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PRE
The Fnenomen anfwers to our Chrifiian Name, Titer,
'Paul, &c.
It was not introduced among the Romans till long time after the Nomen. SeeNoMEN.
The Name of the Family was given their Children the Day after their Birth ; but the Pnenomen was not given 'em till they took the Virile Habit. See Virile.
Varro reckons up thirty Pr£nomina among the Romans. Theufual ones maybe reduced to eighteen.
The Greeks had no Pnenomina ; they had but one Name.
PRJEPARANTIA Vafa, in Anatomy, the Spermatic Vejfels ; or two Arteries, and as many Veins of the Teflicles; thuscall'd by the Antients, from an Opinion that the Seed began to be prepared herein. See Spermatic Vejfels, Seed, and Generation.
PROPOSITUS, a Term frequently ufed in our Law- Books : Frafofitus Villi is fometimes ufed for the Chief Officer of the King in a Town, Manor, Village, or Reeve. See Prefect.
Prafoftus VilltS is fometimes alfo ufed for the Conffable ofaTown, or petty Conftable. SeeCoNSTABLE.
pnefofitus Ecclejue, fee CiiuRCH-iteue.
Quatuor homines Propositi, in Cromfton, Sic. Four Men of each Town which are to appear before the Juflices of the Foreft, in their Circuit.
PRjEPUTIUM, Prepuce, in Anatomy, the Fore- skin; a prolongation of the Cutis of the Penis, covering the Balanus, Glans, or Extremity of the Yard. See Pe- nis and Glans.
Dr. -Drake obferves, that Nature does not feem more various in any part of her Works than in the Preface ; for the Figure and Proportion whereof, there does not feem any Standard.
Hence, probably, arofe the neceflity of Circumcifion, fo generally pracHfed throughout the Oriental parts ; not out of a view to Religion, but to Cleanlinefs, and to prevent Difeafes which a detention of the Mucus of the Sub-fre- futial Glands might breed in thofe hot Countries. For even here th- fame Author adds, he has known fome, who, having large Prefaces, call'd Filbert-Prefaces, have been frighted at the appearance of a Mucus oozing outupona mere plenitude, from between the Prefuce and Glans ; which 'tis probable the great Legiflator of the Jews might have a view to in the firll Inftitution of Circumcifion. See Circumcision.
The Skin of the Prefuce is double ; at the connexion of the internal Skin, to the other part, are feveral oval and round ifh Glandules placed irregularly about the joining of the Glans to the Corfora Cavemofa, and on the Glans itfclf. , ,
Their ufe is to feparate a Liquor to render the agitation of the Pr<efutium on the Glans eafy. When this Liquor becomes rancid, as upon old Age, or Venereal Contacts, it excoriates the Glans and Pnefutiam ; and even fometimes contracts the latter, and renders it neceffary to be divided to afford a paffage to the Glans. See Phimosis and Pa- raphimosis.
PRfiSEPE, in Aflronomy, three Nebulous Stars, in the Sign Cancer, or the Crab ; two of 'em of the 7th, the third of the <5th Magnitude. Their Longitudes, Latitudes, He. fee among thofe of the other Stars in Cancer.
VKMYERNaturam, in Medicine, feeNATURE.
PRAGMATIC SanBion, in the Civil Law, is defined by Hottoman, a Refcript,or Anfwer of the Prince, deliver'd by Advice of his Council, tofome College, Order, or Body of People, upon their confulting him on fome Cafe of their Community.
Such an Anfwer to a particluar Perfon, is call'd limply Reftrift. See Rescript.
The Word is form'd from the Greek wej.yiM, Negotiant, Bufinefs.
The Term Pragmatic Sanction is chiefly ufed among the Modern Writers, for that famous Ordonnance of Charles VII. of France, publifhed in 120IS ; containing a Regula- tion of Ecclefiaflical Difcipline, conformable to the Canons of the Council of Safil ; and fince ufed by the Gallican Church, as a Barrier againft the Enterprizes and Encroach- ments of the Court of Rome.
The Scope of the Pragmatic SanBion, was to regulate the form of Eleflions made by the Clergy; to declare the Collations to belong to Ordinaries, the Prevention alone referv'd to the Pope j to eftablifh Prebends ; to affign a Third of the Benefices to Graduares ; to abolilh Refer- vations, Annates, and other like Charges.
Pope Pins II. obtain'd an abrogation of this SanBion of ZmiisXl. On which occafion the Court of Rome, tranf- ported with Joy, dragg'd the Pragmatic thro' the Streets, whipping it all the way, as Xerxes antiently did the Belief- font. But the Parliament oppofed this Abrogation with a great deal of Vigour, and refufed its Confent to the laft. So that maugre all the Efforts of Rome, the SanBion ftill
held in force ; till the Concordat pafs'd between P ope ZeoX. and Francis I. in 15 15, when the (Pragmatic Sane, tion was abolifhed. See Concordat.
