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Definition: Worship |
WorshipNoun1. The activity of worshipping. 2. A feeling of profound love and admiration. Verb1. Love unquestioningly and uncritically. 2. Show religious devotion to, as of a deity; "Many Hindus worship Shiva". 3. Attend religious services; "They worship in the traditional manner". Source: WordNet 1.7.1 Copyright © 2001 by Princeton University. All rights reserved. |
Date "worship" was first used in popular English literature: sometime before 1050. (references) |
| Domain | Definition |
Satire | WORSHIP, n. Homo Creator's testimony to the sound construction and fine finish of Deus Creatus. A popular form of abjection, having an element of pride. Source: Devil's Dictionary. |
Bible | Worship homage rendered to God which it is sinful (idolatry) to render to any created being (Ex. 34:14; Isa. 2:8). Such worship was refused by Peter (Acts 10:25,26) and by an angel (Rev. 22:8,9). Source: Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary. |
Literature | Worship means state or condition of worth, hence the term "his worship," meaning his worthyship. "Thou shalt have worship in the presence of them that sit at meat with thee" (Luke xiv. 10) means "Thou shalt have worth-ship [value or appreciation]." In the marriage service the man says to the woman, "With my body I thee worship, and with all my worldly goods I thee endow"- that is, I confer on you my rank and dignities, and endow you with my wealth; the worthship attached to my person I share with you, and the wealth which is mine is thine also. Never worship the gods unshod. So taught Pythagoras, and he meant in a careless and slovenly manner. (See Iamblichus: Protreptics, symbol 3.) The Jews took off their shoes when they entered holy ground (Exodus iii. 5). This custom was observed by the ancient Egyptians. Mahometans and Brahmins enter holy places bare-footed; indeed, in British India, inferiors take off their shoes when they enter the room of a British officer, or the wife of an officer. The idea is that shoes get covered with dust, and holy ground must not be defiled by dirt. (Justin Martyr: Apology, i. 62.) The command given to the disciples by Christ was to shake off the dust of their feet when they left a city which would not receive them. Source: Brewer's Dictionary. |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)
Prayer is an attempt to communicate with a deity or deities; prayer in western civilization is usually directed to God.
The existence of prayer is attested in written sources as early as 5000 years ago, and anthropologists believe that the earliest intelligent humans practised something that we would recognize today as prayer.
There are many types of prayer. Four of the most basic types of prayer are thanksgiving, confession of one's sins, praise of the divine, and petitioning for help or fulfilment of need.
Biblical views of prayer
The Bible contains many examples of prayer and various instructions and teachings about prayer. The book of Psalms is composed of prayers, song verses and poems by various authors, and some of its prayers in particular have been used by Jews and Christians for years, in corporate prayer and individual prayer, and used both verbatim and as inspiration for new prayers and songs.
In the Tanach (Hebrew Bible, Old Testament) various forms of prayer appear; the most common form is petition. This in many ways is the simplest form of prayer. Some have termed this the "social approach" to prayer. In this view, a person directly confronts God in prayer, and asks for their needs to be fulfilled; God really does listen to prayer, and may or may not choose to answer. This is the primary approach to prayer found in the Tanach (or Old Testament), the New Testament, most of the Church writings, and the Talmud.
This "petition approach" to prayer is supported for example by Matthew 21:22, where Jesus is reported as saying "If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer." Also "the way to my father is through me"
Most modern day prayerbooks by monotheistic religions contain many prayers that were originally written as petitions. However, many modern believers may recite the same prayers with a different understanding of prayer (see below) in mind.
Prayer in Eastern Religions
The religion of Buddhism, well known for being non-theistic, utterly discards worship and places devotional emphasis on the practice of meditation alongside scriptural study. Although God and deities are recognized as present, Gautama Buddha claims it is mankind who by their own free will, possess the greatest capacity and potential to liberate themselves and are urged to do so without exterior assistance. Therefore, prayer is not as central to devotion as in its neighbouring asiatic faiths.
In religions such as Hinduism and Jainism, prayer has a greater significance and role for salvation. Hindus in India have numerous devotional movements. Stemming from the highest Creator God called Brahma, prayer is focused on His many manifestations, including the most popular deities Shiva, Vishnu, Rama and Krishna. Although Jains believe that no spirit or divine being can assist them on their path, they do hold some influence, and on special occasions, Jains will pray and meditate for right knowledge to the twenty-four Tirthankaras (saintly teachers).
Prayer in Paganism
In Graeco-Roman paganism, ceremonial prayer was highly formulaic and ritualized. The Iguvine Tables contain a supplication that can be translated, "If anything was said improperly, if anything was done improperly, let it be as if it were done correctly."
