The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions (2191 page)

Seraph
.

Either a species of serpent mentioned in the Hebrew scriptures, or a type of
angelic
being.

 
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(1759–1833).
Russian monk and
staretz
. Born in Kursk, he entered the monastery at Sarov
c.
1779. From 1794 he lived as a hermit, first in the nearby forest, later in a cell in the monastery. From 1825 he engaged in spiritual direction of his many visitors. He also founded a community of nuns. Severe in his personal asceticism, he was gentle with others.

 
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Serendib
.

An old name for
ri Lank
. It was derived from the Arab. version of the Skt. name Sinhala-dvipa (P
li, Sihala-dvipa). The name was used during the Roman Empire. From it, Horace Walpole coined the word, ‘serendipity’, in
The Three Princes of Serendib
(1754).

 
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(
c.
1314–92)
. Russian monastic reformer. Born at Rostov, as a boy he fled with his family to Radonezh near Moscow, where he founded with his brother the monastery of the Holy Trinity (and afterwards many others), thus reviving monasticism which had collapsed during the Tatar aggression. He was a great influence for peace, supporting Prince Dmitri in resisting the Tatars, thereby saving Russia. In 1378 he refused to become metropolitan of Moscow. He is regarded as one of the founders of Russia and the greatest of Russian saints. Feast day, 25 Sept.

 
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Sermon on the Mount
.

A collection of sayings of Jesus presented in Matthew 5–7 as a single discourse given ‘on the mountain’ (5. 1). It includes the
Beatitudes
,
Lord's Prayer
,
Golden Rule
, and other ethical sayings. The ‘sermon on the plain’ in Luke 6. 20–49 is somewhat parallel though shorter.

 
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