From The Holy Mountain (74 page)

GLOSSARY

Agah: Kurdish chieftain or commander. A term of respect. (Pronounced Aah)

Amir:
(lit. 'rich') Muslim nobleman or commander.
Apophthegmata:
(or Apophthegmata Patrum), a collection of sayings of the desert fathers.

Archimandrite:
Abbot of an Orthodox monastery or the superior of a group of monasteries.

Arianism:
An early Christian heresy, named after Arius of Alexandria (c.
250-336
a.d
.), which denied the true divinity of Christ. Arianism became popular in parts of the early medieval West, notably in Visigothic Spain. When Islam first erupted from Arabia, many early Byzantine theologians, including St John of Damascus, believed that the new faith was merely an exotic strain of Arianism.

Assyrian Christians:
Name given to members of the East Syrian or Nestorian Church (q.v.). The name derives from the mistaken belief of early Anglican missionaries that the Nestorians were descendants of the ancient Assyrians,
azan:
The Muslim call to prayer.

Ba'ath Party:
Arab nationalist party, founded by the Michel Aflaq, a Syrian Christian. Different (and mutually hostile) incarnations of the Ba'ath Party are currently in power in both Syria and Iraq,
bema:
The elevated platform at the front of a synagogue; also the sanctuary of an Eastern Christian church.

burka:
Muslim women's body covering. Generally refers to something

more substantial and voluminous than a simple headscarf.

chador:
(lit. 'sheet') Muslim women's veil. Can involve anything from

a headscarf to a fully-fledged tent. Similar to
hijab
(q.v.) and
burka

(q.v.).

chi-rho:
The monogram of Christ, made up of the two Greek letters
chi
and
rho.
Probably introduced by Constantine the Great after his vision before the battle of the Milvian Bridge
(312
a.d.).
chrysobul:
An Imperial Byzantine letter or diploma granting privileges.

Named after the golden seal of the Emperor with which such an ordinance was impressed.

coenobitic:
The centralised form of Byzantine monasticism, involving a communal life for the monks under the rule of an Abbot, as opposed to the decentralised, idiorrhythmic system, where a group of hermits would live largely independent lives, subject only to the vague strictures of a committee (the
epitropeia),
and meeting only once a week for the Divine Liturgy on Sundays. While a form of idiorrhythmic monasticism was the norm among Celtic monks, it was the coenobitic model that really took off in the West, and almost all modern Western monasteries are coenobitic.

Copt:
A native Egyptian Christian. The Coptic Church broke off from the Orthodox mainstream after rejecting the theological decisions of the Council of Chalcedon
(451
a.d
.). Its Orthodox enemies accused it of indulging in the Monophysite heresy (q.v.), something modern Copts deny.

diamonitirion:
The monastic passport necessary to enter and stay upon Mount Athos.

djinn:
According to Islamic tradition, a djinn is an invisible spirit, composed of flame, often (though not necessarily always) mischievous,

dormition:
In Eastern Christian Churches, the Falling Asleep
(dormitio)
of the Blessed Virgin. Corresponds to the Assumption in the West,

dunum:
Traditional Palestinian unit of land measurement.  One dunum =
919
square metres,
1/11
of a hectare or
0.23
acres,
exo-narthex:
The outer narthex or porch of an Orthodox church,
fellahin:
Egyptian peasant farmers. Plural of
fellah.

flabella:
Ceremonial liturgical fan. Now usually a stave topped with a metal disk decorated with images of angels. In some cases small bells can be attached to the disk, in which case the flabella is shaken during the most solemn parts of the liturgy to symbolise the participation of the angels. Flabellae were common in Anglo-Saxon England and Celtic Ireland, but died out in the West before the Norman Conquest. Their use has continued only in the Eastern Churches,

gavour:
Infidel.

gelabiya:
Long Arab gown. Alternative rendering of
jellaba
(q.v.).
Gema'a al-Islamiyya:
(lit. 'The Islamic Party' in Arabic) Fundamentalist Muslim guerrilla organisation fighting to turn Egypt into an Islamic Republic. Operates mainly in Upper Egypt and the poorer Cairo suburbs.