The formalism and formulaic nature of these prayers led them to be written down in language that may have only been partially understood by the writer, and our texts of these prayers may in fact be garbled. Prayers in Etruscan were used in the Roman world by augurs and other oracles long after Etruscan became a dead language. The Carmen Arvale and the Carmen Saliare are two specimens of partially preserved prayers that seem to have been unintelligible to their scribes, and whose language is full of archaisms and difficult passages.
Roman prayers and sacrifices were often envisioned as legal bargains between deity and worshipper. The Roman formula was do ut des: "I give, so that you may give in return." Cato the Elder's treatise on agriculture contains many examples of preserved traditional prayers; in one, a farmer addresses the unknown deity of a possibly sacred grove, and sacrifices a pig in order to placate the god or goddess of the place and beseech his or her permission to cut down some trees from the grove.
Philosophical re-interpretations of prayer
Post-Biblical theologians considered the philosophical problems involved in prayer (see below). Over time a number of re-interpretations of prayer evolved. These were developed in great detail by the medieval neo-Platonic and neo-Aristotelian philosophers, and have influenced how many people still pray today. At the moment, the descriptions below list some Jewish sources, but each of these views of prayers also has Christian and Muslim proponents as well; there was much intellectual cross-fertilization between Jews, Christians and Muslims during parts of the middle-ages, and so there appears to be some convergence among the philosophers of that era.
The educational approach
In this view, prayer is not a conversation with God. Rather, it is meant to inculcate certain attitudes in the one who prays, but not to influence God. Among Jews, this has been the approach of Rabbenu Bachya, Yehuda Halevy, Joseph Albo, Samson Raphael Hirsch, and Joseph Dov Soloveitchik. This view is expressed by Rabbi Nosson Scherman in the overview to the Artscroll Siddur (p.XIII); note that Scherman goes on to also affirm the Kabbalistic view (see below). Among Christian theologians...(please add examples here) Among Muslim theologians....(please add examples here).
The Kabbalistic view of prayer
People involved with kabbalah (esoteric Jewish mysticism) often reject rationalist reinterpreations of prayer outright, but they also reject the social approach, in which prayer is viewed as a dialogue with God. Instead, this approach ascribes a higher meaning to the purpose of prayer, which is no less than affecting the very fabric of reality itself, restructuring and repairing the universe in a real fashion. For Kabbalists, every prayer, every word of every prayer, and indeed, even every letter of every word of every prayer, has a precise meaning and a precise effect. In Kabbalah and related mystical belief systems, adherents claim intimate knowledge about the way in which God relates to us and the physical universe in which we live. For people with this view, prayers can literally affect the mystical forces of the universe and repair the fabric of creation.
Among Jews, this approach has been taken by the Hassidei Ashkenaz, the Zohar, the Kabbalist school of though created by the Ari, the Ramchal, most of Hassidism, the Vilna Gaon, and rabbis such as Yaakov Emden and Kalonimus Shapira. In the 1800s some European Christians were influenced by Kabbalah...(please add information here)
The rationalist approach
In this view, ultimate goal of prayer is to help train a person to focus on God through philosophy and intellectual contemplation. This approach was taken by Maimonides and the other medieval rationalists; it became popular in Jewish, Christian and Islamic intellectual circles, but never became the most popular understanding of prayer among the laity in any of these faiths. In all three of these faiths today a significant minority of people still hold to this approach.
The experiential approach
In this approach, the purpose of prayer is to enable the person praying to gain a direct experience of God. This approach is very significant in Christianity and widespread in Judaism (although less popular theologically). In Eastern Orthodoxy, this approach is known as hesychasm. It is also widespread in Sufi Islam, and in some forms of mysticism. It has some similarities with the rationalist approach, since it can also involve contemplation, although the contemplation is not generally viewed as being as rational or intellectual. It also has some similarities with the Kabbalistic view, but it lacks the Kabbalistic emphasis on the importance of individual words and letters.
Prayer practices
The actual act of praying can take on many different outward forms. Most religions or religious subgroups have certain forms that they recommend, usually more than one; occasionally, there may be specific forms that are forbidden. Prayer may be done privately and individually, or it may be done corporately in the presence of fellow believers. Some outward acts that sometimes accompany prayer are: ringing a bell; burning incense or paper; lighting a candle or candles; facing a specific direction, i.e. towards Mecca or towards the East.
A variety of body postures may be assumed, often with specific meaning associated with them: standing; sitting; kneeling; prostrate on the floor; eyes opened; eyes closed; hands folded or clasped; hands upraised; and others. Prayers may be recited from memory, read from a book of prayers, or composed spontaneously as they are prayed. They may be said, chanted, or sung. They may be with musical accompaniment or not. There may be a time of outward silence while prayers are offered mentally. Often, there are prayers to fit specific occasions, such as the blessing of a meal, the birth or death of a loved one, other significant events in the life of a believer, or days of the year that have special religious significance.
