was suspicious of his student’s views. In 1673, without passing his examinations, he began to organize “exercises” (conventicles) in Vlissingen, which he later continued in other towns. Since his views aroused distrust and he was even suspected of being an adherent of B. Spinoza, his attempts to find a church appointment were unsuccessful. Versc…
Source:
Religion Past and Present
Verse/Versicle
(167 words)
[German Version]
I. In Gregorian chant, the verse in the context of responsory, gradual, and alleluia is the melodically self-contained portion that follows the acclamation or
responsum; it is usually performed by a soloist. In the tract (orig. a portion of pure solo psalmody), fully composed verses are sung antiphonally. In the introit and communio, where the verse can also be assigned to a small group (schola), psalm verses sung to various tones (Psalmody) provide structure for the repeated antiphons. In the High Middl…
Source:
Religion Past and Present
Vespers
(1,708 words)
[German Version]
I. History The evening service of the Western churches in the the Liturgy of the Hours has been shaped by various traditions. Congregations gather for a liturgy of the Word in which certain Psalms are sung, Bible lessons are read, sermons are preached, and prayers are offered. Monastic communities include this service in their systematic recitation of the entire Psalter in course (
Psalterium currens). A tradition associated with house churches and cathedral churches adopted the practice of hailing the newly-lit lights of evening – among Chris…
Source:
Religion Past and Present
Vesta
(308 words)
[German Version] Vesta, Roman goddess. Her name was felt to be Greek, and her sphere – hearth and altars, protection of “the innermost things” – led her to be identified with the Greek goddess ῞Εστία/
Hestía (Cic.
Nat. d. 2.67). The etymology of her name is still debated. Her sanctuary,
aedes Vestae, a rotunda in the Roman Forum, was part of an ancient complex beside the
via sacra, which included the house in which the Vestal virgins lived (Rome: II, 2.b). Although she was a virgin, she bore the honorific title
Mater. Her cult was associated with the preservation of the Roman state. H…
Source:
Religion Past and Present
Vestal Virgins
(312 words)
[German Version] The group of six Vestal virgins was responsible for the cult of Vesta: they watched over the “eternal” fire in her sanctuary, the public hearth, in the Roman Forum (Cic.
De legibus 2.8.20 and 2.12.29) and prepared the
mola salsa, a salted flour mixture sprinkled on sacrificial victims. They were present at major ceremonies (as depicted, e.g., on the interior of ¶ the Ara Pacis Augustae) and led the private nocturnal cult of the Bona Dea (Cic.
De haruspicum responso 37; Plut.
Cicero 19.3; Plut.
Caesar 9f.). The group was directly under the authority of the
pontifex maximus, wh…
Source:
Religion Past and Present
Vestments, Liturgical
(306 words)
[German Version] Basically, liturgical vestments derive from the festal and official garb of antiquity; as secular fashions changed, they became the distinctive liturgical attire of the clergy and identified their various ranks (Clothing and vestments: II). All clergy wear an alb (sticharion), a full-length garment with sleeves. The stole (stola) serves as a mark of ordination; it is a strip of cloth worn over the left shoulder by deacons (orarion), over both shoulders by priests and bishops (epit…
Source:
Religion Past and Present
Vestments/Paraments
(380 words)
[German Version] The term
paraments (from Lat.
parare, “prepare”) denotes all the textiles used in the church and its worship, including the vestments of the liturgical ministers and the cloth furnishings of the altar, the liturgical vessels (Liturgical implements), the church furniture, and the church interior. They underline the sacral dimension of the liturgy and lend it solemnity. The development of paraments began in the 4th century and had spread throughout the West by the 9th century. It was the liturgical vestments and insignia above all that c…
Source:
Religion Past and Present
Veto
(145 words)
[German Version] (Lat. “I forbid”) generally means the right to prohibit implementation of a decision through objection. The term goes back to the historical model of the right of the Roman tribunes of the people to veto official actions of the Patrician magistrates and senatorial decrees. There are two kinds of veto, with different effects: the absolute veto and the suspensory veto, which can be overridden by a new resolution, if necessary with a supermajority. In comparison with the requirement …
Source:
Religion Past and Present
Vézelay Abbey
(283 words)
[German Version] Vézelay Abbey, masterpiece of Burgundian Romanesque art and architecture. Originally founded as a convent for women, this now former Cluniac abbey (Cluny) was, from 1050, a significant stop on pilgrimage routes and the departure point for pilgrimages to Santiago de Compostela. The convent founder, Count Gérard de Roussillon, brought the relics of St. Mary Magdalene from Provence to Vézelay. Vézelay’s significance was evidenced when St. Bernard of Clairvaux preached the Second Crus…
Source:
Religion Past and Present