Theology exam #1
old testament
Hebrew bible, primarily written in Hebrew and is sacred to Hebrew people
scripture
The bible, or christian scriptures, is a body of text that christian recognize as sacred; two primary parts- old testament and new testament
Why did the Christian creed develop?
a growing need to provide convenience and inform summary and declaration of religious faith
Thomas Aquinas (c.1225-1274)
assumed that christian faith is fundamentally rational and thus can be supported and explored by reason; lived during the high middle ages- wrote summa theologica
gospels
basically means "good news" and includes gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John
Earlier Judaism henotheism; Christianity's Jewish cultural roots
belief in and worship of one god above other gods; perhaps a form of monotheism; does not deny existence of other gods, but rather devotion to one God above others
Athanasius
circulated a letter that identified 27 canonical books that are now known as the new testament
Saint Ignatius of Loyola
co-founded the society of Jesus (jesuits) took a pilgrimage to bethalham and prayed a lot
New testament
consists of 27 books with the gospels; ends with the book of revelation, which represents a vision of the end of history in which the writer professes to have been allowed to see heaven
moral sense
defining ethical guidance for christian conduct
covenant relationship
diede owes protection to the tribe while the tribe must be loyal to the diede
Irenaeus
early christian period and helped shape christianity
literal sense
the text was taken at face value
patristics
usually understood to mean the branch of theological study which deals with the study of the "the fathers"
the patristic period
vaguely defined entity which is often taken to be the period from the closing of the New Testament writings near the end of the early christian period to the fall of Rome
St. Francis of Assisi
very wealthy while growing up; went to prison and became ill which is where his conversion began. had 3 main orders; big focus on animals and environment- had visions and stigmata
creed
(from credo) is a formal definition or summary of the Christian faith, held in common by all Christians
God is found in the events of Jewish history
-migration of Abraham -escape from Egypt -conquest of canaan
conversion of the Roman emperor Constantine to Christianity (306-337)
1. gives the church newfound freedom from persecution and increased social influence throughout the empire 2. offers Sunday a public holiday 3. Christianity moves from secret house churches to public worship and debate 4. encourages consolidation of the theological thought and consensus among churches on those issues
Christian Monasticism (monks)
5th century; monks like in monestaries; 3 major vows, chastity, poverty, and obediance
Where does the term theology come from?
From two Greek words, Theos meaning God and logos meaning word. literally discourse about God.
Immanence (ex. of theological aspects in tension)
God dwells within all God creates; creation is an expression of the creator (a painting embodies something of the artist
Transcendence (ex. of theological aspects in tension)
God separate from and above creation; cannot be coerced by ritual magic; picture and statues have no power, not divine
Yahweh
Judaism monotheistic expression denies all other gods except one
canon
a rule, a fixed reference point
fixing of the creeds
apostles creed Nicene creed creeds have evolution and debate
Justin Martyr
argues that traces of christian truth can be found in the great pagan writings; insisted that new testament writing be read with the same authority as old testament writings
canonical scripture
evolutionary development and was not generally closed until the 5th century
experience
experiences can act as foundation resources for christian theology
early middle ages
fall of rome; population declines and social turbulence across europe
Pentateuch
first five books of the old testament; also called the five books of the law
St. Cathrine of Sienna
had visions from a very early age; mystical marriage to Jesus Christ; known aesthetic fasting- declared a saint
the "canon" of scripture
indicates limits that have been set by the consensus of the christian community to the texts that may be regarded as "scriptural"
Saint Augustine of Hippo
most influential theologian in the latin Church for 1000 years; ordained in priesthood; help settle many controversies
why did christianity spread so rapidly
it adapted to Greek and roman cultural outlooks
pastoral and catholic epistles
letters
4 standard method of biblical interpretation
literal, allegorical, moral, anagogical
rational approach of interpreting the bible
looks to scripture as a source of universal truth
high middle ages
many great European universities are founded ; religious order established; includes work of Thomas Aquinas
Joan of Arc
middle ages; women fighter in the military; had visions from God: iconic feminist for her work became a saint
anselm of canterbury
monk, monologion or ontological argument,
apostles creed (western Christians)
outlines core christian beliefs
late middle ages
period sees black d earth sweeps across europe; lasts until the 1500s
anagogical sense
pointing to that which Christians may hope for in fulfillment of divine promises
Augustine
resisted teachings of Manichean, donates, etc
nicene creed
responded to the controversies; concerning the divinity of Christ; affirms Christ's unity with God, Christ is regarded as fully divine and fully human
liberative hermeneutics approach of interpreting the bible
scripture through the lens of the poor- interpreting it as politico- social text
Sources
scripture, tradition, reason, experience
literary approach of interpreting the bible
scriptures as narrative accounts or stories
historical approach of interpreting the bible
scriptures teach as an account of origins
allegorical sense
storytelling (aesop's fables), which interpreted otherwise obscure passages for statements of doctrine
minor prophets
the 12 remaining prophetic writing of the old testament
major prophets
the first 4 prophetic writing of the old testament
synoptic gospels
the first three gospels, the 4th gospel of john is set apart for literary and character reasons
theology in an academic world
theology is the systematic study of the ideas of a religion, including their sources, historical development, mutual relationship and applications
gnostics
traditions in christian worship (liturgy) very controversional
sociological appraoch of interpreting the bible
treats Christianity as a religion and social phenomenon