Gnostics:
Late antique heretics claiming knowledge of hidden spiritual

mysteries. Christian gnosticism had its roots in trends of thought already present in esoteric pagan religious circles. Gnosticism took many different forms, but the most popular Gnostic sects were those that followed the teachings of Valentius, Bardaisan and Marcion.

grimoire:
A book of spells.

Haganah:
(lit. 'defence' in Hebrew) Left-wing Jewish paramilitary organisation operating illegally in British Mandate Palestine from
1920
onwards. Came out into the open in
1948
as the principal Zionist army fighting for the creation of Israel. As well as winning a remarkable victory against the different Arab armies which invaded Palestine on the British departure, the Haganah was responsible for formulating and carrying out 'Plan Dalet', which led to the expulsion of most of the Palestinian population from their ancestral homes and villages.

Haredim:
Ultra-Orthodox Jews.

Hegumenos:
Archimandrite (q.v.) or Abbot of a coenobitic (q.v.) Orthodox monastery.

Hezbollah:
(lit. 'The
Party
of God') Militant Islamist organisation. Most notorious as the Iranian-backed terrorist outfit responsible for kidnapping the Western hostages and masterminding the hit-and-run guerrilla operations against the Israeli occupation forces in the south of Lebanon. But it is also now a registered democratic party representing the Shia community in the Lebanese parliament, and runs widespread humanitarian and educational projects alongside its paramilitary activities,

hijab:
Muslim women's veil or body covering. Same as
chador
(q.v.).

hypocaust:
Roman (and Byzantine) under-floor heating system,
iconoclasm:
The period of Byzantine history, from
725
to
842
a.d.,
when the veneration of icons was outlawed and all sacred images were ordered to be destroyed.

iconoclast:
One who destroys images and icons. An opponent of icono-dules (q.v.).

iconodule:
Worshipper of images. An opponent of iconoclasts (q.v.).
iconostasis:
The screen separating the chancel from the main area of a Byzantine church. Corresponds to the English rood-screen, except that the Byzantine version is almost always decorated with a number of icons,

inshallah:
God willing (in Arabic).

intifada:
The popular Palestinian uprising against the Israeli occupation of the West Bank and Gaza Strip,

irhebi:
Terrorist (in Arabic).

jellaba:
Long Arab gown. Alternative rendering of
gelabiya
(q.v.).

katholikon:
The principal church of an Orthodox monastery,
keffiyeh:
Checkered Arab headscarf. Particularly associated with the Palestinians.

khatchkar:
An intricately carved Armenian cross-slab,

kibbutz:
An Israeli collective, usually (though now not always) agriculturally based.

Kyrie:
(lit. 'Lord' in Greek) The petition ('Lord have mercy') at the beginning of the Divine Liturgy in the Eastern and Roman Churches,

lavra:
(sometimes also spelled
laura)
Today
lavra
is a title that can be given to any large Orthodox monastery, but originally it referred specifically to those organised on the idiorrhythmic method: a collection of detached monks' cells clustered around a monastic church. The monks would generally meet only once a week when they would celebrate the Sunday liturgy together; otherwise they lived as semi-independent hermits.

limitanei:
Byzantine border troops.

loukoumi:
A sticky rosewater confection beloved of Orthodox monks. The Greek version of Turkish Delight.

Magister Militum:
Byzantine provincial military governor.
Malfono:
Teacher (in Turoyo).

