A

Ablutions - The cleansing of the chalice(s), paten, and other vessels after the administration of Communion. This may be done at the altar or at the credence, or after the dismissal.
Acolyte - A term specifically applied to one who carries a torch or a candle in processions and at other times during the liturgy. This term is also commonly interchanged with server. Originally a minor clerical order but now usually a lay function in the church.
Advent: the first "season" of the church's liturgical year, beginning on the fourth Sunday before Christmas and ending with the first eucharist of Christmas
Altar: table on which the bread and wine are placed during a celebration of the eucharist
Anglican: historically descended from the Church of England
Anglican Communion: a world-wide assembly of churches that have a historical liturgical relationship to the Church of England
Anointing: the rite of applying consecrated oil on a person, signifying the gift of the Holy Spirit in baptism, confirmation, ordination, and when ministering to the sick
Archbishop: A bishop who presides at meetings of the House of Bishops, to be the chief officiant at consecrations of newly-elected bishops, to oversee the national church, and to represent the national Church to the member churches of the Anglican Communion.
Ash Wednesday: the beginning of Lent, a 40-day (excluding Sundays) period of repentance leading up to Easter

B

Baptism (Holy Baptism): a sacrament by which a person is initiated by water and the Holy Spirit into membership in the Christian church
Bishop: one of the three offices to which people can be ordained in the Anglican Church, along with deacons and priests; the chief pastor of a diocese of the Anglican Church
The Book of Common Prayer: the authorized prayer book of the Anglican Church, sometimes simply called the Prayer Book, containing the regular services used for public worship plus collects, the psalter, the rites of baptism, confirmation, marriage, burial, ordination, the liturgical calendar, two lectionaries, and the historical documents of the church.

C

Canon: a rule or procedure of the church
Canticle - A short song consisting of verses of Scripture set to music, sung in the liturgy.
Cathedral: the principal church of a diocese
Celebrant: the priest or bishop who officiates at the altar during a celebration of the eucharist
Chancellor: the legal advisor to a parish or diocese
Chasuble - A kind of cloak or poncho, often of silk, in the liturgical colour; it is worn by a bishop or priest as part of his vestment when he celebrates the Eucharist.
Christmas: the Feast of Christ's Incarnation, beginning on December 25 and continuing for twelve days, ending on January 5, the eve of the Feast of the Epiphany
Cincture: It is a long, rope-like cord with tassled ends, tied around the waist outside the alb.
Clergy: people who have been ordained as deacons, priests, or bishops
Collect: a short prayer consisting of an invocation, a petition, and an ascription of glory to God
Confession: a prayer which acknowledges our sins and asks for God's forgiveness
Confirmation: a post-baptism rite of mature commitment to Christ through prayers, the renewal of vows made at baptism, and the laying on of hands by a bishop
Congregation: a local gathering of worshiping Christians, also called a parish or mission
Consecration: (1) action by which the bread and wine become the body and blood of Christ in the eucharist (2) the rite for the ordination of a bishop (3) the blessing of altars, church furnishings, and church buildings to set them apart for the service of God
Creed: historic statements of the faith of the church
Crosier, staff in the shape of a shepherd's crook carried by a bishop in procession

D

Daily Office: daily services of prayer for the morning and evening that are read by individuals privately as daily devotions and corporately as a liturgy in church
Deacon: one of the three offices to which people can be ordained in the Anglican Church, along with priests and bishops
Diocese: parishes overseen by a bishop

E

Easter: the central rite of the Christian faith, celebrating Christ's resurrection from the dead
Epiphany: the "season" of the church year that begins with the Feast of the Epiphany on January 6 and continues until Ash Wednesday and that proclaims that Jesus Christ is savior of the whole world and that God's promises of salvation to Israel now apply to all the peoples of the earth
Epistle: second of three scripture readings in the Liturgy of the Word of the eucharist, usually drawn from the New Testament epistles of Paul and his followers
Eucharist, Holy Eucharist: the sacrament of Christ's resurrection and ongoing presence at work among us; also known as Holy Communion

