Acts — Linguistic Gap Analysis (Phase 1, Step 8)

Purpose

This document identifies where standard Romanian Bible vocabulary is adequate, strained, absent, or dangerously overloaded for the Acts curriculum, and prescribes translation strategy accordingly. It is organized around (1) a doctrine-by-doctrine vocabulary matrix covering all nine named curriculum doctrines, (2) an explicit inventory of missing vocabulary and crowded semantic neighborhoods requiring “fencing” (scope-limiting teaching notes), (3) transliteration-vs-paraphrase decisions, and (4) a ranked list of the highest-risk ambiguities in this curriculum. A full chapter-by-chapter coverage sweep (Acts 1–28) closes the document per the full-book coverage mandate. All renderings here are consistent with translation_memory.json, bible_term_registry.json, and the Romans baseline; none are proposed to override baseline entries.

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Section 1 — Doctrine Vocabulary Matrix

For each named curriculum doctrine: the Romanian vocabulary already available, its specific weaknesses in the Romanian Orthodox-majority linguistic environment, and the recommended translation strategy.

1.1 The Holy Spirit and Pentecost

Available Romanian terms	Weaknesses	Recommended strategy
Duhul Sfânt, Cincizecime, Rusalii, a vorbi în limbi, daruri duhovnicești, semne și minuni, puterea lui Dumnezeu	”Rusalii,” the everyday Romanian name for the feast, carries folk-superstition freight (nymph-spirit lore, protective taboos during “săptămâna Rusaliilor”) entirely absent from the biblical event; “a vorbi în limbi” risks conflation with the distinct, interpretation-requiring phenomenon of 1 Corinthians and with contemporary charismatic/cessationist controversy	Standardize the event on the transparent calque Cincizecime (already fixed in the registry); permit “Rusalii” only in bracketed liturgical-calendar cross-reference notes, never as the primary translation. For tongues, anchor every occurrence to Acts 2’s specific claim (real, known human languages understood by hearers, 2:6,8,11) rather than a generic “ecstatic utterance” gloss.

1.2 The Gospel to Jews and Gentiles

Available Romanian terms	Weaknesses	Recommended strategy
evanghelie, neamuri, necurat/spurcat, temător de Dumnezeu, Dumnezeul necunoscut	”Neamuri” also carries the ordinary Romanian sense of “kinfolk/ethnic nation” and intersects with “neam românesc” national-identity discourse; “necurat” risks activation of the Orthodox fasting calendar’s own dietary categories (post, dezlegare) rather than the Mosaic ceremonial code Acts 10–11 actually addresses	Retain “neamuri” (baseline-established) but add a fencing note wherever Acts pairs it with ethnic-unity argumentation (10, 11, 15) clarifying the term denotes non-Jewish peoples generically, not a rival “neam” to Romanian ethnic identity. For “necurat/spurcat,” fence explicitly to the Mosaic food code and its typological fulfillment; do not let it bleed into fasting-discipline commentary.

1.3 Repentance and Baptism

Available Romanian terms	Weaknesses	Recommended strategy
pocăință, botez, păcat, iertarea păcatelor	Both terms name established Orthodox sacraments (Taina Pocăinței/Spovedania; Taina Botezului, normally administered in infancy with chrismation) with fully developed theological apparatus that postdates and exceeds the narrative pattern in Acts (adult, post-repentance, immediate baptism, e.g. 2:38,41; 16:33; 22:16)	Use the established terms (no viable alternative exists and none should be sought) but require a standing teaching note at every occurrence distinguishing Acts’ narrated historical pattern from later developed sacramental theology, affirming continuity without collapsing the two or denying either. Never let sequencing in Acts 2:38/22:16 be taught as a mechanical, automatic baptismal effect apart from repentance/faith.

