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Page Laity The members
of the church who are not in the clergy. Clergy are the body of people ordained to perform religious
tasks, particularly the administration of the sacraments. Law The Law
(or Torah) includes, principally, the understanding of God's will and expectations
for humanity found in the first five books of the Hebrew Bible. The Law is the
very reflection of the nature of God because God acts and is know to humanity
in ways that are consistent with God's nature. Therefore, since God is just, the
Law is just. Since God is holy, the Law is holy. Later the prophets of the Hebrew
Bible and Jesus reaffirmed the authority and validity of the Torah. Jesus clearly
stated that he came "not to abolish the law, but to fulfill it." Law of non-contradiction The Law of non-contradiction is
the law that something cannot be both true and not true at the same time when
dealing with the same context. For example, the chair in my living room, right
now, cannot be made of wood and not made of wood at the same time. In the law
of non-contradiction, where we have a set of statements about a subject, we cannot
have any of the statements in that set negate the truth of any other statement
in that same set. Laying on of hands Physical contact by touching of
the hands. In the HB and NT it was sometimes used in reference to doing physical
harm (Gen. 22:12; Luke 20:19).
In the NT it is also used to signify an attempt at healing (Acts 9:12) and
commissioning of Holy Work (1 Tim. 4:14).
Usually, during the ordination of an elder, hands are layed on him or her as symbolic
of a transfer of authority and power. Liberalism In Christianity, "liberal" is
a word used of those who acknowledge the significant role of human reason, science,
the arts, and other fields of research in the pursuit of truth, and attempt to
frame and express the faith while taking such sources of knowledge seriously.
Some more "conservative" Christians see this as a threat to the faith
and urge, instead, a reliance upon the Bible as the exclusive source of truth,
even though there are numerouse passages in the Bible itself that point to nature
and human reason as valuable and important. See
also: The Bible and Modern Science. Limited atonement The teaching held in some Reformed
(Calvinist) circles of Christianity that Jesus bore only the sins of the elect,
and not that of the entire world. It maintains that the sacrifice was sufficient
for all, but intended for the elect. Logic From the Greek “logos” meaning
“word.” Logic is study of the principles of reasoning. A set of premises that
are examined and arranged so as to bring a conclusion. If A = B and B = C, then
A = C. Deductive logic is the method of validating
a claim by means of supportive information where both the claim and the information
are necessarily true. For example, People exist. All people breath. Therefore,
all people breath. Inductive logic is the method of
drawing a conclusion from a set of supportive information, yet the conclusion
has not yet been verified. For example, each night I get tired at 10 PM. Therefore,
I conclude that tonight, I will be tired at 10 PM. Logos The Greek word for "word." Mentioned
only in the writings of John. John 1:1 says, "In the beginning
was the Word [logos] and the Word [logos] was with God and the Word [logos] was
God." The Logos is sometimes used to refer to the second person of the Trinity
as the Son in preincarnate form. Jesus is the word [logos] made flesh (John 1:1,14). Lord's
Supper See: The Sacraments Man
Man or, more properly, "humaniity,"
is the creation of God. According to the creation narratives of the book of Genesis,
humanity was created in the "image and likeness of God." (Gen. 1:2627). Despite
subsequently acting in ways that are entirely contrary to God's will, the capacity
for justice and love remain a part of all that it means to be human. Further,
the notion that all people are created equally in the "image of God"
remains a solid foundation for contemporary concepts of human rights, civil liberty,
and equality under the law. Manuscript A document or a copy of an original
writing. There are thousands of existing manuscripts of the biblical documents
ranging from vellum (animal skins) to papyri (plant material) upon which the original
and copies of the original writings were made. Martyr Someone who
dies for a belief or cause. A Christian martyr would be a person who dies
because of his or her faith in Christian principles. Mass In Catholicism,
a reenactment of the sacrifice of Christ cross in a ceremony performed by a priest.
This ceremony is symbolically carried out by the priest and involves Consecration
where the bread and wine are changed into the body and blood of Jesus.
Materialism
The position that only material things exist and that all other things can be
explained in terms of matter and the physical properties of matter. Means of Grace This
is associated with sacramental theology. A means of grace is a manner in
which the Lord imparts grace to a believer as he or she partakes in the sacrament.
A sacrament is a visible manifestation of a spiritual reality. The Lord's Supper
is a sacrament in which the presence of Christ is visible in the bread and wine.
