What does liturgical mean?
Liturgical is an adjective meaning connected with liturgy: the established form or order of public religious worship. It commonly describes the calendar, books, music, vestments, colors, and other elements that regulate a church's worship or reflect the structure of the liturgical year. The word is especially associated with Christian traditions, including Roman Catholic, Orthodox, Anglican, and Lutheran churches, but it can also be used more broadly when discussing the ritual practices of other religions. In ordinary discussion, “liturgical music” means music performed as part of formal worship, while a “liturgical calendar” organizes observances by the church year. Liturgical should not be confused with litigious, which describes an inclination to argue or bring legal disputes. Although the word ultimately evokes solemnity, order, and prescribed ceremony, it also has an older and less common sense of contributing to the spiritual formation of a community.
adjectiveRelating to or characteristic of liturgy, especially the prescribed forms of public worship used in a religious tradition. It may also describe books, music, calendars, or other elements associated with formal worship.
- Relating to or characteristic of liturgy or the prescribed forms of public religious worship.
"The cathedral's reverent acoustics were designed to enhance its liturgical music."
"The priest followed the liturgical calendar when planning the year's services."
"Scholars compared the early Christian community with its Jewish liturgical traditions."
The word that now means worship began with an ancient Greek idea of public service: religion literally entered English as “public work.”
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does liturgical come from?
The adjective comes through Medieval Latin from the Greek word leitourgia, meaning “public service” or “public work.” Greek leitourgos was originally a citizen who performed public service or paid a public duty, and the term was later applied to religious worship. The English ecclesiastical sense developed from that history, with “liturgy” acquiring its modern association with prescribed forms of worship.
Related word forms
How liturgical is actually used
The term is chiefly used in connection with formal Christian worship, although it can apply more broadly to the prescribed ritual of another religion. It is formal and descriptive rather than commonly derogatory.
Easily confused with liturgical
Liturgical concerns prescribed religious worship, whereas litigious describes people or conduct inclined to dispute or litigate.