1.4 The Church as Community

Available Romanian terms	Weaknesses	Recommended strategy
Biserică, părtășie, frângerea pâinii, de obște/în comun, Calea, prezbiteri, episcopi, creștini	”Frângerea pâinii” will be read by Orthodox learners as a direct reference to the Divine Liturgy/Sfânta Împărtășanie; “episcopi” collides head-on with the fully differentiated three-rank Orthodox clergy (episcop > preot > diacon), where Acts 20 flatly uses “elder” and “overseer” of the same men; “de obște” risks being taught as a binding communal-property mandate	Fence “frângerea pâinii” as the developing early-church practice Acts narrates, acknowledging continuity toward later Eucharistic theology without asserting full liturgical equivalence. Fence “episcopi/prezbiteri” jointly with an explicit historical note: in Acts 20:17,28 these are the same office, prior to the later differentiation into three ranks; this is a description of first-century terminology, not a denial of later legitimate polity. Fence “de obște” as voluntary, Spirit-produced, and situation-specific (Jerusalem church), not prescriptive economics.

1.5 Apostolic Authority and Miracles

Available Romanian terms	Weaknesses	Recommended strategy
apostol, semne și minuni, punerea mâinilor/hirotonie, simonie, exorciști	”Hirotonie” is the very word for present-day Orthodox sacramental ordination; “semne și minuni” risks assimilation to Orthodox miracle-working relic/icon veneration as an independently operative power source; “simonie” is already a loaded ecclesiastical-scandal term in Romanian usage	Use “punerea mâinilor” as the primary rendering with “(cf. hirotonie)” only as an explanatory bridge, not the primary gloss, to avoid anachronistically importing full sacramental theology into Acts 6:6/13:3/14:23/19:6. Teach signs and wonders as always subordinate/confirmatory to the preached word (cf. 2:22, 14:3), distinct from relics/icons as an ongoing independent channel. Frame “simonie” explicitly as originating in this very narrative (8:9-24), turning a loaded word into a teaching asset.

1.6 Persecution and Bold Witness

Available Romanian terms	Weaknesses	Recommended strategy
martor, mărturie, îndrăzneală, prigoană (mare), Sinedriul	”Martor” must eventually connect to “martir” (martyr in the death sense) without the two being confused at every occurrence; “îndrăzneală” risks softening into generic self-confidence/assertiveness language absent the Spirit-produced, gospel-specific sense	Teach “martor” → “martir” as a single developing trajectory anchored narratively at Stephen’s death (7:54-60; named 22:20), not two unrelated words. Consistently qualify “îndrăzneală” with its object (proclaiming Christ) at first occurrence in each unit so it is never read as mere temperament.

1.7 Conversion of Paul

Available Romanian terms	Weaknesses	Recommended strategy
a se întoarce, vas ales, alegere, lumină/slavă (light/glory imagery, 9:3; 22:6,11)	“Vas ales” is a constructed calque with no independent currency outside this passage; “alegere” reactivates the full Romans 9-11 monergism/synergism tension in a narrative rather than didactic context	Retain “vas ales” as the fixed rendering of skeuos eklogēs (9:15) with an explanatory gloss (“instrument choisi/ales de Dumnezeu pentru o lucrare anume”) at first use, distinct from “alegere” as the doctrinal category name. Do not resolve the Reformed/Orthodox-synergist tension in the narrative text itself; let the narrative state divine initiative (as the text does) without systematic elaboration, reserving systematic treatment for accompanying teaching notes.

1.8 Justification apart from the Law

Available Romanian terms	Weaknesses	Recommended strategy
îndreptățire, lege, tăiere împrejur, jug, dreptate imputată, Cel Drept	”Îndreptățire” carries the full Critical-tier Orthodox theosis-integration risk already documented in the Romans baseline; “tăiere împrejur” and “jug” are lexically clear but the underlying controversy (a first-century salvation-condition debate) has no live cultural analogue and could be flattened into a general “law vs. grace” moralism	Render Acts 13:38-39 with the identical Romans 3-5 construction for “îndreptățire”/“dreptate imputată,” explicitly building the compound phrase rather than assuming familiarity, per the baseline’s caution. Bound “tăiere împrejur”/“jug” tightly to the Acts 15/21 Judaizing controversy so as not to become a general anti-ritual argument against, e.g., liturgical practice broadly.