But the critical aspect of this sacrament in the presence of Christ, rather than
the particular words or objects used in the ceremony. For
more on the sacraments. Mediation,
Mediator A mediator
is someone who intervenes, someone who convenes and conciliates. The word "mediator"
is not found in the H.B., but its principle is. God gave the Law to the people
through a mediator, Moses (Gal. 3:19), who was
a prototype for Jesus. The word occurs only a few times in the N.T.: 1
Tim. 2:5; Heb. 8:6;
9:15; 12:24. It is
in the N.T. that the nature of mediation is understood in the person of Jesus
Christ. He is the mediator of a new covenant (Heb. 8:6) in many ways
fulfilling and supplementing the prior covenants with Noah, Moses, and the people
of God. Note that these biblical covenants between God and the people are considered
to be eternal. The new covenant in Jesus fulfills the covenant with Moses rather
than replacing it. Mercy Mercy
is the act of not administering punishment or other penalty even when it may be
appropriate according to the law. Because of sin or separation from God, people
may be considered deserving of punishment (Rom. 6:23; Isaiah 59:2),
but God shows mercy. That is, God choses to forgive and redeem. God
saves people according out of a mercy divine (Titus
3:5) and, in gratitude, the faithful are also empowered to be merciful to
others. (Heb. 4:16). Messiah
Messiah is a Hebrew word.
It means "anointed one." It is the equivalent of the N.T. word "Christ" which
also means "anointed." Jesus, as the messiah, was anointed by God (Matt. 3:16) to carry
out His three-fold ministry of Prophet, Priest, and King. As the Messiah He has
delivered those who identify with him from the bonds of sin and made reunion with
God and reconciliation with other people possible. In that sense, Messiah means
deliverer. Metaphysics The branch of philosophy
involved with examining and discussing the ultimate nature of reality. The term
comes from "meta" which means "after" and "phusika" which means "physics." Around
A.D. 70 Andronicus applied it to the section of Aristotelian writings that came
after the physics section; hence, metaphysics. Millennium Literally, this word means
1000 years. In the study of end times doctrines (eschatology) the millennium is
the duration of Christ's rule over the earth. The debate has been over when the
millennium will take place and what it actually is. The terms that have arisen
out of this debate are premillennialism, amillennialism, and postmillennialism.
Premillennialism teaches that the millennium is yet future and that upon Christ's
return He will set up His earthly kingdom. Amillennialism teaches that the millennium
is a figurative period and that Christ's rule began when He first became human.
Postmillennialism teaches that through the preaching of the Word of God, the world
will be converted and will then usher in Christ and the kingdom of God. There
are good arguments for each position. Minuscule The Greek
characters of lower case: abgde, etc. Different copies of Greek manuscripts appear
in minuscule form. By contrast, uncials are the Greek characters in upper case. Miracle A miracle is an out-of-the-ordinary,
direct and divine act within the world of time and space. Examples would be the
parting of the Red Sea, Jesus walking on water, the resurrection of Lazarus, etc.
Some hold that it is a violation of the natural order of physical laws. Others
maintain that there is no such violation, but rather that the natural explanation
of such events is yet to be understood. Still others view many miracles as a product
of wishful thinking on the part on the faithful. Miracles
are also known as powers and signs (Mark 9:39; Acts 2:22, 19:11) and mighty
works (John 10:25-28).
They are a manifestation of the power of God over nature (Joshua
10:121-14), animals (Num. 22:28),
people (Gen. 19:26), and
illness (2 Kings 5:1014).
Modalism The view that there is only one
person in the Godhead who is manifest in three forms: Father, Son, and Holy
Spirit. Monarchianism Monarchianism (mono - "one";
arche - "rule") was an idea concerning the nature of God that developed in the
second century C.E. It arose as an attempt to maintain Monotheism and refute tritheism.
It was seen as contradicting the orthodox doctrine of the Trinity. Monarchianism
teaches that there is one God as one person: the Father. Monergism
The teaching that God
alone is the one who saves. It is opposed to synergism which teaches that God
and man work together in salvation. Monism The view that there is only one
basic and fundamental reality, that all existence is this one reality even though
we perceive different aspects of this reality. Monophycitism This is a view regarding
the two natures of Jesus (See Hypostatic Union). It states that Jesus' two natures are
combined into one new one; the problem here is that rather than being fully human
and fully divine, Jesus is neither. Monolatry
The belief that there
is more than one God, but only one is served and worshiped. Therefore, monolatry
is a division of polytheism, the belief in many gods. Monotheism
The belief that there is only one God in all
places at all times. There were none before God and there will be none after.
Monotheism is basic notion of God affirmed by Jews, Christians and Muslims. Moral government theology A point of view held by those
who have difficulty with some notions of the atonement in which it appears that
the death of an innocent man, namely, Jesus, is somehow required in order than
salvation may occur. Many Christians find the logic of this problematic in that
it makes God a child murderer in requiring the death of his own Son. The alternative
view is that the saving work of Jesus is accomplished, not by the sacrificial
death of Jesus, but by his entire life and work. His influence is felt as much
by his loving action throughout his life as by his heroic death. Mormonism A
movement begun in the United States in 1830 by Joseph Smith. Some
see the Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter Day Saints as a new religion, separate
and distinct from Christianity. Others see it as a new denomination within Christianity.
