Doctrine Analysis
Doctrine Analysis — Ephesians (Nepali)
Purpose and Method
This document is the full-book doctrine matrix required by PRD Phase 1 Step 4. It walks Ephesians chapter by chapter, first verse to last, mapping every load-bearing doctrine to its supporting passages, risk tier, translation risk rationale, and review routing. It is fully consistent with assets/doctrine_risk_registry.json (Ephesians v1): the same 36 doctrine keys, the same risk tiers, the same review routing. No doctrine tier is altered here; this document exists to show where in the book each doctrine is triggered, chapter by chapter, so that Phase 2 segment processing has complete coverage — including sections where no new doctrinal decision is required, which are explicitly marked “reviewed, no new term” rather than silently skipped.
The core passage, Ephesians 2:1-10, is the theological anchor of the curriculum (Salvation by Grace through Faith) but is not the scope boundary. Coverage below spans all six chapters.
Risk tier definitions follow the baseline exactly:
| Tier | Definition | Routing |
|---|---|---|
| Critical | Mistranslation alters or destroys essential doctrine | Human theologian, every occurrence |
| High | Mistranslation creates significant theological confusion or syncretism risk | Human theologian |
| Medium | Mistranslation reduces clarity but preserves essential meaning | Native speaker review |
| Low | Mistranslation causes minor misunderstanding | Automated review |
Chapter 1 — Election, Adoption, and the Headship of the Exalted Christ
| Doctrine | Supporting Passages (Eph. 1) | Risk | Translation Risk Notes | Review Routing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grace | 1:2, 1:6-7 | High | Salutation and praise both open on अनुग्रह; must read as unmerited favor, never पुण्य-style merit accumulation, from the letter’s first sentence. | Human theologian |
| Election and Predestination in Christ | 1:4-5, 1:11-12 | Critical | पूर्वनिर्धारण गर्नु is the curriculum’s flagship doctrine term; must convey a personal God’s loving, purposive prior choice “in love” (1:4-5), never भाग्य/किस्मत or karmic determinism. | Human theologian |
| Adoption into God’s Family | 1:5, 1:11, 1:14, 1:18 | High | दत्तक पुत्रता + उत्तराधिकार (inheritance); full heirship, not a caste-inflected lesser status. | Human theologian |
| Heavenly Places / Secure Position in Christ | 1:3, 1:20 | High | स्वर्गीय स्थान requires standing clarifying note distinguishing it from Hindu svarga (temporary, merit-based, subject to falling back into rebirth). | Human theologian |
| The Mystery of Christ Revealed | 1:9-10 | High | रहस्य + mandatory clarifying note: formerly hidden, now openly proclaimed — opposite of Tantric esoteric secrecy. | Human theologian |
| Divine Calling | 1:18 | High | बोलावट; sovereign summons, not self-initiated seeking. | Human theologian |
| Revealed, Relational Knowledge of God | 1:17-18 | High | ज्ञान requires qualifying note (चिनजान in catechesis) to avoid self-attained gnosis/jnana-marga reading. | Human theologian |
| Headship of Christ over the Church | 1:10, 1:22 | High | शिर as cosmic, all-things-summed-up authority; groundwork for the ecclesial and household senses developed later in the letter. | Human theologian |
| The Church as the Body of Christ | 1:22-23 | High | शरीर/मण्डली introduced as Christ’s organic body — first occurrence in the book; sets the term for chs. 2, 4, 5. | Human theologian |
| The Fullness of Christ | 1:23 | High | पूर्णता requires clarifying note against Upanishadic pūrṇa (impersonal totality); here it is Christ’s personal filling of his people. | Human theologian |
| Power of God over Hostile Spiritual Powers | 1:19-21 | High | सामर्थ्य/पराक्रम/बल — never शक्ति — for the power that raised and exalted Christ above “every rule and authority.” | Human theologian |
| Resurrection of Christ (baseline term, reused) | 1:20 | Critical (baseline) | पुनरुत्थान, never पुनर्जन्म; reused exactly from Romans baseline, reviewed here with no new decision required. | Human theologian |
| Thanksgiving (baseline term, reused) | 1:16 | Low | धन्यवाद; reviewed, no new term. | Automated review |
Coverage note: Ephesians 1:1-2 (salutation) and 1:3 (opening doxology formula) are reviewed and contribute no doctrine beyond grace/peace already fixed in the Romans baseline; no new decision required.
