Quiz quicksheet Flashcards
A state of profound spiritual understanding or realization, often associated with Buddhist and mystical traditions
Enlightenment
Subjective encounters or perceptions of the divine, spiritual, or transcendent.
Religious Experience
Prophets who embody moral and spiritual qualities, serving as models for others.
Exemplary Prophets
Prophets who bring divine messages or revelations to others.
Emissary Prophets
The study of signs and symbols and their interpretation, including religious symbolism.
Semiotics
The theory and methodology of interpretation, especially the interpretation of texts.
Hermeneutics
Belief in the existence of a single, all-powerful God.
Monotheism
The practice of engaging in controversial debates or disputes, often in defense of a specific religious position.
Polemics
The branch of theology and philosophy concerned with defending and justifying religious beliefs and doctrines.
Apologetics
A viewpoint or interpretation from within a religious tradition or community.
Insiders Perspective
A viewpoint or interpretation from outside a religious tradition or community.
Outsiders Perspective
The study of religious beliefs and doctrines, often focusing on God, humanity, creation, salvation, and ultimate reality.
Theology
Frameworks or models used in theological discourse for interpreting and understanding theological concepts.
Theological Templates
Encompassing reformist, reconstructionist, resistance, and re-imagination approaches to theology.
Elizabeth Schussler Fiorenza’s Four Paradigms
Augustine’s theological understanding of human nature, sin, and grace, emphasizing the fallenness of humanity and the need for divine grace.
Augustinian Anthropology
The study of salvation, including theories of atonement and the process of being saved.
Soteriology
The state or condition of being inclined towards sin, manifesting in thoughts, actions, and attitudes contrary to God’s will.
Sinfulness
The inherited condition of moral corruption and estrangement from God believed to be inherited from Adam and Eve by all humans.
Original Sin
Thinking that integrates different ideas or elements into a unified whole, often focusing on relationships and connections.
Synthetic Thinking
Thinking characterized by logical progression and step-by-step reasoning.
Sequential Thinking
The study of human beings from a theological perspective, examining concepts such as human nature, personhood, and relationships with God and others.
Theological Anthropology
A theological method that seeks to correlate the insights of Christian faith with the findings of various sciences and fields of human knowledge.
Method of Correlation
Reading into a text one’s own ideas or interpretations, often biased or subjective, rather than drawing out the meaning intended by the text.
Eisegesis
Critical interpretation of a text to derive its meaning from the text itself, considering historical, cultural, and linguistic context.
Exegesis
The study and interpretation of biblical texts, including principles and methods used to understand the meaning, context, and application of Scripture.
Biblical Hermeneutics
A methodological framework in Christian theology attributed to John Wesley, consisting of Scripture, Tradition, Reason, and Experience as sources of theological understanding and reflection.
Wesleyan Quadrilateral
Theology that is implicit within a particular cultural context or religious tradition, often not explicitly recognized as theology.
Embedded Theology
Theology that is intentional, reflective, and explicit, engaging in critical reflection and dialogue about religious beliefs and practices.
Deliberative Theology
Holds that salvation, religious truth, or ultimate meaning is exclusively found within a particular religious tradition, often claiming that adherents of other religions or beliefs are fundamentally mistaken or lacking in ultimate spiritual understanding.
Exclusivism
Asserts that elements of truth and spiritual value can be found in various religious traditions, even if they differ from one’s own beliefs.
Inclusivism
Embraces the coexistence and equal validity of multiple religious beliefs, practices, and truths.
Pluralism
Emphasizes the importance of achieving salvation or liberation from spiritual suffering, bondage, or the consequences of sin.
Religion of Salvation
Emphasizes the ongoing process of spiritual purification, growth, and moral transformation within the life of believers.
Religion of Sanctification
Strict self-discipline, renunciation of worldly pleasures, and often the adoption of austere or rigorous lifestyle choices in pursuit of spiritual growth, enlightenment, or union with the divine.
Asceticism
Socially constructed roles, behaviors, identities, and expectations that a given society considers appropriate for individuals based on their biological sex.
