Semantic Analysis
Semantic Analysis — Acts 1–28 (English → Dogri)
How to Read This Document
Every load-bearing term is analyzed with: Original (Greek) | Transliteration | Literal meaning | Semantic range | English variants | Contextual theological meaning | Dogri rendering & risk.
Terms already fixed in the Romans translation_memory.json (baseline) are marked [BASELINE — REUSE EXACT] and must never be re-translated differently. Terms newly required for Acts are marked [NEW] and are risk-assessed here for the first time; they will be added to an updated translation memory in a later Phase 1 step. Risk tiers (Critical/High/Medium/Low) follow the baseline’s definitions exactly.
A special and recurring caution for Acts: this book is set in a Jewish-Gentile, temple-and-synagogue, magic-and-miracle world that maps onto the Duggar region’s own temple culture (Raghunath Mandir, Bahu Fort, Vaishno Devi), occult/oracle practices, and caste-purity categories far more directly than most of Romans does. Flags below name these collisions specifically wherever they arise, extending — never contradicting — the baseline’s comparative-religion cautions.
PART A — CORE PASSAGE: Acts 2:1–41 (Verse-by-Verse)
Acts 2:1 — “When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place”
- Pentecost [NEW] — Gk. πεντηκοστή (pentēkostē), lit. “the fiftieth [day].” Semantic range: the Jewish Feast of Weeks/Shavuot, celebrated 50 days after Passover, originally a harvest festival later associated with the giving of the Law at Sinai. English variants: Pentecost, Feast of Weeks. Theological meaning: the Spirit is poured out on the very festival that once celebrated covenant-giving — the New Covenant’s inauguration day. Dogri: पिन्तेकुस्त (Pentekust, transliteration), glossed on first use as “पंजाह्वें दिन दा त्योहार” (the festival of the fiftieth day). Risk: Medium. Without explanation this reads as a generic seasonal harvest fair (cf. local melas like Jitto Da Mela or Baisakhi harvest festival); a translator note must anchor it to the Sinai/covenant background, not treat it as an interchangeable regional festival.
- one accord / together — reuses the unity sense developed fully at Acts 4:32 (see below); flag as first occurrence.
Acts 2:2–3 — “a sound like a mighty rushing wind… divided tongues as of fire”
- Wind [NEW] — Gk. πνοή (pnoē), lit. “breath/blowing.” Semantic range: breath, wind, the same root family as pneuma (spirit/wind). Theological meaning: theophany imagery (cf. Sinai, Ezekiel’s breath) signaling God’s manifest, personal presence, not an impersonal weather event. Dogri: तेज हवा जेह्ी अवाज़ (a sound like a strong wind). Risk: Low-Medium — must not be flattened to ordinary storm description; keep tied textually to Spirit’s arrival.
- Fire [NEW] — Gk. πῦρ (pyr), lit. “fire.” Theological meaning: divine presence/purification (cf. burning bush, pillar of fire). Dogri: अग्ग. Risk: Low — but must be kept distinct from ritual fire offerings (havan/yajna imagery) common in regional devotional practice; this fire rests on believers as a sign of the Spirit’s descent, not an offering made to a deity.
Acts 2:4 — “filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues”
- Filled with the Holy Spirit [NEW, built on BASELINE holy_spirit पवित्तर आत्मा] — Gk. ἐπλήσθησαν πνεύματος ἁγίου (eplēsthēsan pneumatos hagiou); verb πληρόω (plēroō), lit. “to fill completely.” Theological meaning: the promised personal indwelling and empowering of the third Person of the Trinity (fulfilling Acts 1:8; Luke 3:16; Joel 2). Dogri: पवित्तर आत्मा कन्नै भर जाना. Risk: High. Must be sharply distinguished from spirit-possession/trance phenomena associated with local oracle figures (masani/devi-possession mediums at regional shrines); this is the Spirit’s settled personal indwelling of a believer, not a temporary trance state induced by or for a deity.
- Other tongues [NEW] — Gk. ἑτέραις γλώσσαις (heterais glōssais); γλῶσσα (glōssa), lit. “tongue,” semantic range “tongue (organ)” or “language.” English variants: tongues, other languages. Theological meaning: real, known human languages given supernaturally for cross-cultural gospel proclamation (confirmed by v.6,8,11 — “each one heard them in his own language”), reversing Babel’s confusion into a sign of the gospel’s reach to every nation. Dogri: होर बोलियां. Risk: High. Must not be rendered so as to suggest unintelligible ecstatic utterance resembling shamanistic trance-speech at local shrines; the text insists these were understood languages, not glossolalic mystery-speech, and this distinction must be preserved in any explanatory note.
Acts 2:5–11 — devout Jews from every nation hear in their own languages
- Nations / every nation under heaven — reuses BASELINE gentiles/nations framework (गैर-यहूदी; also राष्ट्र in mission contexts). Theological meaning here: the diaspora Jewish audience, not yet Gentiles proper, but the list of nations anticipates the gospel’s later expansion to Gentiles (chs. 8, 10, 13-28). Risk: Medium — keep distinct from later true Gentile-inclusion passages so learners can trace the book’s Jew-to-Gentile trajectory accurately.
- Amazed / perplexed / mocking (“filled with new wine”) [NEW, low doctrinal weight] — sets up a deliberate narrative contrast between true Spirit-filling and drunkenness, resumed in v.15. Dogri: हैरान होना / मजाक करना. Risk: Low.
Acts 2:14–21 — Peter’s sermon opens with Joel’s prophecy
- Last days [NEW] — Gk. ἐν ταῖς ἐσχάταις ἡμέραις (en tais eschatais hēmerais). Theological meaning: the age inaugurated by Christ’s death/resurrection/Spirit-outpouring, running to his return — reuses BASELINE fulfillment_of_prophecy doctrine framework. Dogri: आखरी दिनां च. Risk: Medium — this is a linear, historical inbreaking of the end times, not a cyclical cosmic age (yuga) within an endlessly repeating cosmology.
- Pour out my Spirit [NEW] — Gk. ἐκχεῶ ἐκ τοῦ πνεύματός μου (ekcheō ek tou pneumatos mou), lit. “I will pour out from my Spirit.” Dogri: अपनी आत्मा डोहलणी / उन्ढेलणी. Risk: High. Must be explicitly distinguished from abhishek-style ritual pouring/anointing performed upon a deity’s image (murti) at temple consecration rites; here God himself is the generous giver, pouring his own personal Spirit into people, not oil/water poured over an idol.
- Prophesy / dreams / visions — reuses BASELINE prophecy भविष्यवाणी and prophet नबी entries; theological meaning: Spirit-given proclamation available now to sons, daughters, young, old, menservants, maidservants — a democratization of the prophetic gift across every social rank. Risk: Low-Medium (inherits baseline’s caution against confusion with ज्योतषी/astrological fortune-telling), with an added note: this leveling directly challenges the Dogra Rajput honor/rank stratification (izzat) that would restrict spiritual authority by lineage or gender.