The Parliament of Paris again oppofed the Innovation and refufed to confirm the Concordar, and was not brought to give its Confent till after repeated Orders of the King . together with a fecret Refolution taken always to judge conformably to the Tenor of the Pragmatic SanBion.
PRAGMATICAL, aTerm fometimes ufed in the fame fenfe as FraBical, Mechanical, or Problematical.
Thus Stevinus, in his Hydroftatical Elements, calls cer- tain Mechanical, or Practical Experiments, which he under, takes to inftrucr. his Reader how to make, by the Name of Pragmatical Examples 5 and in the fame fenfe it is fome- times ufed by other Naturalifls.
PRATIQUE, orPRATTICK, in Commerce, a Nego. tiation or Communication of Commerce, which a Merchant- Veffel obtains in the Ports it arrives in, and the Countries it difcovers.
Hence to obtain Pratique, is to obtain a Liberty to fre- quent a Port, to go a-fhore, buy and fell, &c. We could never have any Pratique with the Inhabitants of Nova Zembla.
The Word is French, and fignifies, literally, Practice.
Pratique is particularly ufed for a Licence to traffic, granted to the Mailer of a Ship in the Ports of Italy, upon a Bill of Health ; that is, a Certificate that the Place whence he came is not annoy'd with any infectious Difeafe.
PRAXjEANS, a SeS of Heretics, fo call'd from their Author Praxeas.
This Herefiarch was of AJia, and lived in the fecond Century. He was at firft a Difciple of Montanus, bur quitted him, and foon after fer up a Seel of his own ; teaching, that there was no Plurality of Perfons in the God- head ; and that it was the Father himfelf that fuffer'd on the Crofs. Which Sentiment was afterwards adopted by the Monarchies, Sabellians, and Patripaffians. See Sabel-
I.IAN, PATRIPASSIAN, l$C.
PRAYER, in Theology, a Petition put up to God, either for the obtaining of fome future F'avour, or the re- turning of Thanks for a pafl one.
Divines diflinguifh three kinds of Prayer ; Vocal, which is cloth'd in Words and Sounds to be utter'd with the Mouth s Mental, which is only form'd or conceiv'd in the Mind, and not deliver'd in Words 5 and Ejaculatory,which is a fhort, hidden flight without Study, Order, or Method. See Vocal, Mental, cfc.
The Myffic Divines, again, diflinguifh Prayer into ABive and Fafjive See Active and Passive.
Among us, Prayer is frequently confider'd under the di- vifions of Preconceived and Extemforary. Under the firft come all fet Forms, whether public or private, by which the Mind is directed in the Order, Manner, Expreffion, tifc. of its Petitions. The fecond is that where the Mind is left to itfelf, its own Conduct, both as to Matter, Manner, Words, Efc.
Common Prayer, fee Liturgy.
TheRomanifls alfo prefer Prayers to Saints, theVirgin, the Angel Gabriel, &c. SeeSAiNT, Office, Ave Mary'&c.
PREACHING, in Theology, the Declaration, or Pro- mulgation of the Word of God, in public $ by a Perfon authorized, and in a Place deflined, for that purpofe. See Sermon, Priest, Gospel, &c.
Antiently, none but Bifliops were allow'd to preach. Now, not only Priefls, but Deacons are qualify'd. See Bishop andDEAcoN.
Bifhop Wilkim has deliver'd the Art of Preaching in a Treatife call'd Ecclefiafies, or the Preacher. See Eccle-
SIASTES.
The Word is derived from the Hebrew, Farafch, exfo- fuit, he expounded.
The Religious of the Order of St. 2)ominic aflume the Quality of Preacbing-Smhers, Friars-predicant or predi- cants. See Dominican.
PRE ADAMITE, Fraadamita, a Term given to the In- habitants of the Earth conceived, by fome People, to have lived before Adam.
Jfaac de la Fereyra in ro'5 5, publifhed a Book to evince the Reality of Freadamites, by which he gain'd a confide- rable number of Profelyres to the Opinion 5 but the An- fwer of liemarets, Profeffor of Theology at Groningnen, publifhed the Year following, put a flop to its Progrefs j tho' Pereyra made a Reply.
His Syftem was this : The Jews he calls Adamites, and fuppofes 'em to have iffiied from Adam 5 and gives the Title Preadamites to the Gentiles, whom he fuppofes to have been a long time before Adam.
But this being exprelly contrary to the firfl Words of Genefis, Pereyra had recourfe to the fabulous Antiquities of the Egyptians and Chaldeans, and to fome idle Rabbins* who imagined there had been another World before that defcribed by Mofes.
He
