Metaphysics: Literally after physics, a foundation of thought that rests upon an attempt to find

truth beyond simple empirical knowledge. Asks questions such as why is there something rather
than nothing and how does one transcend his physical body? Most commonly linked to
Aristotle (384-322 BCE), but some of the first questions were asked by Plato (c. 428-347 BCE).
Plato devises a complex system, suggesting the Theory of Opposites that for everything, there is
an opposite, in order to suggest an immortal soul that transcends the body. Compare with the
moral argument for the existence of God, which itself assumes a metaphysical picture in which
there are eternal and timeless truths.
Plato: c. 428-347 BCE, a Greek philosopher who inspired a school of thought that had great
credence throughout the ancient world, even affecting early forms of Christianity. Proposed a
three-tiered soul composed of will, appetite, and reason, where reason was the highest part of the
soul. Platonic philosophy was often invoked against Christianity in the 2nd century, especially by
the pagan philosopher Celsus (c. 185?). Asks metaphysical questions in an attempt to understand
kalos, the true, the beautiful, and the good. Develops many of the tenets of classical theism
(the three omnis), but believes in the Demiurge, who created the world from pre-existing matter.
Does not believe in a personal God. Believes the material world is corrupt and evil. Contrast with
Origen (180-251), who applies much of Platos thought to Christianity, but firmly affirms a
personal God who can act in the world. Origen takes Platos idea of the logos and molds it so that
it can fit with the Incarnational theology.
The Moral Argument: An argument for the existence of God, proposed by Greek philosophers of
the Platonic school and still defended by theistic philosophers of religion today, most notably
William Lane Craig and Mark Linville. Has three essential premises:
1. If God does not exist, then objective moral duties and values do not exist.
2. But there are objective moral duties and values.
3. Therefore, God must exist.
Origen: A Christian theologian whom attempted to meld Platonic thought with Christian
theology and produced what is arguably the first systematic work of Christian theology in his On
First Principles. Lived from 180 to roughly 251. Responded to Celsus work against Christianity
in his work Contra Celsum, written in 248 AD. Condemned at the Second Council of
Constantinople (553), ostensibly because his thought verged too close to Gnostic thought.
Allegedly castrated himself as well, though his commentary on the Gospel of Matthew suggests
that he may not have. Compare with Plato, as Origen takes many of Platos ideas, such as the
logos, and attempts to meld them with Christian thought.
Apopthatic Theology: A theological school that holds to the via negative, that is, it is not possible
to know anything substantive about God. It is only possible to know what God is not.
Particularly common in the Orthodox Church, though known in Western theology as well. Posits
the idea of primary vs. secondary cause as a way of explaining divine action in the world.

Epistemology: Essentially, a school of thought that questions how we know what we know.
Pioneered by Plato (428-347 BCE) who suggested that we know what we know through our
connection to the forms.
Theodicy: The question of the philosophical problem of evil, that is, how can God, who is
ostensibly omnibenevolent, allow evil to occur. A number of responses have been proposed, most
notably by St. Augustine of Hippo, who associated the issue of evil with the existence of free
will. Another possible response is that God allows evil for the greater good.
Theopaschism: The question of how God can suffer, and why heresies such as adoptionism,
monarchism, and Docetism were rejected by the proto-orthodox factions of the early church. Led
to several of the Christological heresies in the early church, most notably Arianism. Essentially,
adoptionism and monarchism implied that God the Father himself suffered upon the cross,
whereas Docetism completely denied the question of Jesus divinity.
Irenaeus of Lyon (d. 202): An early Christian bishop who categorized the most prevalent heresies
in his work Against Heresies, which exists primarily in its Latin edition. Names the four
canonical gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, relating Papias of Hierapolis (c. 110)
material with regard to who wrote the gospels. Did not canonize the New Testament, but did
name the gospels for the first time (a disputed reference may appear in Justin Martyrs First
Apology, c. 150). Contrast with the Gnostics, who did not believe in the Apostolic tradition to
which Irenaeus traced the gospels, nor in any particularly closed canon, hence the wide variety of
Gnostic literature.
Monarchism: One of the major Christological heresies in the second and third century churches,
which posited that Jesus was identical with God the Father. Rejected due to the issue that God
the Father himself would have suffered and died on the cross. Contrast with adoptionism, which
suggested that Jesus was simply a man who died, and the Christ was a separate entity.
Adoptionism: Another Christological controversy of the early church. Argued that Jesus and the
Christ were two separate entities, the Christ alighted upon Jesus at his baptism by John the
Baptist. According to Bart Ehrman, Mark itself is an adoptionist Christology, but has been
convincingly responded to by Larry Hurtado. Contrast with Monarchism or Docetism.
Docetism: Jesus never had a physical body, he only appeared to. Contrast with adoptionism.
Arianism: A Trinitarian heresy proposed by Arius, an Alexandrinian priest. Flourished during the
320s, hence the calling of the Council of Nicea in 325 to combat it and attempt to reconcile the
Arians back to the church. Posited that Jesus was a creature made by God the father, and rather
than three, equal components, the Trinity was hierarchical. Opposed most vigorously by
Athanasisus, whose 351 work On the Incarnation of the Word, dealt with the issue. Yet, remained
powerful into the 360s and 370s, leading to Athanasisus five time exile. Contrast with any of the
Christological heresies or orthodoxy in general.
Homoousia: I know it.