- Day of the Lord [NEW] — Gk. ἡμέρα Κυρίου (hēmera Kyriou), building on BASELINE lord प्रभु. Theological meaning: the specific eschatological day of God’s judgment and salvation. Dogri: प्रभु दा दिन. Risk: Medium — must not be assimilated to auspicious/inauspicious astrological day-selection (muhurat) practice common in regional custom for pilgrimage or ritual timing; this is a fixed divine appointment, not a calculable auspicious date.
- Call on the name of the Lord / shall be saved [NEW verb, built on BASELINE lord प्रभु + salvation उद्धार] — Gk. ἐπικαλέσηται τὸ ὄνομα Κυρίου (epikalesētai to onoma Kyriou). Dogri: प्रभु दा नां लैना. Risk: High. Must be distinguished from invoking a deity’s name for a granted boon (the mannat/vow-economy logic already flagged Critical for “grace” in the baseline); calling on the Lord’s name here is trusting appeal to the only Lord who saves, not a transactional petition to one deity among many.
Acts 2:22–24 — Jesus attested by God, crucified, raised
- Wonders and signs [NEW] — Gk. τέρατα καὶ σημεῖα (terata kai sēmeia). Theological meaning: God’s own authentication of Jesus’ ministry. Dogri: अचम्भे ते निशान. Risk: Medium — distinguish from miracle-claims attributed to shrine deities (e.g., miracles reported at Vaishno Devi or the Baba Jitto shrine); these signs specifically and exclusively authenticate Jesus.
- Resurrection — [BASELINE — REUSE EXACT] मुर्दघरा चा जिंदा होना. Risk: Critical, unchanged from Romans: never पुनर्जन्म.
- “Loosed the pangs of death” [NEW idiom] — Gk. λύσας τὰς ὠδῖνας τοῦ θανάτου, lit. “loosing the birth-pangs of death.” Render idiomatically per the baseline’s idiom-handling rule; theological content (death could not hold him) must survive translation even if the birth-pang image does not transfer naturally. Dogri: मौत उसदे उप्पर काबू नेईं रख्खी सकी. Risk: Medium.
Acts 2:25–32 — David’s prophecy and apostolic witness
- David — [BASELINE — REUSE EXACT] दाऊद. Reuses Davidic-covenant background from Romans.
- Witness(es) [NEW] — Gk. μάρτυς (martys), lit. “one who testifies.” Semantic range: legal witness, eyewitness testifier; root of English “martyr” (one who testifies even unto death — significant later at Stephen’s death, ch.7). Dogri: गवाह्. Risk: Medium here (eyewitness testimony); escalates to High wherever the “witness unto death” sense is active (see ch.7 below).
Acts 2:33–36 — exalted, poured out the Spirit, “Lord and Christ”
- Exalted / right hand of God [NEW] — theological meaning: Christ’s enthronement, reusing and extending BASELINE lordship_of_christ doctrine. Dogri: परमेश्वर दे सज्जे हत्थै उच्चा कीता गेआ. Risk: High.
- Lord and Christ — [BASELINE — REUSE EXACT] प्रभु (lord) + मसीह (messiah/christ). Risk: Critical, unchanged. This is the climactic confession of Peter’s whole sermon: God himself has installed Jesus, unambiguously, as both — never महाराजा for “Lord,” never one of several avatars for “Christ.”
Acts 2:37 — “cut to the heart… what shall we do?”
- “Cut to the heart” [NEW idiom] — Gk. κατενύγησαν τὴν καρδίαν (katenygēsan tēn kardian), lit. “were pierced/stabbed in the heart.” Theological meaning: Spirit-produced conviction of sin preceding repentance. Dogri: दिल च चुभ गेआ / मन विच्च चोट लग्गी. Risk: Medium — must read as inward conviction, not mere emotional guilt or social shame (izzat-loss); the response that follows (v.38) is repentance toward God, not restoration of honor before people.
Acts 2:38 — “Repent and be baptized… for the forgiveness of sins… gift of the Holy Spirit”
This is the single most theologically load-bearing verse in the core passage; every term here is Critical or High.
- Repent / repentance [NEW — Critical, to be added to translation memory] — Gk. μετανοήσατε (metanoēsate), from μετάνοια (metanoia), lit. “a change of mind/afterthought,” i.e., a decisive reorientation of mind and life turned toward God and away from sin. English variants: repent, turn, change one’s mind. Semantic range: distinct from mere regret or remorse (which lacks reorientation). Dogri: मन फिराव (noun), मन फिराना (verb) — “a turning of the mind/heart.” Alternatives rejected: पछतावा (pachtava, mere regret/remorse — too weak, lacks reorientation toward God); तीर्थ-यात्रा राहें पाप धोना (washing away sin through pilgrimage — an active local expiation pattern, explicitly rejected). Risk: Critical. Repentance must never collapse into ritual guilt-expiation (e.g., undertaking a pilgrimage or vow to remove wrongdoing) or into social shame-repair (restoring izzat); it is a Spirit-enabled turning of the whole person toward the living God, inseparable from faith (भरोसा).
- Baptize / baptism [NEW — Critical, to be added to translation memory] — Gk. βαπτισθήτω (baptisthētō), from βαπτίζω (baptizō), lit. “to dip, immerse.” Semantic range: ritual water immersion marking entry into the new covenant community, identification with Christ’s death/resurrection (cf. Romans 6, already in the baseline curriculum). Dogri: बपतिस्मा (transliterated, following established regional Christian-Bible convention across North Indian languages), verb बपतिस्मा लैना (receive baptism) / बपतिस्मा देना (administer baptism). Alternatives rejected: स्नान करना (ritual bathing, e.g. as at a holy river or before Vaishno Devi darshan — never use as the primary term, though it may appear in explanatory notes to mark the contrast). Risk: Critical. Must be taught explicitly as a once-for-all public identification with Christ marking entry into the church, never as a purificatory ritual bath removing ritual pollution (भिट्ट, already flagged in the baseline “sin” entry) or as parallel to ceremonial bathing at a pilgrimage site.
- In the name of Jesus Christ — reuses BASELINE jesus यीशु + messiah मसीह; “name” (नां) carries invoked authority/identification, not a magical formula. Risk: High — see ch.19 (sons of Sceva) and ch.8 (Simon Magus) below, where the text itself polemicizes against treating Christ’s name as a manipulable magic word.
- Forgiveness of sins [NEW] — Gk. ἄφεσις ἁμαρτιῶν (aphesis hamartiōn), lit. “release/sending away of sins.” Built on BASELINE sin पाप. Dogri: पापां दी माफी. Risk: Medium-High. Must be kept theologically distinct from BASELINE justification धर्मी ठहराए जाना (a forensic declaration of righteous status) — forgiveness (removal of guilt) and justification (positive declared righteousness) are both present in Acts (2:38 forgiveness; 13:38-39 justification) and must not be flattened into synonyms.
- Gift of the Holy Spirit [NEW] — Gk. δωρεὰν τοῦ ἁγίου πνεύματος (dōrean tou hagiou pneumatos); δωρεά (dōrea), lit. “free gift,” a different word-family from charisma (spiritual gift, already BASELINE आत्मिक दान). Dogri: पवित्तर आत्मा दा बिना कमाई दित्ता दान — deliberately echoing the BASELINE grace phrase (बिना कमाई दित्ती दया) to reinforce that the Spirit himself is given apart from merit or vow. Risk: Critical, inheriting both holy_spirit and grace’s Critical status.