1.9 The Great Commission Fulfilled

Available Romanian terms	Weaknesses	Recommended strategy
misiune, împărăția lui Dumnezeu, fără piedică, a se întoarce	”Misiune” risks a colonial/proselytism connotation in a culture where Orthodoxy is entwined with national identity, and “evanghelizare” (a cognate near-neighbor) can register as confrontational outreach away from the national church	Prefer proclamation/witness framing (“propovăduire,” “mărturie”) alongside “misiune” rather than confrontational “evanghelizare” language, consistent with the baseline’s evangelism caution. Fix “fără piedică” (28:31) as the book’s deliberate closing formula, taught as answering “până la marginile pământului” (1:8) — a bookend pairing that should be flagged for identical rendering wherever either half is cited elsewhere in the curriculum.

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Section 2 — Missing Vocabulary vs. Crowded Semantic Neighborhoods

2.1 Genuinely Missing Vocabulary (no native single Romanian term; must be constructed)

Concept	Gap	Construction adopted
chosen instrument (skeuos eklogēs)	No idiomatic Romanian phrase for “a person selected as an instrument of divine purpose” outside this passage	”vas ales” — literal calque, glossed at first occurrence
imputed righteousness (Acts 13:38-39 parallel)	As in the Romans baseline, this is a Reformed systematic-theology category foreign to Orthodox vocabulary	”dreptate imputată” — constructed compound, explained rather than assumed
God-fearer	No modern Romanian social category corresponds to this first-century synagogue-adjacent Gentile status	”temător de Dumnezeu” — transparent literal rendering, requires background explanatory note every occurrence
the restoration of all things (apokatastasis)	No settled Romanian theological term free of controversy; the transliterated Greek theological term is historically tied to a condemned universalist doctrine	”așezarea din nou a tuturor lucrurilor” — periphrastic construction avoiding the loaded transliteration “apocatastază” entirely
the Way (hē hodos, self-designation)	Romanian has no pre-existing capitalized proper-noun equivalent for an early self-designation distinct from “creștini"	"Calea” — capitalized, with a note on historical priority over “creștini” (11:26)
unhindered (akōlytōs)	No single fixed Romanian adverb functions as a memorable closing formula the way the Greek does as Acts’ final word	”fără piedică” — fixed idiomatic phrase, flagged for identical use wherever cited

2.2 Crowded Semantic Neighborhoods Requiring Fencing

These are cases where the Romanian word is not missing but already “occupied” by a fully developed, doctrinally loaded neighbor concept in lived Orthodox practice. Each requires an explicit scope-limiting teaching note at every occurrence, not merely at first use, because learners will re-import the fuller sense on each re-encounter.

Term	Crowding neighbor	Fence required
botez	Taina Botezului (infant, regenerative, chrismation-linked)	Acts narrates adult post-repentance baptism; teach as historical narrative pattern, not a rejection of infant sacramental practice
pocăință	Taina Pocăinței/Spovedania (sacramental confession)	Teach the root sense (inward turning to God) as prior to, not competing with, the later sacramental rite
frângerea pâinii	Sfânta Împărtășanie / Dumnezeiasca Liturghie	Teach as the early-church practice from which later Eucharistic liturgy develops; affirm continuity, avoid full identification
sfinți (corporate sense)	Canonized, venerated saints (icons, relics, akathists)	Mandatory all-believers clarifying note at every occurrence (9:13,32,41; 26:10,18), per Romans baseline convention
har (Acts 2:47 specifically)	Har as uncreated energies / theosis participation (Critical elsewhere)	Flag 2:47 distinctly as ordinary secular “favor/goodwill,” not the soteriological term, to avoid inflating a common-usage instance with full doctrinal weight
episcopi / prezbiteri	Fully differentiated three-rank Orthodox clergy (episcop, preot, diaconus)	Teach Acts 20:17,28 as pre-differentiation NT terminology (same office, two names), not a denial of later polity
punerea mâinilor	Taina Hirotoniei (sacramental ordination)	Teach as the NT root practice; avoid both anachronistic full-sacramental reading and dismissive “just an administrative appointment” reading
mijlocire	Intercession of saints/Theotokos (akathists, litanies)	Anchor to the Spirit’s/Christ’s own direct intercession (Romans 8:26-27,34) and the church’s direct prayer to God (Acts 12:5,12); model believer-to-God prayer, not saint-mediated prayer, without denouncing requesting others’ prayers
necurat/spurcat	Orthodox fasting-calendar dietary categories (post, dezlegare)	Bound strictly to the Mosaic ceremonial food code and its fulfillment in Gentile inclusion (10:14-15,28; 11:8-9)
Rusalii (as a label, even if not used as the primary rendering)	Pre-Christian folk Pentecost-week superstition (nymph-spirits, protective taboos)	Never use as primary translation; permitted only as a bracketed cross-reference to the liturgical calendar
martor → martir	The later, narrower “martyr” (death-witness) sense	Teach as a single developing trajectory anchored at Stephen’s death, not two unrelated words, so “martor” is not prematurely read as “one who has died for the faith” in every early occurrence