Homoiousia: A slight deviation from homoousia, means that Jesus and the Father are of like,
though not the same substance. Compare with Arianism.
Hierophany:
Nicene Creed: Refers to the creed actually written and composed at the Council of
Constantinople in 381, but with elements from the Council of Nicea. Coagulates Pauline and
Platonic thought into a creed of Christian belief. Refer to Homoousia. An attempt by Constantine
the Great and Eusebius of Caesarea to create a compromise that would reconcile the orthodox
faction and Arian faction. Compare to Arianism.
Apostolic Tradition: The tradition of the apostles from Matthew 16:16, where Jesus appoints
Peter the head of the church, used by the Orthodox Church to legitimate itself. Manifests in
canonical selection, contrast with Gnostics.
Pope Leo III: 795-816, crowned Charlemegne and finally removed all Byzantine influence from
the West. His actions led to the rise of the Holy Roman Empire, led to the Great Schism of 1054.
Affirms that East and West are under the protection of two separate people and empires.
Photius: Patriarch of Constantinople during the Photian schism of the 860s, proposed the
Filioque, the idea that the HS proceeds from the Father and the Son, rather than simply from the
Father alone. Is reinstated at the 8th Ecumenical Council of 879 and set off debate about the
leavened/unleavened nature of the Eucharist. Contrast with Leo III or compare with someone
else? Allegedly converted the Slavs to Christianity.
Filioque: Lit. and the son in Latin. Proposed by Photius in the 860s and led to the Photian
Schism. Suggests that Holy Spirit proceeds from only Father, not from Son. While rejected in
West, by the Catholic Church, it is accepted in the East by the Orthodox Church. Compare with
the Nicene Creed or something like Arianism.
Michael Cerularius: 1000-1059: The Patriarch of Constantinople who continues Photius policies
towards the West and oversees the Schism of 1054. Excommunicates a Catholic bishop named
Humbert of Silva Candida and is in turn excommunicated, though the East continues to question
whether or not a bishop can excommunicate a patriarch. Compare with Photius, whose policies
towards the West and theology set up the Schism, while Michael Cerularius politically (and
theologically?) motivated actions were immediate causes of the schism.
Seven Sacraments: The seven signs of grace in the Church, allegedly developed by Jesus Christ,
but in reality, a series of historical events that occurred long after Jesus death. For
example, confirmation was not practiced widely in the West until after the Council of
Trent (1545-1563). Contrast with Gnostics, who abjured ritual. Tied to the divine liturgy
of St. John Chrystosum, who fleshed out Justin Martyrs liturgy around 400.
Nestorius: An Antiochian bishop who proposed that Mary, the mother of Jesus, was the
Christotokos, that is, the Christ bearer, rather than the Theotokos, the bearer of God. His
excommunication after the 431 Council of Ephesus led to the schism and creation of the
Church of the East, easily one of the largest Christian denominations at the time. His

