religion : vocabulary
Religion: vocabulary + concepts.
January 2020 : in progress, slowly!
Adventism
Any Christian denomination that believes the second coming of Christ is happening soon. Seventh-day Adventists are a prominent example.
agnosticism
A religious identity where someone has doubt; generally doubt over whether or not a higher power exists.
ahimsa
A doctrine that all forms of life are sacred and that violence should be avoided. Held by Buddhists, Hindus, and Jainists.
Allah
The Muslim name for God; “the one and only God.”
alms
Money or goods donated to the poor.
Amish
an American follower of the Mennonite religion
angel
A supernatural spiritual being that is an intermediary between God and humanity.
Anglicanism
Western Christian church that grew in England after the Protestant Reformation. Sometimes called “Episcopalians.” The third largest Christian church, after Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox.
animism
The belief that all natural objects (e.g. rivers, trees, mountains) have souls or a spiritual essence.
apocalypse
Comes from the Greek word for “revelation,” which refers to writings, prophecies, and visions about end times and how they can be understand in the present.
apostle
Often refers to the 12 original followers of Jesus, all men who supported him strongly and early on. It is slightly different than “disciple” in that it usually refers to after his death, in which they were sent out as messengers to spread his teachings. It is usually used to refer to 1) an early supporter of a cause and 2) goes out as a messenger to spread the word.
asceticism
The practice of self-denial as a form of spiritual discipline. Ascetics abstain from sensual pleasures as they pursue spiritual transformation or enlightenment. “Sensual pleasures” is pretty much anything that provides one pleasure, such as eating delicious food. The opposite of asceticism is hedonism.
atheism
A religious identity where someone rejects any belief in a deity or higher power. Agnostics doubt whether there is a higher power, atheists believe there absolutely is not one.
atonement
Part of a path to redemption in which a person makes amends for wrongdoing or sin.
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Baháʼí Faith / Bahaism
Monotheistic Persian (Iran) religion founded in the 1860s that emphasizes unity and equality of all people. Baháʼí adherents believe in a single all-powerful God, but also that there are various manifestations (of God) throughout history, including Buddha, Jesus, and Muhammad. They have a strong commitment to the unity of all peoples, nationalities, and religions and are strongly against racism and nationalism.
baptism
A Christian rite that signifies an individual is adopting and committed to the faith. It is performed, depending on the denomination, by the sprinkling of water over the head or the full submersion of the individual under water. Sometimes it’s used as a metaphor in which a person is purified or initiated into something, as in “baptized by blood or fire.”