Core Glossary
Core Glossary — Colossians
Part A: Baseline Terms Reused Exactly (from Romans translation_memory.json)
| Key | Spanish Rendering | Risk | Colossians Occurrences | Reuse Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| apostle | apóstol | Low | 1:1 | Reuse exactly. |
| saints | santos | Critical | 1:2, 1:4, 1:12, 1:26 | Reuse exactly, with baseline’s mandatory “every believer, not canonized figures” note. |
| faith | fe | High | 1:4, 1:23, 2:5, 2:7, 2:12 | Reuse exactly. |
| gospel | evangelio | High | 1:5, 1:23 | Reuse exactly. |
| grace | gracia | High | 1:2, 1:6, 4:6, 4:18 | Reuse exactly; guard against merit-cooperation drift per baseline note. |
| holy | santo | Medium | 1:22, 3:12 | Reuse exactly. |
| holy_spirit | Espíritu Santo | Critical | 1:8 | Reuse exactly. |
| father | Padre | Critical | 1:2, 1:3, 1:12, 3:17 | Reuse exactly. |
| lord | Señor | Critical | 1:10, 2:6, 3:13, 3:17-18, 3:20, 3:22-24, 4:1, 4:7, 4:17 | Reuse exactly; every occurrence in the ch. 3-4 household code carries the “exclusive, supreme lordship” weight per baseline lordship_of_christ. |
| son_of_god | Hijo de Dios | Critical | 1:13 (“su amado Hijo”) | Reuse exactly; guard eternal, unique Sonship sense against the letter’s own adoptive “new self” language for believers. |
| jesus | Jesús | Critical | 1:1, 1:3, 3:17 | Reuse exactly. |
| god | Dios | Critical | throughout | Reuse exactly. |
| church | iglesia | Medium | 1:18, 1:24, 4:15-16 | Reuse exactly; retain lowercase, gathered-people sense per baseline note. |
| kingdom_of_god | reino de Dios | Medium | 1:13 | Reuse exactly. |
| resurrection | resurrección | Critical | 1:18, 2:12, 3:1 | Reuse exactly; bodily/historical/once-for-all sense, extended corporately to believers’ union with Christ. |
| peace | paz | Medium | 1:2, 1:20, 3:15 | Reuse exactly; note 1:20’s cosmic scope vs. 3:15’s congregational scope. |
| thanksgiving | acción de gracias | Low | 1:12, 2:7, 3:15, 3:17, 4:2 | Reuse exactly. |
| fellowship | compañerismo | Low | (implicit in 2:19, 3:15-16 community language) | Reuse exactly where applicable. |
| sin | pecado | Medium | 1:14, 2:13 | Reuse exactly; avoid softening to “falta.” |
| glory | gloria | Medium | 1:11, 1:27, 3:4 | Reuse exactly. |
| calling | llamado | High | 3:15 | Reuse exactly; avoid “vocación” without gloss. |
| election | elección / elegidos | High | 3:12 | Reuse exactly; avoid “destino/suerte” framing. |
| incarnation | encarnación | High | 1:19, 2:9 (theological background) | Reuse exactly; teach permanent bodily assumption, not a Christmas-only association. |
Part B: New Terms for the Colossians Curriculum
| Key | Original (Greek) | Spanish Rendering | Category / Doctrine | Risk | Colossians Occurrences | Alternatives Rejected | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| image_of_god | εἰκών | imagen | Christ’s Supremacy / Christology | Critical | 1:15 (reused conceptually 3:10) | “retrato,” “estatua" | "Imagen” collides directly with the dominant Hispanic Catholic devotional category of venerated religious images/icons (“la imagen de la Virgen,” “imágenes de los santos”). Must be taught with an explicit note: Christ IS the visible manifestation of the invisible God’s own nature — an ontological, unique claim, not a devotional-object association. |
| firstborn | πρωτότοκος | primogénito | Christ’s Supremacy / Christology | Critical | 1:15, 1:18 | ”el primero creado,” “el más antiguo” | Must be taught as rank/preeminence, never chronological origin — the historic Arian/Jehovah’s Witness misreading of this exact verse. Reinforce with the surrounding claim that Christ is Creator, not created (1:16-17). |
| creation | κτίσις / κτίζω | creación / crear | Christ’s Supremacy over Creation | Medium | 1:15, 1:16, 1:23 | — | Standard; includes visible and invisible orders per 1:16. |
| spiritual_powers | θρόνοι, κυριότητες, ἀρχαί, ἐξουσίαι | tronos, dominios, principados, potestades | Christ’s Supremacy over Creation | High | 1:16, 2:10, 2:15 | ”poderes” alone (too vague), “espíritus” (risks folk-spirit conflation) | Names a spirit-power hierarchy Christ created and now rules absolutely (1:16) and has publicly triumphed over (2:15). High collision risk with Espiritismo, Santería, and folk-Catholic angelic/intermediary devotion in Latin American and Caribbean contexts — teach total subordination/defeat, not a pantheon requiring ongoing negotiation. |