Acts 2:39 — “the promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off”
- Promise [NEW] — Gk. ἐπαγγελία (epangelia), lit. “a promise, announcement.” Theological meaning: the Spirit-and-salvation promise of Joel/the New Covenant, extending beyond the immediate Jewish audience — an early hint of the Jew-Gentile inclusion doctrine developed fully in chs. 10-15. Dogri: वादा. Risk: Medium — keep distinct from a vow made to God (मन्नत, see Acts 21 below); this is God’s promise to people, the opposite direction of a mannat.
- “All who are far off” — anticipates BASELINE unity_of_jews_and_gentiles doctrine; Risk: High, full force must be retained without softening for honor/lineage sensibilities.
Acts 2:40-41 — “save yourselves… baptized… added, about three thousand souls”
- Save yourselves / this crooked generation — reuses BASELINE salvation उद्धार. Risk: Critical, unchanged.
- Added [to their number] [NEW, low risk] — Gk. προσετέθησαν (prosetethēsan). Dogri: रली गे / गिनतरी च रली गे. Risk: Low.
Acts 2:42 — the four marks of the church (transition into narrative)
- Devoted themselves [NEW] — Gk. προσκαρτερέω (proskartereō), lit. “to persist/adhere firmly to.” Dogri: तन-मन कन्नै लगे रैहे. Risk: Low-Medium — avoid a generic word for devotional practice (bhakti-style) untethered from the four specific, concrete practices named.
- Teaching (apostles’) [NEW] — Gk. διδαχή (didachē). Dogri: उपदेश. Risk: Low.
- Fellowship — [BASELINE — REUSE EXACT] संगत. Risk: Low.
- Breaking of bread [NEW] — Gk. κλάσις τοῦ ἄρτου (klasis tou artou). Theological meaning: a shared covenantal/commemorative meal (proto-Lord’s-Supper) marking union with Christ and one another. Dogri: रोटी तोड़ना. Risk: High. Must be sharply distinguished from prasad — consecrated temple food distributed to worshippers after puja at Raghunath Mandir, Bahu Fort, or Vaishno Devi. Breaking of bread is a memorial/covenantal fellowship act commemorating Christ’s death, not a substance made holy by ritual offering and then consumed for blessing.
- Prayers — reuses BASELINE intercession बिचाल्ले होइयै बिनती framework; general term प्रार्थना. Risk: Medium, unchanged from baseline (distinguish from mediated shrine petition).
PART B — CHAPTER-BY-CHAPTER ANALYSIS, ACTS 1; 3–28
(Acts 2 is fully treated above as the core passage.)
Chapter 1 — Ascension, the Promise of the Spirit, Judas Replaced
| Terms | Variants | Theological meaning | Dogri rendering & risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ascension [NEW] ἀνελήμφθη (anelēmphthē) “was taken up” | bodily removal into heaven ascended, taken up, received up | Christ’s bodily, visible, historical departure to heavenly enthronement — not death-transcendence via a cyclical rebirth, and not a mythic sky-journey of a local deity | ऊप्पर चुक्केआ गेआ / स्वर्गे चढ़ाया गेआ. Risk: Critical — must be taught as a unique, historical, bodily event completing the resurrection, guarding the same ground as BASELINE resurrection/incarnation entries against reincarnation-cycle or avatar-descent-and-return readings. |
| Kingdom of God βασιλεία τοῦ θεοῦ — | — — | Disciples’ mistaken political-restorationist question (“will you restore the kingdom to Israel?”) corrected by Jesus toward Spirit-empowered global witness | [BASELINE — REUSE EXACT] परमेश्वर दा राज्य. Risk: Medium, unchanged; note reinforces baseline’s caution against dynastic/political readings. |
| Witnesses μάρτυρες (martyres) “testifiers” | eyewitness testifier; root of “martyr” witnesses | Programmatic verse (1:8) for the whole book: Spirit-empowered testimony “to the ends of the earth” | गवाह्. Risk: High — first occurrence of a term that will carry increasing weight (see ch.7, “witness unto death”). |
| Casting lots [NEW, low risk] κλῆρος (klēros) “a lot” | a lot cast to discern God’s choice lot, casting lots | God’s sovereign guidance in choosing Judas’s replacement; an OT-era discernment practice, not divination/astrology | पासा सुट्टना. Risk: Low-Medium — must not be conflated with ज्योतषी-style fortune-telling (already flagged in baseline “prophet” entry) or with consulting an oracle; this is a one-time, Scripture-sanctioned discernment method, not an ongoing practice modeled for believers today. |
Chapter 3 — Healing at the Temple Gate; Peter’s Second Sermon
| Terms | Variants | Theological meaning | Dogri & risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| Servant of God (title for Jesus) [NEW] ὁ παῖς αὐτοῦ (ho pais autou) “his servant/child” | Isaianic Suffering Servant title servant, child | Identifies Jesus as the promised Isaianic Servant, not merely a healer or wonder-worker | परमेश्वर दा सेवक. Risk: High — must retain unique messianic-servant force, not read as a generic honorific for any holy man or guru. |
| Holy and Righteous One (title) [NEW] τὸν ἅγιον καὶ δίκαιον (ton hagion kai dikaion) “the Holy and Righteous One” | Christological title built on BASELINE holy पवित्तर + righteousness धरमीपन Holy One, Righteous One | Peter names Jesus with the very terms already reserved in the baseline for God’s own moral character | पवित्तर ते धरमी जन. Risk: High, inherits the baseline’s Critical caution on धरमीपन (never धरम/lineage-duty). |
| Repentance / turn μετανοήσατε… ἐπιστρέψατε ”repent… turn” | reinforces Acts 2:38 term repent, turn, be converted | Same doctrine as 2:38, paired with a synonym “turn” (ἐπιστρέφω) | मन फिराव / मुड़ना. Risk: Critical, same as established in core passage. |
| Times of refreshing / restoration of all things [NEW] ἀνάψυξις / ἀποκατάστασις (anapsyxis / apokatastasis) “a breathing-space” / “a restoring-again” | eschatological renewal at Christ’s return refreshing, restoration | Linear, once-for-all consummation of God’s redemptive plan at Christ’s return | ताजगी दे दिन / सब चीज़ां दी बहाली. Risk: High — must not be read through a cyclical cosmic-renewal lens (recurring yuga cycles); this is history’s single, final restoration, not a repeating pattern. |
| Ignorance [NEW, low risk] κατὰ ἄγνοιαν (kata agnoian) “in/according to ignorance” | acting without full knowledge ignorance | Mitigates but does not excuse guilt for Christ’s death; sets up the call to repent | अज्ञानता. Risk: Low. |
Chapter 4 — Boldness before the Council; the Church’s Unity
| Terms | Variants | Theological meaning | Dogri & risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| Boldness [NEW] παρρησία (parrēsia) “freedom/frankness of speech” | fearless, open declaration boldness, confidence | Spirit-given courage to proclaim Christ despite threat — central to the “Persecution and Bold Witness” doctrine of this curriculum | हिम्मत / निडरता (with Holy Spirit as its source named explicitly in context). Risk: Medium — must be anchored to Spirit-empowered gospel testimony, not conflated with Dogra Rajput martial/honor courage (izzat-defending bravado), which is a different motivational root entirely. |
