The purpose of this page is to answer the meaning of common words related to christianity, especially to assist those that may be new to the christian faith. You may also use the dictionary search field located at the top of this page to look up a word.
*Affirmation : in its best sense, it means supporting the value of something or someone. It is a 'Yes' in both attitude and deed. God affirmed us by making us, then by making us free, then by keeping us alive, then by coming as a human person (Jesus) to live among us. Jesus calls His followers to affirm ourselves and others, in much the same way as He has done for us. (Thus, when we cut people down with biting words and backstabbing deeds, we are not following Jesus. So why are we so quick to do it?) Affirmation is a positive act that helps to to give confidence and a sense of being supported. It gives voice to goals and hopes, and strengthens resolve. Another way God affirms is by putting into us gifts to build up the faithful. Christians often affirm someone or something at hand by saying words like "Amen!" or "Hallelujah!". In its worst sense (far too common in mainline-church circles), affirmation is a moral sop in which being nice is more important than giving people real help, which involves (at some point) helping them face the hard truth about the situations they face or the consequences of what they've done. 'No' has great value within the context of Christ's larger 'Yes'.
Agnosticism: the view that any ultimate reality (as God) is unknown and probably unknowable.
Altar: an elevated place or structure, as a mound or platform, at which religious rites are performed or on which sacrifices are offered to gods, ancestors, etc.
Alms: money, food, or other donations given to the poor or needy; anything given as charity:
Allah: Arabic for GOD: if from earlier Semitic languages
Angels
: messengers (Heb. mal'aki ) from beyond the material realm. They do God's errands -- mostly to tell us about something God is doing or is about to do. They can lead people to do (or not to do) things, but they do not interfere with peoples' own choices once those are made. Angels also have a protective role -- while Scripture is not very clear on how this works, the reports of the faithful over the years are clear about it. Oh, by the way.... they're not always nice.
Anoint : To apply oil onto someone. When the ancients wanted to heal a wound, they poured or daubed oil onto it. Oil then became a symbol of God's healing powers, and anointment became a sign of trust that God heals. It is still a practice among some Christian churches to anoint the sick with . From there, oil became a symbol of other powers of God. A chosen person would be anointed to mark their being given special authority by God, including authority to govern. The word 'Mashiach' or 'Messiah' refers to the ultimate One who was chosen to make the ultimate rescue of God's people; the Greek word for this is 'Christ'. Christians hold that this Anointed One was Jesus of Nazareth.
There is also a specialized use of the term 'anointing' by Pentecostal and Charismatic believers. When someone is said to be 'anointed', it means that the Spirit 'pours' onto them like oil -- that the person has been given special power/authority by the Holy Spirit to work with the Spirit in accomplishing the task at hand. The 'anointing' shows itself when the task is done well and has extraordinarily good results. (In some less-careful circles, 'anointed' has been dumbed down to mean 'good', even if there's no other reason to think that the Spirit might be involved rather than skill or knack.)
Ark: Also called Noah's Ark. the large boat built by Noah in which he saved himself, his family, and a pair of every kind of creature during the Flood. Gen. 6–9. A place of protection or security; refuge; asylum.
Apologetics : [Greek apologia (to make a rational defense)] the art and science of making a reasoned, rational, intellectual case for Christianity and Christian beliefs.
Atheism: a disbelief [or unbelief] in the existence of deity or the doctrine that there is no deity
Babel: an ancient city in the
Baptize: to immerse in water or sprinkle or pour water on in the Christian rite of baptism. To cleanse spiritually; initiate or dedicate by purifying. To administer baptism.
Beatitudes: Promises of blessing, and specifically the sequence of eight or nine sentences beginning `Blessed are the poor in Spirit' in Jesus'
Belief : the mental act, condition, or habit of placing trust or confidence in another. Mental acceptance and conviction in the truth, actuality, or validity of something.
Blasphemy : [from Greek; blas- (to curse, bring harm, or treat with contempt) + -pheme (speech)] Speaking about God with contempt, hatred or disdain; trash-talking against God. It's not about letting loose a swear word or doing some religious act in a so-called "profane" style. It's not even about being angry with God. Even the truest saints have done such things, in part because they were so true that they could be honest with God and humankind. (Remember that when the charge of so-called 'blasphemy' is used by authorities to silence their opponents.) However, true blasphemy is verbally abusing the God who loves you.