| sustains_all_things | συνίστημι | subsistir (RV1960) / mantenerse unido | Christ’s Supremacy over Creation | Medium | 1:17 | — | Christ’s ongoing sustaining of the universe’s coherence; parallel providence claim to Romans 8:28 but explicitly Christ-centered. |
| head | κεφαλή | cabeza | Christ as Head of the Church | High | 1:18, 2:10, 2:19 | — | Organic, life-giving, ruling headship, identical in kind over creation (1:18a) and the church (1:18b) and “all rule and authority” (2:10). Distinct sense-check required against household-code headship dynamics in ch. 3 — do not conflate the two without explicit teaching. |
| body_of_christ | σῶμα | cuerpo | Christ as Head of the Church | Medium | 1:18, 1:24, 2:19, 3:15 | — | The church as Christ’s organic corporate body, dependent on him as Head; reinforced by the ligament/joint imagery of 2:19. |
| preeminence | πρωτεύω / ἀρχή | preeminencia / principio | Christ as Head of the Church | Medium | 1:18 | — | Superlative, unqualified first rank in every category — creation and resurrection alike. |
| fullness | πλήρωμα | plenitud | Fullness of Deity in Christ Bodily | High | 1:19, 2:9-10 | — | The undivided totality of God’s nature dwells in Christ alone — resist any framework (ancient Colossian syncretism or modern esoteric “pleroma”/New Age usage) that divides or distributes divine fullness among intermediaries. |
| deity_godhead | θεότης | Deidad | Fullness of Deity in Christ Bodily | Critical | 2:9 | ”divinidad” (acceptable secondary term but less precise), “naturaleza divina” | Capitalize; the strongest available abstract term for full, co-equal divine essence. Must not be softened to “a divine man” or “great holiness” — direct extension of baseline deity_of_christ (Critical). |
| bodily | σωματικῶς | corporalmente | Fullness of Deity in Christ Bodily / Incarnation | High | 2:9 | — | Anchors the abstract deity claim in Christ’s real, permanent physical body; rules out docetic readings; reinforce with baseline encarnación. |
| reconciliation | ἀποκαταλλάσσω, καταλλαγή | reconciliar, reconciliación | Reconciliation through the Cross | Critical | 1:20, 1:21-22 | ”hacer la paz” alone (insufficiently relational), “restaurar” (too weak) | Direct lexical collision with the Catholic Sacrament of Reconciliation (Confession/Penance). Mandatory teaching note in every occurrence: this is a once-for-all, decisive, cosmic reconciliation accomplished by Christ’s cross, not a repeatable sacramental rite. Human theologian review required for every occurrence. |
| blood_of_christ | αἷμα | sangre | Reconciliation through the Cross | Medium | 1:20 | — | Real, historical, sacrificial atoning death; avoid purely symbolic/ritual readings. |
| cross | σταυρός | cruz | Reconciliation through the Cross | High | 1:20, 2:14-15 | — | Must be taught as the saving historical event, not primarily the venerated devotional/artistic crucifix object common in popular piety. |
| mystery | μυστήριον | misterio | Warning against False Teaching / Union with Christ | High | 1:26-27, 2:2, 4:3 | ”secreto” (too informal/conspiratorial), “enigma” | Collides with the Catholic devotional category of “los misterios del rosario” (mysteries of the Rosary) and sacramental “misterios.” Must be taught as God’s specific, historically-revealed plan — Christ himself, indwelling Gentile believers — not an ongoing devotional category or open-ended esoteric secret. |
| philosophy | φιλοσοφία | filosofía | Warning against False Teaching / Syncretism | Medium | 2:8 | — | Names the specific syncretistic system troubling Colossae, not reasoned thought in general. |
| human_tradition | παράδοσις τῶν ἀνθρώπων | tradición humana | Warning against False Teaching / Syncretism | High | 2:8 | — | Live sensitivity with Catholic doctrine of Sacred Tradition alongside Scripture. Teach Colossians’ specific target (a rival syncretistic system) with precision, avoiding a general polemic against the concept of tradition as such. |
| elemental_spirits | στοιχεῖα τοῦ κόσμου | rudimentos del mundo (RV1960) / elementos del mundo | Warning against False Teaching / Syncretism | High | 2:8, 2:20 | ”fuerzas del universo” (too vague), “espíritus elementales” (risks affirming their ongoing personal existence/power) | Direct collision risk with curanderismo, Santería, and other Latin American/Caribbean folk-religious frameworks treating elemental/natural forces as spiritually significant. Teach as decisively defeated/nullified through union with Christ (2:20), not merely relocated. |
