The Collaborative International Dictionary
Acephali \A*ceph"a*li\, n. pl. [LL., pl. of acephalus. See Acephal.]
A fabulous people reported by ancient writers to have heads.
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(Eccl. Hist.)
A Christian sect without a leader.
Bishops and certain clergymen not under regular diocesan control.
A class of levelers in the time of K. Henry I.
Wiktionary
n. 1 A people reported by Herodotus and Josephus to have no or removable heads. 2 ''(Ecclesiastical History):'' The Eutychians, a Christian sect in the year 482 without a leader. See . 3 ''(Ecclesiastical History):'' Bishops and certain clergymen not under regular diocesan control. 4 A class of levelers in the time of King Henry I. 5 (plural of acephalus English)
Wikipedia
In church history, the term has been applied to several sects that supposedly had no leader. E. Cobham Brewer wrote, in Dictionary of Phrase and Fable, that acephalites, "properly means men without a head." Jean Cooper wrote, in Dictionary of Christianity, that it characterizes "various schismatical Christian bodies". Among them were Nestorians who rejected the Council of Ephesus condemnation of Patriarch Nestorius of Constantinople, which deposed Nestorius and declared him a heretic.
Usage examples of "acephali".
The acephali, without a king or a bishop, were separated above three hundred years from the patriarchs of Alexandria, who had accepted the communion of Constantinople, without exacting a formal condemnation of the synod of Chalcedon.
The acephali, without a king or a bishop, were separated above three hundred years from the patriarchs of Alexandria, who had accepted the communion of Constantinople, without exacting a formal condemnation of the synod of Chalcedon.