| Sanhedrin / the Council [NEW] συνέδριον (synedrion) “a sitting-together” | the Jewish high court/ruling council council, Sanhedrin | The highest Jewish legal-religious authority, which repeatedly opposes the apostles | सनहेड्रिन (transliterated), glossed “यहूदी बड्डी सभा.” Risk: Low-Medium — historical institution; avoid conflating its authority with a local village panchayat’s social authority. |
| ”No other name under heaven by which we must be saved” οὐκ ἔστιν ἐν ἄλλῳ οὐδενὶ ἡ σωτηρία — | — — | Absolute exclusivity of salvation in Christ, reusing BASELINE salvation उद्धार | Risk: Critical — must be stated with full exclusivist force against a pluralistic religious environment naming many venerated figures (Rama, Kali, Vaishno Devi, Baba Jitto); no softening permitted. |
| One heart and soul / one accord [NEW] μία καρδία καὶ μία ψυχή / ὁμοθυμαδόν ”one heart and one soul” / “with one passion” | radical unity of the early church one accord, one heart and mind | Spirit-created unity across social lines, holding possessions in common | इक मन ते इक जिंद. Risk: Medium — distinguish from caste/clan (biradari) solidarity; this unity crosses, rather than reinforces, existing social and lineage boundaries. |
| Great grace χάρις μεγάλη ”great favor” | — — | Reuses BASELINE grace बिना कमाई दित्ती दया, intensified | Risk: Critical, unchanged. |
Chapter 5 — Ananias and Sapphira; Gamaliel’s Counsel
| Terms | Variants | Theological meaning | Dogri & risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lying to the Holy Spirit [NEW] ψεύσασθαι τὸ πνεῦμα τὸ ἅγιον ”to lie to the Holy Spirit” | deceiving God, not merely the community lying to the Spirit | Directly equates lying to the Spirit with lying to God (5:3-4) — a strong affirmation of the Spirit’s full personal deity | पवित्तर आत्मा कन्नै झूठ बोलना. Risk: High, reinforcing BASELINE holy_spirit Critical status: the Spirit is not an impersonal institutional power that can be merely “cheated,” but God himself, personally lied to. |
| Fear [of God] [NEW] φόβος (phobos) “fear/dread” | reverential awe or terror fear, great fear | Awe at God’s holiness and justice falling on the whole community | परमेश्वर दा डर. Risk: Medium — distinguish from superstitious, appeasement-driven fear of a volatile deity (e.g., propitiating an angry Kali at Bahu Fort); biblical fear of God is reverent awe within covenant relationship, not placation of unpredictable divine anger. |
| ”If this plan/movement is of God” (Gamaliel) [NEW, low risk] ἐὰν ἦ ἐκ θεοῦ (ean ē ek theou) “if it is from God” | providential test of God, from God | Anticipates BASELINE providence परमेश्वर दा प्रबन्ध — God’s sovereign superintendence of the church’s growth even through opposition | Risk: Medium, inherited from providence entry. |
Chapter 6 — The Seven Chosen for Table Service; Stephen Introduced
| Term | Greek/Translit. | Literal | Semantic range | Variants | Theological meaning | Dogri & risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Table service / ministry (diaconate) [NEW] | διακονία (diakonia) | “service, ministry” | practical service distinguished from the ministry of the word | service, ministry, deaconing | The origin of the diaconal office, freeing the apostles for the word while ensuring just, practical care for the vulnerable (widows) | सेवा दा कम्म. Risk: Medium — “सेवा” is also the standard word for temple/langar volunteer service in regional Hindu and Sikh devotional practice; must be anchored explicitly to Christ-centered church ministry flowing from the gospel, not generic devotional service rendered for merit. |
| Laying on of hands [NEW] | ἐπιθέντες τὰς χεῖρας (epithentes tas cheiras) | “having laid on the hands” | commissioning/impartation rite | laying on of hands | Formal apostolic commissioning of the Seven for recognized ministry | हथ रखणा. Risk: Medium — distinguish from folk-blessing touch by a local holy man, sadhu, or pir; this is a specific act of apostolic commissioning/impartation, not a generic charismatic blessing gesture. |
| Filled with the Spirit and wisdom — reuses established holy_spirit/filled terms (see Acts 2:4). Risk: High, unchanged. |
Chapter 7 — Stephen’s Speech and Martyrdom
| Terms | Variants | Theological meaning | Dogri & risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stiff-necked [NEW] σκληροτράχηλος (sklērotrachēlos) “hard/stiff of neck” | stubborn resistance to God, OT idiom stiff-necked, stubborn | Charges the council with Israel’s historic pattern of resisting God’s messengers | अक्खड़ / जिद्दी. Risk: Low-Medium. |
| Son of Man [NEW] ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου (ho huios tou anthrōpou) “the son of the man” | Danielic exalted, dominion-receiving figure (Dan. 7:13-14), Jesus’ own self-designation Son of Man | Stephen’s dying vision confirms Jesus’ exalted, glorified, divine-messianic status at God’s right hand | मनुक्ख दा पुत्तर. Risk: Critical — must retain the Danielic force of a divine, dominion-receiving figure, not be read as a mere self-effacing synonym for “a human being”; this reinforces BASELINE sonship_of_christ and deity_of_christ. |
| Witness unto death (martyrdom) [NEW] μάρτυς (martys, cf. 22:20) “witness/testifier” | full sense realized: testimony sealed by death martyr, witness | Stephen becomes the church’s first martyr, dying in imitation of Christ’s own forgiveness of his killers | गवाही देंदे-देंदे जान देना (giving one’s life while bearing witness). Risk: High. CAUTION: must not be assimilated to, or explained by analogy with, the regional folk-martyr cult of Baba Jitto (self-sacrifice in protest against an exploitative landlord, venerated with Bua Kauri at the Aghar Jitto shrine). Surface parallels exist (unjust death, enduring public memory), but Stephen’s death is a witness to the risen Christ and an act of forgiveness toward his killers — categorically distinct from a folk-martyr’s protest-sacrifice, exactly as the baseline already distinguishes Christ’s atonement from Baba Jitto’s story. |
| Blasphemy [NEW, low-medium] βλασφημία (blasphēmia) “evil/injurious speech” | speech against God’s honor blasphemy | The false charge brought against Stephen | निन्दा. Risk: Medium. |
Chapter 8 — Philip in Samaria; Simon the Sorcerer; the Ethiopian Eunuch
