AQA GCSE Religious Studies A key terms

Fertilisation: when a sperm cell joins with an egg cell.

Acknowledging one's sins rather than denying or excusing them.

The sacrament which seals and strengthens the gifts of the Holy Spirit, helping a baptised person live and witness to their faith.

The people gathered together for a religious service.

A person who refuses to take part in fighting because doing so would go against their conscience.

Awareness of something, such as a sound, sight or thought.

The blessing and setting apart of something for sacred use; in the Eucharist, it refers to the blessing of the bread and wine.

Sexual activity to which each person freely agrees, with the freedom and capacity to make that choice.

A result of an action, including its effects on other people.

Of the same substance or nature. The Nicene Creed uses this term to affirm that the Son shares the Father’s divine nature.

Being satisfied with what one has rather than being dominated by greed or the desire for more.

A method used to prevent pregnancy.

A change in religious belief or commitment, such as becoming a follower of a religion.

Punishment that deliberately inflicts physical pain on an offender, such as whipping.

An argument for God’s existence based on the existence of the universe and the need to explain its origin or dependence. The First Cause argument is a form of cosmological argument.

Beliefs or ideas about the origin, nature and organisation of the universe.

The willingness to do what is right despite fear, difficulty or danger.

A binding relationship or agreement between God and people. At the Last Supper, Jesus describes his blood as the blood of the covenant.

The belief that God brought everything into existence.

The belief that God created the universe ‘out of nothing’, rather than using materials that already existed.

In this debate, the belief that a religious creation account should be understood literally rather than replaced by scientific explanations of origins.

God understood as the source of the universe and all life within it.

The burning of a dead body as a way of treating the remains.

An action that breaks the law.

Jesus’ execution on a cross, understood by Christians as central to his saving mission.

A series of medieval religious wars between Christians and Muslims, mainly over Jerusalem and other holy places.

An image used in Jesus’ prayer for the suffering and death he faces; it is not a literal drink in this scene.