World Religions Christianity

Christianity: Key Vocabulary: Monotheism: Monotheism is when people, or religions, that believe in one (mono) God (theos). Such religions include the three great monotheistic religions, Islam, Christianity, and Judaism, which account for over fifty percent of the world’s population! Polytheism: Polytheism is when people, or religions, that believe in multiple goddesses or gods. Ancient examples include the Romans and the Greeks, and more modern examples include Hinduism, which is mainly located in Asia, specifically India and Nepal; holds that there is no god with complete providential control of the universe: - Thus, fate and destiny rules everything (even the gods); - Religious practice was about securing temporal benefits and nothing else; - The universe was ultimately doomed anyway (classic example: Norse mythology, in which the gods would face off against the forces of nature at Ragnarok – and loose). Atheist: An atheist is someone on earth who denies the existence of God, and has a desire for pleasure. Recently, atheists have published books that mock religions and their beliefs that believe in the existence of God; nevertheless, world religions continue to prove that believing in one God is extremely reasonable. Agnostic: Agnostic, or agnostics, is when people claim that God’s existence cannot be known, approved, or disproved. Agnostics seek the desire for pleasure, and when asked if they believe in God, they respond with “I don’t know,” portraying their uncertainties. Secular Humanism: A belief that people have in which they claim that the world can operate without God; oftentimes, secular humanism relates significantly to what atheists believe about God. Deism: A belief that people have in which God created the world by “winding it up,” and by staying outside of his creation as it worked on its own. The Founding Fathers, surprisingly enough, were Deists who thought of God as an absentee landlord or watchmaker. Most Deists do not think that God has a group of special people to know him, and they don’t believe that God performs miracles through creation. Divine Revelation: Divine Revelation is the free gift of God’s self-communication by which he makes known the mystery of his divine plan. The word “Revelation” means “unveiling,” so Divine Revelation is God’s “Divine Unveiling.” Salvation History: Salvation History is the account of God’s saving activity for humankind. Salvation History starts with the first creation and goes on from there. Covenant: A covenant is a solemn agreement, an open-ended contract of love in which God commits himself totally to human beings. In the Bible, there is an example of a covenant, The Covenant with Noah. Faith: Faith is the theological virtue that enables us to believe in God and all that he has revealed to us and all that the Church teaches regarding our faith. Through faith we can commit our whole lives to God and say yes to the gift of Revelation given to us in Christ our Lord. To put it simply, faith allows us to make ourselves part of the Church, accept Jesus as Lord, “partake in the life of the Blessed Trinity, and commit our intellect and wills to God. Grace: Grace is God’s gift of friendship and life that enables us to share his life and love. Beatific Vision: Beatific Vision is seeing God face-to-face in Heaven, the source of our eternal happiness; final union with the Triune God for all eternity. Hell: Hell is to die in mortal sin without repenting and accepting God’s merciful love meaning remaining separated from God forever by one’s own free choice. Hell is permanent damnation, and Hell separates us from Eternity with God forever. Amen: Amen is a Hebrew word meaning “so be it, I agree, certainly, it is firm.” The Deposit of Faith: Entrusted by Christ to the Apostles. Sacred Scripture: Divinely inspired writings. Sacred Tradition: The living “handing on” of the Church’s Gospel message; The living transmission of the Church's Gospel message found in the Church's teaching, life, and worship. It is faithfully preserved, handed on, and interpreted by the Church's Magisterium. Dogma: A central truth of Revelation that Catholics are obliged to believe; does not change. Omnipresent: God is everywhere. Yahweh: The sacred Hebrew name for God that means "I am who am," "I am," or "I am who I am." Polytheistic: Religions that believe in multiple gods and goddesses. The ancient Greeks and Romans were polytheistic, as in the Hindu faith. Doctor of the Church: A church writer of great learning and holiness whose works the church has highly recommended for studying and living the faith. Transcendence: A trait of God that refers to his total