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Section 3 — Transliteration vs. Paraphrase Decisions

Term	Decision	Rationale
Pentecost	Calque (“Cincizecime”), not transliteration (“Pentecost”) or folk-term substitution (“Rusalii”)	Transliteration would be opaque to ordinary readers; the existing folk term is doctrinally contaminated; the calque is transparent and theologically neutral
Sanhedrin	Transliteration (“Sinedriul”)	Established institutional proper noun with no native equivalent; low doctrinal risk
Nazirite vow	Transliteration of the proper adjective (“nazireat”) within a paraphrase (“jurământ de nazireat”)	The underlying Numbers 6 institution has no Romanian name; hybrid form preserves recognizability while remaining intelligible
simony	Transliteration/loanword (“simonie”)	Already lexicalized in Romanian as a direct historical derivative of this very passage (8:9-24); paraphrase would obscure a useful point of cultural contact
exorcist	Transliteration (“exorciști”)	Standard, low-risk loanword already naturalized in Romanian religious vocabulary
Abba	Transliteration retained (“Avva”), paired with “Tată”	Per Romans baseline; though Acts has no direct occurrence, retained for cross-document consistency
the Way	Paraphrase/calque as a proper noun (“Calea”), not transliteration	The Greek hē hodos has a natural, exact Romanian equivalent; transliteration would be meaningless
the restoration of all things	Full paraphrase (“așezarea din nou a tuturor lucrurilor”), explicitly avoiding transliteration (“apocatastază”)	The transliterated technical term carries condemned-Origenist-doctrine associations in patristic memory; paraphrase neutralizes this risk while preserving the verse’s own bounded sense
chosen instrument	Paraphrase/calque (“vas ales”), not transliteration	A concrete, image-based Greek phrase (skeuos, “vessel”) that translates naturally and vividly; transliteration is unnecessary and would obscure the vessel metaphor
God-fearer	Paraphrase (“temător de Dumnezeu”), not transliteration	Purely descriptive Greek phrase, not a proper name; direct literal rendering is both accurate and transparent
unhindered	Paraphrase/fixed idiom (“fără piedică”), not transliteration	Ordinary adverb with a natural Romanian equivalent; fixed idiomatic form serves the bookend function best
Iisus, Hristos, Pavel, Avraam, Moise, Isaia, David	Established proper-name transliteration per Orthodox Synodal convention	Per Romans baseline; no deviation permitted within this curriculum
Amin, Aliluia	Retained transliteration	Per Romans baseline convention for theological proper nouns

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Section 4 — Ranked List of Highest-Risk Ambiguities (This Curriculum)

Ranked by combined doctrinal severity and likelihood of misreading given the Romanian Orthodox-majority audience’s existing theological categories. All Critical/High designations are cross-consistent with bible_term_registry.json and doctrine_risk_registry.json (to be extended in later steps).

