Doctrine Analysis
Doctrine Analysis — Galatians — English → Assamese
How to Read This Document
- Risk Level columns reproduce the tier assigned in
doctrine_risk_registry.jsonexactly. Do not re-tier a doctrine here. - Translation Risk summarizes the specific Assamese-culture collision(s) documented in the registry and glossary (
08_core_glossary.md). - Review Routing follows the registry’s routing (Critical/High → Human theologian; Medium → Native speaker review; Low → Automated).
- Every chapter of Galatians 1–6 is represented below. No chapter is silently omitted, per the PRD full-coverage mandate.
Master Doctrine Matrix (15 Doctrines)
| # | Doctrine | Risk | Primary Galatians Passages | Review Routing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Justification by Faith | Critical | 2:15-16, 2:21, 3:6-9, 3:11, 3:24, 5:4-5 | Human theologian |
| 2 | The True Gospel versus False Gospels | High | 1:6-9, 1:11-12, 2:4-5, 2:11-14, 3:1 | Human theologian |
| 3 | Paul’s Apostleship | Medium | 1:1, 1:11-12, 1:15-17, 2:7-9, 6:17 | Native speaker review |
| 4 | Law and Grace | High | 2:16, 2:21, 3:2-5, 3:10-12, 3:18, 5:4 | Human theologian |
| 5 | Crucified with Christ | Critical | 2:19-20, 5:24, 6:14 | Human theologian |
| 6 | The Abrahamic Covenant and Promise | High | 3:6-9, 3:14-18, 3:29, 4:4-5, 4:21-31 | Human theologian |
| 7 | The Law’s Purpose | High | 3:19-25, 3:13, 4:1-3 | Human theologian |
| 8 | Adoption and Sonship | High | 3:26, 3:29, 4:1-7, 4:21-31 | Human theologian |
| 9 | Freedom in Christ | High | 5:1, 5:13, 4:3, 4:9-10, 4:25-26 | Human theologian |
| 10 | Circumcision and the New Creation | Critical | 2:3-5, 5:2-6, 5:11-12, 6:12-15 | Human theologian |
| 11 | Flesh versus Spirit | Critical | 5:16-26 | Human theologian |
| 12 | Fruit of the Spirit | High | 5:22-23 | Human theologian |
| 13 | Faith Working through Love | High | 5:6, 5:13-14 | Human theologian |
| 14 | Bearing One Another’s Burdens | Medium | 6:1-10 | Native speaker review |
| 15 | Unity in Christ | High | 3:26-29, 5:6, 6:15 | Human theologian |
Risk Summary: Critical: 4 · High: 9 · Medium: 2 · Low: 0 · Requiring theologian review: 13 · Requiring native speaker review: 2 · Automated only: 0
(Identical to doctrine_risk_registry.json risk_summary — cross-checked.)
Chapter-by-Chapter Coverage
Galatians 1 — Paul’s Apostleship; The True Gospel versus False Gospels
| Doctrine | Passages | Risk | Translation Risk | Review Routing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Paul’s Apostleship | 1:1, 1:11-12, 1:15-17 | Medium | Apostleship is a direct, one-time divine commissioning (প্ৰত্যাদেশ, “revelation”), not a transmitted Satradhikar guru-succession office. প্ৰত্যাদেশ deliberately avoids প্ৰকাশ (already flagged for avatar-manifestation overtones in the baseline incarnation entry). “Set apart” (পৃথক কৰা, 1:15) echoes prophetic call-narrative language and must not read as ascetic Satra renunciation. | Native speaker review |
| The True Gospel versus False Gospels | 1:6-9, 1:11-12 | High | The double anathema (1:8-9) must render as God’s forensic judicial condemnation (অভিশপ্ত হয়), never as a Puranic sage’s/deity’s mystical shaap-curse — a live folk category in Assamese culture. “অন্য সুসমাচাৰ” (a different gospel) requires a mandatory clarifying gloss that this is NOT a valid alternative path, guarding against the common Assamese-Hindu assumption that multiple devotional paths to God are compatible. | Human theologian |
Additional chapter-1 terms of note: যিহুদী ধৰ্ম (Judaism, descriptive, Low risk), আসক্তি/উদ্যোগী (zeal, Low), তাড়না (persecution, Low) — all reviewed, no elevated risk beyond standard glossary handling.
