To worship means to show deep love, respect, and honor to a god or something you consider holy. It can also mean to admire someone or something very strongly.
“Worship” comes from Old English “weorþscipe,” which meant “worthiness” or “the state of being worthy.” It originally focused on giving honor to someone of high status, and later became strongly tied to religious honor.
Hidden inside “worship” is the idea of “worth-ship”—treating something as extremely worthy. So to worship is really to say, with your actions and heart, “You are worth more than anything else.”
In many religious traditions, public worship spaces and leadership roles were historically male‑dominated, while women’s forms of worship were confined to private or less recognized spaces. Language around worship often centered male clergy and minimized women’s spiritual leadership.
Use “worship” in ways that recognize participation and leadership by people of all genders, and avoid assuming religious authority is male by default.
When discussing worship communities, include the roles of women as organizers, teachers, and spiritual leaders, even when they lacked formal titles.
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