Jewish prayer
Prayers said by Jews are described in the entry on Jewish services. The prayers of the Jewish services are collected in a prayerbook called the Siddur. The entry on the siddur describes the different types of Jewish prayerbooks and how they have evolved over time.
The most imporant Jewish prayers are the Shema Yisrael ("Hear O Israel") and the Amidah ("the standing prayer").
Christian prayer
Orthodox Christianity, Catholic Christianity and the many branches of Protestant Christianity each have distinctive liturgies. Some of the more commonly recited Christian prayers include the following:
- Lord's Prayer -- Psalms -- Book of Common Prayer -- Jesus Prayer
- Traditional prayer aids include the rosary and the prayer rope.
- Prayer to saints: in Catholic and Orthodox tradition, prayers of petition may be addressed to saints. It is understood that the saints answer such prayers by means of their own prayers to God on behalf of the petitioner.
Islamic Prayer
Muslims pray a brief prayer service in Arabic, facing Mecca, five times a day. (More to be written.)
Bahá'í Prayer
Baha'is are required to recite each day one of three obligatory prayers revealed by Baha'u'llah. The believers have been enjoined to face in the direction of the Qiblih when reciting their Obligatory Prayers.
One, the longest obligatory prayer, may be recited at any time of day; another, of medium length, is recited once in the morning, once at midday, and once in the evening; and the shortest is recited at noon. This is the text of the short prayer:
Baha'is also read from and meditate on the scriptures every morning and evening. There are also many other revealed prayers in the Baha'i scriptures, most for general use at the choice of the individual and some for specific occasions.
- I bear witness, O my God, that Thou hast created me to know Thee and to worship Thee. I testify, at this moment, to my powerlessness and to Thy might, to my poverty and to Thy wealth. There is none other God but Thee, the Help in Peril, the Self-Subsisting.
In the past 200 years a new form of prayer has emerged among Christians, called praying in tongue (see Glossolalia). According to adherents of this practice, the Holy Spirit comes into the body of the prayer and speaks on the Christian's behalf in a celestial language. The person praying will later deny any knowledge of what they said while praying.
Philosophical paradoxes of prayer
There are a number of philosophical paradoxes involving prayer to an omnipotent God, namely:
These questions have been discussed in Jewish, Christian and Muslim writings from the medieval period onward. The 900s to 1200s saw some of the most fertile discussion on these questions, during the period of Neo-Platonic and Neo-Aristotelian philosophy. Discussion of these problems never ceased entirely, but they did fall mostly from the public view for several centuries, until The Enlightenment reignited philosophical inquiry into theological issues. (More to be written.)
- If a person deserves God to give him the thing he prays for, why doesn't God give it to him, even without prayer? And if a person is not deserving of it, then even if that person does pray and request it, should it be given just because of his prayer?
- Why should it be necessary to pray with speech? Doesn't God know the thoughts of all people?
- If God is omniscient (all-knowing) then doesn't God know what we are going to ask Him for even before we pray?
- How can a human being hope to change God's mind? Why should human prayers affect God's decisions?
- Do human beings actually have the ability to praise an omniscient and omnipotent God? Praising God is difficult to do without describing God, yet how can a finite human being know anything about God's ultimate nature? This question was the subject of heated debate among many religious philosophers; one such debate took place in the 14th century between Gregory Palamas and Barlaam of Calabria.
All of these questions have been discussed in many Jewish, Christian and Muslim religious texts. Many of these texts offer proposed resolutions to some or all of these paradoxes.
Prayer and Medicine
Several studies have claimed that patients who pray for their health or are being prayed for recover faster. Critics have attributed this to the placebo effect. Typically, the scientific establishment ignores studies of the occult and esoteric, but in 1999, media reports on prayer studies prompted a comprehensive review of such studies in The Lancet. The result: "Even in the best studies, the evidence of an association between religion, spirituality, and health is weak and inconsistent." A 2001 double-blind study of the Mayo clinic found no significant difference in the recovery rates between people who were (unbeknownst to them) assigned to a group that prayed for them (five people praying once a week for 26 weeks), and those who were not. In 2003, a second MANTRA study by Duke University contradicted the first MANTRA study's findings that intercessory prayer improved recovery rates in heart patients.
