Theological Terms in Plain English

[RachelBibleStudent]

this thread comes from a comment in another thread...where someone stated that they didn't know what half of the terms in my signature actually meant...

so here is what they mean in plain english...

theology in general means all things pertaining to the study of the things of God...when used more specifically it refers to the study of details regarding the nature of God and so on...

trinitarian...belief in the doctrine of the trinity... trinitarians worship one God in three persons and three persons in one God...the three persons are father and son and holy spirit... the father is God...the son is God...and the holy spirit is God...but the father is not the son nor is the son the father...the son is not the holy spirit nor is the holy spirit the son...and the holy spirit is not the father nor is the father the holy spirit...

the nicene creed was the consensus arrived on at the council of nicea...the first worldwide christian council...which dealt especially with the question of the deity of jesus christ and his place in the trinity... this creed was updated at the council of constantinople...the second worldwide christian council...with additional details regarding the holy spirit and his deity and place in the trinity that resulted from the consensus at this council... the 'filioque' is an addition to the creed accepted in all western churches by the eleventh century...it adds that the holy spirit is sent from the father -and the son- which is in accord with scripture in the gospel of john...

the complete creed reads as follows...the original nicene text is in plain text...i put the constantinopolitan addition in italics...and the filioque clause is in smaller text...

I believe in one God, the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth and of all things visible and invisible.
And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God, begotten of his Father before all worlds, God of God, Light of Light, Very God of Very God, begotten, not made, being of one substance with the Father, by whom all things were made; who for us men and for our salvation came down from heaven and was incarnate by the Holy Ghost of the virgin Mary and was made man; and was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate. He suffered and was buried; and the third day he rose again according to the Scriptures; and ascended into heaven, and is sitting on the right hand of the Father; and he shall come again with glory to judge both the living and the dead; whose kingdom shall have no end.
And I believe in the Holy Ghost, the Lord and Giver of Life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son, who with the Father and the Son together is worshiped and glorified, who spoke by the prophets.
And I believe one holy Christian and apostolic church. I acknowledge one baptism for the remission of sins, and I look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come. Amen.

the athanasian creed is perhaps the most detailed ancient outline of the christian doctrines on the trinity and the dual natures of jesus christ... it is named after an early christian named athanasius who was very adamant in defending these doctrines against heretics...

since the athanasian creed is long i will put it in a separate post...

 

[RachelBibleStudent]

The Athanasian Creed

Whosoever will be saved, before all things it is necessary that he hold the catholic* faith. Which faith except every one do keep whole and undefiled, without doubt he shall perish everlastingly.

And the catholic* faith is this, that we worship one God in Trinity, and Trinity in Unity; Neither confounding the Persons, nor dividing the Substance. For there is one Person of the Father, another of the Son, and another of the Holy Ghost. But the Godhead of the Father, of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost is all one: the glory equal, the majesty coeternal. Such as the Father is, such is the Son, and such is the Holy Ghost. The Father uncreated, the Son uncreated, and the Holy Ghost uncreated. The Father incomprehensible, the Son incomprehensible, and the Holy Ghost incomprehensible. The Father eternal, the Son eternal, and the Holy Ghost eternal. And yet they are not three Eternals, but one Eternal. As there are not three Uncreated nor three Incomprehensibles, but one Uncreated and one Incomprehensible. So likewise the Father is almighty, the Son almighty, and the Holy Ghost almighty. And yet they are not three Almighties, but one Almighty. So the Father is God, the Son is God, and the Holy Ghost is God. And yet they are not three Gods, but one God. So likewise the Father is Lord, the Son Lord, and the Holy Ghost Lord. And yet not three Lords, but one Lord. For like as we are compelled by the Christian verity to acknowledge every Person by Himself to be God and Lord, So are we forbidden by the catholic religion to say, There be three Gods, or three Lords.

The Father is made of none: neither created nor begotten. The Son is of the Father alone; not made, nor created, but begotten. The Holy Ghost is of the Father and of the Son: neither made, nor created, nor begotten, but proceeding. So there is one Father, not three Fathers; one Son, not three Sons; one Holy Ghost, not three Holy Ghosts. And in this Trinity none is before or after other; none is greater or less than another; But the whole three Persons are coeternal together, and coequal: so that in all things, as is aforesaid, the Unity in Trinity and the Trinity in Unity is to be worshiped. He, therefore, that will be saved must thus think of the Trinity.