F

Fast: the penitential observance of special acts of discipline and self-denial, particularly Ash Wednesday, weekdays in Lent, and Holy Week, particularly Good Friday.
Feast: a day of celebration, including all Sundays

G

Good Friday: the Friday of Holy Week, the day when Christians remember and meditate upon the crucifixion of Jesus
Gospel: (1) the Good News of God in Christ that Christians are charged with proclaiming to all the world (2) the third scripture lesson in the Liturgy of the Word during the eucharist, always taken from the biblical books of Matthew, Mark, Luke, or John
Great Thanksgiving: the prayer of consecration in the eucharist

H

Holy Communion: an alternate term for the Holy Eucharist
Holy Spirit: the third person of the Holy Trinity, at work in the world and in and through the Church
Holy Week: the most significant week of the church year, beginning on Palm Sunday and ending on Easter Day
Hood - An ornamental (not practical) hood, usually of silk, worn by college graduates to
indicate their academic degree. Hoods vary in size, shape, and colour depending on the
university, faculty, and degree. The hood, worn over the cassock and surplice, is part of the
normal choir vestment.
House of Bishops: all bishops of a particular church

I

Incarnation: the taking on of human form and nature by Jesus while retaining his full divinity
Intercession: a prayer of petition for the needs of the world
Invocation: a prayer that calls on God for blessing, help, protection, inspiration, etc.

J

Junior Warden: a member of the vestry of a parish who works closely with the Sr Warden and Rector

L

Laity: Christians who are not ordained
Lay: relating to the laity
Lay Reader: a lay person who is approved to read the scripture lessons in church
Laying on of hands: ceremonial gesture that is meant to convey the power of the Holy Spirit, used by priests and bishops in baptism, confirmation, ordination, and in certain other rites of the church
Lectionary: table of assigned scripture readings for the eucharist and for the daily office throughout the year
Lent: the forty-day period (not counting Sundays) before Easter devoted to preparation through fasting, penitence, almsgiving, prayer, and study
Lesser Feasts and Fasts: the minor saints' days and other observances found on the liturgical calendar
Lessons: biblical texts read at the daily office and at the eucharist
Liturgical: relating to liturgy
Liturgy: the public prayer and worship of the people of God gathered in community and the texts of the rites that enable this public worship to take place
Liturgy of the Word: the part of the eucharist that begins with hearing the Word of God in scripture, continues through the sermon and the creed, and concludes with the confession and the exchange of the peace

M

Metropolitan - The chief bishop of a province (originally the bishop of the "mother city"--in
Greek "meter polis"--of the province).
Mission: the work of the church through praying, worshiping, and proclaiming and living the gospel
Mitre (or Miter) - The ceremonial headdress of a bishop or abbot; the front and the back of
the mitre rise to points, and there are two "infulae" (or "lappets") that hang from the back of
the mitre down to the wearer's shoulders.
Morning Prayer (also called "Matins) - The daily morning service of prayer, praise, and Scripture reading.

Narthex - An enclosed space at the entry end of the nave of a church; "The ushers will line up in the Narthex."

Nave - The main body of the church in which the congregation sits during worship services. Derived from an old word for ship; in older churches the beams of the roof resembled the beams and timbers in the sides of a ship; The area of the church where the people gather for the liturgy.

Nunc Dimittis - The Song of Simeon (Luke 2:29-32) normally used as one of the canticles at Evening Prayer and Compline (see BCP, 66, 120, & 135). This canticle is also used at Candlemas.

