HOMILY, in ecclesiastical writers, a sermon, or discourse, upon some point of religion, delivered in a plain manner, so as to be easily understood by the common people.—The word is Greek, συνάξις; formed of συνάξ, catus, "assembly, or council."
At the time of the reformation, there were several of these homilies made and printed, and ordered to be read in such churches as were not provided with a sufficiently learned minister, in order to prevent unfounded doctrine being taught in remote country places.
In the primitive church, homily rather meant a conference or conversation by way of question and answer, which made part of the office of a bishop, till the 5th century, when the learned priests were allowed to preach, catechise, &c. in the same manner as the bishops used to do.
There are still extant several fine homilies, composed by the ancient fathers, particularly St. Chrysostom and St. Gregory.
De Homine Replegiando. See False Imprisonment.
The writ de homine replegiando lies to replevy a man out of prison, or out of the custody of any private person (in the same manner that chattels taken in any distress may be replevied), upon giving security to the sheriff, that the man shall be forthcoming to answer any charge against him. And if the person be conveyed out of the sheriff's jurisdiction, the sheriff may return that he is eloigned, elongatus; upon which a process issues (called capias in eademnam), to imprison the defendant himself, without bail or mainprize, till he produces the party. But this writ is guarded with so many exceptions, that it is not an effectual remedy in numerous instances, especially where the crown is concerned. See HABEAS Corpus.