Exam 2 Flashcards
consubstantial
deriving from the Greek term homoousios, meaning “of the same substance”. Affirms the full divinity of Christ
consubstantiation
refers to the theory of the real presence, especially associated with Martin Luther. Holds that the eucharistic bread and wine are given together with the substance of the body and blood of Christ
creed
a formal definition or summary of the Christian faith, held in common by all Christians
deism
refers to a view of God which recognizes the divine creatorship, yet which rejects the notion of a continuing divine involvement with the world
docetism
treated Jesus as a purely divine being who only had the “appearance” of being human
ebionitism
treated Christ as a purely human figure, although recognizing that he was endowed with particular charismatic gifts which distinguished him from other humans
eucharist
refers to the sacrament variously known as the “Mass”, the “Lord’s supper”, and “holy communion”
evangelical
places especial emphasis upon the supreme authority of scripture and the atoning death of Christ
five ways
standard term for the five “arguments for the existence of God” associated with Thomas Aquinas
fundamentalism
a form of American Protestant Christianity, which lays special emphasis on the authority of an inerrant Bible
Moltmann challenged the idea that God is incapable of suffering in THIS book
The Crucified God
Moltmann says one who is incapable of suffering is incapable of THIS
love
According to Moltmann, God suffers in the same way that creatures suffer
false
for Moltmann, what did the Father suffer when Christ was on the cross?
the loss of the Son
with whom does Moltmann identify the “giving up” that unites the Father and the Son
the Father
Paley was influenced by THIS person’s discoveries about the regularity of the universe
Isaac Newton
Paley wrote during THIS period of England’s history
industrial revolution
what two objects does Paley compare and contrast at the beginning of the reading
a stone and a watch
reveal
uncovering of something unknown; refers to God’s self-disclosure to humans
author of revelation
God
author of theology
humans
the objective aspect of revelation
content of revelation
subjective aspect of revelation
one’s interpretation of revelation’s content
calls for human response, can be a shocking event
characteristics of revelation
general revelation
available to humans at all times
sources of general revelation
creation, history, humanity
natural theology
theology based on general revelation; it is possible to have genuine knowledge fo God apart from Christian faith
can general revelation save? does God being revealed as creator equal God’s being revealed as savior and redeemer?
questions for general revelation
martin luther on revelation in nature
heidelburg disputation, should not seek for the invisible things of God in creation, should seek the visible things of God in Christ’s suffering on the cross
special revelation
supports Christianity’s claims, not available to humans at all times
characteristics of special revelation
progressive (occurs over time), saving
models of special revelation
revelation as propositions, person, and promise
clear, intelligible statements about God, only in the Bible, information about God, mental act from God’s mind to human minds
revelation as propositions, Carl Henry
more concerned with God himself; God’s person is revealed in the person of Jesus Christ
revelation as person, Karl Barth
special revelation is personal; God makes promises when he reveals himself; implies future and keeps revelation connected to history
revelation and promise, jurgen moltmann
cosmological, teleological, ontological
arguments for God’s existence
a priori reasoning
reasoning before sensory experience
a posteriori reasoning
reasoning after sensory experience
cosmological argument
thomas aquinas, cause and effect; there cannot be an infinite regression of causes, so there must be an original “uncaused cause” that is responsible for causes and effects
teleological argument
william paley, argument from design; world operates like a machine, and there must be a designer
ontological argument
anslem of canterbury; because a God who exists in the real world is greater than a god who is only a figment of imagination, God must actually exist
old testament names for God
elohim, adonai, yahweh
elohim
“plural form of majesty” meaning it is majestic
adonai
more of a title than a name (such as sir)
yahweh
LORD usually in capital letters to distinguish from Adonai; Jews don’t pronounce it, YHWH is the tetragrammation
names combined with yahweh
jireh, nissi, shalom, sabaoth, shammah
yahweh-jireh
lord who provides
yahweh-nissi
lord my banner
yahweh-shalom
lord of peace
yahweh-sabaoth
lord of hosts
yahweh-shammah
lord who is present
new testament names for God
theos, kurios, pater
theos
God
kurios
sir or master
pater
father
communicable attributes of God
attributes shared with humanity such as holiness, righteousness, faithfulness, etc.
incommunicable attributes of God
not shared with humanity: asiety, eternity, immutability, omnipresence, omniscience, omnipotence
asiety
a se - “from himself”; God’s self-existence; God is without cause
immutability
God’s lack of changing in relation to his being, purposes, and will, God’s detachment from any process of change for the better or worse (Genesis 6:5-6; Jonah; Charles Hodge)
omnipresence
God’s being present everywhere at once; God is not bound by space or physical limitations
omniscience
God perfectly and completely knows all things, whether actual or possible
omnipotence
God’s ability to do anything, based on his unlimited power
do we really mean that God can do literally anything?
how can we call God omnipotent if there are things God cannot do like violate his character; the word “can” is misleading, it actually makes a statement about his lack of power; God is more powerful because there are things he cannot do
anslem’s meditation on divine omnipotence
God’s two kinds of power: absolute & ordained
william of ockham on omnipotence
power before creation, the ability to do anything that does not violate character, power of choice
absolute power
power after creation; by choosing to create, other potential choices are eliminated; another world cannot be created in place of this one or “uncreated”; limitations are self-imposed
ordained power
Old Testament references to the Trinity
Spirit of God, “two powers in heaven”, Ancient of Days
new testament references to the trinity
Jesus’ baptism, promise of the Spirit, stoning of Stephen
two ways of describing God’s triune nature
economic and immanent trinity
three persons as revealed in the economy of salvation; what we know through special revelation
economic trinity
three persons as they are in themselves in relation to each other
immanent trinity
Sabellius; God is revealed in three different modes of being/wears three different “masks”
modalism
rejected due to lack of distinction
modalism
hierarchy within the trinity rather than complete equality; God is the highest with Father and Son being inferior
subordinationism
rejected due to too much distinction
subordinationism
emphasizes individuality while stating that each person shares in the life of the other two “mutual participation”; each person maintains identity but indwells the others
perichoresis
opera trinitatis ad extra sunt indivisa
the works of the trinity outwards are undivided
to be created in the image of God is to be created in the image of the Trinity; there are “vestiges” (traces) of the trinity in humanity (ex. humans have memory, intellect, and will)
vestiges of the trinity; augustine of hippo
doctrine of trinity is essential to Christian belief (crucified Jesus); the crucifixion only makes sense in trinitarian terms; there must be some distinction
jurgen moltmann The Crucified God
logical, existential, gratuitous
three forms of the problem of evil
God is omnipotent, omniscient, and perfectly good, yet evil exists
classical theism
defense: denies a contradiction and plausibility
theodicy: takes the offensive and offers explanations to justify God in spite of evil’s existence
responses for classical theism
