Religious Mid-Term Notes

1. Sacrament- an efficacious sign

2. Efficacious- is what it represents
3. Apostasy- abandonment of faith
4. Heresy- the denial of essential truths
5. Schism- a rift in unity, a divide
6. The Church endures through hardship because of Christ’s ongoing presence.
7. The Church is apostolic because of the succession of leadership.
8. Catholic means “universal”
9. The message of God’s love is made real through concrete actions of service.
10. The four part mission of the Church: (1) preach the Gospel, (2) live in the
community, (3) worship the Lord, and (4) serve others. (ECHO)
11. Three covenants mentioned in the Old Testaments are: (1) the covenant between
Adam and Eve, (2) Noah, (3) Abraham, (4) Moses/Israelites.
12. God wanted to sanctify and save a whole people, not just individual, so he made the
Sinai covenant with all of the Israelites.
13. Three crucial things that the Holy Spirt does for the Church: (1) makes members
holy, (2) builds up the Church, and (3) gives gifts that allow us to continue Christ’s
work.
14. People become members of the Church by believing in God and being baptized in his
name.
15. Jesus’ followers most important ritual was the Eucharist.
16. Pentecost is the birthday of the Church
17. The Council of Jerusalem declared that Gentiles could become Christians without
first adhering to Mosaic Law.
18. Josephus was a Jewish historian who wrote about Jesus.
19. Orthodoxy- right belief or teaching
20. Orthopraxis- right living
21. Origin was the Church Father provided a critical edition of the Septuagint and taught
ways of interpreting scripture.
22. Theotokos- God bearer
23. The Council of Ephesus declared Mary as the Theotokos
24. Jerome completed the Latin translation of the Bible, known as the Latin vulgate.
25. Constantine issued the Edict of Milan, which tolerated Christianity in the Roman
Empire
26. Hypostatic Union- Jesus is fully God and human
27. Caesenopapism- the combining of power from a secular government with the power
of the Church
28. Pope Leo III crowned Charlemagne as the holy Roman Emperor in 800 A.D.
29. Benedict of Nursia was the founded of the most influential form of monasticism
30. John Chrysosome was nicknamed “golden mouth”
31. Augustine had a powerful conversion experience taking him from a life of wild
depravity to one of holiness.
32. Nepotism- the passing on of benefits or land to one’s children or relatives
33. Christendom- the notion of the Christian world as a social and political policy
34. Feudalism- a form of government that divided social classes into monarchs, nobles,
clergy, and peasants based on the exchange of loyalty and service for protection and
land
35. Dark Ages- during the Middle Ages, where corruption reigned and nepotism and
simony were common
36. Simony- the buying and selling of spiritual things; i.e. church offices
37. Transubstantiation- the processes in the Eucharist when the bread and wine become
the body and blood of Christ
38. Filioque- “and from the Son,” appears in the Nicene Creed
39. Unam Sanctum- decree that asserted that Popes were supreme over secular rulers in
both spiritual and temporal affairs, and that being subject to the Pope was necessary
for salvation
40. Bernard of Clairvaux was the last father of the Church
41. Thomas of Aquinas is the greatest scholastic theologian
42. Francis of Assisi was the founded of the “Friar Minors”
43. Saint Claire of Assisi founded the order of Saint Clares
44. Dominic Guzman founded the order of Preachers.
45. The Council of Chalcedon declared the doctrine of the hypostatic union
46. Nicea was the first Ecumenical council
47. The Council of Nicea condemned Arianism
48. The Council of Constance settled the Western Schism.
49. The Babylonian Captivity of the Church is also known as the Avignon Papacy
50. Gregory XI was the pope that returned to Rome, ending the Babylonian Captivity
51. Catherine of Siena wrote forceful letters urging Gregory to return to Rome
52. Apologist- in defense of the faith
53. “So now I tell you, have nothing to do with these men and let them go, for if this
endeavor or activity is of human origin, it will destroy itself, but if it comes from
God, you will not be able to destroy them: you may even find yourselves fighting
against God,” was said by Gamaliel
54. God’s Kingdom refers to God’s universal will for peace, justice, love, and salvation
for being realized in the present.
55. To become a disciple of Jesus, one must follow him and have courage. Following
Him will involve suffering for the sake of the Gospel. One must also take up their
cross, promote Jesus’ vision of peace, and risk death to uphold Truth.
56. Saint Francis said “Preach the Gospel at all times, use words when necessary”
57. Saint Augustine said “Our hearts are restless until they rest with you”
58. Thomas Kempis wrote the Imitation of Christ