Chapter 2 — Salvation by Grace, and the New Humanity (Core Passage)
| Doctrine | Supporting Passages (Eph. 2) | Risk | Translation Risk Notes | Review Routing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sin (baseline term, reused) | 2:1-2 | High (baseline) | पाप; the “before” state — dead in trespasses (अपराध, new Medium term) and sins. | Human theologian |
| Walking in Newness of Life | 2:2 (“before”), 2:10 (“after”) | High | चालचलन/हिँड्नु forms the doctrine’s defining inclusio within the core passage itself: condemned walk (2:2) vs. grace-enabled walk (2:10). | Human theologian |
| Mercy | 2:4 | High | दया, the newly-established third term distinct from अनुग्रह and कृपा; God’s response to human misery, not merely unworthiness. | Human theologian |
| Salvation by Grace through Faith | 2:4-7, 2:8-9 | Critical | The core passage’s central claim. उद्धार by अनुग्रह through विश्वास — never presented as, or blended with, human achievement. | Human theologian |
| Union with Christ (Made Alive, Raised, Seated Together) | 2:5-6 | High | Compound verbs preserving distinct personhood of Christ and believer; must not read as Advaita-style self-Brahman absorption. | Human theologian |
| Heavenly Places | 2:6 | High | Reuses ch.1’s clarifying note; believers already seated there in Christ — secure, not provisional. | Human theologian |
| Works and Grace Antithesis | 2:9-10 | Critical | The single highest-stakes lexical decision in the whole curriculum: काम (never कर्म) used identically at both 2:9 (excluded as ground) and 2:10 (affirmed as fruit). | Human theologian |
| Gentiles (baseline term, reused) | 2:11 | Medium (baseline) | अन्यजाति; reviewed, no new decision. | Native speaker review |
| Unity of Jews and Gentiles in One New Humanity | 2:11-13, 2:14-18 | High | बीचको पर्खाल (“dividing wall”) maps precisely onto Nepal’s Muluki Ain caste-separation history; Christ breaks down, not merely tolerates, this wall. | Human theologian |
| One New Humanity in Christ | 2:15 | High | एक नयाँ मानिस must read as a genuinely NEW single humanity, not a federation of two prior groups (risk of caste-council misreading). | Human theologian |
| Covenant (baseline term, reused) | 2:12 | High (baseline) | करार; reviewed, no new decision. | Human theologian |
| The Church as the Body of Christ | 2:19-22 | High | Fellow citizens / household of God (सहनागरिक / परमेश्वरको घरपरिवारका सदस्य): full family-insider status for Gentiles. | Human theologian |
| Sanctification | 2:21 (“holy temple”) | High | पवित्र मन्दिर is a deliberate, narrow, NOTED exception to the baseline’s मन्दिर-avoidance rule; requires mandatory clarifying note every occurrence. | Human theologian |
Coverage note: This chapter contains the curriculum’s core passage (2:1-10) and is therefore the single densest doctrinal chapter in the book; every doctrine listed above has been cross-checked against 08_core_glossary.md Section B, Doctrine 1 and Doctrine 4.
Chapter 3 — The Mystery Proclaimed and the Prayer for Fullness
| Doctrine | Supporting Passages (Eph. 3) | Risk | Translation Risk Notes | Review Routing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Mystery of Christ Revealed | 3:3-4, 3:6, 3:9 | High | Second major concentration of रहस्य in the book; the mandatory clarifying note (hidden-then-openly-proclaimed) must be applied consistently with ch. 1 and 5:32/6:19. | Human theologian |
| Unity of Jews and Gentiles in One New Humanity | 3:6 | High | ”Fellow heirs, same body, partakers of the promise” — सहअधिकारी / एउटै शरीरका सदस्य / प्रतिज्ञामा सहभागी; Gentiles as FULL, not partial, members. | Human theologian |
| Christian Fellowship | 3:6 | Low | सहभागिता / सहभागी root; reviewed, reused from baseline with no new risk beyond the compound terms above. | Automated review |
| Grace | 3:2, 3:7 | High | Grace as the basis of Paul’s stewardship (जिम्मेवारी, new Medium term — see Section D cross-reference in 08_core_glossary.md). | Human theologian |
| Evangelism and Bold Proclamation | 3:8-9, 3:13 | High | निर्धक्कता/भरोसा (boldness/confidence) attached to gospel proclamation despite imprisonment; raised to High for Nepali given the 2017 Muluki Criminal Code’s conversion-restriction provisions. | Human theologian |
| Revealed, Relational Knowledge of God | 3:14-19 | High | Prayer for the church to “know” (ज्ञान, qualified) the love of Christ and be filled with the fullness of God. | Human theologian |
| The Fullness of Christ | 3:19 | High | पूर्णता again requires the standing Upanishadic-pūrṇa clarifying note. | Human theologian |
| Adoption into God’s Family | 3:14-15 | High | ”Father” (पिता) as the ground of “every family in heaven and on earth” being named; reinforces adoption doctrine from ch. 1. | Human theologian |
| Power of God over Hostile Spiritual Powers | 3:10, 3:20 | High | सामर्थ्य/पराक्रम, never शक्ति, in the closing doxology (“him who is able to do far more than we ask”). | Human theologian |
| Glory (baseline term, reused) | 3:13, 3:16, 3:21 | High (baseline) | महिमा; reviewed, no new decision required. | Human theologian |
Coverage note: Ephesians 3:1 and 3:14 (narrative transition markers, “for this reason”) contribute no independent doctrinal content beyond what is captured above; reviewed with no new term.
