OCR A Level - Developments in Christian Thought

Agape – Unconditional love, central to Christian morality.

Augustinian Theodicy – Evil as a privation of good, due to the Fall.

Beatific Vision – Direct experience of God after death (Aquinas).

Doctrine of Double Effect – A morally good act may have an unintended bad consequence (Aquinas).

Eternal Law – The moral order established by God (Natural Law).

Exclusivism – The belief that only Christianity leads to salvation (Augustine, Calvin).

Free Will Defence – Theodicy arguing that God allows evil due to human freedom (Plantinga).

Gender Theology – Feminist critiques of Christianity (Daly, Ruether).

Grace – God’s unearned favour, central to Christian salvation.

Inclusivism – Salvation is possible outside Christianity but still through Christ (Rahner).

Irenaean Theodicy – Evil exists for human growth and soul-making (Hick).

Liberation Theology – A Christian movement advocating for social justice and the poor.

Natural Law – Moral order inherent in nature, given by God (Aquinas).

Original Sin – The fallen state of humanity inherited from Adam and Eve.

Pluralism – The belief that all religions provide paths to salvation (Hick).

Religious Pluralism – The belief in multiple valid religious truths.

Revealed Theology – Knowledge of God gained through divine revelation (Barth).

Sanctity of Life – The belief that life is sacred and should be preserved.

Soul-Making Theodicy – The view that suffering helps humans develop spiritually (Irenaeus, Hick).

Universalism – The belief that all people will ultimately be saved.

Xenophanes’ Critique – The idea that humans create gods in their own image.

Yahweh – The Hebrew name for God in the Old Testament.