Theo 101 - Key Terms Quiz 3

Justification

(1) generally, making straight that which is crooked or ragged; (2) in theology, being set in right relationship with God. Justification is closely related to the notion of sin as a severing of humanity's relationship with God.

Pagan

a term used (especially in Roman times) to describe those persons who are neither Christians nor Jews.

Glossolalia

a Greek term meaning "speaking in tongues," one of the gifts of the Holy Spirit.

Logos

a Greek word meaning "word" or "reason." John's Gospel uses this term to describe Jesus as the revelation of God.

Repentance

a change of thinking with regard to one's past behavior, characterized by genuine remorse, acknowledgment of wrongdoing, a commitment to behave differently in the future, and an attempt to set things right with those one has wronged.

Paul

a first- century c.e. Jew who embraced belief in Jesus Christ after a visionary experience on the way to Damascus. He became a missionary for the Christian way, establishing churches throughout Asia Minor. Several of his letters are preserved in the New Testament.

Disciple

a learner or a follower. Christians use the term to refer to those who followed Jesus.

Jerusalem Conference

a meeting of Christian leaders held in Jerusalem in 49 or 50 c.e . According to the Acts of the Apostles, it was attended by Paul and Barnabas and the leaders of the Jerusalem church, and its purpose was to determine whether Gentile converts to Christianity needed to follow all of the requirements of Judaism.

Two-Source Hypothesis

a theory that explains the literary relationship among the synoptic gospels by suggesting that the writers of the Gospels of Matthew and Luke used the Gospel of Mark and a hypothetical source Q (a written document or documents mostly containing parables and sayings of Jesus) as sources for their Gospels.

Adoptionism

an early Christology that claimed that Jesus was adopted by God when he was chosen to be the messiah, typically at his Baptism. It was seen as a heresy in the early church.

Grace

free, unmerited assistance given to human beings by God for their salvation. It is participation in the life of God.

Docetism

from a Greek word meaning "to seem" or "to appear to be." The belief of some early Christians that Jesus Christ did not really become flesh but only seemed to have a body. In reality, he was a spiritual being who could not suffer or die.

God-fearers

from the Acts of the Apostles: people who were attracted to Judaism but uncertain whether to become fully Jewish (perhaps because of other Jewish requirements, such as circumcision and the dietary restrictions). Biblical scholars believe that some of the early Jesus followers came from among these people.

Apostle

from the Greek word apostello , which means "to send out." It is used by Christians to refer to "one who is sent out by Jesus to preach the word about him."

Synoptic Gospels

literally "seeing together." The term is usually used with reference to the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke, which tell the same general story of the life and teaching of Jesus.

Sacrificial Atonement

making up for one's sins with a sacrificial offering; in Christianity, the doctrine that our sins are forgiven through the death of Jesus Christ on the cross.

Beatitudes

meaning "blessed" or "happy," a statement of blessing to be conferred on a person (e.g., "Blessed are you ...").

Parousia

meaning "coming" or "presence"; the term is used of the second coming of Christ at the end time.

Incarnation

meaning "enfleshment"; the Christian doctrine that asserts that God became human, specifically, that the divinity called "the Word" (or Logos or the Son) became human, or took on flesh, in the person of Jesus of Nazareth.

Christology

meaning "words or teaching about the Christ." A study concerned with who Jesus is as the Christ (Messiah) and what his role is in God's relationship with humanity.

Q

representing the German word Quelle , meaning "source." A hypothetical written document or documents, mostly containing parables and sayings of Jesus, used as a source for the Gospels of Matthew and Luke.

Legalism

rigid adherence to the letter of the law, without allowing for exceptions or special circumstances.

Passion

the events surrounding Jesus' betrayal and arrest, trials, crucifixion, and resurrection.

Sanctification

the idea of someone or something being made holy for God.

Pseudonymity

the practice of writing a document with a false name attached to it. Pseudonymous writings were quite common in the ancient world, in part as a way of honoring famous people in a particular culture or religious tradition and in part as a way of increasing the authority of the document.

Synoptic Problem

the question concerning the literary relationship among the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke, which are so similar that it is almost universally believed that one or more of their authors used another gospel as a source.

Kingdom of God

the reign of God, which is manifested in the coming of Jesus Christ, in the Spirit's continued presence in the world, and in the conviction that God will triumph over the forces of evil.