| Term | Greek/Translit. | Literal | Semantic range | Variants | Theological meaning | Dogri & risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sorcery / magic [NEW] | μαγεία (mageia); μάγος (magos, “sorcerer”) | “magic, sorcery” | occult manipulation of spiritual power for personal gain | sorcery, magic, witchcraft | Simon’s attempt to purchase the Spirit’s power exposes a counterfeit, transactional view of spiritual power that Peter sharply condemns | जादू-टोणा. Risk: High. This directly parallels widely practiced/feared regional occult practices (tona-totka, jadu, consultation of ojhas/faqirs for spiritual power or protection); Simon’s error must be taught as an attempt to buy God’s power as one buys occult services — explicitly condemned, not merely a “lesser” or “impure” version of the same power source as the Holy Spirit’s. |
| Samaritans / gospel to Samaria — reuses BASELINE gospel खरी खबर + gentiles/nations framework, applied to a mixed-ethnicity, religiously-suspect people-group; an early bridge step toward full Jew-Gentile inclusion doctrine. Risk: High, extending unity_of_jews_and_gentiles. | ||||||
| Ethiopian eunuch / Scripture fulfilled — reuses BASELINE fulfillment_of_prophecy and prophecy भविष्यवाणी; Isaiah 53 read and explained as fulfilled in Jesus. Risk: Critical, unchanged. | ||||||
| Baptism (“what prevents me?”) — reuses [NEW, Critical] baptism बपतिस्मा established at 2:38; here demonstrating no ethnic/social barrier (a eunuch and foreigner) to full inclusion. Risk: Critical, extended by unity_of_jews_and_gentiles concerns. |
Chapter 9 — Saul’s Conversion; Ananias; Tabitha Raised
| Terms | Variants | Theological meaning | Dogri & risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Way [NEW] ἡ ὁδός (hē hodos) “the road/path” | early self-designation of the Christian movement/faith the Way | Not one path among many to a shared ultimate reality, but the singular way of following the risen Lord Jesus | राह् / मसीह दी राह्. Risk: High. “Path” (marg) language is pervasive across Indian religious traditions (bhakti-marg, karma-marg, and the broader sarva-dharma-sama-bhava — “all paths lead to the same truth” — outlook). This term must always be anchored to Christ by name in context to prevent a syncretistic “one path among several” misreading. |
| Chosen instrument / vessel [NEW] σκεῦος ἐκλογῆς (skeuos eklogēs) “a vessel of choosing/election” | built on BASELINE election परमेश्वर दी चोन chosen instrument, chosen vessel | Paul’s calling is God’s sovereign choice, not Paul’s own merit or spiritual achievement | चोन्दा भांडा. Risk: High, inherited from election. |
| Scales fell from his eyes [NEW idiom, low risk] ὡς λεπίδες (hōs lepides) “like scales” | vivid description of restored sight/insight scales fell away | Physical healing paired with spiritual illumination | अख्खां थमां पर्दा हट्टणा (idiomatic Dogri equivalent: “the veil lifted from his eyes”). Risk: Low. |
Chapter 10 — Cornelius; Peter’s Vision; Gentiles Receive the Spirit
This chapter carries the single highest-value new doctrinal risk in the whole book for the Dogri context.
| Term | Greek/Translit. | Literal | Semantic range | Variants | Theological meaning | Dogri & risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clean / unclean (common) [NEW — CRITICAL] | κοινός / ἀκάθαρτος (koinos / akathartos) | “common” / “unclean” | ritual and dietary purity categories under the Mosaic law | clean, unclean, common | Peter’s vision (10:15, “what God has made clean, do not call common”) declares the abolition of ritual/ethnic purity boundaries between Jew and Gentile in Christ | शुद्ध / अशुद्ध. Risk: CRITICAL. This is the sharpest possible collision point in this curriculum: शुद्ध/अशुद्ध purity-pollution categories are a live, socially consequential system in the Duggar/North Indian context, historically entangled with caste (jāti) hierarchy and untouchability, and closely related to BASELINE’s भिट्ट (ritual impurity, already flagged for “sin”). The text must be taught with its full force — God himself has abolished the purity-boundary that once separated Jew from Gentile — without either (a) trivializing the doctrine into a mere dietary footnote, or (b) leaving its caste-transcending force under-explained such that hearers unconsciously map it back onto existing purity/caste thinking rather than seeing it dismantled. Mandatory human theologian review for every occurrence. |
| God shows no partiality [NEW — High] | οὐκ ἔστιν προσωπολήμπτης ὁ θεός | ”God is not a receiver of faces/persons” | impartiality across ethnic, social, and class lines | no partiality, no respect of persons | Direct theological ground for dismantling social hierarchy in the gospel’s reach | परमेश्वर कीह् दा पख्खपात नेईं करदा. Risk: High — directly challenges Dogra Rajput lineage-honor (izzat) stratification and caste hierarchy; retain full force, extending BASELINE universal_scope_of_gospel and universal_human_accountability doctrines without softening. |
| God-fearer [NEW, low-medium] | ὁ φοβούμενος τὸν θεόν (ho phoboumenos ton theon) | “one who fears God” | a Gentile devoted to Israel’s God without full proselyte conversion | God-fearer, devout | Historical descriptive category for Cornelius | परमेश्वर तो डरने वाला. Risk: Low-Medium, mainly informational/historical. |
| Gentiles receive the Holy Spirit — reuses holy_spirit पवित्तर आत्मा; theological climax: the same gift given to uncircumcised Gentiles as to Jewish believers at Pentecost, without prior circumcision or law-keeping. Risk: Critical, unchanged, directly setting up ch.15’s Jerusalem Council debate. |
Chapter 11 — Report to Jerusalem; the Church at Antioch; “Christians”
| Term | Greek/Translit. | Literal | Semantic range | Variants | Theological meaning | Dogri & risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Christian [NEW] | Χριστιανός (Christianos) | “belonging to Christ” | a follower of Christ, first applied at Antioch | Christian(s) | The community’s first outside-given name, built on BASELINE messiah मसीह | मसीही. Risk: Low, established convention. |
| ”God has granted repentance leading to life” — reuses [NEW] repentance मन फिराव, extended explicitly to Gentiles as well as Jews. Risk: Critical, unchanged; confirms repentance-unto-life is universal, not ethnically restricted. |
Chapter 12 — Herod’s Persecution; James Martyred; Peter Delivered
No significant new theological vocabulary; this chapter reuses and illustrates several already-established terms in narrative form: witness/martyrdom (James’s death, ch.7 sense), prayer/intercession (BASELINE बिचाल्ले होइयै बिनती — the church’s earnest prayer for Peter), and providence (BASELINE परमेश्वर दा प्रबन्ध — the angelic deliverance as God’s purposive governance, not lucky escape/किस्मत). Reviewed and confirmed: no new terms; reuses chs. 1-11 vocabulary.
