| anti-Christ | The ultimate enemy of Jesus Christ who, according to Christian apocalyptic traditions, will manifest himself at the End of time to corrupt many of the faithful, only to be vanquished when Christ appears. The term is used only in 2 and 3 John but is clearly referred to in 2 Thessalonians (2:1-12) and Revelation 13.
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| antinomianism | Literally meaning "opponents of law," the name applies to specific early Christian groups that argued that faith in Christ absolves the believer from obeying the moral law, a libertarian attitude attacked by Paul (Gal. 5:13-6:10) and the author of 1 and 2 John. See heresy.
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| Antioch | Two Hellenistic cities famous in Maccabean and New Testament times bore this name. (1) In Syria, Antioch was the capital of the Macedonian Seleucid kings and, under Roman rule, the capital of a province of the same name. According to Acts, the first Gentile Christian church was founded in Antioch (Acts 11:20, 21), where followers of "the way" were first called Christians (Acts 11:26). Paul began all three of his missionary journeys from here. (2) Pisidian Antioch, a major city in Galatia (in Asia Minor), was also the site of an important early church, this one founded by Paul and Barnabas (Acts 13:14-50).
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| Antonius Felix | The Roman procurator or governor of Judea before whom Paul was tried at Caesarea about 60 c.e. (Acts 23:23-24:27).
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| Apollos | A Hellenistic Jew of Alexandria, Egypt, noted for his eloquence, who first was a follower of John the Baptist, then embraced Christianity (Acts 18:24-28), and inadvertently became a rival of Paul at Corinth (1 Cor. 1:12; 3:4-6, 22-23; 4:6).
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| apostle | A person sent forth or commissioned as a messenger, such as (but not restricted to) the Twelve whom Jesus selected to follow him. According to Acts 1, in the early Jerusalem church, an apostle was defined as one who had accompanied Jesus during his earthly ministry and had seen the resurrected Lord. Lists of the original Twelve differ from account to account (Matt. 10:2-5; Mark 3:16-19; Luke 6:13-16; Acts 1:13-14).
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| Areopagus | The civic court in Athens and the location of an important legal council of the Athenian democracy where, according to Acts 17, Paul introduced Christianity to some Athenian intellectuals.
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| Ascension | The resurrected Jesus' ascent to heaven (Acts 1:6-11).
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| Athens | Greece's leading city-state and cultural capital in the fifth century b.c.e. and its leading intellectual center during Hellenistic and Roman times. According to Acts 17, the apostle Paul introduced Christianity in Athens.
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| Barnabas | A prominent leader of the early church in Jerusalem, associate and traveling companion of the apostle Paul (Acts 9:26-30; 11:22-30; 13:1-3; 13:44-52; 14:1-15:4; 15:22-40; Col. 4:10; 1 Cor. 9:6; Gal. 2:1-13). The noncanonical Epistle of Barnabus is ascribed to him.
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| Caesarea | An important Roman city that Herod the Great built on the Palestinian coast about sixty-four miles northwest of Jerusalem and named in honor of Caesar Augustus. Caesarea was Pontius Pilate's administrative capital and later a Christian center (Acts 8:40; 10:1, 24; 18:22; 21:8). Paul was imprisoned there for two years (Acts 23:23-35; 24-26).
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| centurion | A low-ranking officer in the Roman army in charge of a "century," or division of 100 men. A centurion named Cornelius became the first Gentile convert to Christianity (Acts 10).
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| Cephas | A name meaning "stone" that Jesus bestowed upon Simon Peter (John 1:42).
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| Christology | The theological discipline that deals with the nature of Jesus Christ, particularly his divinity, relation to the divine Father, and role in human redemption.
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| Colossae | An ancient Phrygian city situated on the south bank of the Lycus River in central Asia Minor, important for its position on the trade route between Ephesus and Mesopotamia (Col. 1:1-2; 4:13).
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| Corinth | A cosmopolitan center of trade and commerce in ancient Greece, destroyed by the Romans in 146 b.c.e. but later rebuilt. Home of a large population of Hellenistic Jews, Corinth was later a Christian center established by the apostle Paul and his associates (Acts 18:24; 19:1; 1 and 2 Cor.).