Galatians 2 — Justification by Faith (Core Passage 2:15-21); False Gospels continued; Crucified with Christ; Apostleship confirmed; Circumcision introduced
| Doctrine | Passages | Risk | Translation Risk | Review Routing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Justification by Faith | 2:15-16, 2:21 | Critical | This is the theological anchor of the entire letter. Verse 2:16 uses the justification verb three times in one verse. বিধানৰ কৰ্ম (“works of the law”) must never shorten to free-floating কৰ্ম, the central word of Hindu karma-merit doctrine describing action across the rebirth cycle — কৰ্ম must always stay bound to বিধানৰ. ধাৰ্মিকতা must never drift toward ধৰ্ম (cosmic/social duty or the Ekasarana sectarian identity). | Human theologian |
| The True Gospel versus False Gospels | 2:4-5, 2:11-14 | High | ভুৱা ভাই (false brothers) names an internal threat, not an external religious “other” — must not read as inter-communal polemic. কপটতা (hypocrisy, Peter’s withdrawal) must retain its moral-relational force. | Human theologian |
| Crucified with Christ | 2:19-20 | Critical | খ্ৰীষ্টৰ সৈতে ক্ৰুচাৰোপিত হ’লোঁ must never soften to a generic “died with” (মৃত হ’লোঁ), which loses union-with-Christ specificity. শৰীৰ (physical “flesh,” 2:20) must stay visibly distinct from মাংস (ethical “flesh,” ch. 5) — disambiguation is mandatory at this first occurrence. নিজকে সমৰ্পণ কৰিলে (“gave himself”) carries the full substitutionary/atonement weight the baseline treats as Critical. | Human theologian |
| Paul’s Apostleship | 2:7-9 | Medium | Confirms Paul’s commission as distinct from, yet equal to, Peter’s — guard against a hierarchical guru-succession reading. | Native speaker review |
| Circumcision and the New Creation | 2:3-5 | Critical | First occurrence of চুন্নৎ in the letter’s controversy; requires a clarifying note anchoring the referent to the Genesis 17 Abrahamic covenant sign, distinct from Islamic khatna practice, given চুন্নৎ’s Perso-Arabic loanword status in Assamese. | Human theologian |
Galatians 3 — Law and Grace; Abrahamic Covenant and Promise; The Law’s Purpose; Justification by Faith continued; Adoption and Sonship introduced; Unity in Christ introduced
| Doctrine | Passages | Risk | Translation Risk | Review Routing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Law and Grace | 2:16 (recalled), 3:2-5, 3:10-12, 3:18 | High | The grace/works-of-the-law contrast is the letter’s central polemic — must be preserved with full force, guarding against both a বৰ (boon-for-devotion) reading and a কৰ্ম (karma-merit) reading. Softening this contrast in Galatians undermines the letter’s argument more directly than in Romans. | Human theologian |
| The Abrahamic Covenant and Promise | 3:6-9, 3:14-18, 3:29 | High | প্ৰতিজ্ঞা (promise) must stay distinct from নিয়ম (covenant-bond) — promise names the pledged content (offspring, blessing, inheritance). 3:16’s argument depends on σπέρμα/বংশ being grammatically singular and fulfilled in Christ alone; Assamese বংশ reads naturally as collective lineage, so a mandatory translator note is required or Paul’s christological argument is lost. No analogous patriarchal-covenant concept exists in Ekasarana/Assamese Vaishnavite tradition — OT background must be supplied. | Human theologian |
| The Law’s Purpose | 3:19-25, 3:13 | High | বিধানৰ অভিশাপ (curse of the law, quoting Deut 27:26) must be distinguished from the Puranic mystical shaap-curse tradition — this is God’s own recorded judicial verdict. “Redeem” (মূল্য দি উদ্ধাৰ কৰা) must never use মুক্তি as a root morpheme (forbidden — moksha/rebirth-cycle association). παιδαγωγός (guardian/tutor, অভিভাৱক) names a temporary custodial role ending at Christ’s coming and must not render as গুৰু (implying permanent guru-shishya relationship). | Human theologian |