1. Overseers/bishops (episcopi) — Acts 20:17,28. Direct terminological identity between “elder” and “overseer” collides with the fully differentiated, doctrinally significant Orthodox three-rank clergy structure. Highest risk of producing either denominational offense or silent mistranslation-by-omission.
2. Baptism (botez) — throughout. Every occurrence activates the full weight of Orthodox sacramental infant-baptism theology against Acts’ narrated adult post-repentance pattern; the single highest-frequency Critical term in the curriculum.
3. The breaking of bread (frângerea pâinii) — 2:42,46; 20:7,11. Near-automatic identification with the Divine Liturgy risks either overclaiming full Eucharistic equivalence or, if fenced too aggressively, appearing to deny continuity with later Eucharistic practice.
4. Grace secular/theological split (har) — 2:47 vs. 15:11; 20:24,32. A single Romanian word carrying both an everyday sense and the Critical Romans-level theological sense within the same chapter (Acts 2) creates a real risk of accidental doctrinal inflation or, conversely, accidental flattening of the theological occurrences.
5. Saints, corporate sense (sfinți) — 9:13,32,41; 26:10,18. Continues the Romans-level Critical risk; Acts’ narrative usage (ordinary Joppa/Lydda believers) makes the all-believers sense especially vivid and therefore especially exposed to being read against canonized-saint veneration.
6. The restoration of all things (apokatastasis) — 3:21. Low frequency but high severity: the transliterated technical term is historically entangled with a conciliarly condemned universalist doctrine; mishandling risks either implying support for universal salvation or needlessly alarming theologically literate readers.
7. Repentance (pocăință) — 2:38; 3:19; 5:31; 8:22; 11:18; 17:30; 19:4; 20:21; 26:20. High frequency compounds the sacramental-confession crowding risk documented in Section 2.
8. Laying on of hands / hirotonie root (punerea mâinilor) — 6:6; 13:3; 14:23; 19:6. Direct etymological ancestor of a current sacramental rite name; risk of either anachronism or under-translation runs in both directions.
9. Blood of Christ / atonement embedded in leadership charge — 20:28. High risk of the Christological/atonement weight being lost because the verse’s surface genre is pastoral exhortation, not doctrinal exposition.
10. Chosen instrument / election narrative instance (vas ales / alegere) — 9:15; 13:48. Reactivates the Romans 9-11 monergism/synergism tension inside a narrative rather than didactic register, raising risk of premature systematic resolution by translators.
11. Common/unclean (necurat/spurcat) — 10:14-15,28; 11:8-9. Direct lexical overlap with the active Orthodox fasting-calendar vocabulary raises risk of accidental relevance to contemporary fasting discipline.
12. The Righteous One, Christological title (Cel Drept) — 3:14; 7:52; 22:14. Built on the already-Critical “dreptate” root; risk that the titular, Christological sense is read as a generic ethical descriptor.
13. Witness → martyr trajectory (martor/mărturie) — throughout, esp. 22:20. Risk of anachronistically reading the later, narrower “martyr” sense back into early occurrences, or conversely never connecting the two.
14. Circumcision and the apostolic decree cluster — 15:1-29; 21:21,25. Compounded Critical-tier risk (per the core glossary’s note) if circumcision, law, and the decree’s food/sexual-ethics items are taught without clear temporal/covenantal bounding.
15. Pentecost (Cincizecime vs. Rusalii) — 2:1; 20:16. Lower doctrinal severity than items above but high cultural salience; a wrong default to “Rusalii” in any adjacent teaching material (even outside this curriculum’s controlled documents) could silently reintroduce folk-superstition framing.
16. Boldness (îndrăzneală) — 4:13,29,31; 28:31. Moderate risk of drift toward a generic self-confidence gloss if not consistently anchored to its gospel-proclamation object at each occurrence.

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Section 5 — Full Chapter Coverage Sweep (Acts 1–28)

Per the full-book coverage mandate, every chapter is confirmed reviewed below. Chapters not separately treated in Sections 1–4 above contributed no new load-bearing linguistic gap beyond what is already catalogued.