O

Offertory - The point in the Liturgy of the Eucharist during which the elements are received and
prepared; the tithes and alms of the people may also be collected and offered at this time.
Ordain: to perform the rite of ordination
Ordination: the rite by which one is ordained a deacon, priest, or bishop
Ordinary Time: another term for the season of Pentecost

P

Palm Sunday: the last Sunday in Lent, commemorating Jesus' triumphal procession into Jerusalem and marked by a blessing of palms and a procession of the whole congregation around the church, followed by a reading of the gospel story of Jesus' crucifixion and death
Palms: leaves of the palm tree that are blessed and carried in procession on Palm Sunday, then later burned to provide ashes for the next year's observance of Ash Wednesday
Parish: (1) worshiping community of Christians who gather weekly to celebrate the eucharist (2) administrative unit of a diocese led by one or more clergy and governed by a vestry
Parochial: of or pertaining to a parish
Pastor: term for a member of the clergy especially emphasizing the responsibility to care for and protect the sick, the grieving, the needy, and those in pain
Pastoral: referring to the responsibilities of a clergy person in his or her role as a pastor
Peace, exchange of the: the greeting between Christians that takes place at the conclusion of the Liturgy of the Word as a sign both of Christ's love and of reconciliation between members of the church
Pentecost: (1) the Feast that occurs fifty days after Easter in which the church remembers the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the apostles as told in Acts 2:1 (2) the "season" of the church year that runs from the Feast of Pentecost until the First Sunday of Advent during which Anglicans explore the significance of the church itself as the sign of Christ's continuing presence and ongoing activity in the world; also called OrdinaryTime
Petition: a prayer that makes specific requests of God
Prayer Book: a short name for the Book of Common Prayer
Prayers of the People: a term for the prayers of intercession in the eucharist
Priest: one of three offices to which people can be ordained in the Anglican Church, along with deacons and bishops
Proper Preface: variable introductions to the Great Thanksgiving depending on the liturgical season or other special occasion
Propers: those texts--the collect, the lessons, and the proper preface--of the eucharist or daily offices that vary according to the day or season, as opposed to texts that always remain the same
Province: a national church belonging to the Anglican Communion
Psalms: poems in the Hebrew Bible, recited in almost every rite of the church, that make up the psalter in the Book of Common Prayer
Psalter: the biblical book of Psalms as contained in the Book of Common Prayer

R

Reverend, the: formal title for a priest or deacon in the Anglican Church
Right Reverend, the: formal title for a bishop in the Anglican Church
Rites: church services
Rubric: written directions found in the Book of Common Prayer for the conduct of worship

S

Sacrament: in the Anglican Church, the rites of baptism and the eucharist which signify and convey grace as instituted by Christ. Confirmation, ordination, marriage, reconciliation, and anointing or unction are also for us signs that the whole created world is the arena where God meets us and works out our redemption and sanctification
Sacramental: relating to a sacrament of the church
Sacristan - A person whose job is to maintain the church building and grounds, as well, in
former times, as to ring the bells and to dig the graves in the churchyard. In English
customary usage, the word "sacristan" is pronounced (and often spelled) as "sexton."
Sacristy - A room adjacent to the sanctuary where the vestments and sacred vessels are
kept and where the ministers prepare for services.
Seminary: a church institution offering a program of study in the areas of scripture, church history, theology, and pastoral ministry leading to the degree of Master of Divinity (M.Div.), the professional degree for those seeking ordination
Senior Warden: an elected member of the vestry of a parish who is the spokesperson for the vestry and who works closely with the rector of the parish
Sermon: the proclamation and interpretation of the Word of God
Stole: The stole is a liturgical vestment of various Christian denominations.Consists of a band of coloured cloth about 7 to 9 feet in length and about 4 inches in width.

T

Tithe: ten percent of one's material wealth

U

Unction: the sacrament of anointing and laying on of hands for the sick and those who are close to death

V

Vestry: the legal governing and decision-making body of a parish, consisting of the rector and elected lay representatives.
Vicar - One who acts in place of another. The pastor of a mission or a dependent parish is
styled the "vicar," because he acts in place of the bishop. In England, in former times, a
parish might have a nonresident rector (sometimes an institution, rather than a priest) who
appropriated the tithes of the parish and hired a vicar to fulfil the pastoral duties.

W

Warden: an elected member of the vestry of a parish who has special duties in addition the usual ones; see Junior Warden and Senior Warden