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Growth In Grace
Sanctification (or in its verb form, sanctify) literally means "to set apart for special use or purpose", that is, to make holy or sacred (compare la, sanctus). Therefore, sanctification refers to the state or process of being set apart, i.e. "made holy", as a vessel, full of the Holy Spirit of God. The concept of sanctification is widespread among religions, including Judaism and especially Christianity. The term can be used to refer to objects which are set apart for special purposes, but the most common use within Christian theology is in reference to the change brought about by God in a believer, begun at the point of salvation and continuing throughout the life of the believer. Many forms of Christianity believe that this process will only be completed in Heaven, but some (particularly the Methodist and Quaker traditions, inclusive of the Holiness movement) believe that complete entire sanctification is possible in this life. Christianity In the various branches of Christi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sacred
Sacred describes something that is dedicated or set apart for the service or worship of a deity; is considered worthy of spiritual respect or devotion; or inspires awe or reverence among believers. The property is often ascribed to objects (a " sacred artifact" that is venerated and blessed), or places (" sacred ground"). French sociologist Émile Durkheim considered the dichotomy between the sacred and the profane to be the central characteristic of religion: "religion is a unified system of beliefs and practices relative to ''sacred things'', that is to say, things set apart and forbidden." Durkheim, Émile. 1915. ''The Elementary Forms of the Religious Life''. London: George Allen & Unwin. . In Durkheim's theory, the sacred represents the interests of the group, especially unity, which are embodied in sacred group symbols, or using team work to help get out of trouble. The profane, on the other hand, involve mundane individual concerns. Etymology The word ''sacred'' des ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Absolution
Absolution is a traditional theological term for the forgiveness imparted by ordained Christian priests and experienced by Christian penitents. It is a universal feature of the historic churches of Christendom, although the theology and the practice of absolution vary between denominations. Some traditions see absolution as a sacrament — the Sacrament of Penance. This concept is found in the Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox Church, Oriental Orthodox Churches, Assyrian Church of the East and the Lutheran Church. In other traditions, including the Anglican Communion and Methodism, absolution is seen as part of the sacramental life of the church, although both traditions are theologically predicated upon the Book of Common Prayer, which counts absolution amongst the five rites described as "Commonly called Sacraments, but not to be counted for Sacraments of the Gospel". Confession and Absolution is practiced in the Irvingian Churches, though it is not a sacrament. The concept ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Essence
Essence ( la, essentia) is a polysemic term, used in philosophy and theology as a designation for the property or set of properties that make an entity or substance what it fundamentally is, and which it has by necessity, and without which it loses its identity. Essence is contrasted with accident: a property that the entity or substance has contingently, without which the substance can still retain its identity. The concept originates rigorously with Aristotle (although it can also be found in Plato), who used the Greek expression ''to ti ên einai'' (τὸ τί ἦν εἶναι, literally meaning "the what it was to be" and corresponding to the scholastic term quiddity) or sometimes the shorter phrase ''to ti esti'' (τὸ τί ἐστι, literally meaning "the what it is" and corresponding to the scholastic term haecceity) for the same idea. This phrase presented such difficulties for its Latin translators that they coined the word ''essentia'' (English "essence") to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Man (word)
The term ''man'' (from Proto-Germanic language, Proto-Germanic ''*mann-'' "person") and words derived from it can designate any or even all of the human race regardless of their sex or age. In traditional usage, ''man'' (without an article) itself refers to the species or to humanity (mankind) as a whole. The Germanic word developed into Old English ''wikt:mann#Old English, mann''. In Old English, the word still primarily meant "person" or "human," and was used for men, women, and children alike. The sense "adult male" was very rare, at least in the written language. That meaning is not recorded at all until about the year 1000, over a hundred years after the writings of Alfred the Great and perhaps nearly three centuries after ''Beowulf.'' Male and female gender qualifiers were used with in compound words. Adopting the term for humans in general to refer to men is a common development of Romance and Germanic languages, but is not found in most Names for the human species#In ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Christ
Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament, names and titles), was a first-century Jews, Jewish preacher and religious leader; he is the central figure of Christianity, the Major religious groups, world's largest religion. Most Christians believe he is the Incarnation (Christianity), incarnation of God the Son and the awaited Messiah#Christianity, Messiah (the Christ (title), Christ) prophesied in the Hebrew Bible. Virtually all modern scholars of antiquity agree that Historicity of Jesus, Jesus existed historically. Quest for the historical Jesus, Research into the historical Jesus has yielded some uncertainty on the historical reliability of the Gospels and on how closely the Jesus portrayed in the New Testament reflects the historical Jesus, as the only detailed records of Jesus' life are contained in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Athanasius