Chapter 13 — Barnabas and Saul Sent Out; Sermon at Antioch of Pisidia
| Term | Greek/Translit. | Literal | Semantic range | Variants | Theological meaning | Dogri & risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Set apart — reuses BASELINE doctrine phrase परमेश्वर दी सेवा आस्तै अलग कीता जाना (separation unto God’s service). Risk: High, unchanged; here specifically the commissioning of missionaries by the Spirit through fasting, prayer, and laying on of hands. | ||||||
| Light to the Gentiles [NEW] | φῶς ἐθνῶν (phōs ethnōn), citing Isa. 49:6 | ”a light of/for the nations” | Isaianic Servant-mission mandate, built on BASELINE gentiles गैर-यहूदी | light to the nations | Programmatic mission mandate for Paul’s ministry | गैर-यहूदियां आस्तै जोति. Risk: Medium — avoid the light-metaphor colliding with aarti/ceremonial lamp-lighting temple ritual imagery (cf. the caution already recorded in the baseline “glory” entry); this is revelatory-missional light, not devotional lamp ritual. |
| Justified / justification — reuses BASELINE justification धर्मी ठहराए जाना explicitly (13:38-39, “everyone who believes is justified”), here made forensically explicit for the first time in Acts outside Romans’s own vocabulary. Risk: Critical, unchanged — a compound phrase carrying the declared-righteous sense is mandatory. | ||||||
| Predestined/appointed to eternal life [NEW] | τεταγμένοι εἰς ζωὴν αἰώνιον (tetagmenoi eis zōēn aiōnion) | “having been appointed unto eternal life” | reuses BASELINE election परमेश्वर दी चोन | appointed, ordained | God’s sovereign choice results in belief, not the reverse | Risk: Critical, inherited from election. |
| Eternal life [NEW] | ζωὴ αἰώνιος (zōē aiōnios) | “life eternal/age-lasting” | unending, personal, resurrected life with God | eternal life, everlasting life | Continuous with BASELINE resurrection doctrine | सदा दा जीवन / अनन्त जीवन. Risk: Critical — must never collapse into मुक्ति (liberation from the rebirth cycle, already forbidden by the baseline) nor be read as dissolution into an impersonal ultimate reality (moksha-as-merging-with-Brahman); it is unending, personal, bodily-resurrected relational life with God. |
Chapter 14 — Lystra: Healing and Mistaken for Gods
| Terms | Variants | Theological meaning | Dogri & risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| Living God [NEW] ὁ θεὸς ὁ ζῶν (ho theos ho zōn) “the living God” | contrasted with lifeless idols living God | Sharp Creator/creature polemic delivered to a pagan audience mistaking Paul and Barnabas for Zeus and Hermes | जिंदा परमेश्वर. Risk: High — directly polemical against any actively worshipped local deity (paralleling Rama-Vishnu devotion at Raghunath Mandir or Kali devotion at Bahu Fort); must retain the sharp Creator/creature distinction Paul draws, not soften it into “our god is also one of the living ones.” |
| Idols / vain things [NEW] τὰ μάταια (ta mataia), “vain/worthless things" "empty, futile things” | idols as having no true divine substance vain things, worthless idols | Paul’s Lystra sermon directly denies the reality/power of the local pantheon | बेकार चीज़ां / मूर्तियां. Risk: High — see ch.17 below for the fuller “idol/मूर्ति” treatment; here the specific polemic is that Zeus and Hermes (mapped locally onto Rama/Vishnu-type deity devotion) are not living gods at all. |
| Elders (church office) [NEW] πρεσβύτεροι (presbyteroi) “elder men” | local church leadership office, appointed by apostolic delegation elders | Establishes ongoing local church governance | कलीसिया दे बुजुर्ग. Risk: Medium — distinguish from caste-community biradari/panchayat elders whose authority rests on lineage and social seniority; church-elder authority is spiritual and gospel-derived, accountable to Scripture, not to clan hierarchy. |
Chapter 15 — The Jerusalem Council
| Term | Greek/Translit. | Literal | Semantic range | Variants | Theological meaning | Dogri & risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Circumcision [NEW] | περιτομή (peritomē) | “a cutting around” | the Abrahamic covenant sign (Gen. 17), disputed as a salvation requirement for Gentiles | circumcision | Central controversy of “Justification apart from the Law”: is circumcision/law-keeping necessary for salvation? Council answers: no | खतना. Risk: High. Note: this Perso-Arabic-derived word is popularly associated in North Indian usage with Islamic practice; a translator note must clarify this refers to the Old Testament Mosaic covenant sign under debate in Acts 15, not a Christian-Muslim dispute, to prevent confusion. The theological content — salvation by grace alone versus law-observance as a requirement — must be rendered with full doctrinal precision. |
| Yoke [NEW] | ζυγός (zygos) | “a yoke [for oxen]“ | burden of law-keeping | yoke, burden | Peter’s rhetorical question: why place on Gentiles a yoke neither they nor “our fathers” could bear | जुआ. Risk: Medium — vivid agrarian metaphor connecting directly to BASELINE law व्यवस्था; reinforces grace-versus-law-works contrast. |
| ”Saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus” — reuses BASELINE grace बिना कमाई दित्ती दया + salvation उद्धार + lord प्रभु, in explicit doctrinal statement form. Risk: Critical, unchanged; this is one of the clearest single-verse grace-statements in Acts and must match Romans’s grace rendering exactly. | ||||||
| Idol food / things offered to idols [NEW] | εἰδωλόθυτα (eidōlothyta) | “things sacrificed to idols” | the apostolic decree’s dietary restriction protecting Jew-Gentile table fellowship | food sacrificed to idols, idol offerings | A pastoral accommodation guarding against implicit participation in idol worship through shared meals | मूर्तियां अग्गे भेंट कीती चीज़ां. Risk: High. Direct parallel to prasad — food ritually offered before an image and then distributed/eaten, a live and socially significant practice at Raghunath Mandir, Bahu Fort, and especially Vaishno Devi. Must be taught with care: the underlying principle (avoid identifying with idol worship through consuming what has been ritually offered to it) remains directly relevant for Dogri believers navigating extended-family prasad-sharing, though the specific first-century decree’s pastoral occasion (protecting Jew-Gentile table fellowship) must also be explained accurately, not treated as a timeless universal food law. |
Chapter 16 — Philippi: Lydia, the Jailer, the Slave Girl’s Spirit
| Terms | Variants | Theological meaning | Dogri & risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| ”What must I do to be saved?” / household salvation [NEW] σωθῇς σὺ καὶ ὁ οἶκός σου (sōthēs sy kai ho oikos sou) “you will be saved, you and your household” | reuses BASELINE salvation उद्धार + faith भरोसा be saved… your household | Personal faith is the ground of salvation; the gospel moves through household/family networks, but each member responds personally | घराना / घर. Risk: Medium — resonates genuinely with joint-family/biradari social structure, but must be taught carefully: this is not automatic corporate salvation by kinship membership; each person in the household still hears and personally believes (16:32-34). |