Chapter 4 — One Body, Many Gifts, and the Call to a New Walk
| Doctrine | Supporting Passages (Eph. 4) | Risk | Translation Risk Notes | Review Routing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Divine Calling | 4:1, 4:4 | High | बोलावट reused; “walk worthy of the calling” links calling directly to the chapter’s walking doctrine. | Human theologian |
| Unity of the Spirit | 4:3-6 | High | आत्माको एकता + शान्तिको बन्धन: a GIVEN unity to be diligently kept, not a federation to be negotiated — directly relevant to Nepal’s caste-fragmented social history. | Human theologian |
| The Church as the Body of Christ | 4:4, 4:16, 4:25 | High | ”One body” reused across the chapter; शरीर term consistency required with chs. 1–2. | Human theologian |
| Gifts for Building Up the Church | 4:7-13 | Medium | आत्मिक वरदान / वरदान distinctions per office; distinct from general spiritual ability categories in Romans. | Native speaker review |
| Church Offices | 4:11 | Medium | अपोस्टल/प्रेरित, अगमवक्ता, सुसमाचार प्रचारक, गोठाला (preferred over पास्टर loanword), शिक्षक — must not read as generic guru/lama roles. | Native speaker review |
| Maturity in Christ | 4:13-14 | High | परिपक्व मानिस is REQUIRED; सिद्ध/सिद्ध मानिस is FORBIDDEN (Tantric/yogic-adept associations). | Human theologian |
| The Fullness of Christ | 4:13 | High | Third and final noun-form occurrence of πλήρωμα in the book; same clarifying-note requirement as chs. 1 and 3. | Human theologian |
| Headship of Christ over the Church | 4:15 | High | ”Grow up into him who is the head” — शिर term consistency with 1:22 and 5:23. | Human theologian |
| Mutual Edification | 4:12, 4:15-16, 4:29 | Low | आपसी वृद्धि; reused from Romans baseline, no new decision. | Automated review |
| Walking in Newness of Life | 4:1, 4:17-24 | High | Second major cluster of the περιπατέω inclusio; “old man / new man” (पुरानो मानिस / नयाँ मानिस) introduced individually here after its corporate use at 2:15. | Human theologian |
| Old Self and New Self | 4:22-24 | Medium | Individual-ethical sense must cohere with the corporate sense at 2:15 as flowing from the same theological reality. | Native speaker review |
| Renewal of the Mind | 4:23 | Medium | नवीकरण गर्नु; must never carry पुनर्जन्म-adjacent phrasing — continuous inward renewal of the same person. | Native speaker review |
| Sanctification (grieving the Spirit) | 4:30 | High | ”Do not grieve the Holy Spirit” reinforces the Spirit’s personhood (cf. baseline Critical caution against ब्रह्म/परमात्मा). | Human theologian |
Coverage note: Ephesians 4:25-32 (practical vice/virtue exhortations — lying, anger, theft, corrupt speech, kindness) is reviewed; it draws on already-established terms (पाप, अपराध, प्रेम) and contributes no new Critical/High term beyond the sanctification note above.
