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Widow
[Bible]A woman whose husband has died. The Old Testament law designated widows, along with the fatherless and the stranger, as people to be protected. In the New Testament, widows appear both as recipients of the early church's relief and care and as examples of faith.
Cornerstone
[Bible]A cornerstone is an important stone set at the corner of a building to align its walls and stabilize its structure. It appears in Psalm 118 and Isaiah 28, and the New Testament takes up the image as a reference to Jesus Christ.
Type (Biblical Typology)
[Doctrine & Theology]A type is a concept in biblical interpretation holding that Old Testament persons, events, and institutions prefigure Jesus Christ, who was to come, and his work of salvation.
Manger
[Bible]A manger is a trough that holds feed for livestock. In the Gospel of Luke, it is where the newborn Jesus was laid, and in the Christmas story it serves as a symbol of Jesus' coming in lowliness.
Donatism
[History]A schismatic church movement that arose in North Africa in the early fourth century. Holding that sacraments administered by clergy who had abandoned the faith during persecution were without effect, it separated from the Catholic Church. Through its controversy with Augustine, it left a lasting mark on ecclesiology and sacramental theology.
False Prophet
[Bible]A false prophet, in biblical usage, is a prophet who claims to speak the word of God without having been sent by God, or who leads people away from God.
Brothers of Jesus
[Bible]A collective term for James, Joseph (Joses), Simon, and Judas, who are called the "brothers" of Jesus in the New Testament, together with his unnamed sisters. Christian traditions differ in their understanding of how these individuals were related to Jesus.
Devoted Thing
[Bible]A "devoted thing" (Hebrew herem) is an object or person wholly dedicated to God, which therefore can no longer be put to private use or redeemed. The term is best known from the account of Achan in Joshua 7.
Plumb Line
[Bible]A plumb line is a cord with a weight attached, used to check whether a wall stands straight. Because it appears in Amos 7, in a vision of God measuring Israel for judgment, it came to signify God's standard and His judgment.
Christophany
[Doctrine & Theology]A Christophany is an appearance of Christ, the Son, in visible form during the Old Testament period before his birth in human flesh. The term also refers to the interpretation that understands certain appearances in this way.
Monastery
[History]A monastery is a community of people who withdraw from the world to cultivate their faith through prayer, labor, and ascetic discipline, or the dwelling place of such a community. Monasticism originated in the deserts of Egypt in the third century, and monasteries became a central institution of the medieval Western church.
Seer
[Bible]A seer is "one who sees" what God has shown. In the Old Testament it is an older name for a prophet. Samuel, Gad, and Iddo, among others, were called by this title.
Censer
[Bible]A censer was a portable vessel used in the tabernacle and the Temple to hold live coals from the altar, either for burning incense or for carrying fire. In the Book of Revelation, it appears as a golden censer offered before God together with the prayers of the saints.
Sojourner
[Bible]A sojourner is a person who has left his or her own land and lives in a land belonging to others. Old Testament law commands the protection of sojourners, and the New Testament calls believers sojourners in the world.
Talent Market
[Christian Life]A talent market is an event held in the Sunday schools of Korean churches at which children spend "talents," a play currency earned through attendance, Scripture memorization, evangelism, and similar activities, on snacks or school supplies.
Lectionary
[Worship & Rites]A lectionary is a list of Scripture passages appointed in advance to be read on each Sunday and feast day according to the church year. It typically groups together readings from the Old Testament, the Psalms, the Epistles, and the Gospels.
Rock
[Bible]A rock is a large, solid mass of stone. In the Bible it appears as the actual rock that gave water in the wilderness, and it also serves as a figure for God's unchanging protection, for Christ, and for the foundation of the church.
Manuscript
[Bible]A manuscript is a book or document copied by hand from an original. None of the original documents of the Bible survive, and modern Bibles are translated from texts established by comparing manuscripts from many periods.
Deacon
[Church Offices]A deacon is a member of the clergy ranking below the priest in churches, such as the Catholic and Anglican churches, that divide holy orders into the three ranks of bishop, priest, and deacon. The term comes from the same Greek word that Korean Protestant churches use for the distinct office known as jipsa.
Proselytes to Judaism
[Bible]A proselyte to Judaism was a person born a Gentile who came to believe in the God of Israel and formally entered Judaism. The term appears four times in the New Testament, in Matthew and Acts.