One of the earliest known sacrifices was a human sacrifice, known as a Shelem in Hebrew. The sacrificial act was a necessary step in establishing man's relationship with the divine. In some religions, a sacrificial gift is exchanged for a sacramental meal. While these practices often resulted in the death of the offering, the act of giving and receiving a sacrificial gift is a basic element in these rituals.
In a secular context, sacrifice describes a loss of value for a higher purpose. In our own lives, parents sacrifice time to take care of their children. Kids often forgo watching TV to spend time with their parents. The word "sacrifice" comes from the Latin words sacra, meaning'sacred' and 'facere', meaning 'to make'. While human sacrifices may have been practiced in ancient cultures, the word is now used in a secular context to describe giving up something valuable for something more desirable.
A sacrifice is an act of worship and propitiation in an effort to appease a deity. While the word "sacrifice" is often associated with animal offerings, it is also used to describe the processing of non-meat foods. The term "sacrifice" derives from the Latin word meaning "to make sacred". Although modern definitions of the word "sacrifice" are largely unrelated, they are the root of our vocabulary for understanding this ancient practice.