Furthermore, it is necessary to everlasting salvation that he also believe faithfully the incarnation of our Lord Jesus Christ. For the right faith is, that we believe and confess that our Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is God and Man; God of the Substance of the Father, begotten before the worlds; and Man of the substance of His mother, born in the world; Perfect God and perfect Man, of a reasonable soul and human flesh subsisting. Equal to the Father as touching His Godhead, and inferior to the Father as touching His manhood; Who, although He be God and Man, yet He is not two, but one Christ: One, not by conversion of the Godhead into flesh, but by taking the manhood into God; One altogether; not by confusion of Substance, but by unity of Person. For as the reasonable soul and flesh is one man, so God and Man is one Christ; Who suffered for our salvation; descended into hell, rose again the third day from the dead; He ascended into heaven; He sitteth on the right hand of the Father, God Almighty; from whence He shall come to judge the quick and the dead. At whose coming all men shall rise again with their bodies, and shall give an account of their own works. And they that have done good shall go into life everlasting; and they that have done evil, into everlasting fire.

This is the catholic* faith; which except a man believe faithfully and firmly, he cannot be saved.


* the term 'catholic' is used in its ancient sense which merely means 'universal' or held by all christians...and has no specific relation to the roman 'catholic' church...some modern translations of this creed replace 'catholic' with 'christian' to get across the point that this refers to the faith held by all legitimate christians...



as can be gathered from some of the wording in this creed...acknowledgment of the truths outlined in the ancient creeds was considered a requirement for any true christian...to reject the creeds was to worship a different God or to follow a different christ from the original christians...


i will post more terms and explanations tomorrow...

 

[RachelBibleStudent]

christology...study of the nature and person of jesus christ...

dyophisitism is the belief that jesus christ though one person has two natures...a human nature and a divine nature...usually simplified to 'fully God and fully man'... the contrary belief is the heresy known as monophysitism...which teaches that jesus' nature is a sort of indistinct blur of human and divine...a mixture or hybrid being...

the council of chalcedon was the fourth worldwide christian council...it specifically dealt with and condemned the heresy of monophysitism... the consensus of the council was expressed in the official 'chalcedonian creed' which is as follows...

"We, then, following the holy Fathers, all with one consent, teach people to confess one and the same Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, the same perfect in Godhead and also perfect in manhood; truly God and truly man, of a reasonable soul and body; consubstantial with the Father according to the Godhead, and consubstantial with us according to the Manhood; in all things like unto us, without sin; begotten before all ages of the Father according to the Godhead, and in these latter days, for us and for our salvation, born of the Virgin Mary, the Mother of God, according to the Manhood; one and the same Christ, Son, Lord, only begotten, to be acknowledged in two natures, inconfusedly, unchangeably, indivisibly, inseparably; the distinction of natures being by no means taken away by the union, but rather the property of each nature being preserved, and concurring in one Person and one Subsistence, not parted or divided into two persons, but one and the same Son, and only begotten God, the Word, the Lord Jesus Christ; as the prophets from the beginning concerning Him, and the Lord Jesus Christ Himself has taught us, and the Creed of the holy Fathers has handed down to us."

dyothelitism refers to the belief that jesus christ had two wills...a human will coming from his full humanity and a divine will coming from his full Godhood...the human will being always perfectly subjected to his divine will... the contrary view is the heresy called monothelitism which taught that jesus had only one will...namely his divine will...which subverted the previous doctrinal understanding that jesus was both -fully- God and -fully- human...

dyothelitism was endorsed and monothelitism was condemned at the third council of constantinople...the sixth of the worldwide christian councils...

hypostatic union refers to the belief that jesus' full humanity and full divinity were united in a single personal existence...as opposed to other ideas such as the heretical belief that jesus was merely a human man 'possessed' by the second person of the trinity...or the heresy that jesus was a human man who was 'adopted' by God as his son...

 

[Depleted]

this thread comes from a comment in another thread...where someone stated that they didn't know what half of the terms in my signature actually meant...

so here is what they mean in plain english...

theology in general means all things pertaining to the study of the things of God...when used more specifically it refers to the study of details regarding the nature of God and so on...

trinitarian...belief in the doctrine of the trinity... trinitarians worship one God in three persons and three persons in one God...the three persons are father and son and holy spirit... the father is God...the son is God...and the holy spirit is God...but the father is not the son nor is the son the father...the son is not the holy spirit nor is the holy spirit the son...and the holy spirit is not the father nor is the father the holy spirit...

the nicene creed was the consensus arrived on at the council of nicea...the first worldwide christian council...which dealt especially with the question of the deity of jesus christ and his place in the trinity... this creed was updated at the council of constantinople...the second worldwide christian council...with additional details regarding the holy spirit and his deity and place in the trinity that resulted from the consensus at this council... the 'filioque' is an addition to the creed accepted in all western churches by the eleventh century...it adds that the holy spirit is sent from the father -and the son- which is in accord with scripture in the gospel of john...

the complete creed reads as follows...the original nicene text is in plain text...i put the constantinopolitan addition in italics...and the filioque clause is in smaller text...

