Sentence:  Emerson evaded the problem by shoving it aside , or rather by leaving it behind him : he walked out of the Unitarian communion , so that it could lick the wound of his departure , <WSD>preserve</WSD> its self-respect and eventually accord him pious veneration . 
Meaning of the word marked with <WSD> tags:  keep in safety and protect from harm, decay, loss, or destruction