Book of life : A book in Heaven in which Jews believe the names of the righteous are inscribed.
Calvary:
Chaplain : a person who says the prayer, invocation, etc., for an organization or at an assembly. Member of the clergy who conducts religious services for an institution, such as a prison or hospital.
Charity: generous actions or donations to aid the poor, ill, or helpless. Something given to a person or persons in need; alms.
Church: a building for public Christian worship. The religious services held in a church. Any of many branches of Christians with their own doctrines, style of worship, etc. The whole Christian establishment.
Christ: Jesus of
Christian: someone who believes in, and follows the teachings and example of, Jesus Christ. Relating to Jesus Christ, the Christian religion or Christians.
Communion : the act of receiving the Eucharistic elements. The celebration of the Eucharist. The act of sharing, or holding in common; participation.
Confess: to own up to (a fault, wrongdoing, etc). Said of a priest: to hear the confession of someone.
Covenant : A contract, pact or agreement. For Jews, it is a contract between God and a specific people, originally made with Abraham and later expanded with Moses to include God's Law for the people, and then to cover them as a nation under David. This covenant is what created the identity of the Jewish people. Christians have a covenant too, which is seen as the fulfillment of the Jewish covenant but meant for the whole human race. This covenant was marked by Christ's execution on the cross where our sin was taken away, and by His return from death. This covenant creates the identity of the Christian church. In both cases, the covenant includes promises and responsibilities.
Deacon: (in hierarchical churches) A member of the clerical order next below that of a priest. An appointed or elected officer having variously defined duties.
Devotion: profound dedication; consecration. Assignment or appropriation to any purpose, cause, etc.
Discipleship : a disciple is one who undertakes the discipline of his/her teacher. Thus, discipleship is about learning what that discipline is, learning how to follow, to listen to the Story. It's part education, part mentoring, part apprenticeship, but it goes a step beyond all of those. Disciples not only take in what they are taught and what they learn from being with the teacher, they take it into their core identity, so that it defines who they are. The Church has a duty before God, a call to "make disciples of all nations". Evangelism is the beckoning, the calling in, and the opened door. Discipleship is the hallways inside.
Disciple: One who embraces and assists in spreading the teachings of another. An active adherent, as of a movement or philosophy. Often Disciple One of the original followers of Jesus. A member of the Disciples of Christ.
Diocese: The district or churches under the jurisdiction of a bishop; a bishopric. The territorial jurisdiction of a bishop.
Dogma : a female hound after giving birth; a teaching that is seen as a key part of a religion's core tradition, spelled out in some specific way that is considered definitive, authoritative, or binding on all, usually by reference to some sort of holy writings.
Dogmas are found in most religions, and sometimes to non-religious systems as well (such as classic Communism and Freudian Psychiatry). The Roman Catholic Church still believes it can declare Christian dogma; other Christians do not accept that any one body can issue dogma, and some of them doubt that there is even such a thing as 'dogma'. Today, the word 'dogma' has a negative feel to it, because dogmas have often been used by those in authority as an excuse for limiting freedom. To declare dogma is in a sense to speak for (or as) God; 'dogma' spelled backwards is 'am God'. On the one hand, there are teachings without which a religion loses its meaning and purpose; on the other hand, if these teachings are not challenged and tested, they become stiff and un-living, and thus less true. A challenge to dogma is not to be done for advantage, or to take revenge on churchly authorities, or as a call to a self-centered 'freedom'. Dogma is worth challenging only in the service of truth, which is at the root of any true and beneficial freedom.
Edify: to build up; building up.
Elder: an older person, ecclesiastical term designatinga leader of the faith community.
Epistle: a written message, a letter.
Eternity: that which is outside and not limited by time; no beginning and no end.
Evangelism : the preaching or promulgation of the gospel; the work of an evangelist.
Faith:
Famine: lack of food due to drought, war, plagues, and other disasters.
Fast: going without food and / or water.
Fellowship: a community, intimate association, mutual sharing or participating relationship.
Firmament: universe beyond earths envelope of air.
Foresake: to abandon, leave or give up on someone or something.
Frankincense: aromatic dried resin collected from bark of several trees in the Boswellia family.
Gratitude: thankful awareness of that which has been recieved.
