Period of redemption, states article by church (6)
I believe the answer is:
usance
'period of redemption' is the definition.
'usance' can be an answer for 'period' (I have seen 'period of reckoning' mean 'usance' so perhaps 'period' could also mean 'usance'). I am unsure of the 'of redemption' bit.
'states article by church' is the wordplay.
'states' becomes 'US' (abbreviation for the United States).
'article' becomes 'an' (indefinite article).
'by' says to put letters next to each other.
'church' becomes 'CE' (abbreviation for Church of England).
'us'+'an'+'ce'='USANCE'
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for usance that I've seen before include "practice" , "time for payment" , "Usage (archaic)" , "Time allowed to pay" , "old custom" .)