Purification

4 definitions found

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Purification \Pu`ri*fi*ca"tion\, n. [F. purification, L.
     purificatio. See {Purify}.]
     1. The act of purifying; the act or operation of separating
        and removing from anything that which is impure or
        noxious, or heterogeneous or foreign to it; as, the
        purification of liquors, or of metals.


        [1913 Webster]
  
     2. The act or operation of cleansing ceremonially, by
        removing any pollution or defilement.
        [1913 Webster]
  
              When the days of her purification according to the
              law of Moses were accomplished.       --Luke ii. 22.
        [1913 Webster]
  
     3. A cleansing from guilt or the pollution of sin; the
        extinction of sinful desires, appetites, and inclinations.
        [1913 Webster]

From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:

  purification
       n 1: the act of cleaning by getting rid of impurities
       2: the process of removing impurities (as from oil or metals or
          sugar etc.) [syn: {refining}, {refinement}]
       3: a ceremonial cleansing from defilement or uncleanness by the
          performance of appropriate rites [syn: {purgation}]
       4: the act of purging of sin or guilt; moral or spiritual
          cleansing; "purification through repentance"

From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0 [moby-thes]:

  96 Moby Thesaurus words for "purification":
     ablation, abrasion, absolution, abstersion, abstraction, atonement,
     beatification, beatitude, blessedness, blessing, bolting,
     bowdlerization, canonization, catharsis, clarification, cleaning,
     cleansing, colature, concentrate, concentration, consecration,
     decoction, dedication, deduction, destructive distillation,
     detersion, devotion, disentanglement, disinvolvement, distillate,
     distillation, dry cleaning, edulcoration, elixir, elution,
     elutriation, enshrinement, erosion, essence, essentialization,
     exaltation, expiation, expurgation, extract, extraction, filtering,
     filtration, forgiveness, glorification, grace, hallowing, infusion,
     justification, justification by works, leaching, lixiviation,
     lustration, narrowing, percolation, purgation, purge, purging,
     quintessence, rebirth, redemption, refinement, regeneration,
     removal, riddling, sainthood, sainting, salvation, sanctification,
     screening, separation, setting apart, sieving, sifting,
     simplification, spirit, spiritualization, state of grace,
     steam cleaning, straining, streamlining, stripping, stripping down,
     subduction, sublation, sublimation, subtraction, taking away,
     uncluttering, unscrambling, unsnarling, winnowing
  
  

From Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary [easton]:

  Purification
     the process by which a person unclean, according to the
     Levitical law, and thereby cut off from the sanctuary and the
     festivals, was restored to the enjoyment of all these
     privileges.
     
       The great annual purification of the people was on the Day of
     Atonement (q.v.).
     
       But in the details of daily life there were special causes of
     cermonial uncleanness which were severally provided for by
     ceremonial laws enacted for each separate case. For example, the
     case of the leper (Lev. 13, 14), and of the house defiled by
     leprosy (14:49-53; see also Matt. 8:2-4). Uncleanness from
     touching a dead body (Num. 19:11; Hos. 9:4; Hag. 2:13; Matt.
     23:27; Luke 11:44). The case of the high priest and of the
     Nazarite (Lev. 21:1-4, 10, 11; Num. 6:6, 7; Ezek. 44:25).
     Purification was effected by bathing and washing the clothes
     (Lev. 14:8, 9); by washing the hands (Deut. 21:6; Matt. 27:24);
     washing the hands and feet (Ex. 30:18-21; Heb. 6:2, "baptisms",
     R.V. marg., "washings;" 9:10); sprinkling with blood and water
     (Ex. 24:5-8; Heb. 9:19), etc. Allusions to this rite are found
     in Ps. 26:6; 51:7; Ezek. 36:25; Heb. 10:22.