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Rite

Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature

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Dictionaries
American Church Dictionary
• Rites and Ceremonies
Charles Buck Dictionary
• Rite
• Funeral, Rites
1910 New Catholic Dictionary
• Toletan Rite
• Sarum Rite
• Ruthenian Rite
•   (only first 3 shown)
Webster Dictionary
• Scotch Rite
• Rite
• York Rite
Watson's Theological Dictionary
• Funeral Rites
Encyclopedias
1911 Encyclopedia Britannica
• Builders' Rites
• Funeral Rites
McClintock and Strong's Bible Encyclopedia
• Gregorian Chant, Rite, Liturgy.
• Rite
• Rites of Baptism.
•   (only first 3 shown)
The Catholic Encyclopedia
• Ambrosian Liturgy and Rite
• Aquileian Rite
• Durham Rite
•   (only first 3 shown)
The Jewish Encyclopedia
• Confirmation, the Rite of
• Funeral Rites
• Rites
Lexicons
• חֻקָּה
• עֲבֹדָה

(Lat. ritus) is, in general, an external sign or action employed in religious services, and designed either to express or to incite a corresponding internal religious feeling. Such are, for instance, the uplifting or outstretchting of the hands in prayer, the imposition of hands, etc. The name rite is sometimes used to signify the aggregate of all the ceremonies used in a particular religious office, as a "rite of baptism" or of the eucharist. In a still wider sense, it is used of the whole body of distinctive ceremonial, including the liturgy employed by a particular community of Christians. In this way we speak of the "Roman rite," the "Greek rite," or the "Slavonic rite." (See CEREMONY).