The religious belief that the end of the temporal world order is imminent and will occur in dramatic fashion marked by special signs, as foretold by some prophecy.

The term derives from the Greek apokalypsis which literally means “unveiling” and is also the name of the biblical book of Revelation. The historical influence of Revelation transformed the term from an “uncovering” into a synonym for catastrophic change or the end of the world.

The belief that the millennium mentioned in the book of Revelation chapter 20 refers to an earthly thousand-year age of blessedness that will be inaugurated upon Christ’s return. The term derives from the Greek chilia (thousand).

Synonyms: millennialism, Christian millenarianism, Christian millenarism

A theological approach to the Bible which divides sacred history into a number (seven) of specific eras or dispensations, in each of which God deals with people in a peculiar way.

In classic dispensationalism God has two distinct peoples: an earthly people, Israel, and a heavenly people, the church.

Another distinctive feature held by (most) dispensationalists is the pre-tribulational rapture of the church in which the church will be snatched to heaven before a coming seven-year tribulation period begins on earth.

Eschatology is the branch within theology that deals with the “last things”. The  term derives from the Greek roots eschatos (last) and logia (study).

Eschatology is divided in two main categories: the end of the individual life and the end of the present world order.

Christian eschatology involves, among others, the study of death and the afterlife, Heaven and Hell, the Second Coming of Christ, the general resurrection and rapture of the church, the Last Judgment, and the New Heaven and New Earth.

The unorthodox view that all the end-times prophecies of the New Testament (Christ’s Second Coming, the resurrection of the dead, the Last Judgment) were fulfilled in connection with the destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70.

The term preterism derives from the Latin praeter, meaning “past.”

Full-Preterism is sometimes also called Consistent Preterism (by its  advocates) or Hyper-Preterism (by its critics).

Gehenna is the transliterated Greek term of the Hebrew toponym Ge-Hinnom or Valley of Hinnom, a place outside Jerusalem where the Israelites formerly had sacrificed their own children to pagan gods. Later on, after king Josiah’s reforms, the place became a cursed wasteland, garbage dump, and mass graveyard.

In the New Testament the term is used as a metaphor for the ultimate place of punishment in the final state: hell.

The unorthodox view that all the end-times prophecies of the New Testament (Christ’s Second Coming, the resurrection of the dead, the Last Judgment) were fulfilled in connection with the destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70.

See also Full-Preterism

The state of the dead between death and the resurrection.

Midtribulationism teaches that the rapture will occur at the midpoint of the great tribulation. According to this view, the church will go through the first half of the tribulation, but be spared from the worst occurring in the latter three and a half years of the tribulation.

Millenarianism (also called millenarism) is the belief in a coming transformation of society after a major cataclysm or transformative event.

It exists in various cultures worldwide and can be found among both religious and secular movements.

The term has its roots in the Christian tradition, but over time acquired a much broader meaning.

Although the terms millenarianism and millennialism are sometimes used interchangeably, millenarianism is not limited to the specific type of Christian millenarianism.

Related to the millennium.

The term derives from the Latin words mille (‘a thousand’) and annus (‘a year’). The millennium refers to the millennial reign mentioned in the book of Revelation (20:4) where certain individuals are said to reign with Christ for a thousand years.

The belief that the millennium mentioned in the book of Revelation chapter 20 refers to an earthly thousand-year age of blessedness that will be inaugurated upon Christ’s return. The term derives from the Latin mille (‘a thousand’).

Synonyms: chiliasm, Christian millenarianism, Christian millenarism

Parousia (παρουσία) is one of the Greek terms, among others, used for the Second Coming of Christ.

The term literally means “being alongside of” and conveys the sense of the English word “presence”. Besides it can also mean “coming” or “arrival”. Outside the NT the term is also used to describe the visit of a king or dignitary to a city.

Overall parousia occurs 24 times in the New Testament. In 17 cases it refers to Christ and denotes Christ’s eschatological coming, while seven times it simply refers to the presence or arrival of certain individuals.

Partial preterism holds that many of the eschatological prophecies commonly regarded as future events, like the Olivet discourse and the events described in the book of Revelation, have actually already been fulfilled in the past, mainly in the events surrounding AD 70.

Unlike “full” preterism, it still believes in a literal future return of Jesus Christ, a physical resurrection of the dead, and a final judgment. Partial preterist beliefs are well within the scope of Christian orthodoxy.

Not a formalized theological term but rather a critical nickname used by some christians (mainly postmillennialists) for eschatological views with a pessimistic outlook for the world and the church prior to Christ’s Second Coming.

The eschatological view that the world is gradually Christianized through the preaching of the Gospel, leading to peace on earth before Jesus’s final return.

The prefix “post-” indicates that Jesus’s final return will occur only after the (literal) millennium.

Postribulationism teaches that the Rapture will occur at the end of the Tribulation. According to this view, the church goes through the entire seven-year Tribulation.

According to premillennialism Christ’s Second Coming will occur before the millennium, which is understood as a visible, earthly reign.

Two main and sharply different views of premillennialism must be distinguished: historic premillennialism and dispensationalism.

Preterism is a theological view that, unlike futurism, interprets biblical prophecies as events that have already been fulfilled in the past. The term derives from the Latin word praeter, meaning “past”.

To some extent all Christians are preterists in that they believe that the prophecies about the first coming of Jesus Christ have already been fulfilled.

The term preterist is normally applied to those who believe that many of the prophecies commonly regarded as future events (like the Olivet discourse or the book of Revelation) have already been fulfilled in connection with the events surrounding the destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70.

There is a moderate (and orthodox) form of Preterism called Partial Preterism that holds that Christ’s physical Second Coming, the general resurrection of the dead, and final judgment are still future events. 

On the other hand there is also an unorthodox form of Preterism dubbed Full Preterism (or Hyper-Preterism) that holds that the Second Coming, the general resurrection, and the final judgment have all already been (spiritually) fulfilled in the first century.

In the dispensational interpretation the view that the church will be raptured and taken up to heaven before the great tribulation which precedes the millennium has taken place.

A prophet sees as coming together in a single vision events actually separated from each other in time.

The branch of theology pertaining to origins and first things, i.e. the doctrine of the beginning.

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Universalism teaches that in the end all men will be saved. Universalists believe that hell and eternal punishment are ultimately incompatible with the concept of a loving and all-powerful God.