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Abba
Adoptionism
Amen
Arminianism
Agnosticism
Apologetics
Arianism
Autographa

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Abba

The word "abba" is from the Aramaic language which was commonly spoken in frist century Palestine. It is best translated in English as "daddy" or "papa" and like today it was used by children when addressing their father. It appears three times in the New Testament, once by Jesus and twice by the Apostle Paul.

By Jesus in Mark 14:36 "And he said, "Abba, Father, all things are possible for you. Remove this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will."
By Paul in Rom 8:15 "For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, "Abba! Father!"
And in Gal 4:6, also by the Apostle Paul "And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, "Abba! Father!"

Notice that "Abba" is always followed by the Greek word interpreted as "father" and that in all three instances, God is being addressed.

Adoptionism

Adoptionism or adoptianism is an attempt to explain how Jesus is related God (that is, it was one option that arose in the Trinitarian controversies of the early church). Adoptionism arose among early Christians seeking to reconcile the claims that Jesus was the son of God with the radical monotheism of Judaism. Adoptionism states that Jesus was born fully human, and he became divine at a later point in his life (usually held to be at his baptism), at which point he became the adopted son of God. Adoptionism was condemned by the church as heresy at various times, most explicitly at the Council of Nicaea.

Adoptionism. (n.d.). Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Retrieved March 03, 2007, from Reference.com website: http://www.reference.com/browse/wiki/Adoptionism

Agnosticism

From the Greek agnostikos, "unknowing," or " a profession of ignorance." The word originated with Thomas H. Huxley in 1869 and became a key point of debate in 19th century religious thinking. It came to describe those who believed our limited human intellect incapable of knowing God and manifested itself in two distinct views.

Since God cannot be known via our limited minds, His existence or non-existence cannot be proven. Therefore, neutrality on this subject is demanded by logic.
The second, which might be called 'religious agnostics' begin with identical presuppositions yet, still hold to a belief that God exists.

Amen

"Amen" properly pronounced "aw-mane", a Hebrew word transliterated into the Greek and English New Testament. Strong's definition reads: sure; abstractly faithfulness; adverbially truly: - Amen, so be it, truth. The underlying Hebrew is not intended to express a mere hope or wish for truth but instead, a firm declaration of truth.

Apologetics

From the Greek apologia or apologetikos, "to speak in defense of." It is the defense of various aspects of Christianity such as faith, the existence of God, miracles, the problem of evil, the resurrection of Christ, inspiration of Scripture, prophecy and the defense of creation. through reason and scientific evidences. It encompasses both postive arguments for the truth of God's Word and employs factual evidence to refute those who disagree with the teaching of Christianity.

Arminianism

Arminianism is a school of theology based on the teachings of Dutch theologian Jacob Arminius, for whom it is named. It is perhaps most prominent in the Methodist movement and found in various other evangelical circles today. It stands in contrast to Calvinism, with which it has a long history of debate. Arminians as well as Calvinists appeal to various Scriptures and the early church fathers to support their respective views, however the differences remain — particularly as related to the sovereignty of God in salvation and the ideas of election and predestination. Its major doctrineal points, as compared to Calvinism, are listed below.

Arminianism	Calvinism
Universal prevenient grace Conditional election Unlimited (or universal) atonement Resistible grace Uncertainty of perseverance Libertarian free will God's love for the world	Total Depravity of man Unconditional election Limited atonement Irresistible grace Perseverance of the Saints Free Agency, not free will God's love for the elect

Arianism

As with many of the classical heresies, Arianism emerged from the struggle to reach a consensus on the Trinity. It is named after Arius, whose main concern was that it did not seem fitting that God should have a son. His solution, which became known as Arianism, was to propose that the Son (Jesus) was somewhere between God and man. It denies that the Son is of one essence, nature, or substance with God; He is not consubstantial 'homoousios' with the Father, and therefore not like Him, or equal in dignity, or co-eternal, or within the real sphere of Deity. In this view, the Word who became flesh, was a created being. Contrary to his teaching, the Bible clearly address each of his errors. A form of Arianism is alive and well today in the 'Jehovah's Witness' cult.

Autographa

A Greek theological term used in reference to the original manuscripts, that are the root source for our present day Old and New Testaments. These unique texts are held to be inspired by God and wholly without error as they were penned by chosen men of God under the guidance and influence of the Holy Spirit. Copies of these documents, called Apographa, may also be accorded an inerrant status if they accurately duplicate the originals, however, translations can't share in this distinction as a word-for-word, correlation isn't usually possible between source and receptor languages.¹ Though not extant today, a reliable, highly accurate reconstruction of the Autographa has been produced utilizing the science of textual criticism against a plentiful supply of ancient source material.²

Definition by John M. Fritzius

¹The Chicago Statement on Biblical Inerrancy - Article E
²Article by Dr. Ron Rhodes: Manuscript Support for the Bible's Reliability

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