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| Cornelius | A Roman centurion associated with the Jewish synagogue in Caesarea who became the first Gentile convert to Christianity (Acts 10-11).
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| Damascus | The capital of Syria and terminus of ancient caravan routes in the Fertile Crescent. Damascus was supposedly founded by Uz, grandson of Noah's son Shem (Gen. 5:32; 6:10; 10:23) and was visited by Abraham (Gen. 11:31; 12:4; 14:14). Paul's conversion to Christianity occurred near Damascus (Acts 9).
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| deutero-Pauline | New Testament books attributed to Paul but probably not written by him (e.g., Ephesians and the Pastorals).
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| dualism | A philosophic or religious system that posits the existence of two parallel worlds, one of physical matter and the other of invisible spirit. Moral dualism views the universe as divided between powers of Good and Evil, Light and Dark, which contend for human allegiance.
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| Epaphras | An early Christian of Colossae who reported on the Colossian church to the imprisoned Paul (Col. 1:7; 4:12; Philem. 23).
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| Ephesus | A wealthy Hellenistic city, later capital of the Roman province of Asia, site of the famous temple of Artemis (Diana) (Acts 19-20). Ephesus is frequently mentioned in various Pauline and deutero-Pauline letters (1 Cor. 16:19; 2 Cor. 12:14; 13:1; 1 Tim. 3:1; 2 Tim. 4:12; etc.). The author of Revelation (Rev. 2:1-7) judged the church there favorably. Later Christian traditions made it the site of the Virgin's assumption to heaven and the final ministry of the apostle John.
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| Fall, the | In some Christian theologies, a term that denotes humanity's loss of innocence and divine favor through Adam's sin of disobedience (Gen. 3). According to some interpretations of Pauline thought (Rom. 5:12-21; 1 Cor. 15:45-49), the primal human sin resulted in the transmission of death and a proclivity toward depravity and evil to the entire human race. As a medieval rhyme expressed it, "In Adam's fall, we sinned all." Despite the emphasis given the Fall by some theologians, such as Augustine, the Yahwist's account of Adam's behavior is never mentioned again in the Hebrew Bible.
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| Festus, Porcius | The procurator of Judea whom Nero appointed to succeed Felix and through whom Paul appealed to be tried by Caesar's court in Rome (Acts 24:27-26:32).
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| Galatia | A region in the interior of Asia Minor (Turkey) settled by Gauls; in New Testament times, a Roman province visited by Paul and his associates (Acts 16:6; 18:23; 1 Cor. 16:1; Gal. 1:2; 1 Pet. 1:1).
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| Gamaliel | A leading Pharisee, scholar, member of the Sanhedrin (Acts 5:34), reputed teacher of Paul (Acts 22:3), and exponent of the liberal wing of the Pharisaic party developed by his grandfather Hillel, Gamaliel persuasively argued for a policy of toleration toward the new religion preached by Peter and other apostles (Acts 5:38-40).
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| glossolalia | A religious phenomenon in which a person is inspired to speak in a language not his own. In Acts 2, this emotional "speaking in (foreign) tongues" symbolizes the multinational nature of the early Christian movement.
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| Gnosticism | A movement in early Christianity which taught that salvation was gained through special knowledge (gnosis) revealed through a spiritual savior (presumably Jesus) and was the property of an elite few who had been initiated into its mysteries. Gnosticism became a major heresy in the primitive church, though little is now known about its pre-cise tenets.
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| Hellenists | Jews living outside Palestine who adopted the Greek language and, to varying degrees, Greek customs and ideas (Acts 6:1; 9:29).
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| heresy | Holding or teaching a religious opinion contrary to church dogma. Applied to Christianity by its detractors (Acts 24:14), the term was not generally used in its modern sense during New Testament times except in the pastoral epistles (1 Tim. 1:3; 2; Titus 3:10).
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| Herod Agrippa II | Son of Herod Agrippa I and great-grandson of Herod the Great, was the first king of Chalcis (50 c.e.) and then of the territory formerly ruled by Philip the Tetrarch, as well as of the adjoining area east of Galilee and the upper Jordan. This was the Herod, together with his sister Bernice, before whom Paul appeared at Caesarea (Acts 25:13-26:32).
