Rubric

A rubric is a word or section of text that is traditionally written or printed in red ink for emphasis. The word derives from the Latin: rubrica, meaning red ochre or red chalk, and originates in Medieval illuminated manuscripts from the 13th century or earlier. In these, red letters were used to highlight initial capitals (particularly of psalms), section headings and names of religious significance, a practice known as rubrication, which was a separate stage in the production of a manuscript.

Rubric can also mean the red ink or paint used to make rubrics, or the pigment used to make it. Although red was most often used, other colours came into use from the late Middle Ages onwards, and the word rubric was used for these also.

Various figurative senses of the word have been extended from its original sense. Usually these senses are used within the set phrase "under [whatever] rubric," for example, "under this rubric, [X is true]," or "[X was done] under the rubric of Y." These senses are defined in part by Merriam-Webster's Collegiate as follows: "an authoritative rule"; "the title of a statute"; "something under which a thing is classed : CATEGORY"; "an explanatory or introductory commentary : GLOSS"; "an established rule, tradition, or custom"; "a guide listing specific criteria for grading or scoring academic [assignments] ." (See Merriam-Webster's Collegiate for the full listing.)

Instructions for a priest explaining what he had to do during a liturgical service were also rubricated in missals and the other forms of service book, leaving the sections to be spoken aloud in black. From this, rubric has a second meaning of an instruction in a text, regardless of how it is written or printed. This is in fact the oldest recorded meaning in English, found in 1375. Less formally, rubrics may refer to any liturgical action customarily performed over the course of a service, whether or not they are actually written down. The history, status and authority of the content of rubrics is a matter of significance, and sometimes controversy, among scholars of liturgy. In the past, some theologians attempted to distinguish between those rubrics they considered of divine origin, and those merely of human origin. Rubrics were probably originally verbal, and then written down in separate volumes. The earliest service books to survive do not contain them, but from references in writings of the first millennium it appears that written versions existed. Full rubrics that cover matters such as vestments to wear, the appearance of the altar, when to hold particular services, and similar matters may still be published separately. In modern service books like the Roman Missal, lengthy general rubrics (probably printed in the normal black) cover such issues, and preface the actual orders of service, which contain shorter basic rubrics for the conduct of the service, still usually printed in red. Red is also often used to distinguish between words spoken by the celebrant and the congregation, or by other specific people involved in a service (people being married, for example).

...
Wikipedia