religious offering

6.7

To bring bread and wine to the altar during a Christian service

noun
/rɪˈlɪdʒəs ˈɔfərɪŋ/

Specialized

: ofrenda religiosa

Before the celebration began, the priest blessed the religious offerings that were prepared for the Eucharist.

Examples

In many churches, it is customary to prepare religious offerings of bread and wine as part of the communion ritual.
The special sanctity of this site arises from the fact that its caves shelter more than 8,000 Buddha statues, which devotees have placed there as religious offerings since the 16th century.

Academic text (2003)
During the Sunday service, the congregation presented religious offerings of bread and wine at the altar.

Synonyms

oblation

vsreligious offering

Formal

1 9.9

An offering of bread and wine at the altar during a church service

is the act of presenting without stressing sacrifice or gift

offertory

vsreligious offering

Literature

1 9.8

Part of a church service when bread and wine are brought to the altar

is the specific act of presenting bread and wine rather than the whole service

How Sacred

sacrament

46 9.5

consecration

Formal

5 8.7

religious offering

Specialized

6.7

donation

359 1.9

Surface Forms

religious offering singular

religious offerings plural

Morphology

religious + offer

A B1 learner who knows 'religious' and 'offer/ offering' can readily infer this refers to an offering made in a religious context, so the basic compositional meaning is clear. However, the specific ritual sense given (presenting bread and wine at the Eucharist) is culturally specific and not fully predictable from the constituents, making the expression only partially transparent.

Etymology

Religious offering comes from the old practice of bringing a gift to the altar, when people or the priest would carry bread and wine forward as a sign of giving to God. So today religious offering means the act of 'presenting' those bread and wine during Communion.