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| canon | ||
| (Greek kanon, "rule" or "reference point"). A fixed group of writings considered inspired and authoritative. The New Testament canon consists of 37 books. Roman Catholics also consider the books of the Apocrypha to be canonical. |
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| canonical | ||
| Belonging to the accepted body of scriptures. For example, the Gospel of John is canonical but the Gospel of Thomas is not. |
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| canonization | ||
| Process of determining the New Testament canon and declaring a person to be a saint. |
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| canonize | ||
| To officially declare a deceased Christian to be a "saint." In the Catholic church, saints are canonized by the pope (since the 13th cent.) and must have performed at least two miracles. In the Orthodox church, saints are canonized by synods of regional bishops. Protestants do not canonize. |
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| canon | ||
| (Greek kanon, "rule" or "reference point"). (1) The body of scriptures accepted as authoritative. (2) A priest who serves on the staff of a cathedral. |
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| canon law | ||
| Body of law related to the organization, discipline, and belief of the church and enforced by church authority. |
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| Cappadocian Fathers | ||
| Three theologians from the region of Cappadocia in modern-day Turkey - Basil of Caesarea (c. 330-379), Gregory of Nazianzus (329-389) and Gregory of Nyssa (330-395) - whose development of Trinitarian doctrine remains highly influential in Orthodox Christianity. |
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| cassock | ||
| Ankle-length garment worn by clergy. |
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| catechism | ||
| (Greek katecheo, "instruct"). A class or manual on the basics of Christian doctrine and practice, usually as a precursor to confirmation or baptism. Catechisms normally include lessons on the creeds, the Lord's Prayer and the Ten Commandments, as well as the Hail Mary in Roman Catholicism. |
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| catechumen | ||
| (Greek katachesis, "instruction). One who is being instructed in the basics of Christian doctrine, usually in preparation for confirmation or baptism. |
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| Cathari (or Cathars) | ||
| (Greek katharoi, "pure ones"). Non-violence Christian movement influential in southern France and nothern Italy in the 13 and 14th centuries brutally exterminated by the Catholic Popes over fifty years. |
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| catholic | ||
| Universal. A term used by the early Christians to designate the universal Christian faith. When the eastern church split from the western in 1054 AD, the West retained this term and became known as Roman Catholic. Churches in the East are known as Greek, Eastern or Russian Orthodox. |
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| celebrant | ||
| Priest or minister who presides over a service including the Eucharist. Compare with "officiant." |
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| chasuble | ||
| Outermost garment worn by bishops and priests in celebrating the Eucharist. In Eastern Orthdoxy, it is often also worn at solemn celebrations of the morning and evening offices and on other occasions. The Lutheran Church retained the chasuble for some time after the Reformation and the Scandinavian Churches still use it. |
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| Christ | ||
| (Greek christos, "messiah" or "anointed one"). Title applied to Jesus identifying him as the figure predicted by the Hebrew prophets. |
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| Christianity | ||
| The official name of a unified religion created under the reign of Emperor Constantine (309-337) after ordering arrest and transport of all Christ/Saviour sect leaders to the Council of Nicaea to finally unify under one creed. Contrary to deliberate forgeries by 10/11th century christian monks of earlier Roman writers, not credible evidence exists for the word "christianity" ever existing prior to its official promulgation by Emperor Constantine as the "official" religion of the new Holy Roman Empire. | ||
| Christmas | ||
| (Old English Christes masse, "Christ's mass"). Former most important festival day for the pagan Roman Empire and Magna Mater (Great Mother/Cybele) and the Saturnalia festival also known as Sol Invictus (birth of the sun). | ||
| Contrary to deliberate forgeries, there is no clear evidence of the date being proposed as the time to celebrate the birth of Jesus earlier than 400 by John Chrysostom. Prior to this date, all major christian cults celebrated the birth of Jesus in dates corresponding to March/April in the Roman calendar. | ||
