year's mind
Definition
Noun (singular, often used with a possessive: year's mind) - A commemorative religious service held one year after a person's death: In ecclesiastical tradition, particularly within Roman Catholic and Anglican contexts, a "year's mind" is a memorial Mass or prayer service observed on the anniversary of a deceased person's death, intended to honor their memory and pray for their soul. It is distinct from the more common "month's mind" (observed one month after death).
Usage Examples
- (A religious service one year after her death.)
- (A yearly memorial service funded by a bequest.)
Advanced Usage
- "to keep a year's mind": to observe or hold such a service.
- The monastery keeps a year's mind for all its benefactors. (The monastery holds an annual memorial Mass for donors.)
- "year's mind" as a fixed phrase may appear in historical or liturgical texts, often capitalized as in formal contexts.
Variants and Related Words
- Month's mind (noun): a similar service held one month after death.
- A month's mind was celebrated for the departed bishop. (A memorial service one month after death.)
- Mind (noun, archaic): memory or remembrance (as in "to call to mind").
- The year's mind keeps the deceased in the minds of the living. (The service ensures remembrance.)
Synonyms
- Anniversary Mass: a Mass celebrated on the anniversary of a death.
- Memorial service: a general term for a ceremony honoring the deceased.
- Requiem: a Mass for the dead, though not necessarily on an anniversary.
Related Idioms
- "To have a year's mind": to be remembered annually in a religious context.
- The founder's year's mind is still observed in the college chapel. (The founder is commemorated each year.)
Note: The term "year's mind" is largely historical or liturgical; in modern usage, "anniversary memorial service" is more common.