Christian Story exam #1

theological method

refers to the systematic approach that theologians use to interpret religious texts and develop doctrinal beliefs.

kerygma

is a Greek word meaning 'proclamation' or 'preaching,' specifically referring to the core message of the early Christian church about Jesus Christ, including his life, death, and resurrection.

orthodoxy

is adherence to correct or accepted creeds, especially in religion. Orthodoxy within Christianity refers to acceptance of the doctrines defined by various creeds and ecumenical councils in Antiquity, but different Churches accept different creeds and councils.

orthopraxy

is correct conduct, both ethical and liturgical, as opposed to faith or grace. --- is in contrast with orthodoxy, which emphasizes correct belief.

presuppositions

is an implicit assumption about the world or background belief relating to an utterance whose truth is taken for granted in discourse.

Lex Credendi Lex Orandi

The law for prayer is the law for faith.

pax Romana

refers to the long period of peace and stability in the Roman Empire that lasted approximately 200 years.

imperialism

refers to how missionaries frequently acted as agents of colonial powers, promoting Christianity while justifying the subjugation of indigenous populations.

homoiousia

identifies a distinct group of Christian theologians who held the belief that God the Son was of a similar, but not identical, essence with God the Father.

homoousia

is a Christian theological term, most notably used in the Nicene Creed for describing Jesus as 'same in being' or 'same in essence' with God the Father.

theology

is the study of religious belief from a religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity.

Patristic

is the study of the writings and teachings of the early Church Fathers, who shaped the foundational beliefs of Christianity from around AD 100 to AD 451.

Medieval

The doctrine of the Trinity, considered the core of Christian theology by Trinitarians, is the result of continuous exploration by the church of the biblical data.

Reformation

refers to the beliefs and practices that emerged during the Protestant Reformation in the 16th century, primarily associated with figures like Martin Luther and John Calvin.

Modern

refers to the development of Christian thought from the late Middle Ages through the Protestant Reformation and into contemporary times, influenced by cultural and philosophical changes.

inspiration

Biblical --- is the doctrine in Christian theology that the human writers and canonizers of the Bible were led by God with the result that their writings may be designated in some sense the word of God.

Vincentian Canon

states that authentic Christian faith is that which has been believed 'everywhere, always, and by all.'

materialism

is a belief that matter is a fundamental substance of the world and that mental phenomena result from matter.

pantheism

is the belief that God is immanent in the universe, meaning that everything in existence is a manifestation of the divine.

panentheism

is the belief that the divine intersects every part of the universe and also extends beyond space and time.

Gnosticism

is a collection of religious ideas and systems that coalesced in the late 1st century AD among early Christian sects. These diverse groups emphasized personal spiritual knowledge above the proto-orthodox teachings, traditions, and authority of religious institutions.

dualism

refers to the belief in the existence of two opposing forces, typically good and evil, that govern the universe. This concept contrasts with monism, which posits a single supreme being, and has influenced various interpretations of human nature and spirituality within Christianity.

deism

emphasizes reason and observation of the natural world to understand the existence of a creator, while Christian theology is based on the teachings and doctrines of Christianity, including the divinity of Jesus and the authority of the Bible.

creation ex nihilo

the doctrine that matter is not eternal but had to be created by some divine creative act. It is a theistic answer to the question of how the universe came to exist.

Arius

was a Cyrenaic presbyter and ascetic. He has been regarded as the founder of Arianism, which holds that Jesus Christ was not coeternal with God the Father, but was rather created before time.

Athanasius

the Confessor, or, among Coptic Christians, --- the Apostolic, was a Christian theologian and the 20th pope of Alexandria.

hypostatic union

a technical term in Christian theology employed in mainstream Christology to describe the union of Christ's humanity and divinity in one hypostasis, or individual personhood. In the most basic terms, the concept of hypostatic union states that Jesus Christ is both fully God and fully man.

Council of Nicaea

held in 325 AD, was a significant event in Christian theology as it addressed the Arian controversy regarding the nature of Christ, affirming his divinity and establishing the Nicene Creed. This council marked the first ecumenical gathering of Christian bishops to unify beliefs and combat heresies within the church.

Nicene Creed

also called the Creed of Constantinople, is the defining statement of belief of Nicene Christianity and in those Christian denominations that adhere to it. The original Nicene Creed was first adopted at the First Council of Nicaea in 325.

Trinity

Christian doctrine concerning the nature of God, which defines one God existing in three, coeternal, consubstantial divine persons: God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit, three distinct persons sharing one essence/substance/nature.

perichoresis

is the relationship of the three persons of the triune God to one another. The term was first used in Christian theology by the Church Fathers.

modalism

or Oneness Christology, is a Christian theology upholding the unipersonal oneness of God while also affirming the divinity of Jesus.

tritheism

Christian conception of God in which the unity of the Trinity and, by extension, monotheism are denied. It asserts that, rather than being single God of three eternally consubstantial Persons, the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are three ontologically separate Gods.

holiness

refers to the absolute moral purity of God and the distinct separation between God and humanity due to sin.

glory

is used to describe the manifestation of God's presence as perceived by humans according to the Abrahamic religions.

aseity

is the property by which a being exists of and from itself.

infinity

refers to the concept that God is free from all limitations, encompassing attributes such as omnipresence, omnipotence, and eternity.

eternity

is an important concept in monotheistic conceptions of God, who is typically argued to be eternally existent.

omniscience

in Christian theology refers to God's attribute of being all-knowing, meaning He knows everything that has happened, is happening, and will happen, including all possibilities.

omnipotence

refers to God's unlimited power, meaning He can do anything that is consistent with His nature.

moralism

refers to the belief that moral behavior is the basis for salvation, which contrasts with the idea that salvation is a gift of grace through faith in Jesus Christ.

original sin

refers to the condition of sinfulness that all humans share, which is inherited from Adam and Eve due to the Fall.

grace

is created by God who gives it as help to one because God desires one to have it, not necessarily because of anything one has done to earn it.

Christus Victor

is a theological concept that emphasizes Christ's victory over sin, death, and evil powers, portraying his atonement as a liberation of humanity rather than a mere payment for sin.