Chalcedonize

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. To transform a material, such as silica or wood, into the fine-grained quartz variety known as chalcedony
2. To turn something into chalcedony, the waxy, translucent form of silica that often forms banded stones
3. To cause a substance to take on the structure and character of chalcedony, a microcrystalline mineral of quartz

Etymology: Chalcedonize is a rare theological verb meaning to bring into agreement with the doctrine of the Council of Chalcedon, held in 451 in the city of Chalcedon, on the Asian shore of the Bosphorus opposite Constantinople. The council defined that Christ has two natures, divine and human, united in one person, and the verb took its shape from the council's name plus the suffix "-ize," which turns a noun into a verb meaning to make conform to or adopt something. The city's name itself traces back to a founding legend, but the council's name is the part that matters for the verb. The verb is used mainly in church history and theology, often in the phrase that a party or church "chalcedonized" or refused to, as when Christian communities in Egypt and Syria split over whether to accept the council's formula. Its usage is thus tied to a specific religious controversy rather than to everyday speech. Because the word is a plain coinage from a proper noun, there is no deeper folk history behind it to uncover.

Synonyms: chalcedonise