bema

American  

[bee-muh] / ˈbi mə /

noun

plural

bemata, bemas

1. Eastern Church. the enclosed space surrounding the altar; the sanctuary or chancel.

2. (in a Christian basilica) an open space between the end of the nave arcade and the apse.

3. bimah.

4. a platform for public speaking.

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bema British  

/ ˈbiːmə /

noun

1. the speaker's platform in the assembly in ancient Athens

2. Eastern Orthodox Church a raised area surrounding the altar in a church; the sanctuary

3. Judaism another word for almemar

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Etymology

Origin of bema

1675–85; < Greek bêma step, platform, equivalent to bē- (verbid stem of baínein to step, go; see come) + -ma (noun suffix denoting result of action)

Example Sentences

The apsidal chambers, usual in a church, are here represented by two niches in the bema.

From Byzantine Churches in Constantinople Their History and Architecture by Van Millingen, Alexander

When Demosthenes ended and came down from the bema, the Assembly drew a long breath, and instantly each man fell to discussing with his neighbor what was best to be decided.

From The Golden Hope A Story of the Time of King Alexander the Great by Fuller, Robert H.

Parabema, par-a-bē′ma, n. in Byzantine ecclesiastical architecture, the chapel of the prothesis or the diaconicon, or sacristy, where divided by walls from the bema or sanctuary:—pl.

From Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 3 of 4: N-R) by Various

Under the bema the Russian explorers discovered a small cruciform crypt.

From Byzantine Churches in Constantinople Their History and Architecture by Van Millingen, Alexander

Across the eastern side of the central square was a screen which divided off the bema, where the altar was situated, from the body of the church; this screen, bearing images, is the iconastasis.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 4, Part 4 "Bulgaria" to "Calgary" by Various