Gender
Favoring one sex (usually male) over the other (usually female) and perpetuating societal inequalities.
Sexism
Authoritative texts, scriptures, or writings that are considered sacred, genuine, or officially accepted within a particular religious tradition or community.
Canon
sociological concept that describes a set of beliefs, rituals, symbols, and practices that unify a society or nation around shared values, often incorporating elements of religious symbolism and language into civic life.
Civil Religion
religious institutions or religious leaders hold political authority, and religious law or doctrine governs civil and political life.
Theocracy
keeping religious institutions and government entities distinct and independent from each other in terms of governance and authority.
Separation of Church and State
a moral philosophy that emphasizes the inherent rightness or wrongness of actions based on their adherence to ethical principles or rules, rather than the consequences of those actions.
Duty Ethics
a moral philosophy that emphasizes the development of virtuous character traits as the key to ethical living and decision-making.
Virtue Ethics
a system of principles, values, beliefs, and standards that guide individuals or groups in distinguishing right from wrong and determining what is good or bad behavior.
Morality
a central role in shaping moral values and ethical frameworks, contemporary societies also draw on secular ethics, human rights principles, and cross-cultural dialogue to address moral issues and promote ethical behavior.
Relationship between Morality and Religion
a moral theory that posits that ethical principles are derived from the commands or will of a divine being or deity.
Divine Command Theory of Ethics
The suffering and challenges individuals face in life are the result of their past actions (karma) and are integral to the process of moral and spiritual development.
Karma Theodicy
individuals who endure hardships, injustices, or afflictions in life will receive compensation, reward, or redemption in a future existence, such as in heaven, paradise, or through spiritual fulfillment.
Recompensatory theodicy
God’s plan for the world includes a final resolution of moral and existential issues, leading to the restoration of justice, the defeat of evil, and the realization of divine purposes.
Eschatological Theodicy
God is intimately involved in the human condition, sharing in the struggles and experiences of creation while working to transform suffering for greater purposes.
Theodicies of Participation
a theological term that refers to the study of the “last things” or the ultimate destiny of humanity and the cosmos according to religious beliefs.
Eschatology
God allows evil and suffering in the world not as a punishment but as a means of fostering human growth, character formation, and the realization of greater goods, including virtues such as compassion, courage, and resilience.
Soul Making Theodicy
emphasizes living in harmony with the Dao (or Tao), which is the fundamental principle underlying the universe
Daoism
attributes spiritual qualities and consciousness to natural phenomena, such as animals, plants, rivers, mountains, and other aspects of the natural world.
Animism
a cultural practice and belief system in which certain groups or societies associate themselves with a particular animal, plant, or natural object as a symbol of their kinship or spiritual connection.
totemism
a religious belief system that recognizes and worships multiple deities or gods
polytheism
religious belief system in which a person or community worships one particular deity while acknowledging the existence of other deities.
Henotheism
a theological perspective that emphasizes the unity of God, rejecting the traditional Christian doctrine of the Trinity.
Unitarianism
a philosophical and religious worldview that equates God with the universe or regards the universe as a manifestation of God.
Pantheism
a Christian theological doctrine that asserts the belief in one God existing in three distinct persons: the Father, the Son (Jesus Christ), and the Holy Spirit.
Trinitarianism
a philosophical belief system that posits the existence of a creator or supreme being who does not intervene in the natural world or human affairs after the act of creation.
Deism
an epistemological position that holds that the existence of God or the supernatural is unknown, inherently unknowable, or lacks sufficient evidence for certainty
Agnosticism
the absence of belief in the existence of deities or gods.
Atheism
the attribution of human characteristics, emotions, or behaviors to non-human entities, such as gods, animals, or natural forces.
Anthropomorphic
the purpose or role that religion plays in individual lives and society.
Functional Definition
emphasizes the content or essence of religious beliefs, practices, and experiences
Substantive definition
Honesty, Openness, Critical Intelligence, Careful Reading/Listening, Critical Tolerance
Qualities needed for academic study of religion