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| Holy Spirit, the | The presence of God active in human life, a concept most explicitly set forth in John 14:16-26 and in the Pentecost miracle depicted in Acts 2. The Hebrew Bible speaks of "the spirit of God" (based on the Hebrew word for "wind" or "breath") as the force that created the universe (Gen. 1:2; Job 26:13; Ps. 104:29-30) and that inspires humans to prophesy and otherwise carry out the divine will (Exod. 31:3; Judg. 3:10; 1 Sam. 16:13-14; Isa. 61:1-3; Joel 2:28-30). In post-New Testament times, the Holy Spirit was declared to be the Third Person in the Trinity (Matt. 28:19-20).
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| James | 1. Son of Zebedee, brother of John, and one of the Twelve Apostles (Mark 1:19-20; 3:17; Matt. 4:21-22; 10:2; Luke 5:10; 6:14). A Galilean fisherman, he left his trade to follow Jesus and, with John and Peter, became a member of his inner circle. He was among the three disciples present at the Transfiguration (Mark 9:2-10; Matt. 17:1-9; Luke 9:28-36) and was at Jesus' side during the last hours before his arrest (Mark 14:32-42; Matt. 26:36-45). James and John used their intimacy to request a favored place in the messianic kingdom, thus arousing the other apostles' indignation (Mark 10:35-45). James was beheaded when Herod Agrippa I persecuted the Jerusalem church (41-44 c.e.) (Acts 12:2).
2. James, son of Alphaeus and Mary (Acts 1:13; Mark 16:1), one of the Twelve (Matt. 10:3-4), called "the less" or "the younger" (Mark 15:40).
3. James, the eldest of Jesus' three "brothers" (or close male relatives) named in the Gospels (Mark 6:3; Matt. 13:55), first opposed Jesus' work (Matt. 12:46-50; Mark 3:31-35; Luke 8:19-21; John 7:3-5) but was apparently converted by one of Jesus' postresurrection appearances (1 Cor. 15:7) and became a leader in the Jerusalem church (Acts 15:13-34; 21:18-26). According to legend, a Nazirite and upholder of the Mosaic Law, he was known as James "the righteous." James apparently clashed with Paul over the latter's policy of absolving Gentile converts from circumcision and other legalistic requirements (Gal. 1:18-2:12). The reputed author of the New Testament Epistle of James, he was martyred at Jerusalem in the early 60s c.e.
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| Jerusalem church | According to Luke-Acts, the original center of Christianity from which the "new Way" spread outward to "the ends of the earth" (Acts 1-15). Inspired by the Spirit at Pentecost, the Jerusalem believers formed a commune led by three "pillars"-Peter (Cephas), John, and James, Jesus' kinsman (Acts 2-3; Gal. 1:18-2:10).
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| Macedonia | The large mountainous district in northern Greece ruled by Philip of Macedon (359-336 b.c.e.), whose son Alexander the Great (356-323 b.c.e.) extended the Macedonian Empire over the entire ancient Near East as far as western India, incorporating all of the earlier Persian Empire. Conquered by Rome (168 b.c.e.) and annexed as a province (146 b.c.e.), Macedonia was the first part of Europe to be Christianized (Acts 16:10-17:9; 18:5; 19:29; 20:1-3).
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| martyr | A "witness" for Christ who prefers to die rather than relinquish his faith. Stephen, at whose stoning Saul of Tarsus assisted, is known as the first Christian martyr (Acts 22:20; Rev. 2:13; 17:6).
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| Onesimus | The runaway slave of Philemon of Colossae whom Paul converted to Christianity and reconciled to his master (Philem. 8-21; Col. 4:7-9).
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| original sin | The theological concept declaring that the entire human race has inherited from the first man (Adam) a tendency to sin. Some theologians, such as Augustine and Calvin, argued that humanity is born totally corrupt and justly condemned to damnation, a fate escaped only through accepting Jesus' sacrifice for sin. The doctrine is partly based on an extremist interpretation of Romans 5:12.
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| pastoral epistles | The name applied to the New Testament books of 1 and 2 Timothy and Titus, presumably written by the apostle Paul to two of his fellow ministers (pastors), but which modern scholars believe were composed by an anonymous disciple of Pauline thought living near the mid-second century c.e.
