Apedia

Altar God Raised Gifts Sacrifices Offerings Place Latin

Front altar
Pron ['ɔːltər]
Back 【altar】
n. 神坛
The woman knelt before the altar to pray to God for her son's safe return.
那妇人跪在神坛前面,祈求上苍保佑她的儿子能平安归来。
Vocab
altara raised structure on which gifts or sacrifices to a god are made

An altar is a raised area in a house of worship where people can honor God with offerings. It is prominent in the Bible as "God's table," a sacred place for sacrifices and gifts offered up to God.

The word altar comes from the Latin altārium, meaning "high," and also to the Latin adolere, which means "to ritually burn or sacrifice," which suggests its early purpose as detailed in the Bible. Nowadays, the altar is the place for non-sacrificial religious rites such as communion or weddings, and is a metaphor for offerings. Comedian Stephen Fry once said, “I am a lover of truth, a worshipper of freedom, a celebrant at the altar of language and purity and tolerance.”

All forms of 'altar' will appear on average once every 215 pages.
altar

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