Opposition to or action against the political or social influence and manipulation practiced by priests and religious clergy.
From anti- (against) + priestcraft (the use of priestly influence for political gain). The term priestcraft itself emerged in 17th-century English to critique clergy exercising temporal power beyond spiritual authority. Antipriestcraft became common in 18th-century Enlightenment discourse challenging institutional religion.
This word captures a specific moment in history when people began questioning whether clergy should have political power—it's essentially the vocabulary of the Enlightenment's battle against religious institutional control. You'll find it peppered throughout writings from the American and French Revolutions when thinkers wanted to separate church and state.
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