Abridged definitions of important Christian religious terms, doctrines and key contributors to our theological and biblical understanding.
1. Existentialism emphasis on what it is to exist. Self made purpose and meaning, subjective. It is a philosophical movement that stresses the importance of existence as opposed to essence. Existentialists fight to preserve man as decision maker in concrete situations. The self is considered to be a unity of radial freedom and limitedness.
2. Deism a movement that denies supernatural acts of God in the world. It rejects anything that suggests Gods interference with the world or intervention in the lives of man.
3. Lord Herbert Cherbury One of the first thinkers of deism. He argued that a rational religion must be independent of any special revelation. He set forth the 5 principles of religion common to all men. (a) belief in the existence of God; (b) the obligation to reverence and worship God; (c) that morality is the chief part of divine worship; (d) that men should repent of and turn from their sins; (e) reward and punishment both in this life and the next.
4. Copernicus proved the sun was the center of our solar system and not the earth.
5. James Arminius seemed to humanize Calvinistic theology. Wrote the famous 5 points: (a) doctrine of conditional election; (b) universality of atonement; (c) Man not totally depraved; (d) Gods grace can be obstructed by man (e) Man can fall from grace.
6. John Calvin First humanistic thinker then God centered. He believed authority of Scriptures comes from God. He did not see Christ as partners with man. Believed in unconditional election (once saved, always saved). He followed the doctrine of predestination and absolute sovereignty of God.
7. Ulrich Zwingli contemporary of Luther. He believed the word of God as being central to the faith. He was a Swiss reformer who held a close alliance with humanism, anti-mystical, radical Puritanism and believed in Scriptural authority.
8. Martin Luther Father of Reformation. For him, the word of God was primary and theology bows to it. No authority can provide a basis for faith, only the word of God. Key issues: person of Jesus Christ, justification through faith and authority of Gods word.
9. Thomas Cranmer given credit regarding justification and salvation. He preached justification as being free to man but not to God. He recognized three factors operating simultaneously: Grace comes from God, work of atonement - Christ, true and lively faith man.
10. Prevenient grace Grace goes before Man cannot believe unless God enables him to believe.
11. Perseverance of Saints once in grace, never out of it. Once saved always saved.
12. Antinomianism without law. Doctrine that faith in Christ frees the Christian from obligation to observe the moral law as set forth in the Old Testament because of Gods New Testament grace. No law to require holy living. Does not believe once saved, always saved. Failing to obey law, a person can become reprobate again.
13. Irresistible grace cannot avoid being saved if elected by God.
14. Conditional election Faith is the condition. Unbelief results in reprobation.
15. Orthodoxy that which is considered to be the truth.
16. Demythology a type of interpretation of the New Testament proposed by Rudolf Bultmann. Strips myths away from New Testament to find real truth. Felt primitive and pre-scientific man used language of myth to understand themselves and world around them.
17. Neo-orthodoxy a reinterpretation of orthodoxy. It claims to be a return to teachings of reformers. It sought to attack the optimism of classic liberalism and the corruption of Roman Catholic theology. It was, in large part, a reaction against liberal Protestantism.
18. Modernism reaction against fundamentalism (the literal interpretation of Scripture). A school of thought which believed that a reinterpretation of the Christian message in accordance with the modern scientific view was necessary.
19. Geschichte concerns matters that touch man existentially which makes some demands upon us and calls for commitment.
20. Oscar Cullman gave meaning to Heilsgeschichte (redemptive history) with a strong Christological emphasis.
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Blessings to all! Saundra
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