CHRISTAN PRACTICES

agape

a word for love= a type of love for others which is selfless and giving

alpha course

a short introduction course to christianity designed to bring new people into church and becoming christian’s.

baptism

the ritual through which people become members of the church. Baptism involves the use of water as a symbol of washing away sins

believers baptism

full immersion in water of people old enough to understand the ceremony and choosing to live a christian life. Some denominations prefer this to infant baptism.

infant baptism

the ritual through which a baby becomes a member of the church- promises are made on behalf of the parent

christian aid

a christian charity that provides emergency and long term aid to the developing world

christmas

the day commemorating the birth of jesus

church

1. The holy people of God- everyone who is christian

2. the building in which christians worship

“where two…”

“Where two or three gather in my name, i am there among them” - Jesus

Easter

the religious season celebrating the resurrection of Jesus from the dead. It starts on Easter day and finishes with pentecost.

eucharist

another name for holy communion- service in which the death and resurrection are celebrated using the bread and wine

evangelism

preaching/spreading the word of God to convert people to the christian faith

food banks

started by christian’s and churches- the idea of collecting donated food for the poor in britain

Holy communion

another name for the eucharist in which the death and resurrection of Jesus are celebrated using bread and wine

informal prayer

spontaneous prayers made up by the person/ spoken from the heart rather than something learnt

informal worship

worship which has no set structure- it is allowed to be spontaneous

iona

an island off the west coast of Scotland founded by Columbia in the 4th century, where the ‘veil is thin’ between our world and the spirit world. It is used by christian’s today as. centre of pilgrimage and religious retreat

“Go and…

“Go and make the disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy spirit”- Jesus New testament

persecution

hostility and ill-treatment suffered specifically because of your religion

pilgrimage

a journey by a christian to a holy site, e.g. Lourdes, iona, which shows devotion

liturgical worship

a church service which follows a strict/ set structure or ritual

Lourdes

a town in France where the virgin Mary appeared to Bernadette in a series of visions, and now a place of pilgrimage, where it is claimed that miraculous healings have taken place.

Lord’s prayer

The prayer taught to the disciples by Jesus; also known as (and starts with) the ‘Our Father who art in heaven…’

mission (missionary)

The duty of christian’s to help people and spread the good news about Jesus (missionary- someone who travels round doing this)

non-liturgical

a service which does not follow a set text or ritual

“Faith by itself..

“Faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.” New Testment