Introduction: Approaching the Christian Theological Tradition Vocabulary

Vocabulary flashcards defining key terms, historical figures, and concepts introduced in Chapter 1: Approaching the Christian Theological Tradition.

Thomas Aquinas

A medieval Catholic theologian (c.1225–1274) who conceived of God not as a being, but as 'ipsum esse subsistens' or the 'subsistent act of existing' itself that continually holds all existing things in being.

Augustine

An early Christian theologian (354–430) and author of Confessions who stated that human hearts are restless until they rest in God.

Peter Berger

A sociologist (1929–2017) who originally championed the secularization thesis but later acknowledged that the world remains furiously religious and that secularization theory was essentially mistaken.

Confessional approach

An approach to studying Christianity (also called a 'theological' model) from an insider's perspective, maintaining that faith commitment and first-hand experience yield deeper theological insight.

Fundamentalism

A modern movement in Christianity that upholds biblical inerrancy, asserting that the Bible is without error in every sense, including its historical and scientific claims.

Irenaeus of Lyons

An early Christian theologian (130–202) who invoked apostolic tradition and the succession of bishops to evaluate new claims and counter Gnostic interpretations of scripture.

Martin Luther

A Protestant theologian (1483–1546) who characterized faith as trust and reliance on God rather than mere assent to a list of propositions.

Martin Luther King, Jr.

A Civil Rights Movement leader and minister (1929–1968) whose speeches drew heavily on Old Testament prophets like Amos to combat racial discrimination.

Materialism

A philosophy holding that only physical matter is real, treating consciousness or mind as an ephemeral by-product of physical processes.

John Henry Newman

An English Catholic convert (1801–1890) who argued that theology completes the 'circle of knowledge' in a university and authored An Essay on the Development of Christian Doctrine.

Nihilism

A contemporary philosophy holding that human existence simply has no ultimate significance, worth, or point.

Option for the poor

A central principle in Catholic social teaching mandating that policies, economic decisions, and social institutions be evaluated in terms of their service to and impact on the poor.

Philosophical theology

An academic discipline that uses reason to develop ideas about God—such as omniscience and immutability—often without direct recourse to scripture.

Religious-studies approach

An approach to studying religion (also called a 'neutral' approach) from an outsider's perspective, utilizing social science tools while remaining detached from religious belief.

Secularization thesis

A sociological theory predicting that religion would gradually disappear, first from Western cultures and eventually worldwide.

Paul Tillich

A modern Protestant theologian (1886–1965) who defined faith in terms of 'ultimate concern' that responds to human anxiety regarding non-being.

Ultimate concern

Paul Tillich's concept describing the most fundamental concern around which an individual organizes existence and places faith to give life meaning.

Hans Urs von Balthasar

A modern Catholic theologian (1905–1988) who used the experience of beauty as an analogy for how encountering God both resonates with human beings and astonishes them beyond expectations.