Wondrous Words Wednesday (On Thursday)

Kathy over at Burmudaonion's Weblog is the host for Wondrous Words Wednesday. If you find a new word while reading and want to share, then create a post and head over to Kathy's to share your new knowledge.

I am currently reading Lord of Misrule by Jaimy Gordon. My new word comes from there.

Hierodule: temple slave

Here's the context:

Then she worried. Why did she like doing this so much. How was it that she could bear these hypnotic repetitve tasks at all....Maggie let herself down so easily into the engrossed pastime of physical service....Was she some kind of born slave herself, a prostitute in a temple, a hierodule?

I had a sort of sense of the word...but since Gordon had already used "born slave," I was trying to come up with another sort of servile position.