Gnosticism : Gnosticism arrived when Christianity was a mere toddler, and it tried its best to suck in the strong, fledgling Christian faith and reshape it into its image. There was a lot of variety of practice and teaching among Gnostics, but there were certain core markers.
Golgotha: a hill near
Gospel: the teachings of Jesus and the apostles; the Christian revelation. The story of Christ's life and teachings, esp. as contained in the first four books of the New Testament, namely Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Something regarded as true and implicitly believed.
Grace : God's unmerited favor. It's given to all, freely. God gives us the faith that justifies us, and gives us the Spirit that changes us and gives us Christ's goodness. God keeps this grace from noone. However if we don't accept it, it sits there with no effect, like an unopened and forgotten Christmas present. And we humans don't like the implications of the gift, namely, that we have no way to do this ourselves. So we tend not to take this grace until we have nothing else left and nowhere else to turn, and even then we might spurn it. There's more than enough grace to go around to everybody, more than enough to do the job. More than enough for you.
Harmony : a sense of being in a rightful relationship with the rest of existence. Harmony can't happen in a system where all things lose identity into an Absolute (like most Asian and New Age religions); the result would be one melody, no unison and no parts. Christianity holds that each person -- and beyond that, each part of nature -- is loved by God for what they are. If all of them sing only what they feel like singing, it's just noise, not harmony. But if they follow the Conductor, there are melodies and harmonies, rhythms and raps, whistles and claps, leads and backup. It would all fit together. That is the Kingdom, not our current life. But we can live according to God's will as revealed in Jesus, and thus be a part of the harmony.
Harvest: to gather in a crop; time of year when crops mature and are gathered.
Heir: one who recieves a portion.
Heaven: the abode of God, the angels, and the spirits of the righteous after death; the place or state of existence of the blessed after the mortal life.
Holy: associated with God or gods; religious or sacred.
Hope : confidently expecting something good to come in the future. (One does not hope for what one already has, though one can hope it continues.)
As usual, the Bible describes it, and says what it is there for. What God's followers hope for is that God's will be done on earth as in heaven. Or, said another way, the Christian hopes for the fruition of what has already begun, the full arrival of God's Kingdom. We pin our hopes on the God of that Kingdom.
Paul wrote in Romans (several places) about what hope leads to or makes : patience, courage, joy. Hope makes us stable (Colossians 1:23), and we are saved in hope (Romans 8:24). It is one of the three things that last : faith, hope, and love.
Humility: dependent on Giod, truly pious.
Hymnal: a book of hymns for use in a religious service.
Idol: any object one shapes or uses as an object of worship.
Immanuel: with us is God.
Incarnation : in + carn (flesh) + -ation (to become, transform into). When a divine being becomes human or takes on an animal form of life. For Christians, it refers to God loving us so much that God chose to become a certain earthly being, Jesus of Nazareth. Choosing to be born, to live, to die in the manner of human beings, and to experience the good and bad that makes up human life. By incarnating, God gave a new holiness to all that exists, to the earth Jesus walked on, the nature he took part in, the ethnic/religious group he was a member of, the wood he cut and pieced together, the temple he hung out at, the boat he spoke from, the crowds he spoke to, the nation and empire he lived in, the garden he prayed in, the city he was executed in, the tomb he walked out of. Jesus' work doesn't make any created things into God, but makes all created things blessed by God.
*Jehovah: a name of God in the Old Testament, a rendering of the ineffable name, JHVH, in the Hebrew Scriptures. (in modern Christian use) God.
Jesus: Jesus Christ, the central figure of the Christian faith.
Joy [< French < Latin gaudere (to rejoice)] intense, ecstatic, or exultant happiness or pleasure. Joy runs deeper than mere pleasure; especially in a spiritual context, it runs deep into the the core of us, and radiates throughout. It is the response of something deep in the soul to someone (such as God, or a loved one) or something (such as liberation) supremely, even overpoweringly, wonderful.
Kindness: love expressed in charitable acts, or moral goodness expressed in acts of friendships
Liberty: removal or exemption from restrictions.