See also: Qi, Qigong, public prayer, prayer in school and moment of silence
External links
- Faith-Medicine Connection Challenged
- Proponents and Skeptics in "The Atlantic" magazine article"
- Avilles et.al.: Intercessory prayer and cardiovascular disease progression in a coronary care unit population: a randomized trial, Mayo Clinic Proceedings 2001, vol 76, pp. 1192 - 1198, online: http://www.mayo.edu/proceedings/2001/dec/7612a1.pdf
- Second MANTRA study finds that prayer has no medical benefit
- R.P. Sloan, E. Bagiella, T. Powell: Religion, spirituality, and medicine. Lancet 1999: 353, no 9153. Online: http://www.eatingbythebook.com/connect/0007.html
References
Moshe Greenberg, Biblical Prose Prayer as a Window to the Popular Religion of Ancient Israel
Abraham Joshua Heschel, Man's Quest for God Scribner, NY, 1954
Seth Kadish, Kavvana: Directing the Heart in Jewish Prayer, Jason Aronson Inc., 1997
Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "Prayer."
(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)
To worship is to formally praise, honour, and declare one's devotion to a supernatural being, typically a god or goddess. Typical acts of worship include:Catholicism and Eastern Orthodoxy distinguish between worship (Latin adoratio, Greek latreia [λατρεια]) which is due to God alone, and veneration (Latin veneratio, Greek dulia [δουλεια]), which may be lawfully offered to the saints. The external acts of veneration resemble those of worship, but differ in their object and intent. Protestant Christians question whether such a distinction is always maintained in actual devotional practice, especially at the level of folk religion. Judaism and Islam hold that for all practical purposes veneration should be considered the same as prayer; Judaism, Islam, and Protestantism forbid veneration of saints or angels, classifying these actions as akin to idolatry.
- prayer;
- sacrifice;
- rituals;
- meditation;
- holidays, festivals;
- pilgrimages;
- hymns or psalms;
- the construction of temples or shrines;
- the creation of idols of the deity.
In a figurative sense, worship of monarchs, lords, or lovers has a long history.
See Prayer; Goddess worship; dog worship; ancestor worship; demon worship; idol worship; imperial cult
Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "Worship."
Synonyms: WorshipSynonyms: adoration (n), hero-worship (v), idolise (v), idolize (v), revere (v). (additional references) |
| Context | Synonyms within Context (source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus). |
Approbation | Commendation, praise; laud, laudation; good word; meed of praise, tribute of praise; encomium; eulogy, eulogium; eloge, panegyric; homage, hero worship; benediction, blessing, benison. |
Ejection | Vomit, throw up, regurgitate, spew, puke, keck, retch, heave, upchuck, chuck up, barf; belch out; cast up, bring up, be sick, get sick, worship the porcelain god. |
Idolatry | Verb: worship idols, worship pictures, worship relics; deify, canonize. |
Deification, apotheosis, canonization; hero worship. | |
Judge | Noun: judge; justice, justiciar, justiciary; chancellor; justice of assize, judge of assize; recorder, common sergeant; puisne judge, assistant judge, county court judge; conservator of the peace, justice of the peace; J.P.; court; (tribunal); magistrate, police magistrate, beak; his worship, his honor, his lordship. |
Respect | Verb: respect, regard; revere, reverence; hold in reverence, honor, venerate, hallow; esteem; (approve of); think much of; entertain respect for, bear respect for; look up to, defer to; have a high opinion of, hold a high opinion of; pay attention, pay respect; n. to; do honor to, render honor to; do the honors, hail; show courtesy; salute, present arms; do homage to, pay homage to; pay tribute to, kneel to, bow to, bend the knee to; fall down before, prostrate oneself, kiss the hem of one's garment; worship. |
Satan | Diabolism; devilism, devilship; diabolology; satanism, devil worship; manicheism; the cloven foot. |
Servility | Verb: cringe, bow, stoop, kneel, bend the knee; fall on one's knees, prostrate oneself; worship. |
Go with the stream, worship the rising sun, hold with the hare and run with the hounds. | |
Temple | Noun: place of worship; house of God, house of prayer. |
Title | Highness, excellency, grace; lordship, worship; reverence, reverend; esquire, sir, master, Mr., signor, se$or, Mein Herr, mynheer; your honor, his honor; serene highness; handle to one's name. |
Wealth | Worship the golden calf, worship Mammon. |
Worship | Verb: worship, lift up the heart, aspire; revere; adore, do service, pay homage; humble oneself, kneel; bow the knee, bend the knee; fall down, fall on one's knees; prostrate oneself, bow down and worship. |
Noun: worship, adoration, devotion, aspiration, homage, service, humiliation; kneeling, genuflection, prostration. | |
| Source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus. | |
Crosswords: Worship |
| English words defined with "worship": ancestor worship ♦ idol worship, Image worship ♦ Knee worship ♦ Nature worship ♦ Will worship, worship of heavenly bodies, worship of man, worship of saints. (references) |
