Baptism: the ceremony of cleansing used when a person becomes a member of the Christian Church.
Confirmation: a conscious reaffirmation of baptismal vows, for those baptised as babies.
Congregation: the group of people who attend a church.
Creed: a formal statement of Christian belief.
Diocese: a regional grouping of parishes under the direction of a bishop.
Eucharist: another term for Holy Communion, or the service containing it.
Gospel: one of the four accounts of the life of Jesus in the New Testament.
New Testament: the part of the Bible dealing specifically with Christianity, and containing the Gospels.
Old Testament: the part of the Bible predating Jesus, and containing Jewish religious laws and traditions.
Parish: an individual church, and the area for which it has responsibility.
Sacrament: one of the core ceremonies of the Church, defined as ‘outward and visible signs of inward and spiritual grace’.
Theologian: a scholar who studies questions of God and religion.
Trinity: the combination of the three recognised aspects of God, known as Father, Son (Jesus of Nazareth) and Holy Spirit.