Love : I'd be a fool if I tried to define love. I can point you to its source, and say "God is love". I can point you to Jesus on the cross, and say, "this is what love does". I can point you all around, for signs of God's love. I can point at you, and have you think about those you love, and those that have given you love. And I can point to Paul, in his letter to the Corinthians All this should be enough; leave the rest for the dictionary folks. Now, go do it
Lutheran: of or pertaining to Luther, adhering to his doctrines, or belonging to one of the Protestant churches that bear his name. A follower of Luther or an adherent of his doctrines; a member of the
Manna: food God provided for the Isrealites after they left Egypt and before they entered the promised land
Marriage: relationship between a man and woman in which society judges it legitimate for them to live together.
Mature: spoken of persons who achieve the goal of christian growth-grown up spiritually
Mediator: one who seeks to establish a relationship and understanding between two parties.
Meek: quality of having a patient and gentle attitude.
Mitre: turban, worn on the head by the high priest.
Mortal: that which is weak and must eventually die.
MYRRH:a plant whose expensive aromatic gum was used in perfume, and incense.
Methodist: A member of an evangelical Protestant church founded on the principles of John and Charles Wesley in England in the early 18th century and characterized by active concern with social welfare and public morals.
Mercy : [< Medieval Latin merces (compassionate action) < merx (merchandise)] compassionate action or treatment; relief from distress; a tendency from personal character to act compassionately. In scripture and in the Christian faith, it means the giving of grace to people who don't deserve it, or showing compassion to someone you have power or authority over.
To Minister : To service or help another. More specifically in the Christian context, to serve or help in the name of Christ, through the example of Christ and by the power of the Holy Spirit. Anyone who does this is a 'minister', though most people use the word to describe the 'ordained minister' who is set apart to take care of the sacraments, preach sermons, and devote themselves to the spiritual care of the members of the local church. (The root meaning tells us why in most governments, cabinet members are called 'ministers' and their offices are called 'ministries' -- they're supposedly there to serve the nation.)
Mormon: the popular name given to a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
New Testament: The collection of the books of the Bible that were produced by the early Christian church, comprising the Gospels, Acts of the Apostles, the Epistles, and the Revelation of St. John the Divine. The covenant between God and humans in which the dispensation of grace is revealed through Jesus Christ.
OATH:
OBEY: to act in accord with what is commanded by an authority.
Original sin : It's not about infants having dreams of evil. It's not about how creative we are at sinning (it's all a variation of what's been done before). And it's not about turning us into a miserable pack of sad sacks moaning, 'Woe is me'. Original sin is about the fact that even the best of us turn away from God in some way, even the best of us at our best is in the same basic dilemma as the worst of us, and even the holiest of us at their tippy-top is a universe distant from God's holiness. None of us are born with the faith; that is poured into us as we live. That's not to say that we're basically all evil monsters (God created us good, says Genesis), but to say that there's some 'monstrousness' in all of us, and it affects everything we do. And, there's a bit of this monstrousness in whatever way we gather together -- clubs, teams, parties, unions, companies, cartels, ethnic groups, nations, governments, churches. We each add a bit of our own monstrousness to the group, and we take into ourselves a part of the group's monstrousness. (We also add and take on goodness.) Our monstrousness isn't something we created recently. It is rooted in our origins, in the very beginning of the human race, hence, it is 'origin-al'. But each of us adds something more to it.
Old Testament: The first of the two main divisions of the Christian Bible, comprising the Law, the Prophets, and the Hagiographa. In the Vulgate translation all but two books of the Apocrypha are included in the Old Testament. the covenant between God and
Pagan: One of a people or community observing a polytheistic religion, as the ancient Romans and Greeks. A person who is not a Christian, Jew, or Muslim. Pertaining to the worship or worshipers of any religion that is neither Christian, Jewish, nor Muslim.
PARABLE: a saying, proverb, story, simile or metaphor intended to communicate truth by comparison.
PATIENCE: capacity to remain self contained despite difficult circumstances or actions by others that might be expected to cause anger or upset.
PATRIARCH: father or chief ancestor of a tribe or race.
PEACE: wholeness, unity, harmony.
PENTECOST: feast of weeks which was held 50 days after Passover.
PERISH: to be destroyed, physical death rather than external punishment.
PERSEVERENCE: enduring hardships with patience and persistence.
PIETY: faithfulness in fulfilling omes religious and social duties.
PITY: feeling of concern for the plight of another, which often moves a person to offer help.
*Pledge: an obligation, vow or committment.
Praise: an expression of admiration or appreciation.
Promise: statement of ones intent to do or not to do something.
