💰 A church briber 💰 Related to church bribery

simoniac

1 9.9

A person who buys or sells church jobs and holy things for money

noun
/ˈsɪməˌnɪk/

Formal

: simoníaco

In a scandal that shocked the community, the bishop was labeled a simoniac for selling church positions to the highest bidder.

Examples

He is thus marked as a simoniac, a fraudulent father" (47).

Academic text (1991)
But then I remembered that it had died of paralysis, and I felt that I too was smiling feebly as if to absolve the simoniac of his sin.

Academic text (1991)
As soon as "paralysis" is mentioned, however, simony is evoked, and the face, "it," reverts again into a human being: "the simoniac of his sin" (D 11; my emphasis).

Academic text (1991)
The priest warned against becoming a simoniac, noting that such actions could lead to severe consequences in the eyes of the congregation.
Many viewed the former cleric as a simoniac after he openly accepted money for granting pardons.

Surface Forms

simoniac singular

simoniacs plural

Morphology

simoniac = simony (transparent) = simony + iac

The noun denotes a person characterized by simony and is clearly formed from 'simony' with the suffix '-iac' (agentive/relational reading).

Etymology

A simoniac comes from the name Simon, the Bible figure who tried to 'buy' spiritual power, and his name became the idea of simony. So a simoniac is a person who buys or sells church offices or sacred things for personal gain.