Avatar- Intervention by Hindu supreme Being in a cosmic catastrophe or restoration of creation in its pure form.
Abecedarian –Â A 16th-century sect of Anabaptists centered in Germany who had an absolute disdain for human knowledge
Albigenses, Cathars, Cathari –Â a Christian religious sect in southern France in the 12th and 13th centuries; believers in Albigensianism
Amish sect –Â an orthodox Anabaptist sect separated from the Mennonites in late 17th century; settled chiefly in southeastern Pennsylvania
Apocalyptic hero – Christ, Messiah, Mehadi, and Kalki, who shall restore the lost glory
Apologetic – justifying a wrong in a logical and scholarly manner.
Armenian Church, Armenian Apostolic Orthodox Church – an independent Christian church established in Armenia since 300; was influenced by both Roman and Byzantine traditions; headed by a catholicos
Augustinian Canons – an Augustinian monastic order
Augustinian Hermits – a monastic order of friars established in 1256 by the Pope
Augustinian order – any of several monastic orders observing a rule derived from the writings of St. Augustine
Austin Friars – an Augustinian monastic order
Benedictine order, the order of Saint Benedict –Â a Roman Catholic monastic order founded in the 6th century; noted for liturgical worship and for scholarly activities
Brahmanism, Brahminism – the religious and social system of Hindu orthodoxy
Brethren – plural the lay members of a male religious order
Buddhism –Â a religion represented by the many groups especially in Asia that profess various forms of the Buddhist doctrine and that venerate Buddha
Cargo cult – Melanesia one of several millenarian cults that believe salvation will come in the form of wealth `cargo’ brought by Westerners; some ascribe divine attributes to Westerners on the first contact especially to missionaries.
Carmelite order, Order of Our Lady of Mount Carmel –Â a Roman Catholic mendicant order founded in the 12th century
Carthusian order – an austere contemplative Roman Catholic order founded by St. Bruno in 1084
Catholic Church –Â any of several churches claiming to have maintained historical continuity with the original Christian Church
Church universal- utopian concept and imagery of all Christians are united under a single entity
Church, Christian church -one of the groups of Christians who have their own beliefs and forms of worship
Churchism, Church politics – View that only church cand help the poor and people are saved within the church.
Clear itself of past painful experiences through self-knowledge and spiritual fulfillment
Communism – Utopian concept of equal distribution of the means of production under the dictatorship of the labour class.
Conservative Judaism – Jews who keep some of the requirements of the Mosaic Law but allow for adaptation of other requirements as some of the dietary laws to fit modern circumstances
Coptic Church – the ancient Christian church of Egypt
Cult – adherents of an exclusive system of religious beliefs and practices
Dominican order – a Roman Catholic order of mendicant preachers founded in the 13th century
Eastern Church, Byzantine Church – the Catholic Church as it existed in the Byzantine Empire
Established church – the church that is recognized as the official church of a nation
Franciscan order – a Roman Catholic order founded by Saint Francis of Assisi in the 13th century
Gazba -e-hind – Pakistan shall conquer India and all Hindus shall be converted to Islam
Ghar wapasi – bringing back a candidate to the original faith
Greek Orthodox Church, Greek Church-state church of Greece; an autonomous part of the Eastern Orthodox Church
Hare Krishna, International Society for Krishna Consciousness, ISKCON – a religious sect founded in the United States in 1966; based on Vedic scriptures; groups engage in joyful chanting of ` Hare Krishna’ and other mantras based on the name of the Hindu god Krishna; devotees usually wear saffron robes and practice vegetarianism and celibacy
Haredi – any of several sects of Orthodox Judaism that reject modern secular culture and many of whom do not recognize the spiritual authority of the modern state of Israel
Hasidim, Hassidim, Chasidim, Chassidim – a sect of Orthodox Jews who follow the Mosaic Law strictly
Heretic – an opponent
High Church, High Anglican Church –Â a group in the Anglican Church that emphasizes the Catholic tradition especially in sacraments and rituals and obedience to church authority
Hinayana – a major school of Buddhism teaching personal salvation through one’s own efforts
Hinduism, Hindooism – the predominant religion of India; also called Sanatan dharma, Law of karma and belief in reincarnation
Islam, Islamism, Muslimism, Muhammadanism, Mohammedanism, Mohammedanism –Â the religion of Muslims collectively which governs their civilization and way of life; the predominant religion of northern Africa, the Middle East, Pakistan, and Indonesia
Jainism – A Hindu philosophical school founded in the 6th century BCE believing in the person and work of Tirthankars as redeemer. Later two branches Swetambara and Digambara developed.