Providence: continuous active involvement of God in the created universe; his supervision of all things from the creation to eternity.
Pope: the bishop of
Poverty: the state or condition of having little or no money, goods, or means of support; condition of being poor; indigence.
Prophecy: the foretelling or prediction of what is to come. Something that is declared by a prophet, esp. a divinely inspired prediction, instruction, or exhortation. A divinely inspired utterance or revelation
Protestant: A member of a Western Christian church whose faith and practice are founded on the principles of the Reformation, especially in the acceptance of the Bible as the sole source of revelation, in justification by faith alone, and in the universal priesthood of all the believers. A member of a Western Christian church adhering to the theologies of Luther, Calvin, or Zwingli. One of the German princes and cities that supported the doctrines of Luther and protested against the decision of the second Diet of Speyer (1529) to enforce the Edict of Worms (1521) and deny toleration to Lutherans.
Psalms: a book of the Bible, composed of 150 songs, hymns, and prayers. To sing of or celebrate in psalms.
Pray: to address one's god, making earnest requests or giving thanks.
Rainbow: the arched spectrum of color seen in the sky as light, refracted through water vapor.
Recieve: to reach out and take hold of.
Remember: to think about, meditate on, or keep in mind.
Reincarnation : In this belief, the soul is a vagabond. It gets dis-embodied and re-embodied again and again in various sorts of creatureliness, until it is finally blown into the Absolute, whatever that is (which may indeed be nothing at all). The Asian idea of 'soul' (as distinct from Greek, Jewish, and African ideas) has some of the attributes of what in other ways of speaking would be called 'spirit' or 'personality'. But like the Greek idea (and not like Jewish or African or New Testament Christian), it is separate, the core of what makes someone a person.
Redeem and redemption [< Latin redimere (to redeem) < emere (to buy)] To recover ownership by way of payment. In religion, it means to make good on the price of the consequences of sin or error, and thus to make the person free from the captivity due to that sin. In Christianity, it is a primary way to describe what Jesus has done, releasing us from sin's captivity.
Religion: a particular system of belief or worship, such as Christianity or Judaism.
Respect. [< Latin re- (back, again) + specere (to look)] to look back at or refer back to > to be worth looking back at or returning to > to be worthy of special attention > to be esteemed. Thus, as a noun, the quality of being held to be of high value or esteem. Let Aretha spell it for you. The term is usually used for high value in the lasting elements of good character or excellence in task.
Resurrectection: the bodily raising of the dead to life.
Restore: to renew, hyeal or make alive.
Reward: the return one recieves for his acts, especially repayment for doing good.
Righteousness: an absolute quality of God, who always acts in harmony with his mortal nature.
Remember: to think about, meditate on, or keep in mind.
*Revelation: God's disclosure of Himself and His will to His creatures. Something that contains such disclosure, as the Bible.
Rosary : a series of prayers, usually consisting of 15 decades of aves, each decade being preceded by a paternoster and followed by a Gloria Patri, one of the mysteries or events in the life of Christ or the Virgin Mary being recalled at each decade. Astring of beads used for counting these prayers during their recitation.
Rudiments: Basic principles.
Sabbath : the seventh day of the week, Saturday, as the day of rest and religious observance among Jews and some Christians. Ex. 20:8–11. The first day of the week, Sunday, similarly observed by most Christians in commemoration of the Resurrection of Christ.
Sacred: any object , person, or time that is set apart and dedicated to the sole service of God.
Sacrilege: taking something that has been set apart as sacred for secular or personal use.
Saint : any of certain persons of exceptional holiness of life, formally recognized as such by the Christian Church, esp. by canonization. A person of great holiness, virtue, or benevolence.
Salvation: deliverance from slavery or some great distress achieved by someone, notably God, acting on behalf of the endangered person or nation.
Sanctuary: a holy place, which Gods people set apart to meet with and worship God.
Savior: one who delivers another from some physical or spiritual plight.
Scribe: person employed in composing or recording private, public and religious documents.
'Seed faith' : to entrust money or goods or time to a ministry so you can receive God's special benefit in return : a financial surrendering will give you financial gain. It is not a biblical idea nor a biblical term, though many act like it is. Its everyday-language translation is 'gimme'. If a preacher says 'Build me up', pray that the Spirit grasps them, but don't send money. (By the way : 'this ministry' = 'me').