I believe in one God, the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth and of all things visible and invisible.
And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God, begotten of his Father before all worlds, God of God, Light of Light, Very God of Very God, begotten, not made, being of one substance with the Father, by whom all things were made; who for us men and for our salvation came down from heaven and was incarnate by the Holy Ghost of the virgin Mary and was made man; and was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate. He suffered and was buried; and the third day he rose again according to the Scriptures; and ascended into heaven, and is sitting on the right hand of the Father; and he shall come again with glory to judge both the living and the dead; whose kingdom shall have no end.
And I believe in the Holy Ghost, the Lord and Giver of Life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son, who with the Father and the Son together is worshiped and glorified, who spoke by the prophets.
And I believe one holy Christian and apostolic church. I acknowledge one baptism for the remission of sins, and I look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come. Amen.

the athanasian creed is perhaps the most detailed ancient outline of the christian doctrines on the trinity and the dual natures of jesus christ... it is named after an early christian named athanasius who was very adamant in defending these doctrines against heretics...

since the athanasian creed is long i will put it in a separate post...

There are moments like this when I wish you had antinomi...something-another in your signature too. lol

Can I get a little failed-as-an-English-teachery on you? -ology means "the study of." So all your signy words should include studying. I do get, often times, the problem is people proclaim -ologies when they've never studied that -ology in the first place.

(I'm an amatuer apologist. Notice: no reason to claim an -ology for that one. Just some Bible studying, which we all should do. lol)

 

[PeacefulWarrior]

dyophisitism is the belief that jesus christ though one person has two natures...a human nature and a divine nature...usually simplified to 'fully God and fully man'... the contrary belief is the heresy known as monophysitism...which teaches that jesus' nature is a sort of indistinct blur of human and divine...a mixture or hybrid being...


dyothelitism refers to the belief that jesus christ had two wills...a human will coming from his full humanity and a divine will coming from his full Godhood...the human will being always perfectly subjected to his divine will... the contrary view is the heresy called monothelitism which taught that jesus had only one will...namely his divine will...which subverted the previous doctrinal understanding that jesus was both -fully- God and -fully- human..

These seem like views which cannot be proven -- how, then, can one be considered heresy?
Can not both views exist simultaneously?

 

[notuptome]

What is Lutheran soteriology?

For the cause of Christ
Roger

 

[RachelBibleStudent]

These seem like views which cannot be proven -- how, then, can one be considered heresy?
Can not both views exist simultaneously?

dyophysitism...in other words jesus' status as 100% God and 100% human...can be proven from scripture...

jesus' divinity is proved from john 1 which states that jesus 'the word' was with God and -was- God...and also colossians 2:9 shows that jesus possessed the -fullness- of the deity...

jesus' humanity is proved from romans 1:3 which refers to his human nature and hebrews 2:14 which says that jesus shared in our humanity...

there are many other scriptures that support this doctrine but the ones i mentioned i think are the most decisive...

since monophysitism goes against scriptural doctrine it can be denounced as heresy...

dyothelitism is not -directly- provable but it is a logical consequence of dyophysitism...to adopt monothelitism is to accept the heresy of monophysitism in at least some sense...

there are however supportive scriptures that do imply that jesus had both a divine and a human will...for example john 12:49 hints at jesus' divine will...while luke 22:42 shows that jesus had a human will independently from the will of God...

 

[RachelBibleStudent]

What is Lutheran soteriology?

For the cause of Christ
Roger

i will get to that one after cessationism and continuationism...

soteriology is a very -big- topic so it will take a lot of describing...it isn't complicated but there is a lot to say...

 

[RachelBibleStudent]

pneumatology means the study of the holy spirit and things pertaining to the holy spirit...it comes from the greek word 'pneuma' which means 'spirit'...

a cessationist is a person who believes that at least some of the various gifts of the holy spirit ceased at some point after the first century AD...

a continuationist is a person who believes that the gifts did not cease and works in these gifts continued uninterrupted...at least in some areas or fellowships...up through the present day...

a subset of continuationists do accept that the spiritual gifts ceased at some point in history...which they usually attribute to something like a loss of faith in God's provision of the gifts...but they believe this was not God's will for the church and that the gifts have been revived in modern times...