| Spirit of divination (python spirit) [NEW] πνεῦμα πύθωνα (pneuma pythōna) “a spirit of Python” (Delphic oracle-spirit) | an occult, fortune-telling demonic spirit spirit of divination, fortune-telling spirit | A demonic spirit, sharply distinguished from BASELINE holy_spirit पवित्तर आत्मा | भविष्य बताने वाली दुष्ट आत्मा. Risk: High. Directly relevant given regional consultation of oracles and spirit-mediums (deval/masani possession practice at local shrines) and the astrologer/fortune-teller figure already flagged as ज्योतषी in the baseline “prophet” entry; this spirit is explicitly demonic and its power counterfeit, not a lesser-but-real neutral spiritual power. |
| Roman citizen [NEW, low risk] πολίτης Ῥωμαῖος (politēs Rhōmaios) “a Roman citizen” | legal status invoked for protection Roman citizen | Legal-historical term, no significant doctrinal weight | रोमी नागरिक. Risk: Low. |
Chapter 17 — Thessalonica, Berea, and the Areopagus
| Term | Greek/Translit. | Literal | Semantic range | Variants | Theological meaning | Dogri & risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Idol / image [NEW] | εἴδωλον (eidōlon) | “an image, likeness” | a physical object of worship, theologically empty of divine reality | idol, image | Central to Paul’s Athens speech (17:16, 17:29): “the divine being is not like gold or silver or stone, an image formed by human skill” | मूर्ति. Risk: CRITICAL. मूर्ति is also the standard, reverentially-used term for a consecrated temple image among Hindu worshippers (murti puja at Raghunath Mandir; Vaishno Devi’s pindi form; the Bahu Fort Kali murti). The word itself is unavoidable — it is the only common Dogri term for “image/statue” — but register and framing require great care: the biblical polemic targets the theological status of the object (it does not embody or channel true deity), not a blanket sociological insult toward Hindu neighbors. Tone must remain respectful and non-inflammatory while the doctrinal content stays fully intact. Mandatory human theologian review for every occurrence in a doctrinal (non-narrative-incidental) context. |
| ”Unknown god” (Athenian altar) [NEW] | ἀγνώστῳ θεῷ (agnōstō theō) | “to an unknown god” | historical Athenian inscription; Paul’s rhetorical bridge, not an endorsement | the unknown god | Paul identifies, then radically corrects, pagan ignorance — he does not affirm that the Athenians already unknowingly worshipped the true God in their existing cult | अनजाण्या परमेश्वर (historical reference only). Risk: High. CAUTION: must not be repurposed, even implicitly, to suggest that Duggar deities (Rama, Kali, Vaishno Devi, kul-devta guardian deities) are unknowingly-worshipped forms of the true God — a “fulfillment theology” move some make with this text. Paul’s strategy is rhetorical common ground followed by sharp correction (17:29-31, call to repentance and coming judgment), not religious affirmation; teaching notes must make this correction explicit. |
| Resurrection (mocked by philosophers) — reuses BASELINE resurrection मुर्दघरा चा जिंदा होना; here shown provoking scorn/mockery from Greek philosophical hearers, a useful teaching parallel for how the doctrine may also be received skeptically in the Dogri context. Risk: Critical, unchanged. | ||||||
| ”In him we live and move and have our being” [NEW, low-medium] | ἐν αὐτῷ ζῶμεν καὶ κινούμεθα καὶ ἐσμέν | — | God’s immanent sustaining of all life | in him we live… | Careful to affirm God’s nearness without collapsing into pantheistic identification of God with creation (a risk given regional immanent-divine-presence intuitions, e.g. sacred rivers/hills) | उसदे च ही असां जीणा, हिलणा-चलणा ते होणा है. Risk: Medium — must be paired with the Creator/creature distinction Paul draws elsewhere in the same speech, not read as pantheism. |
Chapter 18 — Corinth: Aquila, Priscilla, Gallio
No major new theological vocabulary. This chapter reuses established terms — gospel खरी खबर, church कलीसिया, synagogue conflict (contextual, not requiring a new gloss), and providence परमेश्वर दा प्रबन्ध (the Lord’s assurance to Paul, “I am with you,” 18:9-10). Reviewed and confirmed: no new doctrinal terms; reuses chs. 1-17 vocabulary.
Chapter 19 — Ephesus: Disciples of John, Sons of Sceva, the Riot
| Term | Greek/Translit. | Literal | Semantic range | Variants | Theological meaning | Dogri & risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Baptism (distinguishing John’s from Christian baptism) — reuses [Critical] baptism बपतिस्मा; here the text itself distinguishes John’s repentance-baptism from baptism “in the name of the Lord Jesus” accompanied by the Spirit’s reception (19:1-7). Risk: Critical, unchanged; requires a translator note distinguishing the two baptisms explicitly, since both use the same Dogri word. | ||||||
| Sorcery / magic books burned — reuses [High] sorcery जादू-टोणा from ch.8; here decisively repudiated by new believers, publicly and materially. Risk: High, unchanged; strong illustrative material for discipleship from an occult-practicing background. | ||||||
| Artemis / Diana of the Ephesians [NEW, proper noun] | Ἄρτεμις (Artemis) | — | a major regional goddess with an economically significant temple cult and pilgrimage/craft economy | Artemis, Diana | The riot arises because the gospel threatens a shrine-based economy (idol-image silversmiths losing trade) | अरतिमिस (transliterated). Risk: Medium-High for teaching notes: this is a striking real-world parallel to the pilgrimage economy surrounding Vaishno Devi (offerings, tourism, associated trades) and should be used pastorally to help Dogri learners recognize why the gospel can provoke economic, not only theological, resistance — without being framed as a direct condemnation of Vaishno Devi itself. |
Chapter 20 — Paul’s Farewell at Miletus
| Terms | Variants | Theological meaning | Dogri & risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whole counsel of God [NEW] πᾶσαν τὴν βουλὴν τοῦ θεοῦ (pasan tēn boulēn tou theou) “all the counsel/purpose of God” | reuses BASELINE providence परमेश्वर दा प्रबन्ध the whole counsel of God | Paul’s faithful, complete proclamation of God’s purposes, holding nothing back | परमेश्वर दी सारी सलाह/मनसा. Risk: High, inherited from providence. |
| Overseer / Shepherd (church office) [NEW] ἐπίσκοπος / ποιμήν (episkopos / poimēn) “overseer” / “shepherd” | pastoral church leadership, alongside elders (πρεσβύτεροι, reuse from ch.14) overseer, bishop, shepherd, pastor | Church leaders as watchful shepherds guarding against “wolves” (false teachers) | निगरान (overseer) / चरवाहा (shepherd). Risk: Medium — a fitting agrarian pastoral metaphor with no significant competing religious connotation in this context; low collision risk, but keep tied to accountability to Christ (“shepherd the church of God, which he obtained with his own blood,” 20:28), not generic leadership authority. |
Chapter 21 — Jerusalem: Prophecy, the Nazirite Vow, the Temple Riot
| Term | Greek/Translit. | Literal | Semantic range | Variants | Theological meaning | Dogri & risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vow (Nazirite) [NEW — special context-restricted flag] | εὐχή (euchē) | “a vow” | a legitimate OT ceremonial vow of consecration (cf. Num. 6) | vow | Paul, as a matter of missional/cultural sensitivity (cf. 1 Cor. 9:19-23), fulfills a genuine, biblically legitimate vow — this is NOT the mannat/vow-for-boon transactional logic the baseline forbids for the doctrine of grace | मन्नत. Risk: CRITICAL — SPECIAL HANDLING REQUIRED. The baseline translation_memory.json explicitly rejects मन्नत (“मन्नत दा फल”) as a rendering for grace, because of its strong association with the Vaishno Devi vow-for-boon economy. That rejection concerns grace specifically, not the word मन्नत itself — here, in Acts 21, “vow” genuinely is a vow, and मन्नत is the natural and correct Dogri word for it. Translators and reviewers must not conflate “never use मन्नत for grace” with “never use मन्नत anywhere”; this passage requires मन्नत used correctly for a real vow, accompanied by a mandatory translator note distinguishing this legitimate OT ceremonial practice (undertaken voluntarily, without any claim that it earns salvation) from both the grace-vow confusion the baseline guards against and from the mannat-for-boon logic of shrine pilgrimage. Escalate every occurrence to human theologian review. |