Mortal Sin
In Catholicism, a serious and willful transgression of God's Law. It involves
full knowledge and intent of the will to commit the sin. Mortal sin is more serious
than venial Sin. Naturalism The
belief that all of human experience and events in the time-space continuum can
be explained as a function of causes that are purely natural and open to scienctific
understanding and explanation. Naturalistic evolution
The theory that the universe is many billions of years old and that after a long
period of time, all galaxies, stars, planets, and life on earth evolved. Some
see a conflict between "naturalistic" notions of evolution and the belief
that God, as the Creator, set up all natural laws and processes in the first place.
For further reading see: A Christian Case For Evolution. Neo-orthodoxy
With a focus on existential and psychological aspects of religious experience,
the neo-orthodox movement came to prominence in the mid twentieth century. It
attempts to incorporate critical thinking into the work of biblical scholarship.
Karl Barth and Paul Tillich are among the leading figures in the movement that
remains highly influential. For more on Paul Tillich. Nestorianism States that the two natures
of Christ were so separated from each other that they were "not in contact"; this
complicates rather than explains the doctrine of the Incarnation. (See also Hypostatic Union) Nun
Especially in the Roman Catholic Church, those women who consecrate their lives
to spiritual service and various religious orders. They do not marry and
are normally celibate, taking a vow of "poverty, obedience and chastity." Objectivism A
branch of philosophy that asserts that reality exists apart from the human mind
and that the knowability of this reality based upon observation. Occam's Razor The philosophical rule that the
simplest explanation is preferred over the more complicated one and that explanations
should be first proposed in relation to concepts that are already known.
Another way of seeing it is to say that the fewer assumptions that need to be
made to support an explanation of something, the better. The principle is
attributed to William Occam of the fourteenth century. Occult
Occult means "hidden".
It covers practices that are not approved of by relgious authorities, for example,
astrology (Isaiah 47:13),
casting spells (Deut. 18:11),
consulting with spirits (Deut. 18:11),
magic (Gen. 41:8),
sorcery (Exodus. 22:8), witchcraft
(Deut. 18:10),
and spiritism (Deut. 18:11).
Occult practices such as Ouija boards, tarot
cards, astrology charts, contacting the dead, séances, etc. thrive today, agruably
because they are considered to be practices frowned on by organized Christianity
and thus have the allure of the forbidden. Omnipotence
An attribute of God.
It is the quality of having all power (Psalm 115:3).
Go can do all things that do not conflict with God's own nature. Omnipresence
An attribute of God.
It is the quality of being present in all places at all times (Jer. 23:23.4).
God is not bound by time and space. Omniscience
An attribute of God.
It is the quality of having all knowledge (Isaiah 40:14).
Omnipotence, Omnipresence, and Omniscience are central attributes of God within
traditional Christian theology. Ontological Argument An attempt to prove God’s existence first postulated by Anselm.
In brief, it states that God is a being of which no greater thing exists or can
be thought of. Therefore, since we can conceive of God as the greatest of all
things that exist, then God must exist. Ontology The study of the nature of being
and its implications for theology. Paul Tillich is
a leading example of an ontological theologian. He defined God as the "Ground
of Being." Oracles
Oracles are the divine
revelations given to God's people. God's method of communicating these oracles
varied from dreams and visions (Num. 12:6-8), to wisdom
(Prov. 30:1), and
even the Urim and Thummim (Num. 27:21; 1 Sam. 14:337).1 Ordination In Christianity it is the ceremony
of consecration to ministry. It is usually administered by a commissioning and
a laying on of hands.
Ordo salutis
Latin for “order of salvation.” Theologically it is the order of decrees by God
in bringing about the salvation of individuals. In the Reformed camp, the ordo
solutis is 1) election, 2) predestination, 3) calling, 4) regeneration, 5) faith, 6) repentance, 7) justification, 8) sanctification, and 9) glorification. In the Arminian
camp, the ordo soluits is 1) calling, 2) faith, 3) repentance, 4) regeneration,
5) justification, 6) perseverance, 7) glorification. Original
Sin This
is a term used in traditional Christian theology to describe the effect of Adam's
sin on his descendants (Rom. 5:12-23).
Specifically, it is the inheritance of a sinful nature from Adam. The sinful nature
originated with Adam and is passed down from parent to child. Orthodoxy
Belief in the standards of accepted and true doctrines as defined by the early
Councils and Creeds of the Church. Some Protestants view the Bible as the sole
source of truth for Christians and therefore it provides the only standard of
what is "orthodox." The difficulty here is that Protestants differ on
what the Bible actually teaches. see Heterodoxy. ______________
1. The Urim and Thummim were placed in the breastplate of the
high priest (Exodus 28:30) and
were used as a means of communication with God. They mean "light" and "perfection".
Unfortunately, they are not described anywhere in the Bible. Some theories maintain
that they were twelve stones that made up part of the High Priest's garments.
The process of the communication with God is not given either.
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