Second Coming: the physical, personal return of Jesus Christ to earth.
Sect : it sounds like dissect and section, and it should, because it comes from the same Latin root word, meaning 'to cut into parts'. A sect, in its more general sense, is a a group that broke off of (or was thrown out of) another larger group for some specific reason. Such groups are usually small, but that's not always the case. Anglicans were a Roman Catholic sect, Methodists were an Anglican sect, Nazarenes were a Methodist sect. Christianity was a Jewish sect. The term should not be used after the group has established its own clear identity and place as a part of society over time. When that has happened, their place is not based on the matters of a split or separation. Thus the above examples were sects, but no longer are. The act of splitting off almost always involves turmoil, and sometimes blood can be shed even among the most peaceable and well-meaning groups. Thus, there is no such thing as 'safe sects'.
'Sectarian' means that the matter is of concern mostly to those who are either part of the sect or of the group it split from. To others, a 'sectarian' matter can be unimportant, weird, puzzling, or scary.
Seek: to give attention and priority to, to desire, to choose to follow.
Seer: a person thought to recieve divine messages through visions or dreams; a prophet.
Selah: a liturigcal or musical notation found 71 times in the Psalms and three times in Habakkuk.
Self Control: power over ones own actions; moderation or good sense.
Sepulcher: a tomb, a place where a dead body is buried.
Shepherd: a person who cares for sheep- or human leaders who care for Gods human flock.
Shrine: box or container in which sacred objects are placed or any place where sacred objects are placed or set aside for worship.
Shroud: large strip of cloth used to cover or wrap a dead body.
Seraphim: an order of angelic beings named only in Isaiah 6. Humanoid form except for 3 pairs of wings.
Servant: a person who performs tassk at the direction of another.
Sincere: without pretense, honest, unadulterated.
Sin: rebellion against God, falling short of / or deviation from standards established by God.
Sinner : in ordinary speech, it means someone who is deeply depraved, evil, bad. However, that's not what the Christian faith means by the word. In Christian belief, 'sinner' is not a moral description, but a relational one. Sin is the broken state of our relationship with God.
Sodomy: general term for unnatural sex acts, specifically homosexuality.
Song: a musical composition.
Soothsayer: one who foretells the future using occult means.
Sorrow: mental stress and anguish, or physical pain, associated with some affliction.
Spirit : that aspect of our being which animates us -- makes us live, move, change, do, be active, feel, think, interact. God put that into us. To be 'disspirited' is to hide ourselves away and let it just ebb out of us, like an untended wound leaks blood. To be 'inspired' is for the Holy Spirit to quicken that aspect of us, to power it up and get it going at peak effectiveness. (Think of God doing the original CPR, in Genesis and again in a vision in Ezekiel. In Christian belief, God is a spirit, and is the source and creator of all other spirits.
Spiritual : regarding matters of the spirit(s) or matters that are sacred. More than ever before, 'spiritual' has become the word of choice for vague, foggy, and shrouded things. To Christians, 'spiritual' means that which causes this world of 'stuff' or material to come alive, to move, to change or resist change, to take action (even when the action taken is deliberately not to take action). The spiritual realm underlies all that happens in the material world. The 'material' world is where the spiritual realm applies itself. Thus, the two worlds are different angles of the same reality, not different realities.
Statute: a law or decree.
Stigmata: marks resembling the wounds of the crucified body of Christ, said to be supernaturally impressed on the bodies of certain persons, esp. nuns, tertiaries, and monastics.
Stoning:
Soul : that which makes a person the distinct person they are. This would include our sense of identity, but also what makes up that identity, most especially what arouses our emotions, or awakens our spiritual or moral force and sense of destiny or purpose. It is where our freedom is rooted. (This is a Greco-Roman way of putting it. The Hebrew terms usually used in the Bible for soul and spirit have broader meanings, almost like the later idea of 'self'.) In many religions, the soul is seen as immortal -- that is, it's a side of you that does not come to an end. Christians believe that the soul is brought back together again with its body when God's Reign comes in full.
Suffer: to undergo something painful or unpleasant, whether a physical injury, emotional pain, grief or loss.
Supernatural : regarding that which is not from the observable, tangible or measurable universe, especially regarding divine things /beings /actions /realms.
Swear: to make a binding commitment.
