new testament

mary and joseph

Mary is the mother of Jesus; her symbolic color is blue. God is the father. Joseph is Mary's husband. They have to go to Bethlehem for the Roman census of Quirinus (which was a census of Judea) and cannot find a place to spend the night. They sleep in a manger where Jesus is born. Three wise men follow a bright star to the manger and give gifts to the baby. Angels appear to shepherds and declare the birth of a Savior in Bethlehem, and the shepherds go to see the baby.

Marriage in Cana

Jesus turns water into wine at this wedding

Sermon on the mount and the Beatitudes

A series of lessons taught by Jesus including the Beatitudes and the Our Father/Lord's Prayer. They are like a summary of the key teachings of Jesus. "Blessed are…"

Miracles

Jesus performs miracles: feeding of 5000 with bread and fish; he walks on water; he turns water into wine; he cures lepers; he enables the blind to see; he raises Lazarus from the dead

Mary and Martha

Lazarus is their brother. They are the first to greet Jesus when he arrives to help Lazarus. But he is too late, Lazarus is already dead. Martha blames Jesus for Lazarus' death, and then Jesus raises Lazarus from the dead.

Raising of Lazarus

Lazarus dies. Jesus is on his way to heal Lazarus but arrives too late. He then resurrects him.

Prodigal son

A man has two sons. The younger son, after wasting his fortune (the word prodigal means 'wastefully extravagant'), repents and returns home, where the father holds a feast to celebrate his return. The older son refuses to participate, stating that in all the time the son has worked for the father, he didn't even give him a goat to celebrate with his friends. His father reminds the older son that everything the father has is the older son's (the law of primogeniture), but that they should still celebrate the return of the younger son as he has come back to them. It is the third and final part of a cycle on redemption, following the Parable of the lost

Sheep and the Parable of the Lost Coin.

Feeding of 5,000 or five loaves and two fish

A miracle: Jesus feeds 5,000 people from five loaves and two fish.

Walking on Water

an archetypal miracle appearing in many cultures. Jesus, too, walks on water. Men are fishing in a storm and Jesus walks on water to show them not to be afraid. The men get lots and lots of fish. This phrase comes to mean overcoming or facing an impossible task

Parable of talents

The parable in Matthew 25:14-30 tells of a master who was leaving his home to travel and before going entrusted his property to his servants (property worth 8 talents, where a talent was a large unit of money). One servant receives five talents, the second two talents, and the third one talent, according to their respective abilities. Returning after a long absence, the master asks his servants for an accounting. The first two servants explain that they have each put their money to work and doubled the value of the property they were entrusted with, and so they are each rewarded. His lord said to him, "Well done good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a few things, I will set you over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord." The third servant however, has merely hidden his talent in a hole in the ground, and is punished for being lazy.

Judas and Kiss; 39 pieces of silver hanged

Judas betrays Jesus with a kiss, and Jesus knows he will do this. Judas is paid 39 pieces from the Romans. He tries to give the money but the Romans will not take it. Judas hangs himself because he feels so guilty.

Good Samaritan

A man (who may or may not be Jewish) walking along the road is beaten up and left for dead. A priest walks by as do other prestigious people. No one helps him. Then a Samaritan finds him and instead of leaving him, he helps him. This is significant because the Samaritans and the Jews did not get along, yet the Samaritan helps him anyway.

Last Supper, Bread and Wine

It is Passover. Jesus and the Apostles are having Passover dinner when Jesus informs his disciples that he will die and that this is the last time that he will taste the fruit of the vine until he is in heaven. Jesus compares his body to bread and his blood to wine, giving bread and wine to his disciples and saying 'Drink from it, all of you; for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins."

Garden of Gethsemane

Where Jesus prays to God expressing his apprehension then takes a cup and says, "Thy will be done." He accepts his upcoming death. This is where the Romans arrest him before the crucifixion.

Pontius Pilate

The Roman governor of Judea. Although he found Jesus guilty of nothing, he sentenced him to death by crucifixion.

Barabbas

Criminal released instead of Jesus

Golgotha

A Hebrew word meaning "place of the skull," referring to the place where Jesus was crucified.

Calvary, last words

Jesus' last words on the cross include, "Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do." Calvary is another name for Golgotha.

Mary Magdalene

The most important woman disciple in the movement of Jesus. He cleansed her of 'seven demons,' conventionally interpreted as referring to complex illnesses. She became Jesus' close friend and most prominent during his last days, being present at the cross after the male disciples (exempting John the Beloved) had fled, and at his burial. She was the first person to see Jesus after Resurrection, according to both John 20 and Mark 16:9.

Doubting Thomas

Doubted Jesus' resurrection and demanded to feel his wounds. This phrase has come to mean someone who will refuse to believe something without direct, physical, personal evidence.

Peter

Holds the keys to the kingdom of Heaven. He also denies having known Jesus when he was alive (three times).

Pentecost

Commemorates the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the Twelve apostles and other followers of Jesus as described in the Acts of the Apostles (2:1-31). For this reason, it is sometimes described as the "Birthday of the Church."

Stephen

First Christian martyr

Hagiographies

saints legends

Saul

Witnesses Stephen's martyrdom. He changes his name to Paul after having a vision on the road to Damascus. Paul the Apostle (c. AD -c AD 67 variously referred to as the Apostle Paul or Saint Paul) also known as Saul of Tarsus is perhaps the most influential early Christian missionary. The writings ascribed to him by the church from a considerable portion of the New Testament. The influence on Christian thinking of the epistles ascribed to him has been significant due in part to his association as a prominent apostle of Christianity during the spreading of the gospel through early Christian communities across the Roman Empire.

Armageddon

the site of a battle during the end times variously interpreted as either a literal or symbolic location. The term is also used in a generic sense to refer to any end of the word scenario

Second coming

The anticipated return of Jesus Christ from Heaven where he sits at the right hand of God.

New Jerusalem

Literally. In the book of Ezekiel, the Prophecy of New Jerusalem (or city where God is there (Jehovah - shammah) also titled Heavenly Jerusalem in the Book of Revelation as well as Zion in other books of the Bible is Ezekiel's prophetic vision of a city to be established to the south of the Temple Mount that will be inhabited by the twelve tribes of Israel in the Messianic era. The prophecy is recorded by Ezekiel as taking place on Yom Kippur of the year 3372 of the Hebrew calendar.

There are various metaphorical interpretations. One is that New Jerusalem is a place in heaven where people are fused with the Divine. Crime and Punishment refers to New Jerusalem and the future utopia here on earth.

Trial by Fire

Accused person was required to grasp a red-hot piece of metal, to walk across a bed hot coals, or face some other physical task. If burn wound healed, you were innocent. AKA a task of how well someone deals with a difficult situation.