'tentative cessationist' is a term i came up with for myself because i believe history does show a cessation of some of the gifts such as tongues and apostolic style healings...but i don't see a strong scriptural argument that this was intended by God...and i also don't see a strong scriptural argument that it was irreversible...so i am open to the idea that some of these gifts were revived at a later time...

i should note that none of these views about the holy spirit's activity have ever been directly condemned as heresy by a worldwide christian council...

 

[Complete_In_Him]

Can not both views exist simultaneously?

Sure, because there is heresy in both, if you dig deep enough and remain honest with Scripture. The creeds are not scripture and they are unscriptural in a sense. But, religious, theological minded Christians will hold to them tooth and nail as if they are "good, right and salutary"


"Lutheran Soteriology", RachelBibleStudent, would you give up your theological truths if they were shown to be in any way false according to scripture... we are saved by believing the gospel of our salvation, not by believing in theological doctrines, such as Trinity, water baptism, confession of sins, or adherence to creeds. There is no "means of grace" received by absolution or water baptism. Baptismal regeneration is not a doctrine for the "ministry of reconciliation." There is no damnation to the soul, body and spirit... of believers in this dispensation, whom have believed the gospel of God and trusted in the faith of Christ, hence the Lutheran view of communion is false. Luther has some good things to say about faith, but Lutherans don't always adopt or adhere to Luther's views on justification and the faith of Christ... there is a lot of mincing of words in the truth of reconciliation. Are you a Lutheran, not that it matters, but they call it the "Lutheran faith" for a reason. And some say, "Christian faith" for a reason. But, when the bible says "the faith", it means the faith of Christ.


But, please, finish the thread posts of theological definitions and then we can all discuss the concepts put forward.

 

[Complete_In_Him]

Oh, hm, I just saw that the poster I quoted, and was looking forward with interest, to sharing in discussion on the concepts of this thread... has left cc. What a day of loss here, sigh, this place can be heavy. I'm going to take some time to consider discontinuing here. So, I retract my post above and involvement in any response in this thread. Thx, be well.

 

[fredoheaven]

pneumatology means the study of the holy spirit and things pertaining to the holy spirit...it comes from the greek word 'pneuma' which means 'spirit'...

Hi Rachel,

Just asking for clarification please, Is "pneuma" means "spirit"? Isn't this also a "breath"?

Thank you.

 

[notuptome]

i will get to that one after cessationism and continuationism...

soteriology is a very -big- topic so it will take a lot of describing...it isn't complicated but there is a lot to say...

My question is more about the Lutheran aspect.

Many folks have soteriology wrong from a biblical perspective.

For the cause of Christ
Roger

 

[RachelBibleStudent]

soteriology is the study of things pertaining to salvation...how salvation was accomplished by christ and how it is obtained by the christian and lost to the non christian...

lutheran is a term for various denominational bodies and doctrinal understandings that go back at least to martin luther at the beginning of the protestant reformation...

traditional protestant soteriologies including lutheran soteriology include the concept of substitutionary atonement...this is the belief that jesus died in our place and received the punishment for our sins which satisfied God's requirement for justice...

three of the five lutheran 'solas'...latin for 'alone'...pertain to soteriology and specifically to the way in which the christian receives salvation... lutheran soteriology teaches that salvation comes by grace alone...through faith alone...in christ alone... many other protestant denominations are in agreement with this understanding...

maybe the simplest way to explain the other defining characteristics of lutheran soteriology is to compare lutheranism to its rival protestant views of calvinism and arminianism...

lutherans tend to agree with the calvinists on the doctrine of total depravity...which is the belief that the unsaved person is inherently hostile to God and unable to independently come to salvation or perhaps even to desire it...and also the concept of unconditional election...which is the view that God predestines his elect to be saved based on no special quality inherent in themselves...with the corollary that salvation does not require and cannot be obtained by effort on the part of the recipient... these views that lutherans share with calvinists are in opposition to the teachings of arminianism...

on the other hand lutherans reject anything containing a whiff of 'double predestination'...which is the uniquely calvinist belief that God created certain people specifically for the purpose of predestining them to hell as an act of sovereignty... as a result lutheran soteriology rejects the calvinist tenet of limited atonement...which is the notion that christ's death paid for the sins of the elect only...and also the doctrine of irresistible grace...which teaches that any person to whom God offers his grace is incapable of rejecting the offer...with the corollary that God is solely responsible for the rejection of the gospel by the unsaved due to his decision to predestine them for damnation... in their disagreement with the calvinists on these two points the lutherans are more in alignment with the arminians...

regarding the final point of calvinism...perseverance of the saints...or 'once saved always saved'...given what appears to be strong scriptural support on both sides of this issue...combined with the human inability to know the state of anyone's salvation with certainty...many lutherans have come to view this particular question as an unresolvable paradox that is beyond human understanding in this present world... rather than risking error by standing with either side...lutherans are usually content to state that scripture both assures christians of the permanence of their salvation while also warning backsliders about a more than merely hypothetical danger of losing their salvation...

