Conventicle

Conventicle (Lat. conventiculum, a diminutive of conventus) originally meant a cabal among the monks of a monastery. The word was given as an appellation of reproach to meetings of the English and Scottish Nonconformists in the 17th century. Severe statutes were often passed for the suppression of these conventicles, especially the Conventicle Act of 1664, which was repealed by the Toleration Act of 1689.