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Bel and the Dragon
[Bible]Bel and the Dragon is a story in which Daniel exposes the true nature of Bel, an idol of Babylon, and of a dragon worshiped there. It has been transmitted as an addition to the Greek Book of Daniel. Catholic and Orthodox Bibles include it as Daniel 14, while Protestants classify it among the Apocrypha.
Hardening of the Heart
[Bible]Hardening of the heart is a biblical term for the condition of a heart that has grown hard and refuses to receive God's word and warnings. It is best known from the account in Exodus of the hardening of Pharaoh's heart.
Baptism of the Lord Sunday
[Feasts & Seasons]Baptism of the Lord Sunday commemorates the baptism of Jesus by John the Baptist in the Jordan River. In the Western church calendar, it is usually observed on the first Sunday after Epiphany.
Raising of the Widow's Son at Nain
[Bible]A miracle in which Jesus met a funeral procession near the gate of the town of Nain in Galilee, raised a widow's only son from the dead, and restored him to his mother. It is recorded only in Luke 7:11-17.
Circumcision of the Heart
[Bible]Circumcision of the heart is a biblical metaphor, drawn from physical circumcision, for the inward transformation in which a person casts off a heart hardened against God and is made new.
Doctor of the Church
[Church Offices]Doctor of the Church is a title the Catholic Church formally confers on saints who have made an outstanding contribution to teaching the faith and doctrine. Protestantism has no corresponding official office or title.
Suspension from the Lord's Supper
[Organization & Polity]Suspension from the Lord's Supper is a form of church discipline in which a member who has sinned is barred from participating in Communion for a period of time. The term is used chiefly in Presbyterian church constitutions.
People of the Land
[Bible]"People of the land" translates the Hebrew phrase *'am ha'aretz*. In the Old Testament, its meaning varies with period and context: it may refer to the inhabitants of a land, the ordinary free citizens of Judah, or people outside the community of returned exiles. In later rabbinic literature, it came to denote a person ignorant of the Law.
Captain of the Guard
[Bible]"Captain of the guard" is a biblical title for the head of a unit responsible for guarding an ancient king and carrying out executions. Nebuzaradan of Babylon and Potiphar of Egypt held related titles.
Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite
[People]Pseudo-Dionysius was an anonymous Christian writer thought to have been active in the late fifth or early sixth century. He wrote under the name of Dionysius the Areopagite, who is mentioned in the Book of Acts. His negative theology and his account of the angelic hierarchy exerted a major influence on medieval theology.
Methods of Interpreting the Book of Revelation
[Doctrine & Theology]Methods of interpreting the Book of Revelation are approaches to determining which events, and in which era, the visions and symbols of Revelation refer to. The principal approaches are preterism, historicism, futurism, and idealism.
Light to the Gentiles
[Bible]"Light to the Gentiles" is an expression in the Book of Isaiah describing the mission given to the Servant of God to bring salvation beyond Israel to all nations. The New Testament applies it to Jesus Christ and to the preaching of the gospel.
John of the Cross
[People]John of the Cross (1542–1591) was a Spanish Carmelite friar, mystic, and poet. With Teresa of Ávila, he founded the Discalced Carmelites, and he wrote spiritual classics including The Dark Night.
Religious Persecution in the Soviet Union
[History]Religious persecution in the Soviet Union refers to the suppression of churches and believers by the Soviet regime after the Russian Revolution of 1917. The regime made atheism its state ideology and restricted religious activity through laws, administrative measures, propaganda, and arrests.
Missionary Sending by the Korean Church
[History]Missionary sending by the Korean church refers to the history of Korean Protestant churches and mission organizations sending missionaries to other regions and countries. Its beginning is commonly dated to the 1907 mission to Jeju Island. As of the end of 2024, there were 21,621 Korean long-term missionaries serving in 171 countries.
Voice of the Martyrs Korea
[Institutions]Voice of the Martyrs Korea is an interdenominational mission organization that assists Christians persecuted for their faith, especially members of North Korea's underground church, and makes their stories known to churches in South Korea. It shares the lineage of The Voice of the Martyrs, the international organization begun by the Romanian pastor Richard Wurmbrand.
Blasphemy against the Holy Spirit
[Doctrine & Theology]Blasphemy against the Holy Spirit is the sin of reviling the Holy Spirit, which Jesus said "shall not be forgiven." Denominations and theologians differ on what exactly this sin is.
Wine in the Bible
[Bible]Wine is an alcoholic beverage made by fermenting grape juice. In the Bible it symbolizes joy and abundance and is used in sacrifices and in Communion. Scripture also warns against drunkenness.
Goodness (Fruit of the Spirit)
[Bible]Goodness is one of the fruit of the Spirit listed in Galatians 5:22. It refers to the goodness that appears in those who live by the Spirit, a good disposition that actively does what is good.
Hananiah (Ruler of the Citadel)
[People]Hananiah was the ruler of the citadel (fortress) of Jerusalem mentioned in Nehemiah 7:2. After the city wall was rebuilt, Nehemiah placed Jerusalem in his charge together with Nehemiah's brother Hanani. Scripture describes him as a faithful man who feared God above many.