TABERNACLE

[Dr. Goodword]

• tabernacle •

Pronunciation: tæ-bêr-næ-kêl • Hear it!

Part of Speech: Noun

Meaning: 1. A moveable dwelling or booth, a tent, a hut or lean-to. 2. (Tabernacle) A sacred moveable structure (tent) in which the Israelites transported the Ark of the Covenant out of Egypt. 3. (Tabernacle) A container or niche in a church or temple that holds holy objects, relics, or the Sacraments of the Eucharist. 4. A large church, a cathedral or temple.

Notes: Today's Good Word is another word most of us have the wrong idea about, probably because its meanings range wildly from the pedestrian to the sublime. Following the definitions above, you can see how it began referring to a tent, then came mean the tent of the Ark of the Covenant, from there it came to mean the location of things holy, from there to a permanent temple and, finally, to a cathedral. The Jewish Feast of Tabernacles celebrates the Israelites' life in tents during their 40 years in the wilderness. You have your choice of adjectives: tabernaculous or tabernacular.

In Play: It may be too late to resurrect the original meaning of today's word but, since it remains in all dictionaries, let's at least keep it in mind: "Perhaps I should have said, 'Bring only what will fit in your tent' rather than 'what will fit in your tabernacle'." Today the most famous tabernacle is the Mormon Tabernacle, whose fame rests on its excellent choir. However, in The Scot Abroad, John Burton wrote as late a 1864: "Some of them...would as soon have sought Kamschatka, as a place wherein to pitch their tabernacle and pursue their fortune."

Word History: Today's Good Word was copied rather transparently from Latin tabernaculum "tent", a diminutive of taberna "hut". English also borrowed the descendant of taberna from Old French as tavern. The original root was trob-/treb- "dwelling". This root came to English as throp and, with metathesis, thorp " village, hamlet" and is found today only in names like Winthrop and Oglethorp. The German and Dutch derivatives, Dorf and dorp, both of which mean "village", are still quite current.

[sluggo]

Eons ago I worked with a guy who insisted that there's a vulgarity used in Québec employing this word or a version hereof. I never got down exactly what the phrase was. Anyone know?

[Perry]

With them, who knows what the expression would be. They have expressions like, J'ai mon voyage (I don't care) and J'ai mon balance (I'm mad). I may have reversed the translations. I learned these expressions from a third-party in another life.

Anyway, you get the idea.

[Stargzer]

Eons ago I worked with a guy who insisted that there's a vulgarity used in Québec employing this word or a version hereof. I never got down exactly what the phrase was. Anyone know?

From the little I know of Québec French, swearing involves a sort of sacreligious use of Roman Catholic religious words as opposed to the four-letter expletives of sexual or excretory nature used in good old-fashioned American swearing. An example might be "Calice de la Hostie" or "Chalice of the Host." So I can see where Tabernacle (also Tabernacle in French) would come into play here, e. g., "Tabernacle de la calice de la hostie." In Roman Catholocism, the Tabernacle is where consecrated Hosts are stored. The Tabernacle used to be on the altar, but after Vatican II, when the altar was turned around so the priest faced the congregation when celebrating Mass, the Tabernacle was moved.

See this Wikipedia article.

See also these entries in Québecois section of The Alternative Dictionaries:

calisse † Damn... (Religion) note It is better used by saying calisse de crisse de tabarnak d'ostie de ciboire de testament.

tabarnaque/tabarnak! (interjection) † Goddam it! note [ta'barnak] Literally, the Tabernacle, the place where the Eucharist is kept in a Roman Catholic church.

[engineer27]

• tabernacle •

2.(Tabernacle) A sacred moveable structure (tent) in which the Israelites transported the Ark of the Covenant out of Egypt.

Not exactly true, of course, since the Tablets of the Covenant were received at Mt. Sinai after they left Egypt, and the Tabernacle was constructed after that.

[Perry]

What they did carry out of Egypt, with all ceremony and solemnity, were the bones of Joseph. Perhaps this is what led some people to erroneously think that the ark of the covenant was the object in question.

[engineer27]

What they did carry out of Egypt, with all ceremony and solemnity, were the bones of Joseph. Perhaps this is what led some people to erroneously think that the ark of the covenant was the object in question.

I suppose that assumes most people get their working knowledge of scripture from Hollywood.

[sluggo]

What they did carry out of Egypt, with all ceremony and solemnity, were the bones of Joseph. Perhaps this is what led some people to erroneously think that the ark of the covenant was the object in question.

I suppose that assumes most people get their working knowledge of scripture from Hollywood.

For that matter, most people get their working knowledge of everything from television. There's a scary thought.

[Bailey]

you mean I can't rely on my vast knowledge of Indiana Jones?

mark this-IS-a-bad-day Bailey

[Perry]

you mean I can't rely on my vast knowledge of Indiana Jones?

mark this-IS-a-bad-day Bailey

Since you have this vast knowledge, explain the eyeball soup served in monkey skulls.

[Bailey]

you mean I can't rely on my vast knowledge of Indiana Jones?

mark this-IS-a-bad-day Bailey

Since you have this vast knowledge, explain the eyeball soup served in monkey skulls.

well maybe it's just half-vast knowledge.

mark was-referring-to-the-aotC-movie

Some cultures like eyeballs, Philipinos for one, like fish eyeballs but are repulsed by the Turk's love of baked Sheep head's complete with orbs. I think the monkey eyeball soup, [In India wasn't it? ] was pure Hollyweird.

[Palewriter]

you mean I can't rely on my vast knowledge of Indiana Jones?

mark this-IS-a-bad-day Bailey

Since you have this vast knowledge, explain the eyeball soup served in monkey skulls.

well maybe it's just half-vast knowledge.

mark was-referring-to-the-aotC-movie

Some cultures like eyeballs, Philipinos for one, like fish eyeballs but are repulsed by the Turk's love of baked Sheep head's complete with orbs. I think the monkey eyeball soup, [In India wasn't it? ] was pure Hollyweird.

Which reminds me of an old joke:

"Butcher...I'll take a nice sheep's head for Sunday dinner, and please leave the eyeballs in to see us through the week."

-- PW

[Bailey]

oh, well there goes dinner.

mark no-missed-meal-colic-here Bailey