Edexcel GCSE Religious Studies B key terms

Fair treatment within society, including access to opportunities and resources and protection from exploitation and oppression.

A firm commitment to the good of everyone, recognising responsibility for other people, including those in distant countries.

A Buddhist discourse in which the nun Soma rejects Mara’s claim that being a woman prevents spiritual attainment.

The second Person of the Trinity, Jesus Christ, whom Christians believe is God incarnate and the saviour of humanity.

The spiritual aspect of a person, which many Jews believe can continue to exist after the body dies.

The development of a person's moral and spiritual character through responding to life's challenges.

The inner spiritual space in which a person can seek and worship the divine, without depending on a physical building.

God making himself or his will known through a particular experience or communication.

Giving preference to members of one species simply because they belong to that species, especially favouring humans over other animals.

Equal worth before Allah: men and women are accountable for their actions and can receive forgiveness and reward.

A person's need for a meaningful relationship with God and a life consistent with their religious beliefs.

A devotion in which Christians pray and meditate on Jesus’s suffering and death using a sequence of fourteen stations, usually represented by images.

An oversimplified assumption that members of a group all share the same characteristics.

Responsible care for resources understood to have been entrusted to people by God.

Dependent on a person's own awareness or perspective rather than directly observable by everyone.

Evidence or experience that depends on an individual’s perspective and is not directly accessible to other people.

An inward religious experience, such as a deeply felt divine presence or message, rather than something physically seen.

The principle that decisions should be made by the smallest or most local body capable of handling them effectively, with support from higher authorities where necessary.

Physical pain or mental and emotional distress.

A mystical approach within Islam that particularly emphasises spiritual purification and experiencing closeness to Allah.

The meal eaten before dawn, before the daily Ramadan fast begins.

A temporary outdoor shelter used during Sukkot to remember the Israelites' dependence on God in the wilderness.

The Jewish Festival of Booths, celebrating the harvest and remembering the Israelites' life in temporary shelters after leaving Egypt.

A church group in which children learn about Christianity through age-appropriate teaching and activities.

The example and teachings of the Prophet Muhammad, which guide Muslim belief and practice.

‘Emptiness’: the absence of an independent, permanent or fixed essence in things. Also written sunyata.

The Islamic tradition in which the Six Beliefs are the foundational articles of faith; its historical development followed acceptance of Abu Bakr as the first caliph.