| Even then, the date did not gain popularity outside of Rome until the crowning of Charlamagne as the new Holy Roman Emperor in 800 on Christmas Day, followed by King Edmund of East Anglia (855) ad King William I of England in 1066. | ||
| Christology | ||
| Area of theology dealing with the person of Christ. Treats such topics as the relation between Christ's human and divine natures, and the meaning of his sacrificial death (atonement). The vast majority of Christological doctrine was developed in the period leading up to the Council of Nicea in 325. For an overview of this doctrine, see Beliefs: Christ. |
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| church | ||
| (Greek kuriakon, "belonging to the Lord"). The worldwide body of Christian believers, a particular denomination or congregation, or the building in which they meet. The study of the nature of the church is ecclesiology. |
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| class meeting | ||
| A meeting of a small part of a Methodist congregation, usually held weekly, in which collections are taken and inquiries are made into the conduct and spiritual progress of the group's members. The class leader is appointed by the minister of the congregation. The institution dates from 1742. |
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| confession | ||
| 1. A profession of faith (e.g. by the martyrs) or statement of doctrine (e.g. Augsburg Confession). 2. Admission of sin, either directly to God in prayer, generally to the congregation, or privately to a priest. |
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| confirmation | ||
| One of the seven Catholic sacraments, and a practice in some Protestant churches, in which a baptized young adult (usually aged 13) confirms his or her continuing commitment to the Christian faith. Confirmation is usually preceded by a period of education called catechism. |
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| Constantine, Emperor (Saint Constantine) | ||
| Roman Emperor (309-337) and founder of Christianity as we know it today. Faced with a massive and fractured empire, Constantine decided in 325 to re-align major saviour faiths across the empire into the same system as proposed by Diocletian thirty years prior. He arranged for the arrest of all major sect leaders, bringing them to Nicaea and then forcing them to come up with a common saviour and basic common philosophy. He then proclaimed this new religion as the official religion of the Holy Roman Empire. | ||
| consubstantiation | ||
| A doctrine of the Eucharist associated especially with Martin Luther, according to which the bread and wine and the body and blood of Christ coexist in the elements. Consubstantiation was formulated in opposition to the medieval Catholic doctrine of transubstantiation. |
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| Coptic Catholic Church | ||
| Catholic church in Egypt, in communion with the Roman Catholic Church since 1741. |
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| Coptic Orthodox Church | ||
| The principal Christian church in Egypt. |
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| Coptic language | ||
| Language spoken in Egypt from about the second century AD until the middle ages. Regarded as the last stage of the ancient Egyptian language, it replaced hieroglypics with the Greek alphabet and included religious terms borrowed from Greek. |
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| Council of Trent | ||
| The 19th ecumenical council of the Catholic Church, which took place over the period 1545-63. A very important council in that it reformed numerous aspects of church practice (e.g., abolished the sale of indulgences) and clarified Catholic doctrine in response to the challenges by Reformers. |
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| crucifer | ||
| ("cross-bearer"). Acolyte who carries the cross in a church procession before the service. The crucifer is followed by the choir, the acolytes, the lay ministers, and then the clergy in order of rank (highest last). |
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| Crusade | ||
| (Lat. cruciata, "cross-marked") Any war begun as a result of Papal Bull against enemies of the Roman Catholic Church. "The Crusades" applies specifically to the Papal Wars launched from the 11th to 14th centuries, often with horrendous loss of Christian and non-christian lives. Under Catholic Canon Law, it remains legal for the church to order for the death of heretics and non-believers. Therefore, by Catholic Law, a Crusade is a legally "just" war. |
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| cult of the saints | ||
| The body of religious beliefs and practices pertaining to the veneration of saints and their relics. Prayers are addressed to the saints in the hope that they will intercede with God on the behalf of believers. Saints are believed to have accumulated a "treasury of merit" which can be used for the benefit of believers. |
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| curate | ||
| In Anglicanism, assistant pastor whose duties commonly include visiting the sick and shut-ins. |
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