Glossary
Glossary of terms
Short explanations of the vocabulary used across this site: offices, worship, doctrine, legal status, texts and languages.
Doctrine
- Canon (of scripture)القانون (قائمة الأسفار)
- The list of books held to be scripture. It is not the same in every church: the Church of the East's New Testament has twenty-two books, not twenty-seven.See Councils & the Bible
- Dyophysiteديوفيزية
- The confession of two natures in Christ, divine and human, in one person. It is the formula of Chalcedon in 451.See Councils & the Bible
- Ecumenical councilمجمع مسكوني
- A council whose decisions are held binding on the whole Church. How many are accepted differs between churches, and that difference is what draws the families.See Councils & the Bible
- Filioqueالفيليوكوِه
- The addition of “and the Son” to the Creed's clause on the procession of the Holy Spirit. Added by the Latin West and not used by the churches of the East, it is among the oldest points of difference between them.See The faith
- Hypostasisأقنومὑπόστασις
- A distinct, subsisting reality. We say that God is one essence in three hypostases: Father, Son and Holy Spirit.See The faith
- Miaphysiteميافيزية
- The confession that Christ has one united nature, divine and human, without separation or confusion. It is how the Oriental Orthodox churches express their faith.A note on usage: Do not use “monophysite” as a substitute: that label was applied to these churches from outside and is rejected by them, because it is read as meaning the humanity was absorbed into the divinity.See Churches & traditions
- Nestorianنسطورية
- A historical label applied to the Church of the East, after Nestorius, the bishop of Constantinople deposed in 431.A note on usage: The Church of the East rejects this name for itself and does not regard Nestorius as its teacher. Use “Church of the East” or “Assyrian” instead.See Churches & traditions
- Ousia / essenceجوهرοὐσία
- That by which God is one God. From this word comes the phrase “of one substance with the Father”, affirmed at Nicaea in 325.See Councils & the Bible
- Theosisالتألهθέωσις
- Sharing in the divine life by grace, not by nature. It is the heart of salvation in Eastern theology, summed up by the Fathers: “God became man so that man might become god”.See The faith
- Theotokosوالدة الإلهΘεοτόκος
- The title of the Virgin Mary, affirmed at Ephesus in 431. In substance it is a statement about who was born of her, not about her own rank.See Councils & the Bible
Offices and church structure
- Autocephalousمستقلّة الرأسαὐτοκέφαλος
- Said of an Orthodox church that elects its own primate and answers to no other see, while remaining in communion with the rest of Orthodoxy.
- Catholicosجاثليق
- The title for the head of an autonomous church, used by the Armenian Church and the Church of the East. It sometimes appears combined: “Catholicos-Patriarch”.See Churches & traditions
- Custody of the Holy Landحراسة الأراضي المقدسة
- The Franciscan body charged with the care of the Latin shrines in the Holy Land since the fourteenth century.See Sites
- Eparchyأبرشية
- The Eastern term for a diocese, headed by a bishop or metropolitan.
- Patriarchبطريرك
- The head of an independent church or an ancient see. There are five ancient patriarchal sees, three of them in this region: Antioch, Jerusalem and Alexandria.See Churches & traditions
- Sui iuris churchكنيسة متمتّعة بحكم ذاتي
- The canonical term for the Eastern Catholic churches: in full communion with Rome, with their own law, rite and patriarch.See Churches & traditions
Liturgy and worship
- Agpeyaالأجبية
- The book of the hours in the Coptic tradition, with seven offices spread through day and night. Its Syriac counterpart is the *Shehimo*.
- Anaphoraالأنافوراἀναφορά
- The central prayer of consecration in the Liturgy. Each church has several, attributed to fathers such as Saint Basil and Mar Jacob.
- Chrismationالميرون
- Anointing with holy oil immediately after baptism: the gift of the Holy Spirit. In the East it is given to an infant with baptism, not years later as in the West.See The faith
- Divine Liturgyالقدّاس الإلهي
- The service at which the Eucharist is celebrated, and the centre of the Church's life. Called *Qurbana* in Syriac.See The faith
- Paschaالفصح
- The feast of the Resurrection, and the greatest feast of the year in all the churches of the East. Most of them reckon its date on the Julian calendar, so it falls apart from Western Easter in most years.See The faith
- Qurbanaقرباناܩܘܪܒܢܐ
- The Syriac name for the Liturgy and the Eucharist; it means “the offering”.See Languages
- The Great Fastالصوم الكبير
- The fast preceding Pascha. Fasting in the East means abstaining from animal food, and lasts longer than in the West; other fasts mark the Nativity, the Apostles and the Mother of God.See The faith
Texts and languages
- Codexمخطوطة مجلّدة (كودكس)
- A book made of bound leaves rather than a scroll. Christians' early adoption of the form is among the reasons their books spread.
- Deuterocanonical booksالأسفار القانونية الثانية
- Books present in the Septuagint but absent from the Hebrew Bible. The Catholic and Orthodox churches hold them canonical; Protestants call them the Apocrypha and set them apart.See Councils & the Bible
- Estrangelaالإسطرنجيليܐܣܛܪܢܓܝܠܐ
- The oldest of the three Syriac scripts, alongside West Syriac and East Syriac.See Languages
- Garshuniالكرشوني
- Arabic written in Syriac letters. Eastern Christians used it for centuries, and many manuscripts survive in it.See Languages
- Peshittaالبشيطّاܦܫܝܛܬܐ
- The Bible in Syriac; the name means “the simple” or “the plain”. Its New Testament contains twenty-two books.See Languages
- Septuagintالترجمة السبعينية
- The Greek translation of the Jewish scriptures made at Alexandria before Christ. It is this — not the Hebrew — that the early Church read as its Old Testament.See Councils & the Bible
- Surethالسورث
- Modern Eastern Aramaic, still spoken in the Nineveh Plains and by many of the Church of the East and Chaldean communities.See Languages
- Turoyoالطورويو
- Modern Central Aramaic, the language of Tur Abdin in south-eastern Turkey and of its diaspora communities.See Languages
History and legal status
- Dhimmiأهل الذمة
- The legal standing of non-Muslims under Islamic rule: protected communities with their own churches and courts over their own affairs, subject to the jizya and barred from certain offices. Practice varied widely from ruler to ruler.See Rule & language
- Jizyaالجزية
- The poll tax levied on dhimmi communities in return for protection and exemption from military service.See Rule & language
- Millet systemنظام الملّة
- The Ottoman arrangement making each religious community a legal body administering its own members' affairs through its clergy. It is the root of confessional identities hardening into political units.See Rule & language
- Sayfoسيفوܣܝܦܐ
- “The sword” in Syriac, and the name by which Syriac communities know what befell them in and after 1915, alongside the Armenian genocide.
- The Status Quoالستاتيكو
- The arrangement fixed by a firman of 1852, setting out each denomination's rights in the holy places of Jerusalem and Bethlehem. It remains the reference today.See Sites
- Uniateأوناتي
- A label applied to the Eastern churches that entered union with Rome.A note on usage: It is now avoided and widely considered pejorative. Use “Eastern Catholic churches” instead.See Churches & traditions