From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.44 [gcide]:
Acolyte \Ac'o*lyte\, noun [LL. acolythus, acoluthus, Gr. ? following, attending: cf. F. acolyte.]
1. (Eccl.) One who has received the highest of the four minor orders in the Catholic church, being ordained to carry the wine and water and the lights at the Mass.
2. One who attends; an assistant. ''With such chiefs, and with James and John as acolytes.'' --Motley.
From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.44 [gcide]:
altar boy \al"tar boy\, noun a boy who assists a priest at the clebration of the Holy Mass and other forms of public worship; -- also called {acolyte}. [PJC]
From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:
noun
1: someone who assists a priest or minister in a liturgical service; a cleric ordained in the highest of the minor orders in the Roman Catholic Church but not in the Anglican Church or the Eastern Orthodox Churches
From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0 [moby-thes]:
75 Moby Thesaurus words for "acolyte": Bible clerk, Bible reader, acolytus, adjutant, agent, aid, aide, aide-de-camp, aider, almoner, anagnost, assistant, attendant, auxiliary, beadle, bedral, best man, capitular, capitulary, choir chaplain, churchwarden, clerk, coadjutant, coadjutor, coadjutress, coadjutrix, deacon, deaconess, deputy, diaconus, doorkeeper, elder, elderman, executive officer, exorcist, exorcista, help, helper, helpmate, helpmeet, holy orders, lay elder, lay reader, lector, lecturer, lieutenant, major orders, minor orders, ostiarius, paranymph, paraprofessional, parish clerk, precentor, presbyter, priest, reader, ruling elder, sacrist, sacristan, second, servant, sexton, shames, sideman, sidesman, subdeacon, subdiaconus, succentor, suisse, supporting actor, supporting instrumentalist, teaching elder, thurifer, verger, vergeress
From Jargon File (4.3.1, 29 Jun 2001) [jargon]:
acolyte n. obs. [TMRC] An {OSU} privileged enough to submit data and programs to a member of the {priesthood}.
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