Unit 1 Theology Study Notes

Dignity

  • Definition: The quality of being worthy of honor or respect; possessing great value or worth.

Dominion

  • Definition: Ownership of something, including the kingly power to rule over it and make decisions about how it will be used for the common good.

Chastity

  • Definition: The true integration of sexuality within a person’s bodily and spiritual being. It includes an apprenticeship in self-mastery. Each of us is called to chastity.

Complementarity

  • Definition: Combining in such a way as to enhance or complete one another.

Theology of the Body

  • Definition: A series of talks given by Pope St. John Paul II in which he provided a teaching on the nature of man rooted in the first three chapters of Genesis.

Vocation

  • Definition: A call from God to a permanent state of life: ordained priesthood, consecrated religious life, or Marriage.

Soul

  • Definition: That which animates or gives life to a body.

Original justice

  • Definition: The state of friendship with God enjoyed by Adam and Eve before their sin brought pain, suffering, and death into the world.

Steward

  • Definition: One who has been given the duty to care for and cultivate something responsibly.

Original Sin

  • Definition: The state of human nature deprived of the Original holiness and Justice Adam and Eve enjoyed before the Fall. The first sin of Adam and Eve brought pain, suffering, and death into the world.

Personal sin

  • Definition: When we choose to sin, it stems from concupiscence.

New Adam

  • Definition: A title for Jesus reflecting His triumph over sin and death, and His creation of the world anew. Refers to how Jesus heals and recreates humanity after the Fall.

Concupiscence

  • Definition: The tendency or inclination to sin that is an effect of original sin. Even though baptism erases the stain of original sin, the tendency to sin remains.

Demons

  • Definition: Fallen angels, created good by God, who chose evil and now seek to entice human beings to turn away from God.

Logos

  • Definition: The divine Word of God. Greek for word.

Communion of Persons

  • Definition: A phrase used to describe an exchange of self-giving love that unites the members of a family. God as Trinity is inherently a communion of persons.

Ruah

  • Definition: Hebrew word meaning breath or spirit.

Page 1 – Key Concepts

  • 1) How much power Satan has

    • Satan’s power is finite; it is nothing compared to God.

  • 2) What type of angel is Satan?

    • Satan is a fallen angel.

  • 3) What is Satan’s goal?

    • To lead humans away from God.

Page 2 – Additional Concepts and Details

  • 4) Why Mary was called Undoer of Knots

    • Because through Mary’s obedience to God, she had untied the knot of Eve’s disobedience.

  • 5) Types/Names of Angels

    • Seraphim, Cherubim, Thrones, Dominions, Virtues, Powers, Principalities, Archangels, Guardian angels.

  • 6) Duties of Angels

    • Act as messengers, assist people, guard/ accompany people, comfort Jesus, and serve and glorify God.

  • 7) Three Archangels

    • Michael, Gabriel, Raphael.

  • 8) Who developed the theology of angels?

    • St. Thomas Aquinas.

  • 9) Guardian Angels

    • Angels assigned to a person by God to guide and protect the person.

  • 10) Why science is dependent upon order in creation

    • If there were no order in creation, science could not comprehend it.

  • 11) Three qualities that make us “in the image of God”

    • Intellect, Free Will, and rational faculties.

  • 12) Protoevangelium

    • Genesis 3:15; God promises to send a Savior. Foreshadowing of Jesus; Latin for “first gospel.”

  • 13) What does it mean that Adam and Eve experienced a spiritual death?

    • Spiritual death signifies a rupture in the relationship with God, a loss of sanctifying grace, and a separation from God due to sin.

  • 14) Two names for the snake in Genesis

    • Serpent and Dragon.

  • 15) Why is Jesus the New Adam?

    • Jesus redeems our nature that was wounded by Adam, restoring humanity.

  • 16) What did the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil symbolize?

    • Our limits as creatures and the boundary between Creator and creature.

  • 17) According to Pope Benedict, best approach to understanding Scripture

    • A holistic, Christ-centered, prayerful interpretation of Scripture, grounded in reason and faith, history and Tradition, and always under the guidance of the Holy Spirit and the Church.

  • 18) Examples of spiritual creation

    • Angels and human souls.

  • 19) The Sudanese saint who was a slave before converting to Christ

    • St. Josephine Bakhita.

  • 20) The Garden of Eden was the original temple

    • Adam is priest of it; Eden is the original temple in which humanity participated in worship and communion with God.

Notes on connections and implications:

  • The vocabulary terms establish a framework for understanding human dignity, vocation, and the moral life central to Theology of the Body.

  • The concepts about Satan, angels, Mary as Undoer of Knots, and the Protoevangelium connect Scripture, tradition, and doctrine to explain the human condition, grace, and salvation history.

  • The idea of being made in God’s image (intellect, free will, rational faculties) grounds ethical reasoning, scientific inquiry (order in creation), and vocation.

  • The Garden of Eden as the original temple frames humanity’s role as priestly in stewardship of creation.

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