Chapter	Linguistic gap contribution
1	Kingdom of God (bookend), calling/election (apostolic replacement), power of God, mission (1:8) — covered in doctrine matrix 1.9, 1.5; no new gaps beyond registry.
2	Core passage. Pentecost, tongues, grace (secular sense), repentance, baptism, saints (implicit via “church” formation), fellowship, breaking of bread, common life — all treated above; highest-density chapter in this analysis.
3	The Righteous One, covenant (Abraham), restoration of all things, repentance — treated above.
4	Boldness, intercession/united prayer, salvation exclusivity (4:12), providence (4:27-28) — treated above; no additional gaps.
5	Sanhedrin, holy_spirit (Ananias/Sapphira — deceiving the Spirit, a notable pneumatological-severity nuance requiring a teaching note that this is not a general model of church discipline but a unique apostolic-era judgment), great persecution — reviewed; no new lexical gap beyond existing entries.
6	Laying on of hands (deacon appointment), elders/law controversy background (Stephen’s accusers) — treated above.
7	Stephen’s speech: covenant, glory (vision), Righteous One (7:52), resurrection background — reviewed; no new gap beyond existing entries; martyrdom narratively enacted here (witness→martyr trajectory anchor).
8	Simony, eunuch, God-fearer background (Ethiopian court official), great persecution/scattering, gospel to Samaria — treated above.
9	Conversion of Paul core chapter: chosen instrument, Son of God title applied to Jesus, saints (Damascus/Joppa), calling — treated above.
10	God-fearer, common/unclean, gospel to Gentiles, peace (10:36), salvation — treated above.
11	Repentance, gentiles, church (Antioch founding), exhort (Barnabas), Christians-name background — treated above.
12	Intercession/united prayer (Peter’s release) — treated above; no additional gap.
13	Justification apart from the Law core chapter: seed of David, justification/imputed righteousness, election (13:48), messiah — treated above; highest doctrinal density outside ch. 2.
14	Signs and wonders, kingdom of God, calling (Barnabas/Saul), conversion/turning (14:15) — reviewed; no new gap.
15	Jerusalem Council: circumcision, law, yoke, apostolic decree, grace (15:11) — treated above; highest density for Justification-apart-from-Law doctrine.
16	Calling (Macedonian call), baptism (Lydia, jailer), salvation (jailer’s question) — treated above; no new gap beyond existing entries.
17	Areopagus: unknown god, resurrection (general, controversial to Greek hearers), providence — treated above; notable apologetic-method chapter.
18	Messiah (titular argument), God-fearer — reviewed; no new gap beyond existing entries.
19	Tongues, laying on of hands, exorcism (Sons of Sceva), the Way — treated above.
20	Breaking of bread, elders/overseers identity, blood of Christ, grace (20:24,32), sanctification — treated above; second-highest density chapter for Church-as-Community and Apostolic-Authority doctrines.
21	Circumcision, law, Nazirite vow, the Way, prophecy (Agabus) — treated above.
22	Conversion retelling: Righteous One, witness→martyr (naming Stephen), law, resurrection — reviewed; no new gap beyond existing entries.
23	Resurrection (Pharisee/Sadducee dispute), Sanhedrin — reviewed; no new gap.
24	Resurrection (general, just and unjust), the Way (as a legal-hearing designation), law — reviewed; no new gap beyond existing entries.
25	Sanhedrin/Roman legal process backdrop — reviewed; no new load-bearing theological term.
26	Conversion retelling: chosen instrument background, sanctification, power of Satan/God contrast, conversion/turning (26:18,20), resurrection — treated above.
27	Providence (storm/shipwreck), thanksgiving (27:35 breaking of bread echo), intercession-adjacent language — reviewed; no new lexical gap beyond existing entries; breaking-of-bread fence applies contextually.
28	Unhindered (closing formula), kingdom of God (closing), mission bookend — treated above; final chapter confirmed reviewed.

Coverage confirmation: All 28 chapters of Acts have been reviewed for linguistic gap contribution. No chapter is silently omitted; chapters without distinct new gaps are explicitly noted as reviewed with reference to the governing entries already catalogued in Sections 1–4.

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This analysis, together with analysis/08_core_glossary.md, forms the required linguistic foundation for extending translation_memory.json, bible_term_registry.json, and doctrine_risk_registry.json for the Acts curriculum in subsequent Phase 1 steps. No rendering in this document overrides or contradicts the Romans baseline; all baseline terms reused here retain their original risk tier and notes unchanged.