| circumcision_of_christ | περιτομή | circuncisión | Warning against False Teaching / Union with Christ | Medium | 2:11 | — | Spiritual union with Christ’s death replaces the physical rite as covenant marker; requires OT background. |
| baptism | βάπτισμα | bautismo | Union with Christ (Died and Raised With Him) | High | 2:12 | — | Live Catholic/Protestant fault line on baptismal efficacy (sacramental regeneration vs. sign of a reality received by faith). Preserve Colossians’ own qualifier — “through faith in the power of God” — without resolving the broader sacramental debate unilaterally. Human theologian review required. |
| certificate_of_debt | χειρόγραφον (τῶν δογμάτων) | acta de la deuda / acta de los decretos | Reconciliation through the Cross | Medium | 2:14 | — | Legal-debt metaphor for the cancelled record of condemnation; requires brief legal-metaphor explanation. |
| triumph_over_powers | θριαμβεύω, ἀπεκδύομαι | triunfar sobre, despojar | Christ’s Supremacy over Creation | Medium | 2:15 | — | Decisive, public, military-triumph imagery over spiritual powers; reinforces spiritual_powers entry above. |
| worship_of_angels | θρησκεία τῶν ἀγγέλων | culto a los ángeles | Warning against False Teaching / Syncretism | Critical | 2:18 | ”veneración de los ángeles” (equally strong collision; either rendering requires the same note) | Sharpest syncretism-collision risk in the letter, given widespread structured angel devotion (guardian angel prayers, veneration of named angels) and Afro-Caribbean spirit-intermediary traditions in the target culture. Mandatory human theologian review for every occurrence; teach with pastoral precision, not blanket dismissiveness toward angels’ existence (Colossians affirms their created reality, 1:16) but rejects devotional practice directed toward them. |
| self_made_religion | ἐθελοθρησκία | culto voluntario / religión de invención propia | Warning against False Teaching / Syncretism | Medium | 2:23 | — | Self-devised, human-willed religious practice; danger is self-origination, not zeal itself. |
| severity_to_the_body | ἀφειδία σώματος | maltrato del cuerpo | Warning against False Teaching / Syncretism | High | 2:23 | — | Requires careful, non-inflammatory handling given valued Catholic/Orthodox ascetic and penitential traditions among the target audience; teach the specific self-glorifying, legalistic asceticism in view, not bodily discipline as such. |
| shadow_and_substance | σκιά | sombra | Warning against False Teaching / Fulfillment | Medium | 2:17 | — | Old covenant observances as preparatory shadow, now fulfilled in Christ; requires OT ceremonial background. |
| humility_context_sensitive | ταπεινοφροσύνη | humildad | Warning against False Teaching / Putting On the New | Medium | 2:18, 2:23 (false), 3:12 (genuine) | — | Context-sensitive across the letter; flag which sense (counterfeit vs. genuine) is active per occurrence. |
| old_self | παλαιὸς ἄνθρωπος | viejo hombre | Putting Off the Old Self | High | 3:9 | ”vieja naturaleza” (acceptable gloss, not a replacement) | Identity-level, representative, in-Adam humanity, decisively put off (past tense) through union with Christ’s death — not merely “bad habits.” |
| new_self | νέος/καινός ἄνθρωπος | hombre nuevo | Putting On the New Self | High | 3:10 | — | Corporate-representative new humanity in Christ, continually renewed toward the image of the Creator; echoes image_of_god from 1:15 — teach the distinct-but-related senses carefully. |
| unity_in_christ_social | Ἕλλην, Ἰουδαῖος, βάρβαρος, Σκύθης, δοῦλος, ἐλεύθερος | griego, judío, bárbaro, escita, esclavo, libre | Putting On the New Self / Unity | High | 3:11 | — | Comprehensive social-status merism abolished as grounds of status in Christ; connect to contemporary ethnic/social hierarchies (indigenous, Afro-descendant, immigrant communities) per Romans baseline’s unity_of_jews_and_gentiles pattern. |
| bond_of_love | σύνδεσμος (τῆς ἀγάπης) | vínculo (del amor) | Putting On the New Self | Medium | 3:14 | — | Love as the unifying virtue binding all others; reinforces body-organic imagery from head/body_of_christ. |
