Nature of Religion - Vocabulary Flashcards

A set of vocabulary-style flashcards covering core terms from the Nature of Religion notes, including worldviews, Aboriginal Dreaming, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.

Worldview

The fundamental beliefs and assumptions through which a person or community interprets the world and finds meaning.

Religious worldview

A worldview expressed from a faith-based perspective, incorporating beliefs about the sacred and divine.

Non-Religious worldview

A worldview based on naturalistic or secular explanations rather than religious beliefs.

Supernatural

Forces, beings, or phenomena believed to exist beyond the natural world and its laws.

Transcendent

Beyond human experience; existing outside the material universe and often unknowable.

Immanent

Existing within; the divine or sacred present in the everyday world.

Agnostic/Agnosticism

The view that the existence of God or the divine is unknown or unknowable.

Atheism

The belief that there is no God or gods.

Buddhism

A major world religion based on the teachings of the Buddha.

God

The supreme or ultimate reality in monotheistic traditions.

Hinduism

A major world religion originating on the Indian subcontinent with multiple systems of belief and practice.

Islam

A monotheistic religion revealed through Muhammad, emphasizing submission to Allah.

Judaism

The monotheistic religion of the Jewish people, centered on a covenant with God and a legal-ethical tradition.

Meditation

The practice of regulating and training the mind.

Animism

Belief that spirits or ancestral beings reside in objects, places, or natural phenomena.

Sufism

Islamic mysticism focused on purification, spirituality, and inner experience.

Metatemporal

A concept that integrates past, present, and future as a single reality.

The Dreaming

A complex Aboriginal network of knowledge, law, and spirituality linking people, land, and identity.

Dreaming origins

Dreaming stories that explain origins of the universe, land, animals, and people.

Sacred sites

Places within the landscape with special spiritual significance.

Totem

A natural object, plant, or animal that represents a clan and grounds kinship with land and the Dreaming.

Land (Dreaming context)

The environment that sustains Aboriginal life and carries the Dreaming; linked to identity and rights.

Brit Milah (Covenant sign)

The circumcision rite signifying the Abrahamic covenant in Judaism.

Covenant

A binding agreement between God and the Jewish people, involving mutual commitments.

Shema

Israel’s central declaration of faith: ‘Hear, O Israel, the Lord is our God, the Lord is One.’

Torah

The first five books of the Tanakh, core laws and narratives for Judaism.

Tanakh

The Hebrew Bible; Tanakh = Torah, Nevi’im (Prophets), Ketuvim (Writings).

Nevi'im

The Prophets section of the Tanakh.

Ketuvim

The Writings section of the Tanakh.

Talmud

A central Rabbinic text combining the Mishnah and the Gemara, interpreting Jewish law.

Mishnah

The core written collection of Jewish oral laws.

Gemara

Commentary on the Mishnah; part of the Talmud.

Halakha

The Jewish legal tradition and its interpretations guiding daily life.

Haggadah

Tales and explanations in the Talmud and Midrash; stories used for teaching, not binding law.

Mitzvot

613 commandments in the Torah guiding ethical and religious conduct.

Tzedakah

Charity or almsgiving; social justice as a religious obligation.

Gemilut Chasadim

Loving-kindness actions; acts of charity done without expectation of reward.

Tikkun Olam

Repairing or perfecting the world through social justice and ethical action.

Shabbat (Sabbath)

Weekly day of rest and holiness from Friday sunset to Saturday sunset.

Noahide laws

A set of seven universal moral laws given to all humanity in Jewish tradition.

Becoming monotheistic (Oneness of God)

Belief in a single, unique God; central to Judaism and many other faiths.

Incarnation

The Christian belief that Jesus is both fully divine and fully human.

Trinity

The central Christian doctrine that God exists as three persons (Father, Son, Holy Spirit) in one Godhead.

Beatitudes

Jesus’ teaching in the Sermon on the Mount outlining attitudes blessed by God.

Great Commandment

Love God with all your heart, soul, and mind, and love your neighbour as yourself.

Ten Commandments

The Decalogue; core ethical laws given to Moses in Exodus and Deuteronomy.

Revelation (Christian)

God’s self-disclosure to humanity, primarily through Scripture and Jesus.

Salvation (Christian)

Deliverance from sin and its consequences, offered through Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection.

Gospels

The four New Testament books narrating the life and teachings of Jesus.

Epistles

New Testament letters addressing Christian communities and beliefs.

Liturgy

Public Christian worship and ritual structure.

Eucharist/Mass

Holy Communion; central Christian sacrament commemorating Jesus’ last supper.

Baptism

A rite of admission into the Christian community, signifying purification and new life.

Prayer

Communication with God; forms include blessing, petition, intercession, thanksgiving, and praise.

Qur’an

The central sacred text of Islam; believed to be the literal word of Allah revealed to Muhammad.

Hadith

Narrations of the words and deeds of Prophet Muhammad; secondary to the Qur’an.

Sunnah

Traditions and practices of the Prophet Muhammad guiding Muslim life.

Akhira

Life after death and the afterlife in Islamic belief.

Tawhid

The oneness of God in Islam; foundational Islamic creed.

Rusul

Prophets or messengers chosen by Allah to convey His message.

Books of Allah

The revealed scriptures in Islam: Tawrat (Torah), Zabur (Psalms), Injeel (Gospels), Qur’an.

Angels (Mala’ika)

Spiritual beings created by Allah who convey revelations and carry out divine commands.

Fate/Predestination (Qadr)

Belief that Allah’s will governs events, with human beings still having some free will.

Shariah

Islamic law; the moral and legal code derived from Qur’an, Hadith, and juristic reasoning.

Halal/Haram

Permissible (halal) vs. forbidden (haram) actions or things in Islamic law.

Five Pillars of Islam

Core acts of worship: Shahada, Salat, Zakat, Sawm, Hajj.

Jihad

Struggle in Islam; the greater Jihad is inner struggle, the lesser Jihad is external struggle in defense.

Mecca/Medina

Sacred cities in Islam; Mecca is the birthplace of Muhammad and the direction of prayer, Medina the Prophet’s city.

Ka’ba

The cube-shaped sacred sanctuary in Mecca that Muslims face in prayer.

Hadith Qudsi

Hadith attributed to Allah through the Prophet; considered especially authoritative.