Athanasius I of Alexandria, ; cop, ⲡⲓⲁⲅⲓⲟⲥ ⲁⲑⲁⲛⲁⲥⲓⲟⲩ ⲡⲓⲁⲡⲟⲥⲧⲟⲗⲓⲕⲟⲥ or Ⲡⲁⲡⲁ ⲁⲑⲁⲛⲁⲥⲓⲟⲩ ⲁ̅; (c. 296–298 – 2 May 373), also called Athanasius the Great, Athanasius the Confessor, or, among Coptic Christians, Athanasius the Apostolic, was a Coptic church father and the 20th pope of Alexandria (as Athanasius I). His intermittent episcopacy spanned 45 years (c. 8 June 328 – 2 May 373), of which over 17 encompassed five exiles, when he was replaced on the order of four different Roman emperors. Athanasius was a Christian theologian, a Church Father, the chief defender of Trinitarianism against Arianism, and a noted Egyptian Christian leader of the fourth century. Conflict with Arius and Arianism, as well as with successive Roman emperors, shaped Athanasius' career. In 325, at age 27, Athanasius began his leading role against the Arians as a deacon and assistant to Bishop Alexander of Alex ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
2 Peter
The Second Epistle of Peter is a book of the New Testament of the Bible. The text identifies the author as "Simon Peter, a bondservant and apostle of Jesus Christ" and the epistle is traditionally attributed to Peter the Apostle, but most critical biblical scholars consider the epistle pseudepigraphical (i.e., authored by one or more of Peter's followers in Ancient Rome, using Peter as a pseudonym)Brown, Raymond E., Introduction to the New Testament, Anchor Bible, 1997, . p. 767 "the pseudonymity of II Pet is more certain than that of any other NT work." Scholars estimate the date of authorship anywhere from 60 to 150 AD. The original text was written in Koine Greek. Authorship and date According to the Epistle itself, it was composed by the Apostle Peter, an eyewitness to Jesus' ministry. If (''this second epistle'') alludes to 1 Peter, the audience of the epistle is the various Churches in Asia Minor in general (see ). The date of composition has proven to be very difficu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Scripture
Religious texts, including scripture, are texts which various religions consider to be of central importance to their religious tradition. They differ from literature by being a compilation or discussion of beliefs, mythologies, ritual practices, commandments or laws, ethical conduct, spiritual aspirations, and for creating or fostering a religious community. The relative authority of religious texts develops over time and is derived from the ratification, enforcement, and its use across generations. Some religious texts are accepted or categorized as canonical, some non-canonical, and others extracanonical, semi-canonical, deutero-canonical, pre-canonical or post-canonical. "Scripture" (or "scriptures") is a subset of religious texts considered to be "especially authoritative", revered and "holy writ", "sacred, canonical", or of "supreme authority, special status" to a religious community. The terms ''sacred text'' and ''religious text'' are not necessarily interchangeable ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Theosis (Eastern Orthodox Theology)
''Theosis'' ( grc, θέωσις), or deification (deification may also refer to '' apotheosis'', lit. "making divine"), is a transformative process whose aim is likeness to or union with God, as taught by the Eastern Orthodox Church and the Catholic Church. As a process of transformation, ''theosis'' is brought about by the effects of ''catharsis'' (purification of mind and body) and ''theoria'' ('illumination' with the 'vision' of God). According to Eastern Christian teachings, ''theosis'' is very much the purpose of human life. It is considered achievable only through synergy (or cooperation) of human activity and God's uncreated energies (or operations). According to Metropolitan Hierotheos (Vlachos), the primacy of ''theosis'' in Eastern Orthodox Christian theology is directly related to the fact that Byzantine theology (as historically conceived by its principal exponents) is based to a greater extent than Latin Catholic theology on the direct spiritual insights of the sa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Eastern Christianity
Eastern Christianity comprises Christian traditions and church families that originally developed during classical and late antiquity in Eastern Europe, Southeastern Europe, Asia Minor, the Caucasus, Northeast Africa, the Fertile Crescent and the Malabar coast of South Asia, and ephemerally parts of Persia, Central Asia, the Near East and the Far East. The term does not describe a single communion or religious denomination. Major Eastern Christian bodies include the Eastern Orthodox Church and the Oriental Orthodox Churches, along with those groups descended from the historic Church of the East, as well as the Eastern Catholic Churches (which have either re-established or always retained communion with Rome and maintain Eastern liturgies), and the Eastern Protestant churches (which are Protestant in theology but Eastern in cultural practice). The various Eastern churches do not normally refer to themselves as "Eastern", with the exception of the Assyrian Church of the Ea ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Supernatural
Supernatural refers to phenomena or entities that are beyond the laws of nature. The term is derived from Medieval Latin , from Latin (above, beyond, or outside of) + (nature) Though the corollary term "nature", has had multiple meanings since the ancient world, the term "supernatural" emerged in the Middle Ages and did not exist in the ancient world. The supernatural is featured in folklore and religious contexts, but can also feature as an explanation in more secular contexts, as in the cases of superstitions or belief in the paranormal. The term is attributed to non-physical entities, such as angels, demons, gods, and spirits. It also includes claimed abilities embodied in or provided by such beings, including magic, telekinesis, levitation, precognition, and extrasensory perception. The philosophy of naturalism contends that nothing exists beyond the natural world, and as such approaches supernatural claims with skepticism. Etymology and history of the concept Occurr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