| Justification by Faith | 3:6-9, 3:11, 3:24 | Critical | Abraham as the paradigm of faith-not-works justification (3:6, citing Gen 15:6) directly parallels the baseline’s আৰোপিত ধাৰ্মিকতা (imputed righteousness) entry; consistency with Romans 4 rendering is required. | Human theologian |
| Adoption and Sonship | 3:26, 3:29 | High | Introduces sonship-through-faith and heirship (উত্তৰাধিকাৰী), setting up the fuller treatment in ch. 4. | Human theologian |
| Unity in Christ | 3:26-29 | High | The Jew/Gentile, slave/free, male/female triad (3:28) is the most radically equalizing statement in the Pauline corpus; extends the baseline’s unity_of_jews_and_gentiles doctrine. Must retain full, unsoftened universality, especially forceful given Assam’s caste- and ethnicity-stratified social context and its own internal Satra-institutional hierarchies. | Human theologian |
Galatians 4 — Adoption and Sonship; Freedom in Christ; Abrahamic Covenant continued (Hagar/Sarah); The Law’s Purpose continued
| Doctrine | Passages | Risk | Translation Risk | Review Routing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Adoption and Sonship | 4:1-7, 4:21-31 | High | 4:4-7 makes adoption the direct stated purpose of the Son’s mission — even more central here than in Romans. দাস (slave) status, abolished at adoption, must not be conflated with the devotional self-designation “das” (e.g., Ramdas) used by Vaishnavite/Ekasarana bhaktas as a mark of devotional humility; Paul’s point is the abolition of slave-status, not its embrace as virtue. আব্বা/পিতা must render identically to the Romans 8:15 baseline rendering (cross-document consistency rule). | Human theologian |
| Freedom in Christ | 4:3, 4:9-10, 4:25-26 | High | στοιχεῖα τοῦ κόσμου (“elemental spirits/powers,” জগতৰ মৌলিক আত্মিক শক্তি) risks collision with Hindu পঞ্চভূত (five-element) cosmology and astrological graha-veneration; mandatory translator note required, not substitution. “Observe days/months/seasons/years” (4:9-10) collides with Hindu ritual-calendar observance (tithi, festival cycles) — render plainly with no local festival names. ওপৰৰ যিৰূশালেম (Jerusalem above, 4:26) is eschatological, not geopolitical — sensitivity note required given regional-sovereignty history. | Human theologian |
| The Abrahamic Covenant and Promise | 4:4-5, 4:21-31 | High | 4:4-5’s “sent forth his Son” (পাঠাই দিলে) directly co-occurs with দেহধাৰণ (incarnation); the baseline’s mandatory Critical-tier incarnation-vs-avatar translator note applies at this occurrence. Hagar/Sarah allegory (4:21-31) requires OT narrative background for readers with low OT literacy. | Human theologian |
| The Law’s Purpose | 4:1-3 | High | Extends the guardian/heir metaphor from ch. 3; no new collision risk beyond what is already documented. | Human theologian |
Galatians 5 — Freedom in Christ continued; Circumcision and the New Creation continued; Crucified with Christ continued; Flesh versus Spirit; Fruit of the Spirit; Faith Working through Love; Unity in Christ continued; Law and Grace continued
| Doctrine | Passages | Risk | Translation Risk | Review Routing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Freedom in Christ | 5:1, 5:13 | High | স্বাধীনতা is the standard Assamese word for political/national independence (cf. ভাৰতৰ স্বাধীনতা দিৱস) and risks a nationalist reading, plus conflation with moksha-liberation from the rebirth cycle. Mandatory translator note at first occurrence. | Human theologian |
| Circumcision and the New Creation | 5:2-6, 5:11-12 | Critical | Continues the চুন্নৎ controversy at its sharpest polemical point (5:12’s self-mutilation warning, নিজকে বিকৃত কৰক) — sensitive phrasing required; avoid graphic detail. | Human theologian |
| Crucified with Christ | 5:24 | Critical | ”Crucified the flesh” (মাংস ক্ৰুচত দিলে-pattern) must use মাংস (ethical sense), not শৰীৰ, keeping the ch. 2/ch. 5 disambiguation intact. | Human theologian |