| household_submission | ὑποτάσσω | sujetarse / estar sujetas | Household Codes | High | 3:18 | — | Voluntary relational ordering, “as is fitting in the Lord” — not a statement of inherent inferiority. Must be taught as one part of a mutual-obligation unit alongside husbands’ sacrificial love (3:19), children/parents (3:20-21), and slaves/masters (3:22-4:1). Mandatory human theologian and pastoral-sensitivity review given contemporary domestic-authority and abuse concerns. |
| household_love_obligation | ἀγαπᾶτε, μὴ πικραίνεσθε | amad, no seáis ásperos | Household Codes | Medium | 3:19 | — | Husbands’ corresponding sacrificial, non-harsh obligation; must be taught together with household_submission, never extracted alone. |
| household_obedience | ὑπακούω | obedecer | Household Codes | Medium | 3:20, 3:22 | — | Household/social obedience (children, slaves); distinct sense from baseline obediencia de la fe (soteriological) — do not conflate. |
| eye_service | ὀφθαλμοδουλία, ἀνθρωπάρεσκος | servicio de ojos, los que agradan a los hombres | Household Codes | Low | 3:22 | — | Performative vs. genuine service; standard vocabulary. |
| sincerity_fearing_the_lord | ἁπλότης καρδίας, φοβούμενοι τὸν Κύριον | sinceridad de corazón, temiendo al Señor | Household Codes | High (via reused Señor) | 3:22 | — | True motive for service tied directly to Christ’s lordship; reuse baseline Señor exactly. |
| inheritance_reward | κληρονομία | herencia | Household Codes / Adoption | Medium | 3:24 | — | Full-heir inheritance promised even to enslaved believers; reinforces baseline adopción’s “full heirs, not second-class” teaching. |
| impartiality_of_god | προσωπολημψία | parcialidad / favoritismo | Household Codes | Low | 3:25 | — | God’s impartial judgment regardless of social status. |
| fairness_equity | ἰσότης | equidad | Household Codes | Medium | 4:1 | ”justicia” (rejected — reserve for baseline Critical justicia doctrine term to avoid confusion) | Masters’ obligation to fair treatment; deliberately avoid baseline justicia rendering here to prevent doctrinal cross-contamination with the Salvation-doctrine term. |
| redemption | ἀπολύτρωσις | redención | Reconciliation / Salvation background | High | 1:14 | — | Price-paying deliverance defined as forgiveness of sins; standard theological vocabulary, catechetical risk rather than lexical. |
| forgiveness_of_sins | ἄφεσις ἁμαρτιῶν | perdón de pecados | Reconciliation / Salvation background | High | 1:14 | — | Risk that Catholic-majority learners default exclusively to sacramental absolution; teach alongside baseline gracia/salvación notes. |
| love | ἀγάπη | amor | General / Putting On the New | Medium | 1:4, 1:8, 3:14 | — | Distinguish selfless, covenantal love from dominant romantic/telenovela cultural associations. |
| hope | ἐλπίς | esperanza | General / Gospel | Medium | 1:5, 1:23, 1:27 | — | Distinguish confident, promise-grounded hope from fatalistic “ojalá” wishful-desire connotations. |
| suffering_for_the_gospel | πάθημα | padecimientos / sufrimientos | Christ-Centered Ministry | Medium | 1:24 | — | Apostolic, missional suffering; must not be read as adding merit to Christ’s atonement (possible collision with indulgence/merit frameworks). |
| maturity_perfection | τέλειος | maduro / perfecto | Christ-Centered Ministry | Medium | 1:28, 4:12 | — | Completeness/maturity in Christ, not sinless perfection. |
Risk Summary (New Colossians Terms)
| Risk Tier | Count | Review Routing |
|---|---|---|
| Critical | 6 (image_of_god, firstborn, deity_godhead, reconciliation, mystery, worship_of_angels) | Human theologian review, every occurrence |
| High | 15 (spiritual_powers, head, fullness, bodily, cross, philosophy [Medium—see note], human_tradition, elemental_spirits, baptism, severity_to_the_body, old_self, new_self, unity_in_christ_social, household_submission, redemption, forgiveness_of_sins) | Human theologian review |
| Medium | 20 | Native speaker review |
| Low | 6 | Automated review |
Note: “philosophy” is tabulated at Medium risk in Part B; the summary line above reflects the High-risk cluster only. Cross-reference analysis/07_semantic_analysis.md for full field-level rationale behind every risk assignment before Phase 1 Step 2 (doctrine risk registry extension) and Phase 2 translation memory ratification.
