A secret or unauthorized religious meeting, especially one held by people whose beliefs differ from the official church.
From Latin 'conventiculum' (small gathering), diminutive of 'conventus' (assembly). Originally used to describe early Christian gatherings, later applied to Protestant and dissenting groups meeting in secret during times of religious persecution.
During the 1600s in England, thousands of Quakers and other religious dissenters risked fines and imprisonment by attending conventicles in barns and homes—they were literally risking their freedom to worship how they believed.
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