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| Paul | The most influential apostle and missionary of the mid-first-century c.e. church and author of seven to nine New Testament letters. Saul of Tarsus (Paul's original name) was born in the capital of the Asia Minor province of Cilicia (Acts 9:11; 21:39; 22:3) into a family of Pharisees (Acts 23:6) of the tribe of Benjamin (Phil. 3:5) and had both Roman and Taurean citizenship (Acts 22:28). Suddenly converted to Christianity after persecuting early Christians (Acts 7:55-8:3; 9:1-30; 22:1-21; 26:1-23; 1 Cor. 9:1; 15:8; Gal. 1:11-24; Eph. 3:3; Phil. 3:12), he undertook at least three international missionary tours, presenting defenses of the new faith before Jewish and Gentile authorities (Acts 13:1-28:31). His emphasis on the insufficiency of the Mosaic Law for salvation (Gal. 3-5; Rom. 4-11) and the superiority of faith to law (Rom. 4-11) and his insistence that Gentiles be admitted to the church without observing Jewish legal restrictions (Gal. 2, 5; Rom. 7-8) were decisive in determining the future development of the new religion. He was probably martyred in Rome about 64-65 c.e.
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| Pentecost | (1) Also known as the Feast of Weeks (Exod. 34:22; Deut. 16:10), the Feast of Harvest (Exod. 23:16), and the Day of the First Fruits (Num. 28:26), Pentecost was a one-day celebration held fifty days after Passover at the juncture of May and June. (2) The occasion of the outpouring of Holy Spirit on early Christians assembled in Jerusalem (Acts 2:1-41), regarded as the spiritual baptism of the church.
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| Philemon | A citizen of Colossae whose runaway slave, Onesimus, Paul converted to Christianity (Philem. 5, 10, 16, 19).
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| Philippi | A city of eastern Macedonia, the first European center to receive the Christian message (Acts 16:10-40), Philippi became the apostle Paul's favorite church (Acts 20:6; Phil. 4:16; 2 Cor. 11:9) and the one to which his letter to the Philippians is addressed.
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| Phoebe | A servant or deaconess of the church at Cenchrae, a port of Corinth, whose good works Paul commends in Romans 16:1-2.
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| pseudonymity | A literary practice, common among Jewish writers of the last two centuries b.c.e. and the first two centuries c.e, of writing or publishing a book in the name of a famous religious figure of the past. Thus, an anonymous author of about 168 b.c.e. ascribed his work to Daniel, who supposedly lived during the 500s b.c.e. The Pastorals, 2 Peter, James, and Jude are thought to be pseudonymous books written in the mid-second century c.e. but attributed to eminent disciples connected with the first-century Jerusalem church.
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| resurrection | The returning of the dead to life, a late Hebrew Bible belief (Isa. 26:19; Dan. 12:2-3, 13) that first became prevalent in Judaism during the time of the Maccabees (after 168 b.c.e.) and became a part of the Pharisees' doctrine. Like the prophets Elijah and Elisha (1 Kings 17:17-24; 2 Kings 4:18-37), Jesus performed several resuscitations: of the widow of Nain's son (Luke 7:11-17), the daughter of Jairus (Mark 5:21-43), and Lazarus (John 11:1-44). Unlike these personages, however, Jesus ascended to heaven after his own resurrection (Acts 1:7-8). Paul gives the fullest discussion of the resurrection in the New Testament (1 Thess. 4; 1 Cor. 15), although he leaves many questions unanswered (see also Matt. 25:31-46 and Rev. 20:13).
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| Roman Empire | The international, interracial government centered in Rome, Italy, that conquered and administered the entire Mediterranean region from Gaul (France and southern Germany) in the northwest to Egypt in the southeast and ruled the Jews of Palestine from 63 b.c.e. until Hadrian's destruction of Jerusalem during the second Jewish revolt (132-135 c.e.).
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| Saul of Tarsus | According to Acts, the name by which the apostle Paul was known before his conversion on the road to Damascus. See Paul.