| Flesh versus Spirit | 5:16-26 | Critical | The vice-list (5:19-21) requires মূৰ্তিপূজা (idolatry) rendered at full doctrinal force per the PRD non-softening mandate — this names mainstream Assamese Hindu/Vaishnavite image-worship directly; pastoral framing belongs in teaching notes, not softened translation. মায়াবিদ্যা/জাদুবিদ্যা (sorcery) requires care given Assam’s history of witch-hunting violence tied to bez/daini sorcery-accusation — avoid language usable to target socially-accused persons. মাংস (ethical flesh) must stay visibly distinct from শৰীৰ. | Human theologian |
| Fruit of the Spirit | 5:22-23 | High | আত্মাৰ ফল must remain grammatically singular (never আত্মাৰ ফলসমূহ) to preserve Paul’s one-unified-organic-character emphasis, avoiding a checklist reading close to Hindu virtue-accumulation (punya) framework. আত্মসংযম (self-control) must be distinguished from Satra bhakats’ ascetic self-mortification — this is Spirit-enabled, not self-achieved. | Human theologian |
| Faith Working through Love | 5:6, 5:13-14 | High | প্ৰেম (agapē-love) carries major collision risk with Assamese Vaishnavite/Ekasarana prem-bhakti (Radha-Krishna devotional-romantic love tradition rooted in Sankardev’s kirtan). Biblical agapē here is Christ’s self-giving, covenantal, action-oriented love (echoing 2:20) — not devotional longing/ecstasy (viraha-bhakti). Mandatory translator note at first occurrence. | Human theologian |
| Unity in Christ | 5:6 | High | ”Neither circumcision nor uncircumcision counts for anything” reinforces the ch. 3 equalizing claim; must retain full force. | Human theologian |
| Law and Grace | 5:4 | High | ”Fallen from grace” (5:4) is a high-stakes warning passage; ensure অনুগ্ৰহ retains its full unmerited-favor sense and is not read as a revocable boon (বৰ) forfeited by ritual lapse. | Human theologian |
Galatians 6 — Bearing One Another’s Burdens; Crucified with Christ continued (boasting in the cross); Circumcision and the New Creation continued; Paul’s Apostleship continued (marks of Jesus); Unity in Christ continued
| Doctrine | Passages | Risk | Translation Risk | Review Routing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bearing One Another’s Burdens | 6:1-10 | Medium | সিঁচা/দাটি লোৱা (sow/reap, 6:7-8) risks a karma-retribution misreading if not anchored to single-life, grace-framed moral consequence rather than cross-life karmic law — a live worldview assumption in Assamese Hindu culture. খ্ৰীষ্টৰ বিধান (law of Christ, 6:2) deliberately reuses বিধান in a transformed, non-Mosaic sense; a note is required preventing confusion with ἔργα νόμου (“works of the law”), which the letter otherwise rejects as a ground of justification. | Native speaker review |
| Crucified with Christ | 6:14 | Critical | ক্ৰুচত গৌৰৱ কৰা (“boast in the cross”) answers the letter’s honor/shame dynamics and must be preserved as the sole ground of boasting, not one honorable achievement among others. | Human theologian |
| Circumcision and the New Creation | 6:12-15 | Critical | নতুন সৃষ্টি (new creation, 6:15) risks collision with the Hindu cyclical creation-preservation-dissolution (সৃষ্টি-স্থিতি-প্ৰলয়) pattern under recurring cosmic ages (yugas/kalpas); the linear, once-for-all inaugurated sense must be made explicit via mandatory note. | Human theologian |
| Paul’s Apostleship | 6:17 | Medium | যীচুৰ চিহ্ন (“marks of Jesus,” Paul’s scars from persecution) must be distinguished from Vaishnavite tilaka/sect body-marking practice. | Native speaker review |
| Unity in Christ | 6:15 | High | ”Neither circumcision nor uncircumcision, but a new creation” closes the letter’s equalizing argument; retain full force alongside the new-creation note above. | Human theologian |
Coverage Confirmation
All six chapters of Galatians have been reviewed against the 15-doctrine matrix above. No chapter contains unreviewed or silently omitted doctrinal content. Chapters 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6 each contribute load-bearing doctrinal and terminological material as documented; there are no “doctrinally empty” chapters in this short, densely argued letter.