Maronite:
An Eastern Christian Church, originally based in Syria, though for many centuries located mainly in Lebanon. The Maronites look to an obscure fourth-century Syrian hermit, St Maron, as their founder. Although it seems certain that the Maronites once subscribed the Monothelite heresy (q.v.), they have been in full communion with Rome since the Crusader period, and today their Patriarch has the rank of Cardinal; but they still use the ancient Antiochene rites,

masjid:
Mosque,

medresse:
An Islamic college.

mihrab:
Prayer niche in mosques, indicating the direction of Mecca,
minyan:
The minimum quorum of adult males without which Jews may not celebrate the more solemn prayers and rituals in a synagogue,

misericord:
Projecting ledge on the hinged seat of a Western choirstall serving as a support to a standing singer. They are often beautifully carved and decorated.

Monophysite:
(lit. 'one nature') The belief that there is only one divine nature in the person of Christ, as opposed to the Orthodox position that Christ has a double nature, at once human and divine. Monophysi-tism was declared heretical at the Council of Chalcedon
(451
a . d
.), after which the Coptic, Syrian and Armenian Churches all separated from the rest of the Christian community. Today all these Churches regard the term Monophysite as pejorative, and claim it represents a misunderstanding of their theology.

Monothelite:
A compromise definition of the nature of Christ suggested by the Emperor Heraclius in
638
a.d
., in an attempt to end the split between Orthodox and Monophysites which was then threatening to break apart the Empire. The definition maintains that Christ has one divine energy and one will. Rejected out of hand by all the parties it was trying to reconcile, the only sect to subscribe to the doctrine were the unfortunate Maronites, who thus came to be regarded as heretics by both the Monophysites and the Orthodox. Persecuted accordingly, the Maronites fled to the heights of Mount Lebanon, where they still remain.

moshav:
A small collective farm in Israel.

muezzin:
Muslim prayer leader. In the old days used to chant the
azan
(q.v.) from the minaret five times a day, but a bit of an endangered species since the advent of the cassette recorder.
Mukhabarat:
Secret police (in Arab countries).

Mukhtar:
(lit. 'the man chosen' in Arabic) Village headman,
narthex:
Railed-off western portico or antechamber to the main body of an Orthodox church, for the use of women, penitents and catechumens.

Nestorian:
An adherent to the doctrines of Nestorius, Patriarch of Constantinople in
428
a . d
., who asserted that Christ had two quite distinct divine and human persons, as opposed to the Orthodox position that the incarnate Christ was a single person, at once God and man. Nestor-ianism was characterised by the rejection of the term
Theotokos
(q.v.). Nestorius was expelled from the Orthodox Church at the Council of Ephesus
(431
a.d
.)
and his followers declared heretics. Modern Nestori-ans revere the memory of Nestorius but deny that their Church was founded by him, claiming instead that their traditions go back to the apostle Addai who led a mission to Edessa and the Persian Empire soon after Christ's death. They therefore prefer to be known as the Church of the East, the Assyrian Church or the East Syrian Church. Once a major religious force in Asia, with churches dotting the Silk Route from Eastern Turkey to China, the Nestorian Church is now small and internally divided. It is based mainly in Iraq, where its adherents suffer from persecution, although refugees have spread the faith to Syria, India, England, Australia and the US.

nomisma:
A Byzantine unit of currency, roughly equivalent to ten pence.

Panaghia:
(lit. 'the All-Holy' in Greek) Orthodox honorific for the Virgin Mary.

Pantocrator:
(lit. 'All Mighty' in Greek) The image or icon of Jesus ruling as Christ the King, generally placed in the apse or dome of an Orthodox church.

Sassanian:
(or Sassanid) The dynasty which ruled the Persian Empire from
211
to
651
a . d
. In the early seventh century the Sassanians invaded and occupied most of the Byzantine Levant, sacking Antioch, Jerusalem and Alexandria, until being driven back and defeated by the Byzantine Emperor Heradius in
651
a.d.
servis:
A shared taxi in Arab countries.

shabab:
(lit. 'young men' in Arabic) Now generally used in the English-language press to refer to the young stone-throwers of the Palestinian
intifada
(q.v.).