Edexcel GCSE Religious Studies A key terms

The angel, also known as Michael, associated in Islamic teaching with mercy, rain, provision and rewarding good deeds.

A raised platform or pulpit from which a preacher delivers a sermon in a mosque.

The regular Jewish afternoon prayer service.

Awareness of present experience without becoming lost in thoughts or immediately reacting to them.

A meditation practice that attends to the physical sensations of breathing and gently returns attention when the mind wanders.

Discipline over thoughts, desires and responses to sensory experiences, rather than allowing impulses to determine behaviour.

A person entrusted with serving and leading a Christian community, especially through worship, teaching and pastoral care.

The work of serving God and other people, which can include teaching, pastoral care, leading worship and charitable action.

A quorum of ten eligible Jewish worshippers required for certain communal prayers. Eligibility differs between Orthodox and progressive communities.

An extraordinary event understood by believers as an act of God, often thought to go beyond the usual workings of nature.

The written collection of oral teachings that forms the first part of the Talmud.

A systematic code of Jewish law compiled by Maimonides in the twelfth century.

Work undertaken to share the Christian message and put faith into action through service.

A person sent to share Christian faith and serve others, often in another country or community.

A commandment; the plural is mitzvot. Observing commandments is a way of living out the relationship with God.

God’s commandments, which guide Jewish religious and ethical life.

Restraint in behaviour and appearance, including how a person looks at others and covers their body.

A person trained to perform Jewish ritual circumcision.

Liberation from samsara, the cycle of death and rebirth.

Being married to only one person at a time.

Belief in one God.

A vessel used to display a consecrated host for adoration.

The opening statement of belief in the Guru Granth Sahib, describing the nature of God and forming a foundation of Sikh faith.

A source recognised as having the right to guide judgements about what is good or wrong.

Evil arising from human choices, such as murder or deliberate cruelty.

Suffering caused by human wrongdoing, such as murder or war.

The agreement between God and the Jewish people associated with Moses at Sinai, in which keeping God’s commandments expresses their covenant responsibilities.