Main Glossary

Words matter! Know the meanings of the words you speak, write, preach and teach to perfectly accomplish the things the LORD God wills.

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D

Dedicate

To set apart and consecrate to the LORD God for a holy work.

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Dedication

The religious ceremony announcing the intent of the parents to raise a child in accordance with their beliefs, and involving the church community in playing a part in the child's spiritual upbringing. It is often mistaken for infant baptism because water is sprinkled upon the infant in the ceremony.

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Deductive

A type of argument that offers a premise(s) which seems to provide complete support for the conclusion. A deductive argument is known as a valid argument when all its premises are true, which makes the conclusion true.(See Inductive)

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Deductive Fallacy

A deductive argument that is invalid (true premises but false conclusion). (See Inductive Fallacy)

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Denarius (Denarii)

A Roman coin paid a day's wages of a slave in New Testament Bible Times.

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Desire

The yearning to have what is loved¹ (See Joy, Fear, Sadness)

Reference:

Saint Augustine, Bishop of Hippo, The City of God, trans., Marcus Dods, Modern Library Paperback ed. (New York: Random House, Inc., 2000), 449.

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Devil

The fallen angel Lucifer (Satan) who is at enmity with the LORD God, and has the power to afflict man with spiritual corruption which brings death, and separates men from God through false witness and spiritual misleading.

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Devil's Advocate

An official appointed to present critical arguments against proposed beatification or canonization.

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Devils Mark

A blemish, scar or mark on the body of a person who has made a compact with a devil.

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Diatessron

A compilation of the four Gospels into a single narrative by a second-century theologian named Tatian. Used in the Syriac-speaking early Christian churches.

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Diocese

An ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop

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Dionysian Works

First cited amid the Christological disputes of AD 520-40 during a colloquy at Constantinople in AD532. The corpus includes three treatises which are the celestial hierarchy, the ecclesiastical hierarchy and the divine names. The document has caused questioning over its authenticity; yet, the writings were considered apostolic and highly authoritative for many centuries. The author of the late fifth or early sixth century writings is in not known exactly, but he is referred to with a pseudo of Dionysius the Areopagite (Hill, 103).

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Dionysius, the Areopagite

Pseudo author of the Dionysian works that were the corpus containing three treatises. The work was translated into Latin by John (the Scot) Eriugena in the ninth century. His writings profoundly influenced medieval theology and spirituality and through time impacted Alber the Great, Thomas Aquinas, and mystic Richard of St. Victor, Bonaventure. The Gothic architecture of Saint-Denis in Paris is also named for the author-become-missionary, attributed to his uplifting illumination (Hill, 103).

Bibliography

Hill, Jonathan. Zondervan Handbook to the History of Christianity. Oxford: Lion Publishing, 2006.

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Diptych

Official list of bishops (past and present) who should be prayed for. A double catalog of the living, and on the other side deceased, names of ecclesiastics and benefactors of the church; a catalog of saints

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Discernment

The ability to tell between what is right and almost right.

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Discipline

Instruction (direction that is often verbal, sometimes harsh and corrective), Inspiration (aggressively and simultaneously convicting and encouraging) and Intervention (corrects and restores both verbally and physically) are the three components to discipline functions directed by leaders.

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Dispensationalism

Belief in a historical progression of revelation by the LORD God about His Being, Works and Will through His covenanted Word.

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Divination

A soothsayers attempt to foretell future events or discover hidden mysteries by occult or supernatural means.

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Divine

Pertaining to the LORD God that which is religious, sacred and befitting Him.

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Divine Healing

A healing as a result of a sacred supernatural and miraculous intervention of the LORD God, in response to prayer, faith, hope or His Will.

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Divine Names, The

The longest work in the corpus within the Dionysian works which presents the names of God to bring union with Him.

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Divine Right of Kings

The right to rule established directly by the LORD God, and not from the consent of the people.

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Divini Redemptoris

(Latin for Divine Redemption) The opening words and title of the encyclical of Pope Pius XI issued in 1937 on Communism

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Divining Rod

A forked branch from a hazel tree used to locate underground water. Also called a dowsing rod.

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Divinity School

A Protestant seminary

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Doctrine

The principles of a belief system that are taught; the study of the things of the LORD God should arise from the Bible alone.

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Doctrine of Jesus Christ

The six principles of sin, faith, water baptism, Holy Spirit baptism, resurrection and judgment taught by Jesus Christ to his followers to establish a solid foundation to prepare for deeper growth and learning about the LORD God, and His Will and Ways. (Hebrews 6:1-3)

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Dogma

When ecumenical councils deal with matters of faith, the resulting edicts are known as "symbols" or "dogmas." Those decisions that regard organizational, disciplinary, or procedural matters are known as "canons."¹

¹Ferguson, Everett. Church History Volume One: From Christ to Pre-Reformation. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2005, 211.

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Dominicans

One of two mendicant orders (see Franciscans), founded shortly before the Fourth Lateran Council forbade more orders, was one of the last great religious orders of the Middle Ages. Dominicans were disciples of Dominic, and preached to the Albigenses. Their order resembled the Franciscans as they owned nothing and traveled about; however, their focus was on preaching and maintaining the correct belief with an emphasis on intellectual pursuits. The Dominicans wore white with black cloaks and were known as 'black friars' (Hill, 193, 194).

Bibliography

Hill, Jonathan. Zondervan Handbook to the History of Christianity. Oxford: Lion Publishing, 2006.

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Donatism

A fourth century rebellion against the encroachments of Christian sacralism, or Constantinianism with an effort to preserve membership to the Church based on "personal faith" rather than an all-inclusive participation through the dictums of a state.¹

Reference:

¹ Leonard Verduin, The Reformers and Their Stepchildren (Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans Pub. Co., 1964), 33.

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Double Predestination

The belief that the LORD God determines some people towards salvation and some towards damnation. (See Prelapsarianism)

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