Chapter 5 — Imitating God, Walking in Light, and the Christ-Marriage Analogy
| Doctrine | Supporting Passages (Eph. 5) | Risk | Translation Risk Notes | Review Routing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Idolatry and Covetousness | 5:3-5 | High | मूर्तिपूजक names mainstream Hindu/Buddhist devotional practice directly; must be framed as a diagnosis of covetousness, not ethnographic condemnation. | Human theologian |
| Walking in Newness of Life | 5:2, 5:8, 5:15 | High | Third and fourth occurrences of the περιπατέω inclusio; “children of light” (उज्यालोका सन्तान, preferred over ज्योतिका सन्तान to avoid Tihar/Dipawali lamp-ritual association). | Human theologian |
| Thanksgiving | 5:4, 5:20 | Low | धन्यवाद; reused, no new decision. | Automated review |
| Household Codes and Christ-Centered Relationships | 5:21-33 | High | This curriculum’s named doctrine; governs marriage through Christ’s self-sacrificial pattern, not through caste- or patriarchy-inflected social hierarchy. | Human theologian |
| Mutual Submission in Christ | 5:21, 5:22-33 | High | 5:21’s mutual submission is the governing principle for the entire section and must never be dropped or weakened relative to 5:22’s wife-specific instruction; distinguished from ὑποτάσσω’s cosmic-victory sense at 1:22. | Human theologian |
| Headship of Christ (applied to marriage) | 5:23, 5:25 | High | शिर here is interpreted strictly through 5:25’s self-sacrificial love — never domination. | Human theologian |
| Sanctification (washing/cleansing imagery) | 5:26-27 | High | शुद्ध पार्नु / पवित्र पार्नु is textually warranted here for Christ’s washing of the church “by the word”; controlled, verse-specific use only, not a general substitute for पवित्रीकरण elsewhere. | Human theologian |
| The Church as the Body of Christ (marriage analogy) | 5:23, 5:29-30, 5:32 | High | The “one flesh” (एउटै शरीर) union of Genesis 2:24 applied typologically to Christ and the church. | Human theologian |
| The Mystery of Christ Revealed | 5:32 | High | ”This mystery is profound” — explicit μυστήριον occurrence applied to the Christ-church-marriage typology; same clarifying note as chs. 1 and 3. | Human theologian |
Coverage note: Ephesians 5:1 (“be imitators of God”) and 5:6-14 (exposure of darkness by light) are reviewed; they draw on already-established terms (प्रेम, उज्यालो) and are captured under Walking in Newness of Life above with no additional new Critical/High term.
Chapter 6 — Household Codes Concluded, and the Armor of God
| Doctrine | Supporting Passages (Eph. 6) | Risk | Translation Risk Notes | Review Routing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Household Codes and Christ-Centered Relationships | 6:1-4 | High | Parent-child relationship (आदर गर्नु / आज्ञा पालन गर्नु) as ordinary filial duty, distinguished from the specifically faith-flowing obedience-of-faith category. | Human theologian |
| Slavery, Masters, and Christ’s Lordship | 6:5-9 | High | दास carries unusual weight given Nepal’s own bonded-labor abolitions (kamaiya 2000, haliya 2008) within living memory; κύριος (human sense) must render मालिक, never प्रभु, preserving the Critical Christological reservation of प्रभु for Christ alone. | Human theologian |
| Spiritual Warfare | 6:10-12 | High | This curriculum’s named doctrine. The “not against flesh and blood” qualifier (6:12) is doctrinally load-bearing and must never be dropped, given real risk of a confrontational-conduct misreading in Nepal’s religious-conversion-sensitive legal environment. | Human theologian |
| Power of God over Hostile Spiritual Powers | 6:10, 6:12 | High | सामर्थ्य/पराक्रम/बल for God’s power; the sole narrow, explained exception is 6:12’s “spiritual [शक्ति] of wickedness” — a HOSTILE force to be resisted, never a legitimate power source, requiring explicit clarification given the cultural environment’s practice of invoking or appeasing शक्ति. | Human theologian |
| The Armor of God | 6:11, 6:13-17 | High | Each armor-piece genitive (righteousness, gospel of peace, faith, salvation, Spirit) reuses an existing Critical/High baseline term as a fixed compound phrase; imagery remains explicitly defensive and metaphorical, never literal-conflict authorization. | Human theologian |
| Evangelism and Bold Proclamation | 6:19-20 | High | Paul’s request for boldness (निर्धक्कता) in making known the mystery of the gospel “as I ought to speak,” even in chains — must be taught without minimizing the text while framing tone sensitively for Nepal’s legal context. | Human theologian |
| Christian Fellowship | 6:21-23 | Low | सहभागिता; closing greetings reused from baseline, no new decision. | Automated review |
| Grace (benediction) | 6:24 | High | अनुग्रह closes the letter exactly as it opened it (1:2); consistency between the letter’s opening and closing grace-formula is required. | Human theologian |
Coverage note: Ephesians 6:18 (a call to prayer and intercession “in the Spirit”) is reviewed; it reuses the Romans baseline’s established प्रार्थना/मध्यस्थता (Medium) terms with no new decision required.