thought was opposed most notably by Cyril of Alexandria, who argued that Mary must
logically be the bearer of God, not simply of Christ, due to the Christological implication
of adoptionism/Arianism that the Christ was separate from God or Jesus himself.
Monophysites/Dyophysites: Know it
Monothelitism: Heraclius
Theotokos: The response to Nestorius at the Third Ecumencical Council (Ephesus, 351). Argued
that Mary was the bearer of God, not of Christ. Proposed by Cyril of Alexandria, who
later became a saint of the Orthodox Church. Compare to Nestorius
Iconoclasts: Those in the church who destroyed and reviled icons in the years up to the 787
Second Council of Nicea. Supported by the emperor at one time, Constantine V.
Anathematized at II Nicea with the argument that iconography is not the object of
worship, but allows one to draw closer to God as a result. Contrast with Iconodulism.
Iconodulism: Reverse of Iconoclasm, contrast with iconoclasm. Constantine VI.
1054 Schism: Overseen by Michael Cerularius (1000-1059), the action which finally split the
Orthodox and Roman Catholic churches. Several hundred years in the making, it finally
reached a head when Michael Cerularius excommunicated Humbert of Silva Candida and
was excommunicated in turn, along with the entirety of the church. Started under Photius
in the 860s, though arguably pushed along by Justinian and other emperors. Compare
with Leo III or Charlemegne?
Phenomenology: An attempt to understand religious belief as a series of human experiences
,based off of gender and cultural experience. Strongly advocated for by Caroline WalkerBynum, who argues that religious symbols are polysemic, having multiple meanings.
According to phenomenological intepretations, one must consider both religious signs
and how they make their own meaning. Compare with the risible post-modern approach.
The Sacred: A category that the Orthodox use with regard to experiencing God and drawing
closer to him. An area that fills the noetic of the soul, the part that yearns for
beauty/truth/goodness with zest for God and the mysteries of faith. Related to the idea of
a hierophany, the glimpse of the sacred. Claims a sacred cosmos with man that has a
particular religious proclivity, also claims that historical change is primarily illusory.
Contrast with the Profane.
The Profane: Another arbitrary category that seems to be used more to identify things that are not
sacred. Claims that the world is desacralized and relatively recent, working in the
framework that importance is only circumstantial. Life is fundamentally meaningless and
we need to avoid history, a very Nitschezesque approach. Contrast with sacred.
Axis Mundi: Lit. the center of the world, proposed by Mircela Eliade in the 20th century. Focuses
on the anchor of the religion, which can be either tangible or intangible, then what is
true or sacred is predicated on it. For example, the RCC and the Vatican, but ir varies
across traditions. Contrast with postmodernism.

Postmodernism: A school of thought that arose primarily in the 1960s and 1970s, led by men like
Michel Foccault, which suggested that there is no real truth, but that ones perception
of truth is primarily based on his own cultural perceptions/point of view. Leads to
questions of how we can actually determine morality/truth/right or wrong, that all
knowledge is chimerical. Contrast with the Orthodox conception of the sacred, where
there are clearly sacred and clearly profane things.
Iconostasis: Yes
Pantokrator: Lit. creator of all, the element of a church in its dome that is a depiction of
God/Jesus and the universal ruler more general. Its position is designed to aid hierophany,
as one sees it above all the saints/angels, more importantly related to the iconodulic
decision of Nicea II, which allows one to depict God, realizing that the icon is not being
worshipped. Plays a role in a phenomenological interpretation of Orthodoxy, as it is
apparently designed to make one depressed. Compare to iconostasis.
Cathedral: A church that serves as the seat of a bishop, from the Latin cathedra, chair. In early
Orthodoxy, it was necessary to have some sort of relic (the hair of John the Baptist or the
splinters of the true cross or something) in order to open an Orthodox cathedral. Discuss
apostolic tradition and perhaps the divine liturgy?
The Eucharist: The grace of God, lit. from Greek euxomai. Instituted by Christ at the last supper,
according to the Synoptic gospels as well as the Apostle Paul (4 BC- 65 AD?). According
to the Orthodox tradition, it represents the true body and blood of Christ after
transubstantiation, though the Orthodox view the eucharist as a necessarily leavened vs.
the Catholic unleavened. A central part of the Divine Liturgy of St. John Chrystostum
(400 AD). Compare with Divine Liturgy.
Divine Liturgy: The liturgy of the church, first devised by Justin Martyr (150s) and then
expanded upon by John Chrystostum (390s-410s). Focuses primarily on the Eucharist as
the center of Christian worship and devotion in the Church as well as expanding the
liturgy in order to subsume questions of fasting. For example, one must fast on bread and
water for 1.5 weeks prior to taking the Eucharist. Contrast with Gnosticism or something
like it.