| Specialty definitions using "worship": Abdomen, Aholibah, Angelici, Aspasia, attack on freedom of faith and freedom of worship, Azazil ♦ BACCHUS, BATH, Bell, Book, and Candle ♦ Catharine Theot, Chapel-of-Ease, Clavie, CLERGY MEMBER, CONFUCIUS, Cressell'e, Cross, Culdees ♦ Dances, Days set apart as Sabbaths, Dog, Duli'a ♦ Ethbaal, Eth-baal, Excess ♦ Fetiche ♦ Gallio ♦ HEATHEN, High Places, Holiday Speeches ♦ mammon ♦ Paulicians, Petrobrussians ♦ Ram Feast, Reekie, Religion, religious association, Remigius ♦ Sabeanism, Samaritan Pentateuch, Sarsen Stones, Shihor-Libnath ♦ U'na ♦ Windmills. (references) |
| Etymologies containing "worship": Worshipable. (references) |
| Domain | Usage | |
Screenplays | I worship my father (Twelve Monkeys; writing credit: David Webb Peoples) Hey, Your Worship, I'm only trying to help (Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back; writing credit: George Lucas; Leigh Brackett) A thousand people freezing their butts off, waiting to worship a rat. You know, Groundhog Day used to mean something in this town (Groundhog Day; writing credit: Guy Ritchie) Don't worship me until I've earned it. (Terms of Endearment; writing credit: Larry McMurtry; James L. Brooks) I worship you as a crook (Trouble in Paradise; writing credit: Aladar Laszlo; Grover Jones) | |
Lyrics | Like they worship us, plus all the stores ship us platinum (Sing For The Moment; performing artist: EMINEM) We worship the flaw, the belly, the belly, the mole on the belly of an exquisite whore (Babelogue; performing artist: Patti Smith) The tyrants will gather to worship their master (Prince Of Darkness; performing artist: The Nylons) | |
Movie/TV Titles | Grantland Rice Sportlight No. R1-10: Hero Worship (1942) Three Cheers for Foot Worship (2002) Acts of Worship (2001) Idol Worship (1991) Mr. Montréal His Worship (1976) | |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | ||
| Domain | Title | ||
Books |
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Periodicals | |||
Theater & Movies | |||
Music |
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Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |||
| Thumbnail | Description & Credit | Thumbnail | Description & Credit |
 | The Natives of Florida worship the column erected by the commander on his first voyage. Credit: Library of Congress. |  | Midway Church--This place of worship was organized by a group of Puritans from Dorchester, S.C., who worshipped in Midway, Georgia, until 1781. Credit: Library of Congress. |
 | Shakers near Lebanon state of N. York, their mode of worship. Credit: Library of Congress. |  | Ours - to fight for: freedom of speech, freedom of worship, freedom from want, freedom from fear / Norman Rockwell. Credit: Library of Congress. |
Source: pictures compiled by the editor from various references; see picture credits. | |||
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| "Keyboard" by Eric Schlange Commentary: "This shot was taken between warm-ups for the worship band at my church. That keyboard's a new Roland RD-700 (I think). It's purty sweet..." |
Source: photographs selected by the editor, with permission from the photographers. |
| Play | Caption | Play | Caption |
 | Church; cathedral; organ; congregation; congregate; God; worship. | | Hallelujah; choir; church; chapel; religion; religious; praise; joy; lord; god; worship. |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |||
| Author | Quotation |
Marcus Tullius Cicero | Morals today are corrupted by our worship of riches. |
Mcilyar H. Lichliter | Our spiritual peril is the new idolatry -- the worship of the God of Bigness and the God of Speed. |
Oscar Wilde | Between men and women there is no friendship possible. There is passion, enmity, worship, love, but no friendship. |
Pompey | More worship the rising that the setting sun. |
Ralph Waldo Emerson | Is the parent better than the child into whom he has cast his ripened being? Whence, then, this worship of the past? |
Thomas Carlyle | Wonder is the basis of worship. |
| Worship is transcendent wonder. | |
William James | The exclusive worship of the b---goddess Success [is] our national disease. |
Xenophon | Apollo said that everyone's true worship was that which he found in use in the place where he chanced to be. |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | |
| Author | Date | Quotation |
United Nations | 1948 | Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion; this right includes freedom to change his religion or belief, and freedom, either alone or in community with others and in public or private, to manifest his religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship and observance. (reference) |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | ||
| Title | Author | Quote |
Les Miserables | Hugo, Victor | Their worship is questioning |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | ||
| Subject | Topic | Quote |
Health | Churches, synagogues, and other houses of worship might also have groups that can offer you the social support you need. (references) | |
It is ingrained in humans to love light and, indeed, since mankind's first wanderings from the caves, worship of the sun has been a fundamental tenet that many societies hold even to the present. (references) | ||
