High Church

adjective

, (sometimes lowercase)

1. pertaining to the view or practice in the Anglican church that emphasizes the Catholic tradition, especially in adherence to sacraments, rituals, and obedience to church authority.

High Church

noun

1. the party or movement within the Church of England stressing continuity with Catholic Christendom, the authority of bishops, and the importance of sacraments, rituals, and ceremonies Compare Broad Church Low Church

adjective

1. of or relating to this party or movement

Derived Forms

• ˈHigh-ˈChurchman, noun

Other Words From

• High Churchman noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of High Church¹

First recorded in 1695–1705

Example Sentences

It was “no accident,” the young Professor Bloom wrote, “that the poets brought into favor by the New Criticism were Catholics or High Church Anglicans.”

From New York Times

The gray stone Stornoway High Church is where Trump’s mother and all nine of her siblings were baptized early in the last century.

From New York Times

After all, here they were, in a library — and a library, we were taught, was the High Church of “credible” authority.

From New York Times

Flush with the success of “The Dream of Gerontius,” he planned out a grand trilogy of oratorios, a heady brew of devout Wagnerism and High Church Anglicanism.

From New York Times

He is nostalgic and wistful, and his verse settles on the immutability of country lanes and thatched inns and of High Church Anglicanism.

From Washington Post