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| Silas | The Semitic, perhaps Aramean, name of an early Christian prophet (Acts 15:32), otherwise called Silvanus, who accompanied Barnabas and Paul to Antioch with decrees from the Jerusalem council (Acts 15:1-35) and who joined Paul on his second missionary journey (Acts 16-18; 1 Thess. 1:1; 2 Thess. 1:1). He may have been the author of 1 Peter (1 Pet. 5:12).
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| Simon | The name of several New Testament figures. (1) Simon Peter (Matt. 4:18; 10:2). (2) One of the twelve apostles, Simon the Canaanite (Matt. 10:4; Mark 3:18), a nationalist Zealot (Luke 6:15; Acts 1:13). (3) One of Jesus' "brothers" (Matt. 13:55; Mark 6:3). (4) A leper whom Jesus cured (Mark 14:3-9). (5) Simon of Cyrene, the man from North Africa who was forced to carry Jesus' cross (Mark 15:21). (6) A Pharisee who entertained Jesus in his home (Luke 7:36-50). (7) Simon Iscariot, father of Judas the traitor (John 6:71; 13:26). (8) A leather tanner of Joppa with whom Peter stayed (Acts 9:43; 10).
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| soul | In Hebrew, nephesh (breath), applied to both humans and animals as living beings (Gen. 1:20; 2:7; 2:19; 9:4; Exod. 1:5; 1 Chron. 5:21). It was translated psyche in the Greek Septuagint, the same term used (commonly for "life" rather than the immortal personality) in the New Testament (Matt. 10:28; 16:26; Acts 2:27; 3:23; Phil. 1:27; Rev. 20:4).
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| Stephen | A Hellenistic Jew of Jerusalem who was stoned for his Christian heresy (Acts 6:8-60), thus becoming the first martyr of the early church. The name means "royal" or "crown."
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| syncretism | The blending of different religions, a term Bible scholars typically apply to the mingling of Canaanite rites and customs (Baalism) with the Israelites' Mosaic faith. Although a practice repeatedly denounced by the prophets (Judg. 2:13; 3:7; 6:31; 8:33; 1 Kings 16:31; 18:26; 2 Kings 10:18; Jer. 2:8; 7:9; 19:5; 23:13; Hos. 2:8), Judaism borrowed many of its characteristic forms, psalms, concepts, and religious rituals from earlier Canaanite models.
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| Syria | (1) The territory extending from the upper Euphrates River to northern Palestine. (2) The kingdom of Aram, with its capital at Damascus (Isa. 7:8). As the creed in Deuteronomy 26:5 states, the Israelites regarded themselves as descended from Arameans (Syrians). Isaiah 7 refers to the Syro-Ephraimite coalition against Assyria.
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| Thessalonica | A major Macedonian city (modern Salonika) where Paul and Silas converted "some" Jews, "many" Greeks and "God-fearers," and numerous "rich women," to Christianity (Acts 17:1-9). Paul later revisited the city (1 Cor. 16:5) and wrote two of his earliest surviving letters to its congregation (1 and 2 Thess.)
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| Timothy | Younger friend and fellow missionary of Paul, who called him "beloved son" (1 Cor. 4:17; 1 Tim. 1:2-28; 2 Tim. 1:2), Timothy was the son of a Greek father and devout Jewish mother (Acts 16:1; 2 Tim. 1:5). To please the Jews, Paul circumcised Timothy before taking him on his second evangelical tour (Acts 16:1-4; 20:1-4). Paul later sent him to Macedonia (1 Thess. 3:6) and thence to Corinth to quiet the dissension there (Acts 19:22; 1 Cor. 4:17; 16:11), which he failed to do (2 Cor. 7:6, 13-14; 8:6, 16, 23; 12:18). The picture of Timothy in the pastoral Epistles seems irreconcilable with what is known of him from Acts and Paul's genuine letters.
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| Titus | A Greek whom Paul converted and who became a companion on his missionary journeys (2 Cor. 8:23; Gal. 2:1-3; Titus 1:4), Titus effected a reconciliation between Paul and the Corinthians (2 Cor. 7:5-7; 8:16-24; 12:18). A post-Pauline writer makes him the type of the Christian pastor (Titus 1-3).
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2003 McGraw-Hill Higher Education