consistory

(kən sis′tə rē)

1. Obsolete a meeting place for a council or court
2. the meeting of a council
1. a church council or court, as the papal senate, a council of deacons, etc.
2. a session of such a body

Origin: ME consistorie < OFr < L consistorium, place of assembly, council < consistere: see consist

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See consistory in American Heritage Dictionary 4

noun pl. con·sis·to·ries

a. Roman Catholic Church An assembly of cardinals presided over by the pope for the solemn promulgation of papal acts, such as the canonization of a saint.
b. A governing body of a local congregation in certain Reformed churches.
c. A court appointed to regulate ecclesiastical affairs in Lutheran state churches.
d. An Anglican diocesan court presided over by a bishop's chancellor or commissary.
The meeting of a consistory.
A council; a tribunal.

Origin:

Origin: Middle English consistorie

Origin: , from Old French

Origin: , from Latin cōnsistōrium, place of assembly

Origin: , from cōnsistere, to stand together; see consist

Related Forms: