Sanctuary

7 definitions found

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

  Sanctuary \Sanc"tu*a*ry\, n.; pl. {Sanctuaries}. [OE.
     seintuarie, OF. saintuaire, F. sanctuaire, fr. L.
     sanctuarium, from sanctus sacred, holy. See {Saint}.]
     A sacred place; a consecrated spot; a holy and inviolable
     site. Hence, specifically:
     (a) The most retired part of the temple at Jerusalem, called


         the Holy of Holies, in which was kept the ark of the
         covenant, and into which no person was permitted to enter
         except the high priest, and he only once a year, to
         intercede for the people; also, the most sacred part of
         the tabernacle; also, the temple at Jerusalem.
     (b) (Arch.) The most sacred part of any religious building,
         esp. that part of a Christian church in which the altar
         is placed.
     (c) A house consecrated to the worship of God; a place where
         divine service is performed; a church, temple, or other
         place of worship.
     (d) A sacred and inviolable asylum; a place of refuge and
         protection; shelter; refuge; protection.
         [1913 Webster]
  
               These laws, whoever made them, bestowed on temples
               the privilege of sanctuary.          --Milton.
         [1913 Webster]
  
               The admirable works of painting were made fuel for
               the fire; but some relics of it took sanctuary
               under ground, and escaped the common destiny.
                                                    --Dryden.
         [1913 Webster]
         [1913 Webster]

From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:

  sanctuary
       n 1: a consecrated place where sacred objects are kept
       2: a shelter from danger or hardship [syn: {refuge}, {asylum}]
       3: area around the altar of a church for the clergy and choir;
          often enclosed by a lattice or railing [syn: {chancel}, {bema}]

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

  80 Moby Thesaurus words for "sanctuary":
     Indian reservation, adytum, archives, asylum, bank, bird sanctuary,
     bolt-hole, cache, chapel, church, concealment, corner, cover,
     covert, coverture, cranny, cubby, cubbyhole, dark corner, den,
     dugout, forest preserve, foxhole, funk hole, game preserve,
     game reserve, game sanctuary, harbor, harbor of refuge, harborage,
     haven, hideaway, hideout, hidey hole, hiding, hiding place, hole,
     holy of holies, holy place, house of God, house of worship, lair,
     library, mosque, museum, national forest, national park, niche,
     nook, oasis, pagoda, paradise, park, port, preserve, protection,
     recess, refuge, reservation, reserve, retreat, sacrarium,
     safe haven, safehold, safety, sanctum, sanctum sanctorum,
     secret place, shelter, shrine, snug harbor, stash, state forest,
     store, stronghold, synagogue, temple, undercovert,
     wilderness preserve, wildlife preserve
  
  

From Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary [easton]:

  Sanctuary
     denotes, (1) the Holy Land (Ex. 15:17; comp. Ps. 114:2); (2) the
     temple (1 Chr. 22:19; 2 Chr. 29:21); (3) the tabernacle (Ex.
     25:8; Lev. 12:4; 21:12); (4) the holy place, the place of the
     Presence (Gr. hieron, the temple-house; not the _naos_, which is
     the temple area, with its courts and porches), Lev. 4:6; Eph.
     2:21, R.V., marg.; (5) God's holy habitation in heaven (Ps.
     102:19). In the final state there is properly "no sanctuary"
     (Rev. 21:22), for God and the Lamb "are the sanctuary" (R.V.,
     "temple"). All is there hallowed by the Divine Presence; all is
     sancturary.
     

From Bouvier's Law Dictionary, Revised 6th Ed (1856) [bouvier]:

  SANCTUARY. A place of refuge, where the process of the law cannot be 
  executed. 
       2. Sanctuaries may be divided into religious and civil. The former were 
  very common in Europe; religious houses affording protection from arrest to 
  all persons, whether accused of crime, or pursued for debt. This kind was 
  never known in the United States. 
       3. Civil sanctuary, or that protection which is afforded to a man by 
  his own house, was always respected in this country. The house protects the 
  owner from the service of all civil process in the first instance but not if 
  he is once lawfully arrested and takes refuge in his own house. Vide Door; 
  House. 
       4. No place affords protection from arrest in criminal cases; a man 
  may, therefore, be arrested in his own house in such cases, and the doors 
  may be broken for the purpose of making the arrest. Vide Arrest in criminal 
  cases. 
  
  

From U.S. Gazetteer (1990) [gazetteer]:

  Sanctuary, TX (town, FIPS 65066)
    Location: 32.90870 N, 97.58391 W
    Population (1990): 234 (88 housing units)
    Area: 0.7 sq km (land), 0.0 sq km (water)

From U.S. Gazetteer Places (2000) [gaz-place]:

  Sanctuary, TX -- U.S. town in Texas
     Population (2000):    256
     Housing Units (2000): 111
     Land area (2000):     0.263664 sq. miles (0.682887 sq. km)
     Water area (2000):    0.000000 sq. miles (0.000000 sq. km)
     Total area (2000):    0.263664 sq. miles (0.682887 sq. km)
     FIPS code:            65066
     Located within:       Texas (TX), FIPS 48
     Location:             32.908822 N, 97.584209 W
     ZIP Codes (1990):    
     Note: some ZIP codes may be omitted esp. for suburbs.
     Headwords:
      Sanctuary, TX
      Sanctuary