| Temple (literal Jerusalem Temple) — note on usage discipline: BASELINE forbids मंदर (“temple”) as a rendering for church (ekklēsia). Here, in Acts 21 (and elsewhere the narrative refers to the actual Jerusalem Temple building, ἱερόν/ναός), मंदर is the correct and necessary word for this distinct, literal referent. Risk: Medium — translators must apply context discipline: मंदर is correct and required for the literal Jerusalem Temple (and, by extension, the Ephesian temple of Artemis, ch.19), but forbidden for church/ekklēsia (कलीसिया). | ||||||
| Ceremonial purification (OT rite) [NEW, medium] | ἁγνίζω (hagnizō) | “to purify ceremonially” | legitimate OT Temple purification rite, distinct from BASELINE’s caution against sanctification-as-ritual-purification | purify, be purified | Paul’s participation in a real OT-era purification rite in its own redemptive-historical context — not evidence that ritual purification saves or sanctifies under the New Covenant | शुद्धीकरण दी रीत (with an explicit translator note that this is a described, historical OT-era practice, not a template for Christian sanctification, which per baseline is never शुद्धिकरण). Risk: Medium-High — requires careful narrative-vs-doctrine framing to avoid contradicting the baseline’s sanctification entry. |
Chapter 22 — Paul’s Defense Before the Crowd
Largely reuses established vocabulary: Paul’s conversion testimony repeats the Way राह्, repentance मन फिराव, baptism बपतिस्मा (“wash away your sins, calling on his name” — reusing “call on the name,” Acts 2:21/2:38), and Roman citizenship रोमी नागरिक from ch.16. Reviewed and confirmed: no new doctrinal terms; reuses chs. 2, 9, 16 vocabulary in testimonial form.
Chapter 23 — Paul Before the Sanhedrin; Plot Against His Life
Largely reuses established vocabulary: Sanhedrin सनहेड्रिन (ch.4), and resurrection मुर्दघरा चा जिंदा होना (ch. Core passage; ch.17) — here becoming the specific point of dispute between Pharisees (who affirm it) and Sadducees (who deny it), useful teaching material on why resurrection doctrine was contested even within Judaism, not only against pagan or Hindu frameworks. Reviewed: no wholly new terms; existing resurrection entry gains an added intra-Jewish debate dimension worth noting for teaching purposes.
Chapter 24 — Paul Before Felix
| Term | Greek/Translit. | Literal | Semantic range | Variants | Theological meaning | Dogri & risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Self-control [NEW, low-medium] | ἐγκράτεια (enkrateia) | “self-mastery” | disciplined moral restraint | self-control, temperance | Paul reasons with Felix about righteousness, self-control, and coming judgment | आपे उप्पर काबू. Risk: Low-Medium. |
| Judgment to come [NEW, medium] | τὸ κρίμα τὸ μέλλον (to krima to mellon) | “the judgment about to be” | eschatological accountability before God | judgment to come | Reinforces universal accountability, reusing BASELINE universal_human_accountability doctrine | आनी वाला न्याय. Risk: Medium-High, inherited emphasis. |
| Righteousness — reuses BASELINE righteousness धरमीपन in this defense-speech context. Risk: Critical, unchanged. | ||||||
| The Way — reuses ch.9 राह्; Felix has “a rather accurate knowledge of the Way.” Risk: High, unchanged. |
Chapter 25 — Paul Before Festus; Appeal to Caesar
| Terms | Variants | Theological meaning | Dogri & risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| Appeal to Caesar [NEW, low risk] ἐπικαλοῦμαι Καίσαρα (epikaloumai Kaisara) “I call upon/appeal to Caesar” | a legal appeal to the emperor’s court appeal to Caesar | Legal-historical term; note the same Greek verb (ἐπικαλέομαι) used for “calling on the name of the Lord” (Acts 2:21) — a homonymous but theologically unrelated usage requiring a disambiguating translator note | कैसर कोल अपील करना. Risk: Low doctrinally, but flag for translator note to prevent confusion with the theologically loaded प्रभु दा नां लैना (calling on the Lord’s name) elsewhere in the book. |
Chapter 26 — Paul Before Agrippa
Largely reuses established vocabulary: Paul’s conversion retold (the Way, light, chosen instrument, eternal life, all established above). One new item:
| Terms | Variants | Theological meaning | Dogri & risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| ”Kicking against the goads” [NEW idiom] σκληρόν σοι κεντρίζειν (sklēron soi kentrizein) “hard for you to kick against the goad” | agrarian idiom for futile resistance to a stronger will kicking against the goads | Christ’s rebuke of Saul’s resistance to his sovereign call; per baseline idiom-handling rule, translate for meaning, not literal image | परमेश्वर दे खिलाफ अक्खड़पन दिखाना (showing stubborn resistance against God) — natural Dogri equivalent for futile resistance, rather than a literal ox-goad image likely unfamiliar to urban readers. Risk: Medium. |
Chapter 27 — The Storm and Shipwreck
Largely reuses established vocabulary: providence परमेश्वर दा प्रबन्ध (God’s purposive care through the storm, the angel’s assurance “you must stand before Caesar,” and “not a hair from your head will perish”) and faith भरोसा (Paul’s confident trust in God’s word amid crisis). No wholly new doctrinal term is introduced, though the physical-deliverance sense of assurance developed here should be explicitly connected to the baseline’s assurance_of_salvation doctrine as an illustrative extension (God’s trustworthy care in bodily peril, not a guarantee of avoiding all hardship). Reviewed and confirmed: no new terms; reuses providence/faith vocabulary in a narrative-of-deliverance mode.
Chapter 28 — Malta and Arrival in Rome
Largely reuses established vocabulary: the living God/godhood-confusion motif recurs (the Maltese conclude Paul is “a god” after surviving the snakebite, directly paralleling Lystra in ch.14 — useful for teaching the recurring pattern of miracle-workers being mistaken for deities), kingdom of God परमेश्वर दा राज्य (Paul’s final unhindered proclamation), and boldness हिम्मत/निडरता (ch.4). One small new item:
| Terms | Variants | Theological meaning | Dogri & risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unhindered [NEW, low risk] ἀκωλύτως (akōlytōs) “without hindrance” | the gospel preached with total freedom, the book’s final word unhindered, without restriction | A deliberately open-ended, hopeful close: the gospel’s advance cannot be stopped | बिना रोक-टोक. Risk: Low. |
This document, together with 08_core_glossary.md, extends but never contradicts the baseline Romans translation_memory.json, bible_term_registry.json, and doctrine_risk_registry.json. All new terms flagged [NEW] above require formal risk-tier ratification and addition to an updated translation memory before Phase 2 segment translation begins.