Business | They worship in some 12,000 churches and 30,000 mosques. (references) | |
In one major city appointed Chinese clergy supervise worship services. (references) | ||
At the end of 1996, the Government reported that more than 70,000 places of worship had registered. (references) | ||
Civil Liberties | Bahrain | Some small groups worship in their homes. (references) |
Malaysia | No such requirement exists for Muslim places of worship. (references) | |
Romania | The Greek Catholic Church has very few places of worship. (references) | |
Economic History | Laos | Buddhism and spirit worship coexist easily. (references) |
Thailand | Spirit worship and animism are widely practiced. (references) | |
Antigua and Barbuda | Constitutional safeguards include freedom of speech, press, worship, movement, and association. (references) | |
Human Rights | Bolivia | The request was received by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Worship on December 28. (references) |
Argentina | Human rights issues at the international level are handled by the Office of the Special Representative for International Human Rights of the Ministry of Foreign Relations, International Trade, and Worship. (references) | |
Vietnam | The authorities largely focused on persons whom they regarded as having views critical of the Government, or whom they suspected of involvement in unauthorized political or religious activities, and, for example, government informants who attend worship services share information concerning the activities of the congregation and clergy with government and party officials. (references) | |
Minorities | Nepal | The adherents of the country's many religions generally coexist peacefully and respect all places of worship. (references) |
Azerbaijan | As a consequence, the estimated 10,000 to 30,000 Armenians who remain in Azerbaijan are unable to attend their traditional places of worship. (references) | |
Zimbabwe | Muslims have complained of discrimination by private employers who refuse to allow them sufficient time to worship at their mosques on Fridays. (references) | |
Political Economy | Sudan | Employers sometimes prevent Christians in the north from leaving work to worship. (references) |
Sudan | Nonregistered religious groups find it impossible to construct a place of worship or to assemble legally and are harassed by the Government. (references) | |
Indonesia | Attacks against houses of worship continued, and the lack of an effective government response to punish perpetrators and prevent further attacks led to allegations of official complicity in some of the incidents. (references) | |
Worker Rights | China | Freedom of Religion The Government maintains tight controls on religious practices and places of worship. (references) |
China | Reports indicate that Tibetans were forbidden to hold traditional incense-burning ceremonies on that day, and that most places of worship were closed, although there were reports of many Tibetans celebrating early or privately. (references) | |
Lexicography | Devil's Dictionary | EXCESS, n. In morals, an indulgence that enforces by appropriate penalties the law of moderation. Hail, high Excess -- especially in wine, To thee in worship do I bend the knee Who preach abstemiousness unto me -- My skull thy pulpit, as my paunch thy shrine. Precept on precept, aye, and line on line, Could ne'er persuade so sweetly to agree With reason as thy touch, exact and free, Upon my forehead and along my spine. At thy command eschewing pleasure's cup, With the hot grape I warm no more my wit; When on thy stool of penitence I sit I'm quite converted, for I can't get up. Ungrateful he who afterward would falter To make new sacrifices at thine altar! |
Source: compiled by the editor from ICON Group International, Inc.; see credits. | ||
| Speaker | Term | Phrase(s) |
Harry S. Truman | 1945-1953 | People everywhere are coming to realize that what is involved is material well-being, human dignity, and the right to believe in and worship God. |
Ronald Reagan | 1981-1989 | Victories against poverty are greatest and peace most secure where people live by laws that ensure free press, free speech, and freedom to worship, vote, and create wealth. |
Bill Clinton | 1993-2001 | You know, I'm proud of the fact the United States has more houses of worship per capita than any country in the world. |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | ||
| "Worship" is generally used as a noun (singular) -- approximately 84.84% of the time. "Worship" is used about 1,542 times out of a sample of 100 million words spoken or written in English. Its rank is based on over 700,000 words used in the English language. Some parts-of-speech are not covered due to the samples used by the British National Corpus. (note: percents less than one-hundredth of one percent have been omitted) |
| Parts of Speech | Percent | Usage per 100 Million Words | Rank in English |
| Noun (singular) | 84.84% | 1,309 | 6,056 |
| Lexical Verb (infinitive) | 12.18% | 188 | 22,417 |
| Lexical Verb (base form) | 2.78% | 43 | 52,181 |
| Noun (proper) | 0.19% | 3 | 202,518 |
| Total | 100.00% | 1,542 | N/A |
Source: compiled by the editor from several corpora; see credits.