This document extends, and must never contradict, assets/doctrine_risk_registry.json (Galatians) and the baseline Romans translation_memory.json / bible_term_registry.json / doctrine_risk_registry.json.
Critical Risk Doctrines
Justification by Faith
Assamese name: বিশ্বাসৰ দ্বাৰা ধাৰ্মিক বুলি গণ্য কৰা
Key terms: righteousness, justification, faith, works_of_the_law, sinner, imputed_righteousness
Review routing: Human theologian
Galatians 2:16 uses the justification verb three times in a single verse — the doctrinal center of the whole letter. ‘Works of the law’ (বিধানৰ কৰ্ম) must never be shortened to free-floating কৰ্ম, the central word of Hindu karma-merit doctrine describing action across the rebirth cycle; কৰ্ম must always stay anchored to বিধানৰ (of the law). ধাৰ্মিকতা must never shift to ধৰ্ম (cosmic/social duty, or the Ekasarana sectarian identity founded by Sankardev).
Crucified with Christ
Assamese name: খ্ৰীষ্টৰ সৈতে ক্ৰুচাৰোপণ
Key terms: crucified_with_christ, cross, gave_himself, flesh_physical, boast_in_the_cross
Review routing: Human theologian
This union-with-Christ doctrine has no baseline Romans equivalent and must not be softened to a generic ‘died with’ (মৃত হ’লোঁ), which loses the substitutionary, once-for-all, identity-transforming sense. খ্ৰীষ্টৰ সৈতে ক্ৰুচাৰোপিত হ’লোঁ builds on the established Assamese Christian loanword ক্ৰুচ (cross); while ক্ৰুচ carries no Puranic collision risk itself, the surrounding self-giving/substitutionary language (নিজকে সমৰ্পণ কৰিলে) must retain the full atonement weight the baseline treats as Critical.
Circumcision and the New Creation
Assamese name: চুন্নৎ আৰু নতুন সৃষ্টি
Key terms: circumcision, new_creation, baptized, self_mutilation_warning, gentiles
Review routing: Human theologian
চুন্নৎ (circumcision), the central controversy of the letter, is a Perso-Arabic loanword also carrying strong association with Islamic khatna practice in Assam; every occurrence requires a clarifying note anchoring the referent to the Genesis 17 Abrahamic covenant sign, not Islamic ritual practice. নতুন সৃষ্টি (new creation, 6:15) risks collision with the Hindu cyclical creation-preservation-dissolution (সৃষ্টি-স্থিতি-প্ৰলয়) pattern under recurring cosmic ages (yugas/kalpas); the linear, once-for-all inaugurated sense must be made explicit.
Flesh versus Spirit
Assamese name: মাংস বনাম আত্মা
Key terms: flesh_ethical, holy_spirit, idolatry, sorcery, walk_by_spirit
Review routing: Human theologian
The vice-list (5:19-21) includes εἰδωλολατρία, which must render as মূৰ্তিপূজা — the exact standard Assamese term for the image-worship central to mainstream Assamese Hindu and Vaishnavite/Ekasarana devotional practice. Per the PRD’s non-softening mandate, Scripture’s condemnation must not be euphemized, yet pastoral framing in teaching materials must focus on the positive contrast (worship of the one true God) rather than confrontational address to practitioners. φαρμακεία (sorcery) also requires care given Assam’s history of witch-hunting violence tied to sorcery-accusation (bez/daini); translators must avoid language usable to target socially-accused persons. Ethical σάρξ (মাংস) must remain visibly distinct from the neutral physical-body sense (শৰীৰ) used in the core passage.
