Definition of: veneration

(ven′ə·rā′shən) noun
1. The act of venerating; reverence; profound respect combined with awe, evoked by the high character or wisdom of a person.
2. The act of worshiping; worship. Synonyms: adoration, awe, dread, reverence. Awe is inspired by that in which there is sublimity or majesty so overwhelming as to awaken a feeling akin to fear; in awe, considered by itself, there is no element of esteem or affection, but a sense of the vastness, power, or grandeur of the object. Dread is a shrinking apprehension or expectation of possible harm awakened by any one of many objects or causes; in its higher uses dread approaches the meaning of awe, but with more of chilliness and cowering, and without that subjection of soul to the grandeur and worthiness of the object that is involved in awe. Reverence and veneration are less overwhelming than awe or dread, and suggest something of esteem, affection, and personal nearness. We may feel awe of that which we cannot reverence, as a grandly terrible ocean storm; awe of the divine presence is more distant and less trustful than reverence. Veneration is commonly applied to things which are not subjects of awe. Adoration, in its full sense, is loftier than veneration, less restrained and awed than reverence, and with more of the spirit of direct, active, and joyful worship. See REVERENCE. Compare VENERATE. Antonyms: contempt, disdain, dishonor, disregard, scorn.