 

[notuptome]

soteriology is the study of things pertaining to salvation...how salvation was accomplished by christ and how it is obtained by the christian and lost to the non christian...

lutheran is a term for various denominational bodies and doctrinal understandings that go back at least to martin luther at the beginning of the protestant reformation...

traditional protestant soteriologies including lutheran soteriology include the concept of substitutionary atonement...this is the belief that jesus died in our place and received the punishment for our sins which satisfied God's requirement for justice...

three of the five lutheran 'solas'...latin for 'alone'...pertain to soteriology and specifically to the way in which the christian receives salvation... lutheran soteriology teaches that salvation comes by grace alone...through faith alone...in christ alone... many other protestant denominations are in agreement with this understanding...

All good up to here.

maybe the simplest way to explain the other defining characteristics of lutheran soteriology is to compare lutheranism to its rival protestant views of calvinism and arminianism...

lutherans tend to agree with the calvinists on the doctrine of total depravity...which is the belief that the unsaved person is inherently hostile to God and unable to independently come to salvation or perhaps even to desire it...and also the concept of unconditional election...which is the view that God predestines his elect to be saved based on no special quality inherent in themselves...with the corollary that salvation does not require and cannot be obtained by effort on the part of the recipient... these views that lutherans share with calvinists are in opposition to the teachings of arminianism...

on the other hand lutherans reject anything containing a whiff of 'double predestination'...which is the uniquely calvinist belief that God created certain people specifically for the purpose of predestining them to hell as an act of sovereignty... as a result lutheran soteriology rejects the calvinist tenet of limited atonement...which is the notion that christ's death paid for the sins of the elect only...and also the doctrine of irresistible grace...which teaches that any person to whom God offers his grace is incapable of rejecting the offer...with the corollary that God is solely responsible for the rejection of the gospel by the unsaved due to his decision to predestine them for damnation... in their disagreement with the calvinists on these two points the lutherans are more in alignment with the arminians...

regarding the final point of calvinism...perseverance of the saints...or 'once saved always saved'...given what appears to be strong scriptural support on both sides of this issue...combined with the human inability to know the state of anyone's salvation with certainty...many lutherans have come to view this particular question as an unresolvable paradox that is beyond human understanding in this present world... rather than risking error by standing with either side...lutherans are usually content to state that scripture both assures christians of the permanence of their salvation while also warning backsliders about a more than merely hypothetical danger of losing their salvation...

Those whom God has saved are saved and remain saved for all of eternity. We are saved to produce works or fruit as an evidence of our salvation but it is God Who produces in us and not us producing of ourselves.

Salvation is by grace alone. Man has a responsibility to receive or reject Gods offer of salvation. Man is able to choose because man received the knowledge of good and evil as a result of the fall. That self will that man was created with must be subordinated to Gods will self will being of the flesh and Gods will of the Spirit. This struggle is ever present as long as we remain in the body of flesh. We have hope in the knowledge that when this body lies silent in the grave we will be free from any power sin had over us.

For the cause of Christ
Roger

 

[cavil51]

Rachel,
Regarding this thread and my reaction ..................

 

[Demi777]

What is Lutheran soteriology?

For the cause of Christ
Roger

Its the Teaching of Luther. Soteriology means (greek) doctrine of Salvation

 

[BrotherJustin]

Oh, hm, I just saw that the poster I quoted, and was looking forward with interest, to sharing in discussion on the concepts of this thread... has left cc. What a day of loss here, sigh, this place can be heavy. I'm going to take some time to consider discontinuing here. So, I retract my post above and involvement in any response in this thread. Thx, be well.

I took a break. Now I'm back.
While I appreciate your comment, I do have nothing to add.
I am sorry that you decided to cease your involvement due to an action by me.

I like this thread because it's a chance for me to learn some of these terms and hear insight from others.

 

[Zmouth]

Hi Rachel,

Just asking for clarification please, Is "pneuma" means "spirit"? Isn't this also a "breath"?

Thank you.

Pneuma used to represent moving air