Summary Table — Doctrine Count by Risk Tier
| Tier | Count (per doctrine_risk_registry.json) | Review Routing |
|---|---|---|
| Critical | 3 (Salvation by Grace through Faith; Works and Grace Antithesis; Election and Predestination in Christ) | Human theologian, every occurrence |
| High | Majority of remaining doctrines (grace, faith, mercy, union with Christ, divine calling, adoption, heavenly places, church as body of Christ, headship of Christ, fullness of Christ, unity of Jews and Gentiles, one new humanity, mystery of Christ revealed, revelation and knowledge of God, spiritual warfare, armor of God, power of God over hostile powers, household codes, mutual submission, slavery and masters, unity of the Spirit, maturity in Christ, walking in newness of life, idolatry and covetousness, sanctification, evangelism and proclamation boldness) | Human theologian |
| Medium | Gifts for building up the church; church offices; old and new self; renewal of the mind | Native speaker review |
| Low | Thanksgiving; mutual edification; christian fellowship | Automated review |
This matrix confirms full-book coverage: every chapter (1–6) of Ephesians has been walked verse-range by verse-range, every doctrine in doctrine_risk_registry.json is anchored to at least one specific passage, and every section contributing no new doctrinal decision has been explicitly marked as reviewed rather than silently omitted.
Critical Risk Doctrines
Salvation by Grace through Faith
Nepali name: अनुग्रह र विश्वासद्वारा उद्धार
Key terms: grace, faith, salvation, works, good_works, gift_of_salvation
Review routing: Human theologian
The core passage’s central claim. उद्धार must never collapse toward मुक्ति/मोक्ष/निर्वाण, and अनुग्रह must never collapse toward पुण्य-style accumulated merit. Ephesians 2:8-9 states most sharply of any passage in this curriculum that salvation is ‘not of works’ — requiring काम (never कर्म) at 2:9 to avoid importing karma-merit accounting into the antithesis.
Works and Grace Antithesis
Nepali name: काम र अनुग्रहको विरोधाभास
Key terms: works, good_works, workmanship
Review routing: Human theologian
The single highest-stakes new terminological decision in this curriculum. कर्म must NEVER be used for ἔργον here: it would either imply Christianity teaches no moral cause-and-effect at all, or reduce Paul’s positive grace-claim to a mere philosophical rejection of the karma doctrine. काम is required, used identically at both 2:9 (excluded as ground) and 2:10 (affirmed as fruit) to preserve Paul’s deliberate wordplay.
Election and Predestination in Christ
Nepali name: ख्रीष्टमा छनोट र पूर्वनिर्धारण
Key terms: election, predestined, purpose_of_god, good_pleasure
Review routing: Human theologian
This curriculum’s named doctrine. पूर्वनिर्धारण गर्नु must never suggest भाग्य/किस्मत (impersonal fate) or the mechanistic unfolding of karma — this is a personal God’s loving, purposive prior decision, made ‘in love’ (1:4-5), not blind cosmic determinism shared by Hindu/Buddhist frameworks.
High Risk Doctrines
Grace
Nepali name: अनुग्रह
Key terms: grace, gift_of_salvation
Review routing: Human theologian
Unmerited favor directly contradicts the karma-merit accounting shared by Nepali Hindu and Buddhist ethical frameworks. Ephesians 1:6-8 and 2:7-8 must reinforce ‘apart from human merit’ with the same force as the Romans baseline’s grace passages.
Faith
Nepali name: विश्वास
Key terms: faith
Review routing: Human theologian
Personal trust in Christ; distinguish from generalized Hindu/Buddhist devotional reverence (श्रद्धा, भक्ति), consistent with the Romans baseline.
Mercy
Nepali name: दया
Key terms: mercy
Review routing: Human theologian
Establishes दया as a dedicated third term distinct from अनुग्रह (grace) and from the baseline’s restricted, non-soteriological कृपा. Confusing these three collapses a distinction Paul intends between God’s response to unworthiness (grace) and to misery (mercy).
