Sermon
A
sermon is an oration by a prophet or member of the clergy. Sermons address a Biblical, theological, religious, or moral topic, usually expounding on a type of belief, law or behavior within both past and present contexts. Elements of preaching include exposition, exhortation and practical application. In Christianity, a sermon is often delivered in a place of worship, most of which have a pulpit or ambo, an elevated architectural feature. The word "sermon" comes from a Middle English word which was derived from an Old French term, which in turn came from the Latin word
sermō;. Some link the word to the Latin word serere, which means 'to join together', but this is a minority opinion. The word can mean "conversation", which could mean that early sermons were delivered in the form of question and answer, and that only later did it come to mean a monologue. However, this is contradicted by all the examples from the Bible, where sermons are speeches without interlocution: Moses' sermon in Deuteronomy 1-33; Jesus' sermon on the mount in Matthew 5-7; Peter's sermon after Pentecost in Acts 2:14-40.