purIfication, purificacioun

[Fr. purification, from Lat. purificationem, acc us. of purificatio, from purifico to purify (q.v.); Sp. purificacion; Ital. pur if i caz i one.] 1. The act of purifying or making pure; the act or operation of freeing from extraneous or super fluous matter. "A very feeble instrument of purification ."- Macaulay : Hist . Eng ., ch. ii. 2. The act or proce of purifying ceremonially by removing pollution or defilement; lustration. There were various ceremonial cleansings under the Mosaic law. (For purification after childbirth see Levitic us xii.) 3. A cleansing from guilt or the pollution of sin; the extinction of sinful desires or appetites. Feast of the Purification : [CANDLE MAS.] pür-i-fi-ca-tive, a . [Lat. pur if i cat us , pa. par. of purifico to purify (q. v.); Fr. pur if i cat if .] Hav. ing the power or quality of purifying; purificatory. pür-I-fi-ca-tõr, s . [Lat. pur if i cat us , pa. par. of purifico to purify (q. v.).] One who or that which purifies; a purifier. pür-i-fi-ca-tor-y, a. [As if from a Lat. puri ficatorius.] The same as PURIFICATIVE (q. v.). pür-i-fi-er, s . [Eng. purify : -er.] One who or that which purifies or makes pure; a cleanser, a refiner. ( Malachi iii. 3.) pür-I-form, a. [Lat. pus (gen it. puris)=pus, and form a form.] Med.: In the form of pus; like pus. pür'-1-fy, *pur-1-fie, v . t . & i . [French purifier , from Lat. purifico =to make pure: pur us pure, and facio to make; Sp. & Port. purificar ; Ital. puri ficare .] A. Transitive : 1. To make pure or clear; to free from admixture of foreign or superfluous matter; as, to purify gold or water. 2. To free from pollution ceremonially; to cleanse from all that defiles or pollutes. 3. To free from the pollution of guilt or sin; to purge from that which is sinful, vile, or base. "Faith is a great purger and purifier of the soul; puri fying your hearts by faith."- Bp . Taylor: Sermons, vol. iii., ser. 3. 4. To free or clear from improprieties, corruptions, or barbarisms; as, to purify a language. B. In trans.: To grow or become pure or clear. Pûr'-im, s. [Heb. purim =lots.] The Festival of Lots, which was instituted by Mordecai (Esther ix. 27-x. 3), and is celebrated to this day by the Jews on the 14th and 15th of the month Adar (March), in commemoration of their wonderful deliverance from the destruction with which they were threat ened by Haman. On these festive days the book of IMG:content-1744.png:[blocks in formation] 2. One who has severely strict notions as to what is proper, or who is strict in his religious duties. B. As adj .: Pertaining to the Puritans or di enters from the Church of England; as, puritan principles.