Definition

1. Noun:
   • Exaggerated or affected piety and religious zeal: A term describing an excessive, often insincere, display of religious devotion or fervor.
   • A 17th and 18th-century German movement in the Lutheran Church: A historical Protestant movement that emphasized personal religious experience, heartfelt devotion, and moral living over formal doctrine and ritual.

Usage Examples

• Noun (Affected Piety):

  • His constant public prayers and moral pronouncements were dismissed as mere pietism by his colleagues.
  • The novel criticizes the hollow pietism of the town's leading citizens.

• Noun (Historical Movement):

  • Pietism, led by Philipp Spener, sought to revive spiritual life within the Lutheran Church.
  • The influence of Pietism can be seen in the emphasis on personal conversion in some Protestant denominations.

Advanced Usage

• Used as a pejorative: Often used critically to imply that someone's religious display is ostentatious or hypocritical.
  • Her speeches were full of a grating pietism that alienated many listeners.

Variants and Related Words

• Pietist (noun): A follower of the Pietist movement; a person characterized by pietism.
  • The Pietists gathered in small groups for Bible study and prayer.
• Pietistic (adjective): Relating to Pietism or characterized by affected piety.
  • He adopted a pietistic tone that seemed unnatural for him.

Synonyms

• Sanctimony: The action or practice of acting as if one is morally superior to others.
• Religious zealotry: Excessive fervor for religious causes.
• Devotionalism: (In a neutral sense) A focus on devotional practices.

Antonyms

• Atheism: Disbelief or lack of belief in the existence of God or gods.
• Secularism: The principle of separation of the state from religious institutions.
• Impiety: Lack of piety or reverence.

Related Idioms/Phrases

• Holier-than-thou: Behaving as if one is morally superior to others. This idiom captures the critical sense of "pietism."
  • He was tired of her holier-than-thou attitude about every little issue.

Noun

1. exaggerated or affected piety and religious zeal
2. 17th and 18th-century German movement in the Lutheran Church stressing personal piety and devotion