Synagogue: gathering or congregation of Jewish people for study and prayer, or the building erected for such meetings.
Talent: a monetary unit, worth over a thouand dollars.
Tabernacle: . The tent carried by the Israelites across the desert during the Exodus, used as a sanctuary for the Ark of the Covenant. A place of worship of certain nonconformist Christian denominations. A receptacle in which the consecrated bread and wine are kept.
Teaching: the process of instruction, the content of the christian faith ( teaching ).
Temple: a building in which people worship, especially in ancient and non-Christian religions, and in some Christian sects such as the Mormons. Either of the two successive religious buildings built by the Jews in Jerusalem, one before and one after the exile in Babylon. A synagogue, especially in Reform or Conservative Judaism.
Temperance : doing things in moderation; not being at a fevered emotional pitch; responding in a measured and moderated manner.
Temptation: to induce or entice a person to sin.
Test: a trial intended to ascertain value or quality.
Testify: to give evidence at some legal proceeding of what one has seen or learned about.
Testimony
: Letting the Good News of Christ be shown by way of telling one's own story, and what that Good News did in/for/to/with oneself. The role of testimony is often misunderstood. It is often seen by others as merely the story of the person testifying, instead of being that person's part in the larger story of the reconciliation of creation with its creator, the larger story of the Good News and of the gathering of believers which that Good News created. Each testimony is an open, face-to-face version of what is, when added together, described by Scripture as 'a cloud of witnesses'. Testimony is often given wrongly -- to get attention, grab a piece of the spotlight, or maybe to give others a voyeur's thrill while leaving the inner self untouched. Yet, how can we do without testimony? If we're sold on the faith, if we've invested our identity into it, it would become very difficult not to tell Jesus' story when we share our own story. Just by being shared, a testimony says, 'Jesus is meant for you, too.'
Tithe: Sometimes, tithes. the tenth part of agricultural produce or personal income set apart as an offering to God or for works of mercy, or the same amount regarded as an obligation or tax for the support of the church, priesthood, or the like.
Torment: extreme pain or anguish.
Trance: an altered state of consciousness and perception.
Transformation: supernatural change worked in the character or nature of the believer.
Transgression: conscious violation of the known will of God.
Trial: a difficult situation experienced by believers.
Tribulation: pressures from enemies or circumstances, often as divine judgement.
Truth: something in accord with reality and therefore accurate, reliable and- in the case of God, trustworthy.
Undefiled: clean; not tainted by moral evil; pure.
Unity: quality of being one in spirit, sentiment, and purpose.
Unleavened Bread: bread baked from dough made without yeast or leaven.
Vanity: emptiness, futility; sometimes pride.
Victory: Gods deliverance of his covenant people from physical woes.
Vengeance: act or motive of punishing another in retaliation for wrong doing.
Vestments : The ceremonial clothing worn by those doing the ceremonies of the church, including worship, dedications, etc. 'Vestments' also refer to the clothing that marks a person as a minister or member of an order of monks/nuns, or a deacon in liturgical worship. For worship services, the colors of the clothing are changed to reflect the church season. I won't go into the many different kind of vestments there are, because that would go on endlessly. Each vestment has its own symbolic meaning. Much of the time, noone who's there knows or cares what that meaning is, and it is thus lost. Yet for those who know the meaning, it can enrich whatever occasion it is used for. Sometimes the visual beauty of it all is enough to draw you into worship of an awesome God; at other times the visual effect brings so much awe to itself that you forget to worship God.
Universalism: A universalist (small-u) believes that all people will in the end come into the same situation, the one the Christians call 'the Kingdom of God'. It's been said in many ways over the years : "everyone will be saved", "all will become one", "all will totally cease to be", and so on. This can be treated in many ways. For instance, a Christian-oriented universalist believes that in the end everyone will come to the presence of an all-embracing God who transforms everyone into goodness through divine love. The common conclusion of universalists is that since all will end up the same, then it does not ultimately matter which God you believe in, or that you have any specific beliefs. (That is not to say that they are immoral or evil; they may have other ways of understanding good and evil, and other reasons for loving people and doing deeds that any sane Christian would call "good".)
Worship : reverent honor and homage paid to God or a sacred personage, or to any object regarded as sacred. To attend services of divine worship. The object of adoring reverence or regard.
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