Jesuit order, Society of Jesus – a Roman Catholic order founded by Saint Ignatius of Loyola in 1534 to defend Catholicism against the Reformation and to do missionary work among the heathen
Judaism, Hebraism, Jewish religion –Â Jews collectively who practice a religion based on the Torah and the Talmud
Khalsa –Â the group of initiated Sikhs to which devout orthodox Sikhs are ritually admitted at puberty; founded by the tenth and last Guru in 1699
Kokka Shinto, Kokka – the branch of Shinto recognized as the official state religion of Japan
Lost coin – a candidate who repudiate his/her father`s religion
Mahayana –Â a major school of Buddhism teaching social concern and universal salvation; China; Japan; Tibet; Nepal; Korea; Mongolia
Nestorian Church –Â a Christian Church in the Middle East that followed Nestorianism; there is still a small Nestorian Church in Iraq headed by a catholicos.
Old Catholic Church –Â Catholic churches that broke away from the Roman Catholic Church in the 18th century
Order, monastic order – a group of person living under a religious rule; “the order of Saint Benedict”
Orthodox – derived from the Byzantine Church and adhering to Byzantine rites
Orthodox Judaism, Jewish Orthodoxy –Â Jews who strictly observe the Mosaic Law as interpreted in the Talmud
Pentecostal religion – any fundamentalist Protestant church that uses revivalistic methods to achieve experiences comparable to the Pentecostal experiences of the first Christian disciples
Protestant Church, Protestant – the Protestant churches and denominations collectively
Quran – Instruction issued by Muhammad to his followers
Ramakrishna Mission – A Hindu church organised by Swami Vivekananda around the life and work of Ramakrishna Paramhansa.
Reform Judaism –Â the most liberal Jews; Jews who do not follow the Talmud strictly but try to adapt all of the historical forms of Judais m to the modern world
Religious Society of Friends, Society of Friends, Quakers –Â a Christian sect founded by George Fox about 1660; commonly called Quakers
Roman Catholic, Western Church, Roman Catholic Church, Church of Rome, Roman Church –Â the Christian Church headquartered in the Vatican and presided over by a pope and an episcopal hierarchy
Russian Orthodox Church –Â an independent church with its own Patriarch; until 1917 it was the established church or Russia
Sanghism – Neo classical universal church based on the faith of Hinduttva- Hindu supremacy, Hindu land restoration, the brotherhood of members and common patriarchy of Indian Muslims and Christians.
Scientology, Church of Scientology –Â a new religion founded by L. Ron Hubbard in 1955 and characterized by a belief in the power of a person’s spirit to
A sect, religious sect, religious order – a subdivision of a larger religious group
Shakers, United Society of Believers in Christ’s Second Appearing –Â a celibate and communistic Christian sect in the United States
Shaktism, Saktism – a Hindu sect worshiping Shakti
Shiah, Shia, Shiah Islam, the Shiites – one of the two main branches of orthodox Islam; mainly in Iran
Shinto – the native religion and former ethnic cult of Japan
Shivaism, Sivaism – a Hindu sect worshiping Shiva
Shuha Shinto, Shua – any branch of Shinto other than Kokka
Sisterhood – a religious society of sisters especially an order of nuns or widow of Jesus
Sunni, the Sunnites – one of the two main branches of orthodox Islam
Tantrism – movement within Buddhism combining elements of Hinduism and paganism
Taoism – a Chinese sect claiming to follow the teaching of Laotzu but incorporating pantheism and sorcery in addition to Taoism
Taoism – religion adhering to the teaching of Lao-tzu
Thanksgiving – money purse for Christian church leaders
Theology- the statement of the Christian church
Tithe- Christian church tax
Uniat Church, Uniate Church –Â any of several churches in eastern Europe or the Middle East that acknowledge papal authority but retain their own liturgy
Unification Church – a Christian church with some Buddhist elements founded in 1954 by Sun Myung Moon and known for staging mass weddings and other communal activities
Vaishnavism, Vaisnavism – Hindu sect worshiping of Vishnu
Vicariate, vicarship – the religious institution under the authority of a vicar, vicar of christ deputy of christ or a bishop
Zen, Zen Buddhism -school of Mahayana Buddhism asserting that enlightenment can come through meditation and intuition rather than faith; China and Japan
Zurvanism – a Zoroastrian sect that claims Zurvan was the ultimate source of the universe