otherness and being infinitely beyond and independent of creation. Immanence: A trait of God that refers to God's intimate union with and total presence to his creation. Covenant: The open-ended contract of love between God and human beings. Jesus' Death and Resurrection sealed God's new covenant of love for all time; Testament translates to covenant. Bible: The inspired Word of God; the written record Revelation. Revelation: The "free gift of God's self-communication by which he makes known the mystery of his divine plan." The word "Revelation" means "unveiling," so Divine Revelation is God's "Divine Unveiling." Blessed Trinity: The central dogma of the Christian faith that there are three Divine Persons Father, Son, and Holy Spirit - in one God. Abba: An Aramaic term of endearment meaning "Daddy." Jesus used this word to teach that God is a loving Father. Divine Providence: God's loving and watchful guidance over his creatures on their way to their final goal and perfection. Original Sin: The fallen state of human nature into which all generations of people are born. Christ Jesus came to save us from Original Sin. Original Holiness and Justice: The state of man and woman before sin. "From their friendship with God flowed the happiness of their existence in paradise" (CCC, 384). Concupiscence: An inclination to commit sin that can be found in human desires and appetites as a result of Original Sin. The eight Beatitudes are as follows: 1. Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven; 2. Blessed are they who mourn, for they shall be comforted; 3. Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the land; 4. Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied; 5. Blessed are the merciful, they will be shown mercy; 6. Blessed are the clean of heart, for they will see God; 7. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God; 8. Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven. Intellectual Proofs for God’s Existence: 1. The Unmoved Mover – whatever is in motion must be moved by something else; 2. First Cause – nothing causes itself; 3. Everything Comes from Something – “nothing” cannot create “something”; 4. Supreme Model – we can only speak of different degrees of qualities (truth, beauty, goodness) by comparing them to a reference point; 5. Grand Designer – the beauty, immensity, symmetry, and power in the world forces us to conclude that a Grand Designer made it all. Heartfelt Proofs for God’s Existence: 1. An unquenchable thirst for joy and happiness – God implanted a homing device that causes us to be restless until we find him; 2. An experience of beauty and truth – when we experience profound joy and truth, we get a taste of God’s beauty and truth; 3. A sense of personal conscience, moral goodness, and justice – we sense there is an absolute moral authority that teaches the standard of human behavior; 4. Love – love comes from love itself: God. Truths about God’s creation: • God freely created an orderly and good world out of nothing. • God is totally beyond us. At the same time, God is present to us, upholding and sustaining creation. • God guides creation through divine providence. • God created human beings in his image and likeness. • God created us male and female out of love and for love. • God is the creator of all that is seen and unseen. • Though essentially good because God made us, humans are tainted with sin. • Through Jesus Christ and the power of the Holy Spirit, God invites us into a personal relationship with him. Our Fallen Human Nature is Because of Our...: ▪ Ignorance; ▪ Suffering; ▪ Concupiscence; ▪ Death. Liberation from Original Sin is...: ▪ Only through Jesus Christ; ▪ Baptism; ▪ Constant help from the Holy Spirit. The rewards for those who believe in the one, true God: 1. We come to knowledge of God’s greatness and his love for us – God loves us unconditionally; 2. Our life has meaning – we have dignity and should care for one another; 3. God will always care for us – God will not abandon us when we sin. Review: Similarities and differences between Islam and Christianity. Similarities: monotheistic, trace family back to Abraham, began in the Middle East, have a code of behavior, have holy books, believe Jesus was a prophet, believe Moses was a prophet, both believe in a final judgment day, both believe in angels. Differences: Christians think Jesus was the son of God, Muslims do not, Christians code of behavior is the 10 commandments and for Muslims it’s the 5 pillars, Islam’s most holy site is in Mecca, Christians is in Jerusalem, Muslims must pray five times a day and Christians do not, Christians worship in a church, Muslims worship in a mosque.