Expressions using "worship": ancestor worship ♦ attack on freedom of faith and freedom of worship ♦ belly worship ♦ bow down and worship ♦ bowing in worship ♦ Devil worship ♦ Fire worship ♦ freedom of worship ♦ hero worship ♦ his worship ♦ house of worship ♦ idol worship ♦ Image worship ♦ Knee worship ♦ nature worship ♦ place of worship ♦ public worship ♦ saint worship ♦ silent worship ♦ the worship of wealth ♦ will worship ♦ worship Mammon ♦ worship of ♦ worship of god ♦ worship of heavenly bodies ♦ worship of man ♦ worship of saints ♦ worship the golden calf ♦ worship the porcelain god ♦ worship the rising sun ♦ your worship. Additional references. | |
| Hyphenated Usage | |
Beginning with "worship": worship-rites. | |
Ending with "worship": goddess-worship, god-worship, idol-worship. | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
| The following statistics estimate the number of searches per day across the major English-language search engines as identified by various trade publications. Hyperlinks lead to commercial use of the expression at Amazon.com. |
| Expression | Frequency per Day | Expression | Frequency per Day |
worship | 1,142 | praise and worship tab | 85 |
foot worship | 794 | here i am to worship lyrics | 85 |
praise worship | 631 | praise and worship chord | 79 |
worship music | 456 | christian worship | 74 |
worship song | 359 | worship chord | 73 |
praise and worship music | 324 | song 4 worship | 69 |
muscle worship | 281 | christian worship song | 60 |
ass worship | 221 | foot worship party | 59 |
praise worship song | 214 | christian worship music | 56 |
worship leader | 197 | heart lyrics worship | 56 |
praise worship lyrics | 164 | call worship | 52 |
here i am to worship | 153 | satan worship | 52 |
worship lyrics | 140 | center family worship | 52 |
worship together | 135 | archive worship | 49 |
wow worship | 134 | praise and worship song lyrics | 48 |
worship tab | 112 | come now is the time to worship | 48 |
lyrics song worship | 99 | worship guitar tab | 48 |
heart of worship | 90 | worship center | 47 |
devil worship | 87 | goddess worship | 46 |
woman worship | 86 | praise and worship guitar tab | 45 |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |||
| Language | Translations for "worship"; alternative meanings/domain in parentheses. | |
Afrikaans | adoreer (adore), aanbidding (adoration), aanbid (adore). (various references) | |
Albanian | adhuroj (adore, deify), adhurim (adoration, deification, delight, idolatry). (various references) | |
Arabic | مقام رفيع (honor, honour), تعبد, تأليه (apotheosis, deification), سجد (kneel, kowtow, prostrate), عبادة (adoration, cult, devotion, religion), عبد (gladiator, pave, slave, thrall), أله (deify, idolize), ديانة (religion), بجل (aggrandize, consider, dignify, glorify, hallow, look up to, revere, venerate). (various references) | |
Bulgarian | богослужене, покланям се (bend, bow, deify, revere), поклонничество (pilgrimage), почит (esteem, homage, honor, honour, obeisance, regard, respect, reverence), почитам (admire, commemorate, esteem, honor, honour, notice, respect, revere, venerate), прекланям се пред, преклонение (adoration), издигам в култ (idolize), боготворя (adore, deify, divinize, hero worship), уважение (admiration, consideration, credit, deference, duty, esteem, estimation, homage, honor, honour, obeisance, observance, piety, regard, respect, reverence), литургия (liturgy, mass, rite, service), моля се в църква, моля се в храм, обожаване (adoration), култ (cult, fetish, idolatry, religion), тача (keep, preserve, respect, revere, reverence, venerate), уважавам (admire, esteem, hold in esteem, honor, honour, mind, notice, regard, respect, venerate), боготворене. (various references) | |
Catalan | eslésia (church, church-building, house of worship, place of worship). (various references) | |
Chinese | 崇拜 (adore). (various references) | |
Czech | zbožòovat (dote on, idolize), zbožòování (adoration, adulation), uctívat (adore, venerate), uctívání (adoration, veneration), pobožnost (church), ctít (honor, honour, respect, revere, venerate), bohoslužba (service). (various references) | |
Danish | dyrke (adore). (various references) | |
Dutch | adoratie (adoration), aanbidding (adoration). (various references) | |
Esperanto | kulti, adoro (adoration), adori (adore), adorado (adoration). (various references) | |
Faeroese | tilbiðja (adore). (various references) | |
Farsi | پرستش کردن , پرستش (Adoration, Adore, Devotion, Praise), ستایش (Adoration, Eulogy, Laud, Panegyric, Praise, Tribute, Veneration), عبادت (Service). (various references) | |
Finnish | palvonta (adoration), palvoa (adore), palvella (attend on, serve, to serve, wait on), jumaloida (adore, idolize). (various references) | |
French | adorer, adoration. (various references) | |
Frisian | oanbidding (adoration, cult), oanbidde (adore), ferearje (adore), ferearing (adoration). (various references) | |
