| Term | Definition |
|---|
| Importance of Studying History | helps us find out who we are, know the why of things, and choose wisely |
| Council of Jerusalem | considered the first official church council, discussed the acceptance of gentiles into the church |
| Gentiles | non-jews |
| Peter | one of the twelve apostles, built the church after jesus' death, also known as the "rock" |
| Paul | zealous defender of Jewish orthodoxy, loved the Jewish Law, was also known as Saul |
| Pentecost | "the birthday of the church", the event that transformed the apostles |
| Epistles | letter, written by Paul to the Christian communities, eventually became part of the Bible |
| Antioch | the first Jewish-Gentile community, 3rd largest city in the Roman Empire |
| Nero | persecuted Christians because they were an easy small target, started the era of persecution of Christians by Romans |
| Gospel of Mark | earliest written Gospel, directed at the Gentiles who became Christian |
| Gospel of Matthew | Gospel that tried to show how Jesus, as the Messiah, fulfilled the hopes and prophecies of the Jewish Tradition |
| Gospel of Luke | Gospel that tried to help his Gentile Christian readers understand that Jesus had come to save everyone, regardless of race or social status |
| Gospel of John | last Gospel to be written, written to help people believe in Jesus as divine, as God-made flesh |
| Acts of the Apostles | written by Luke, accounts the early days of the Christian community including the church's initial development in Jerusalem and the spread of Good news throughout the Roman Empire |
| Book of Revelation | was the last work of the Christian Testament, filled with highly symbolic and mysterious images, inspired Christians who were under persecution by Romans to remain firm in their beliefs |
| Justin Martyr | one of the earliest and most important apologist |
| Apologist | "defenders of the faith", well-educated people who knew Greek philosophy and could debate with non-Christians on an equal basis |
| Diocletian | a ruler during the end of the 200s, order churches destroyed, sacred books burned, and leaders of the church excuted |
| Constantine | ruler after Diocletian, believed Christ helped him conquer |
| Edict of Milan | granted freedom of worship to Christians in the Roman Empire |
| Constantinople | formerly known as Byzantium, became the center of the Roman empire during Constantine's rule |
| Theodosius | ruler who declared paganism illegal and made Christianity the official religion |
| Heresy | beliefs contrary to some essential belief of the faith |
| Gnosticism | believed all material things are evil, including the human body, Jesus is divine but not human |
| Arianism | denied Jesus' divinity, neither God nor human but somewhere in between |
| Council of Nicaea | council that claimed Arianism a heresy, and wrote the NIcene Creed |
| Nicene Creed | creed that incorporates the understanding of Jesus as both God and human |
| Athanasius | related Jesus is to God as brightness is to light |
| Monasticism | means "alone" or "single", movement of men and women away from the world to pursue holiness |
| Antony of Egypt | sold everything he own to live a monastic life, became a hermit |
| Thomas Merton | modern monk, "purity of heart" |
| contemplation | being silently present or attentive to the loving God |
| Basil | created the rule monks should follow in a community |
| Jerome | made tremendous contributions to the life of the church through his scholarship, created a Bible for the common people |
| Latin Vulgate | created by Jerome, first Bible able to be read by the common people as it was written in the vernacular |
| Ambrose | reluctant leader |
| Augustine | see pages 91-94 in text book : ) |
| Donatists | believed that the sacraments were holy based on the minister that gave them |
| Pelagians | believed that you could get to heaven without grace and on hard work alone |
| "City of God" | made up of those who place their faith in God and in service and love |
| "City of Man" | made up of those who pursue only selfish interests in their own gratification |
| Leo the Great/ Leo I | Pontifex Maximus, made peace with Attila the Hun |
| Supreme Pontiff | Pontifex Maximus, "highest bridge maker", reference to the pope |
| Council of Chalcedon | discussed Jesus' two natures, declared bishop of Rome in charge and bishops of Constantinople second in authority |
| Dark Ages | in the church a time of entanglements with politics and feuds, and a time of growing power and wealth |
| Byzantine Empire | the eastern empire's new name, came from the original name of Constantinople, |
| Clovis | king of the Franks, used Christianity to unite his people |
| Christendom | Christianity as the dominant organizational and cultural force in society |
| Justinian Code | later became the basis of European law, exhibited more "christianly" customs |
| Usury | the lending of money with a charge for interest, jews were forced into this occupation |
| Patrick | was taken into slavery, became a monk, became a bishop, spread Christianity to the Celts |
| Celts | people that Patrick encountered in Ireland |
| Brigid | sent to marry a certain man, refused and found him a new wife, created a double monastery called Kildare |
| Benedict | became a hermit, created the famous monastery Monte Cassino, had a sister name Scholastica, created a basic guide for religious life and discipline in the Western World |
| Gregory the Great | government official to monk to pope, able leader, church educator, liturgical music innovator, and diplomat |
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