Union with Christ (Made Alive, Raised, Seated Together)
Nepali name: ख्रीष्टसँगको एकता
Key terms: made_alive_with_christ, raised_with_christ, seated_with_christ
Review routing: Human theologian
Must preserve the distinct personhood of both Christ and the believer in a relational, covenantal bond. Risk of a monistic misreading via Advaita Vedanta’s ātman-Brahman merger, where the individual self dissolves into an impersonal absolute — the biblical union is relational, not absorptive.
Divine Calling
Nepali name: परमेश्वरको बोलावट
Key terms: called, calling
Review routing: Human theologian
God’s sovereign call must be distinguished from self-initiated spiritual seeking and from karma-determined destiny, consistent with the Romans baseline.
Adoption into God’s Family
Nepali name: परमेश्वरको परिवारमा दत्तक पुत्रता
Key terms: adoption, inheritance
Review routing: Human theologian
Full son-status with complete inheritance rights (उत्तराधिकार). Guard against a lower-status reading shaped by caste-linked social hierarchy still felt in parts of Nepali society, consistent with the Romans baseline.
Heavenly Places / Secure Position in Christ
Nepali name: स्वर्गीय स्थानमा सुरक्षित स्थिति
Key terms: heavenly_places
Review routing: Human theologian
Nepali Hindu cosmology’s svarga is a temporary merit-realm from which one eventually falls back into the rebirth cycle. Biblical ἐπουράνιος describes a secure, permanent, already-and-not-yet position in Christ (and, at 6:12, the location of contested spiritual conflict) — the opposite structure. Requires a standing clarifying note.
The Church as the Body of Christ
Nepali name: ख्रीष्टको शरीरको रूपमा मण्डली
Key terms: church, body_of_christ, head, fullness, sum_up_in_christ
Review routing: Human theologian
The church as Christ’s organic, corporate body — a single living entity under Christ’s headship, not a caste-segregated assembly, a ritual institution, or (per पूर्णता’s Upanishadic pūrṇa risk) an impersonal metaphysical totality.
Headship of Christ over the Church
Nepali name: मण्डलीमाथि ख्रीष्टको शिरत्व
Key terms: head, sum_up_in_christ
Review routing: Human theologian
Christ as शिर is self-giving, life-sustaining source-authority, not domination. Risk that Nepal’s historically hierarchical, caste- and patriarchy-inflected social structures could recast headship as rank/control rather than the self-sacrificial model of 5:25.
The Fullness of Christ
Nepali name: ख्रीष्टको पूर्णता
Key terms: fullness, filled_with_the_spirit
Review routing: Human theologian
पूर्णता risks collision with the Upanishadic pūrṇa concept describing Brahman as an impersonal, self-sufficient totality (as in the well-known shanti mantra). Biblical πλήρωμα is Christ’s personal, relational filling of his people, preserving rather than dissolving personal distinction.
Unity of Jews and Gentiles in One New Humanity
Nepali name: यहूदी र अन्यजातिहरूको एकता
Key terms: gentiles, one_new_humanity, dividing_wall, reconcile, fellow_citizens, fellow_heirs, impartiality
Review routing: Human theologian
This curriculum’s named doctrine and the textual home of the ‘dividing wall’ image (2:14), which maps with unusual precision onto Nepal’s own history of physically enforced caste separation, formalized in the Muluki Ain until 1963. Must retain full theological clarity: Christ BREAKS DOWN, not merely tolerates, every such barrier, forming one genuinely NEW humanity, not a federation of previously separate groups.
One New Humanity in Christ
Nepali name: ख्रीष्टमा एक नयाँ मानिस
Key terms: one_new_humanity
Review routing: Human theologian
एक नयाँ मानिस must convey a genuinely new corporate creation, not a merger or alliance of two prior groups — risk of a caste-council or ethnic-federation misreading if the ‘newness’ is softened.
The Mystery of Christ Revealed
Nepali name: ख्रीष्टको रहस्यको प्रकाशन
Key terms: mystery, revelation
Review routing: Human theologian
This curriculum’s named doctrine. रहस्य collides with Newar Tantric Buddhist and Hindu Tantric traditions of the Kathmandu Valley, where esoteric mysteries are reserved for an initiated elite and never meant for open disclosure. Biblical μυστήριον is the OPPOSITE structure: formerly hidden, now proclaimed openly to all. Mandatory clarifying note at every occurrence.