High Risk Doctrines
The True Gospel versus False Gospels
Assamese name: সঁচা সুসমাচাৰ বনাম ভুৱা সুসমাচাৰ
Key terms: gospel, false_gospel, curse_of_the_law, distort_gospel, truth_of_the_gospel, false_brothers, hypocrisy, bewitched
Review routing: Human theologian
Galatians 1:8-9’s double anathema pronouncement must be rendered as God’s forensic judicial condemnation (অভিশপ্ত হয়), not as a Puranic sage’s or deity’s mystical shaap-curse, a live folk-belief category in Assamese culture. ‘অন্য সুসমাচাৰ’ (a different gospel) requires a mandatory clarifying gloss that this is not a valid alternative path, guarding against a pluralistic reading common where multiple devotional paths to the divine are assumed compatible.
Law and Grace
Assamese name: বিধান আৰু অনুগ্ৰহ
Key terms: law, grace, works_of_the_law, zeal
Review routing: Human theologian
Grace (অনুগ্ৰহ) stands in direct polemical contrast to বিধানৰ কৰ্ম (works of the law) throughout Galatians; this contrast must be preserved with full force, including guarding against a boon-for-devotion (বৰ) reading and against a karma-merit reading of কৰ্ম. Softening this contrast anywhere in Galatians undermines the letter’s central argument more directly than in Romans.
The Abrahamic Covenant and Promise
Assamese name: অব্ৰাহামীয় নিয়ম আৰু প্ৰতিজ্ঞা
Key terms: covenant, promise, imputed_righteousness, seed_offspring, blessing_of_abraham, children_of_promise, incarnation, sent_forth
Review routing: Human theologian
প্ৰতিজ্ঞা (promise) must remain distinct from নিয়ম (covenant-bond) — promise names the specific pledged content (offspring, blessing, inheritance). Galatians 3:16’s argument that σπέρμα (বংশ) is grammatically singular, fulfilled in Christ alone, requires an explicit note since Assamese বংশ reads naturally as collective lineage; without the note Paul’s entire christological argument is lost. There is no analogous royal-lineage/patriarchal covenant concept in Ekasarana or wider Assamese Vaishnavite tradition, so OT background must be supplied.
The Law’s Purpose
Assamese name: বিধানৰ উদ্দেশ্য
Key terms: law, curse_of_the_law, redemption, mediator, guardian_tutor, transgressor, law_of_christ
Review routing: Human theologian
The law’s curse (বিধানৰ অভিশাপ, quoting Deut 27:26) must be distinguished from the Puranic sage’s/deity’s mystical shaap-curse tradition — this is God’s own recorded judicial verdict, not an occult curse-transfer. ‘Redeem’ (ἐξαγοράζω) must never use মুক্তি as a root morpheme (forbidden per baseline, moksha/rebirth-cycle association); the compound মূল্য দি উদ্ধাৰ কৰা is required. παιδαγωγός (guardian/tutor, অভিভাৱক) names a temporary custodial role ending at Christ’s coming and must not be rendered as গুৰু, which would imply a permanent guru-shishya teaching relationship.
Adoption and Sonship
Assamese name: পোহাপুত্ৰ স্বৰূপে গ্ৰহণ আৰু পুত্ৰত্ব
Key terms: adoption, son_of_god, abba, father, heir, slave
Review routing: Human theologian
Even more central to Galatians than to Romans (4:4-7 makes adoption the direct purpose of the Son’s mission). দাস (slave) status abolished at adoption must not be conflated with the devotional self-designation ‘das’ (e.g. Ramdas) used by Vaishnavite/Ekasarana bhaktas as a mark of devotional humility — Paul’s point is the abolition of slave-status, not its embrace as spiritual virtue. আব্বা, পিতা must render identically to Romans 8:15 per cross-document consistency rules.