German | Verehrung (admiration, adoration, enshrinement, esteem, regard, reverence, veneration), verehren (admire, adore, donate, enshrine, give, glorify, honor, honour, idolize, revere, reverence, to adore, to enshrine, venerate), anbeten (adore, hallow, to adore). (various references) | |
Greek | λατρεύω (adore, bless), λατρεία (adoration, cult, devotion). (various references) | |
Hawaiian | adhuroj (adore), adhurim (adoration). (various references) | |
Hebrew | לעבוד עבודת קודש, לסגוד (adore, bend, prostrate oneself), פולחן (adoration, cult, ritual). (various references) | |
Hungarian | imádás (adoration), imádat (adoration), imád (adore, blest, love, to adore, to bless, to worship). (various references) | |
Indonesian | sembahyang (prayer), memberhalakan, ibadah, beribadah (pray). (various references) | |
Irish | adhair (adore). (various references) | |
Italian | venerare (adore, hallow, revere, venerate), adorare (adore), venerazione (adoration, enshrinement, reverence, veneration). (various references) | |
Japanese Kanji | 崇拝 (admiration, adoration, cult). (various references) | |
Japanese Katakana | すうはい (admiration, adoration, cult), おまいり (shrine visit), ぐうぞうすうはい (idolatry), さんぱい (acidification, crushing failure, ignominious defeat, industrial waste, overwhelming defeat, utterly beaten, worshipping three times), ほうはい, れいはい (adoration, being shut out, divine service, going undefeated, losing without scoring a point, whitewash), らいさん (adoration, glorification, praise), らいはい (adoration, divine service), はいれい (disobeying, infringing, running counter to), はい (actor, arrangement, ash, disposition, distribution, lung, put on, wear). (various references) | |
Korean | 숭배 (Cult, Worshiping, Worshipping). (various references) | |
Malay | gereja (church, church-building, house of worship, place of worship). (various references) | |
Manx | ooashley (adoration, devotion, distinction, excellence, high-born, magnificent, prestige, rank), ooashlaghey (adore, pay homage to, revere), cur ooashley da. (various references) | |
Norwegian | kirke (church, church-building, house of worship, kirk, place of worship). (various references) | |
Papiamen | adorashon (adoration), adorá (adore). (various references) | |
Pig Latin | orshipway.(various references) | |
Polish | kościół (church, church-building, house of worship, place of worship). (various references) | |
Portuguese | adoração (adoration), adorar (adore, bless, love). (various references) | |
Romanian | venera (adore, hallow, idolize, revere, venerate), diviniza (adore, deify, divinize), adora (adore, exalt, glorify, idolize, venerate). (various references) | |
Russian | культ (cult, religion), богослужение (chapel, church, church service, ministration), боготворить (adore, deify, idolize), преклонение (admiration), поклоняться поклонение (worshiping, worshipping), поклоняться (adore, idolize, worships). (various references) | |
Scottish | aoradh. (various references) | |
Serbo-Croatian | obožavati (admire, adore, deify, idolize, lionize), obožavanje (adoration, apotheosis, deification, worship of), bogoslužiti, bogosluženje. (various references) | |
Spanish | adorar (adore, deify, dote), adoración (adoration, consecration, deification, dotage). (various references) | |
Sranan | anbegi (adore). (various references) | |
Swahili | kuabudu (adore). (various references) | |
Swedish | tillbedja (adore), tillbedjan (adoration), dyrka (adore, dote upon, glorify, idolize, lionize), avguda (adore, deify, dote upon, idolize). (various references) | |
Tagalog | simbáhan (church, church-building, house of worship, place of worship), sambáhan (church, church-building, house of worship, place of worship). (various references) | |
Turkish | tapmak (adore, deify, glorify, grovel, hero worship, idolize, make an idol of, revere, venerate), tapma (adoration, deification, glorification, hero worship, idolatry, image-worship), taparcasina sevmek (adore), taparcasına sevmek, tapınmak (adore), ilahlaştırma (apotheosis, deifying), ibadet etmek (pray), ibadet (devotions, divine service, prayer, prayers, service), aşırı saygı. (various references) | |
Turkmen | baюegmek, baюegme. (various references) | |
Ukrainian | шанувати (honor, honour, revere, set by, venerate), шанування (esteem, veneration), шана (aureola, aureole, obeisance, observance), культ (cult, religion), обожнювати (adore, apotheosize, canonize, deify, divinify), обожнювання (adoration, apotheosis, canonization, cult, deification, dotage, idolatry), молитися (bend the knee, pray), богослужіння (church), поклонятися (adore, venerate), поважання. (various references) | |
Vietnamese | sự tôn sùng ngài, sự suy tôn, sự cúng bái sự tôn kính. (various references) | |
Welsh | dadolwch (propitiation, seek forgiveness), addoliad (religious service), addoli (adore). (various references) | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various translation references. | ||