Revealed, Relational Knowledge of God
Nepali name: परमेश्वरको प्रकाशित ज्ञान
Key terms: knowledge_of_christ, enlightened, son_of_god
Review routing: Human theologian
ज्ञान is the primary Hindu/Buddhist term for self-attained liberating knowledge (Jnana-marga, Buddhist prajñā). Ephesians’ ἐπίγνωσις is revealed, relational knowledge of a personal God and of the Son of God specifically, granted by the Spirit, never self-attained gnosis through contemplative or ascetic discipline.
Spiritual Warfare
Nepali name: आत्मिक युद्ध
Key terms: cosmic_powers, world_rulers, spiritual_forces_of_evil, wrestle_not_against_flesh, devil
Review routing: Human theologian
This curriculum’s named doctrine. The ‘not against flesh and blood’ qualifier (6:12) is doctrinally load-bearing and must never be dropped, given real risk of the passage being (mis)read as authorizing confrontational conduct toward flesh-and-blood religious opponents — a serious concern given Nepal’s history of communal-religious sensitivity and current legal restrictions on religious conversion.
The Armor of God
Nepali name: परमेश्वरका हातहतियार
Key terms: armor_of_god, breastplate_of_righteousness, shoes_of_gospel_of_peace, shield_of_faith, helmet_of_salvation, sword_of_the_spirit
Review routing: Human theologian
Each armor-piece genitive reuses an existing Critical/High baseline term (righteousness, gospel, peace, faith, salvation) and must be rendered as a fixed, consistent compound phrase. The imagery itself must remain explicitly defensive and spiritual/metaphorical, never literal-conflict authorization.
The Power of God over Hostile Spiritual Powers
Nepali name: शत्रु आत्मिक शक्तिहरूमाथि परमेश्वरको सामर्थ्य
Key terms: power_of_god, might_and_strength, cosmic_powers, spiritual_forces_of_evil
Review routing: Human theologian
सामर्थ्य/पराक्रम/बल must be used for God’s power and might (never शक्ति, given the still-practiced Newar Tantric Shakta/Kumari-cult association). The one narrow exception is 6:12’s ‘spiritual [शक्ति] of wickedness,’ naming a HOSTILE force to be resisted — never a legitimate power source, which requires explicit clarification given the cultural environment’s practice of invoking or appeasing शक्ति.
Household Codes and Christ-Centered Relationships
Nepali name: घरपरिवार सम्बन्धी आचारसंहिता र ख्रीष्ट-केन्द्रित सम्बन्ध
Key terms: submit_to_one_another, head, sacrificial_love, slaves, masters, honor_parents
Review routing: Human theologian
This curriculum’s named doctrine, spanning marriage, parent-child, and master-slave relationships, all reframed under Christ’s lordship. Every relationship in this unit is at risk of being read through Nepal’s existing caste- and patriarchy-inflected social hierarchy rather than through the self-giving, mutual, Christ-modeled pattern the text actually teaches.
Mutual Submission in Christ
Nepali name: ख्रीष्टमा आपसी अधीनता
Key terms: submit_to_one_another
Review routing: Human theologian
5:21’s mutual submission is the governing principle for the entire household-codes section and must never be dropped or treated as a separate, weaker command from 5:22’s wife-specific instruction. Must also be distinguished from the same verb’s DIFFERENT, cosmic-victory sense at 1:22 (hostile powers subjected to the exalted Christ).
Slavery, Masters, and Christ’s Lordship
Nepali name: दासत्व, मालिक र ख्रीष्टको प्रभुत्व
Key terms: slaves, masters, impartiality
Review routing: Human theologian
Nepal abolished its own bonded-labor systems (kamaiya, 2000; haliya, 2008) within living memory, making दास’s referent unusually close to lived social memory. Additionally, κύριος’s human-master sense (6:5, 6:9) must render as मालिक, never प्रभु, to preserve the baseline’s Critical reservation of प्रभु exclusively for Christ — accepting the loss of Paul’s deliberate 6:9 wordplay.
Unity of the Spirit
Nepali name: आत्माको एकता
Key terms: unity_of_the_spirit, bond_of_peace
Review routing: Human theologian
Must convey a GIVEN, Spirit-created unity to be diligently kept, not an aspirational federation to be negotiated among factions — directly relevant given Nepal’s caste-based social fragmentation, which this doctrine implicitly confronts.
