excommunication
n.the act of being officially banned from a church or religious group. It usually means you are no longer allowed to take part in their services or receive their blessings.
n.the formal exclusion of a member from a religious body, typically resulting in the loss of spiritual privileges. Often used in the context of the Catholic Church or other formal Christian denominations.
“The priest warned him that his actions could lead to excommunication.”
“After the scandal broke, the bishop faced the possibility of excommunication from the local diocese.”
“Historical records show that excommunication was often used as a political tool to isolate dissenters and prevent them from gaining influence within the community.”
From Middle English excommunicacion, from Late Latin excommūnicātiō. By surface analysis, excommunicate + -ion. Displaced native Old English āmǣnsumung.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.