Chapter 2 Vocab Flashcards
pantheistic
religions involve believing that God is in everything in nature and the universe
first principles
the fundamental concepts or assumptions on which a theory, system, or method is based
creation ex nihilo
creation out of nothing.
celestial bodies
all objects seen in the sky (the sun, moon, stars, and planets)
animistic
the belief that inanimate objects have lifelike qualities, such as thoughts, wishes, feelings, and intentions
mythological
relating to, based on, or appearing in myths, or mythology
Taoism
philosophical system developed by of Lao-tzu and Chuang-tzu advocating a simple honest life and noninterference with the course of natural events
personification
the attribution of a personal nature or human characteristics to something nonhuman, or the representation of an abstract quality in human form
Hellenistic
of or relating to Greek history, culture, or art after Alexander the Great
Maccabees
Judas Maccabeus and his brothers, leaders of the Jewish revolt against Antiochus IV.
Martyrdom
the death or suffering of a martyr
perfect year
defined by NASA as the period of one complete cycle of the equinoxes around the ecliptic, about 25,800 years
apologist
a person who speaks in defense of a person, an idea, or a position
Pagans
a person holding religious beliefs other than those of the main world religions
cosmology
study of the universe as a totality; theory of the origin and structure of the universe.