Maturity in Christ
Nepali name: ख्रीष्टमा परिपक्वता
Key terms: mature_man, knowledge_of_christ
Review routing: Human theologian
FORBIDDEN SUBSTITUTION: सिद्ध/सिद्ध मानिस must never be used. सिद्ध names a Tantric/yogic adept who has attained supernatural perfection (siddhi) through esoteric spiritual discipline; using it would recast Spirit-given corporate growth toward Christ’s fullness as a self-attained tantric accomplishment. परिपक्व मानिस is required.
Walking in Newness of Life
Nepali name: नयाँपनको जीवनमा हिँड्ने कार्य
Key terms: walk, old_new_man, renewed_mind, put_off_put_on, children_of_light
Review routing: Human theologian
This curriculum’s named doctrine, anchored by the περιπατέω inclusio (2:2 before, 2:10/4:1/5:2/5:8/5:15 after). चालचलन must be anchored consistently to identity flowing from grace, never a self-directed dharmic life-path or duty-performance (dharma-marga) that could re-import a merit-based frame.
Idolatry and Covetousness
Nepali name: मूर्तिपूजा र लोभ
Key terms: idolater
Review routing: Human theologian
मूर्तिपूजक names practices central and mainstream to Nepal’s majority Hindu and Buddhist devotional life. This passage diagnoses a spiritual condition (covetousness as functional idol-worship), not an ethnographic condemnation of neighbors’ religious practice; teaching tone requires careful, non-inflammatory framing without softening the text’s actual claim.
Sanctification
Nepali name: पवित्रीकरण
Key terms: sanctification, holy, sanctify_by_washing
Review routing: Human theologian
The Spirit’s ongoing work of making believers and the church holy; not Hindu ritual purification nor Buddhist meditative self-purification. The controlled, textually-warranted use of शुद्ध पार्नु at 5:26 (Christ’s washing/cleansing imagery) must not become the default rendering for sanctification elsewhere.
Evangelism and Bold Proclamation
Nepali name: सुसमाचार प्रचार र निर्धक्क घोषणा
Key terms: gospel, mystery
Review routing: Human theologian
Raised above Medium risk specifically for Nepali, consistent with the Romans baseline: Nepal’s 2017 Muluki Criminal Code contains provisions restricting religious conversion and proselytizing, a live, current legal risk. Paul’s request for boldness (παρρησία) in proclaiming the gospel despite imprisonment must be taught without minimizing the text, while framing tone sensitively.
Medium Risk Doctrines
Gifts for Building Up the Church
Nepali name: मण्डली निर्माणका निम्ति वरदानहरू
Key terms: ascension_gifts, spiritual_gifts, evangelist, pastor, teacher, equipping, edification
Review routing: Native speaker review
This curriculum’s named doctrine. The ascension-gift offices (apostle, prophet, evangelist, pastor, teacher) must be distinguished from general Spirit-given abilities (आत्मिक वरदान) and must never be read as merit-earned status or tantric siddhi-style attainments.
Church Offices
Nepali name: मण्डलीका पदहरू
Key terms: apostle, evangelist, pastor, teacher
Review routing: Native speaker review
गोठाला (shepherd) is preferred over the colloquial loanword पास्टर to preserve the deliberate biblical shepherd-metaphor Paul intends; office titles must not be reduced to a generic guru/lama-style spiritual-teacher role.
Old Self and New Self
Nepali name: पुरानो मानिस र नयाँ मानिस
Key terms: old_new_man
Review routing: Native speaker review
The corporate sense (2:15, one new humanity) and the individual-ethical sense (4:22-24, personal transformation) must both be taught coherently as flowing from the same theological reality.
Renewal of the Mind
Nepali name: मनको नवीकरण
Key terms: renewed_mind
Review routing: Native speaker review
Must never be rendered with any पुनर्जन्म-adjacent phrasing; this is continuous inward renewal of the SAME person, not rebirth or reincarnation into a new life.
Low Risk Doctrines
Thanksgiving
Nepali name: धन्यवाद
Key terms: thanksgiving
Review routing: Automated review
Standard term. Minor risk of over-ritualization, consistent with the Romans baseline.
Mutual Edification
Nepali name: आपसी वृद्धि
Key terms: edification, equipping
Review routing: Automated review
Building one another up in faith; no significant doctrinal risk, consistent with the Romans baseline.
Christian Fellowship
Nepali name: मसीही सहभागिता
Key terms: fellowship, fellow_heirs, fellow_citizens
Review routing: Automated review
Shared participation in Christ and full membership in his household; carries the same weight given Nepal’s recent history of legally restricted Christian practice as established in the Romans baseline.
Referenced passages