definitions

• Creation ex nihilo


  creation out of nothing. Before God created the universe, nothing existed. Only God can create out of nothing.
• Evolution


  the process of mutation and natural selection which leads to changes in species over time to suit particular environments.
• Imago Dei


  in the image of God. The belief that human beings are uniquely a reflection of God's personhood. Unlike the other animals, human beings are rational, free and moral.
• Inspiration


  "God breathed" The belief that the Spirit of God guides an individual to act or write what is good and true.
• Omnipotence


  the belief that God is all powerful.
• Revelation


  the word used to describe all of the ways in which God makeshimselfknown to human beings. Christians believe that God does this finally and fully in the person of Jesus Christ.
• Stewardship


  the duty to care for creation responsibly, as stewards rather than consumers, and to protect it for future generations.
• Transcendence


  existing outside of space and time; God exists in a way that makes him nothing like anything else that exists, above and beyond creation.
• Conscience


  Human reason making moral decisions. The knowledge we have of what is right and wrong and the God-given compulsion within all human beings to do what is right and to avoid what is evil.
• Evil


  the absence of good and the impulse to seek our own desires at the expense of the good of others which often results in suffering.
• Free-will


  the decision making part of a person's mind is called the will. A will is free if a person is able to choose right from wrong without being controlled by other forces.
• Goodness


  the quality of being like God: seeking the well-being of others selflessly.
• Incarnation


  "Made flesh" The Christian belief that God became man in the person of Jesus, fully human and fully divine.
• Natural Law


  the moral laws of right and wrong which are universal and not dependent on human laws. The belief in natural law is the belief that the moral law is discoverable by every human being and is the same for all human beings in all places at all times.
• Privation


  the loss or absence of a quality or something that is normally present. Evil is a privation of good.
• Suffering


  pain or loss which harms human beings. Some suffering is caused by other human beings (often called moral evil); some is not (often called natural evil).