Freedom in Christ
Assamese name: খ্ৰীষ্টত স্বাধীনতা
Key terms: freedom, yoke_of_slavery, elemental_spirits, jerusalem_above, observe_days
Review routing: Human theologian
স্বাধীনতা is the standard Assamese word for political/national independence (cf. ভাৰতৰ স্বাধীনতা দিৱস) and risks a nationalist reading in a state with a history of contested regional sovereignty (the historic Ahom kingdom, per the baseline’s kingdom_of_god note); it also risks conflation with moksha-liberation from the rebirth cycle. στοιχεῖα τοῦ κόσμου (elemental spirits/powers) risks collision with Hindu পঞ্চভূত (five-element) cosmology and astrological graha-veneration; both terms require mandatory translator notes at first occurrence, not substitution.
Fruit of the Spirit
Assamese name: আত্মাৰ ফল
Key terms: fruit_of_the_spirit, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness_character, gentleness, self_control
Review routing: Human theologian
আত্মাৰ ফল must remain grammatically singular in Assamese (not আত্মাৰ ফলসমূহ) to preserve Paul’s emphasis on one unified organic character rather than a checklist of separately-achieved virtues, which would read close to a Hindu virtue-accumulation (punya) framework. Self-control (আত্মসংযম) must be distinguished from the ascetic self-mortification practiced by celibate Satra bhakats — this is Spirit-enabled, not self-achieved, restraint.
Faith Working through Love
Assamese name: প্ৰেমৰে কাৰ্যকৰী বিশ্বাস
Key terms: faith, love_agape, faith_working_through_love, circumcision
Review routing: Human theologian
প্ৰেম (agapē-love) carries major collision risk with the Assamese Vaishnavite/Ekasarana devotional tradition’s prem-bhakti (rooted in Sankardev’s kirtan and the wider Assamese Vaishnava poetic tradition centered on Radha-Krishna devotional-romantic love). Biblical agapē in this doctrine is Christ’s self-giving, covenantal, action-oriented love (demonstrated at the cross, 2:20) and the believer’s resulting other-directed love — not devotional longing/ecstasy (viraha-bhakti) toward a chosen deity. Mandatory translator note required at first occurrence in every document using this term.
Unity in Christ
Assamese name: খ্ৰীষ্টত ঐক্য
Key terms: gentiles, baptized, circumcision, heir
Review routing: Human theologian
Extends the baseline Romans doctrine unity_of_jews_and_gentiles to also include slave/free and male/female categories (3:28) — the most radically equalizing statement in the Pauline corpus. Must retain full, unsoftened universality; particularly forceful given Assam’s caste- and ethnicity-stratified social context and its own internal Satra-institutional hierarchies (Satradhikar succession, bhakat ranks).
Medium Risk Doctrines
Paul’s Apostleship
Assamese name: পৌলৰ প্ৰেৰিতত্ব
Key terms: apostle, called, revelation, set_apart, zeal, persecution
Review routing: Native speaker review
Risk of apostolic authority being read through the lens of the Satradhikar guru-succession model of Ekasarana Dharma, in which spiritual authority passes through an unbroken lineage of appointed successors; Paul’s apostleship is a direct, one-time divine commissioning (প্ৰত্যাদেশ), not a transmitted office. প্ৰত্যাদেশ (revelation) deliberately avoids প্ৰকাশ, already rejected in the baseline incarnation entry for its avatar-manifestation overtones.
Bearing One Another’s Burdens
Assamese name: এজনে আনজনৰ ভাৰ বহন কৰা
Key terms: bear_burdens, restore_gently, household_of_faith, sow_reap, law_of_christ
Review routing: Native speaker review
সিঁচা/দাটি লোৱা (sow/reap, 6:7-8) risks a karma-retribution misreading if not anchored to a single-life, grace-framed moral consequence rather than cross-life karmic law — a live worldview assumption in Assamese Hindu culture. খ্ৰীষ্টৰ বিধান (law of Christ) deliberately reuses বিধান in a transformed, non-Mosaic sense and requires a note preventing confusion with ἔργα νόμου (works of the law), which the letter otherwise rejects as a ground of justification.
Referenced passages