Critical Risk Terms
Saints
Approved rendering: santos
Transliteration: hagioi
Doctrine: Sainthood
Rejected alternatives: los santos (canonizados, objeto de veneración e intercesión)
Original: ἅγιοι
Category: Church
Inherited from Romans package. Colosenses has an unusually high per-chapter occurrence density (four times in chapter 1 alone: 1:2, 1:4, 1:12, 1:26, plus 1:22 and 3:12). Mandatory ‘todo creyente es llamado santo’ note at every occurrence.
Holy Spirit
Approved rendering: Espíritu Santo
Transliteration: pneuma hagion
Doctrine: Sanctification
Rejected alternatives: una fuerza impersonal, un espíritu guía o ancestral
Original: πνεῦμα
Category: God
Inherited from Romans package. Colosenses 1:8. Distinguish explicitly from ancestral/guide spirits invoked in Espiritismo and Santería, especially given Colossians’ own warnings against spiritual intermediaries (2:18).
Father
Approved rendering: Padre
Transliteration: patēr
Doctrine: Adoption into God’s Family
Original: πατήρ
Category: God
Inherited from Romans package. Colosenses 1:2, 1:3, 1:12, 3:17.
Lord
Approved rendering: Señor
Transliteration: kyrios
Doctrine: Lordship of Christ
Rejected alternatives: Señor mío (devotional-only)
Original: κύριος
Category: Christology
Inherited from Romans package. Sustained refrain through the household code (Colosenses 3:17-18, 3:20, 3:22-24, 4:1) and at 2:6, 2:10, 1:10; must never be softened to a merely domestic or devotional authority.
Son Of God
Approved rendering: Hijo de Dios
Transliteration: huios theou
Doctrine: Sonship of Christ
Rejected alternatives: hijo de Dios en sentido genérico aplicado a todo creyente
Original: ὁ υἱὸς τῆς ἀγάπης αὐτοῦ
Category: Christology
Inherited from Romans package. Colosenses 1:13 (‘su amado Hijo’). Guard against collapse into the letter’s own adoptive ‘hombre nuevo’ language used of believers (3:10).
Jesus
Approved rendering: Jesús
Transliteration: Iēsous
Doctrine: Lordship of Christ
Original: Ἰησοῦς
Category: Christology
Inherited from Romans package. Colosenses 1:1, 1:3, 3:17.
God
Approved rendering: Dios
Transliteration: theos
Doctrine: Deity of Christ
Original: θεός
Category: God
Inherited from Romans package.
Resurrection
Approved rendering: resurrección
Transliteration: anastasis
Doctrine: Resurrection of Christ
Rejected alternatives: reencarnación
Original: ἀνάστασις / ἐγείρω
Category: Salvation
Inherited from Romans package. Colosenses 1:18, 2:12, 3:1. Applies doubly here: to Christ’s own bodily resurrection AND to believers’ co-resurrection with him; reinforce the Caribbean/Afro-Caribbean reincarnation-collision exclusion for both senses.
Image Of God
Approved rendering: imagen
Transliteration: eikōn
Doctrine: Supremacy of Christ over Creation
Rejected alternatives: retrato, estatua, icono
Original: εἰκών
Category: Christology
NEW for this curriculum. Colosenses 1:15 (Christ as THE image of the invisible God, a unique ontological claim) and 3:10 (believers renewed into the Creator’s image, a distinct, derivative sense — do not flatten the two). Collides directly with the dominant Hispanic Catholic devotional category of venerated religious images (‘la imagen de la Virgen,’ ‘imágenes de los santos’). Mandatory teaching note at every occurrence distinguishing the ontological claim from a devotional object. Highest-ranked risk in the whole curriculum per 06_linguistic_gap_analysis.md.
Firstborn
Approved rendering: primogénito
Transliteration: prōtotokos
Doctrine: Supremacy of Christ over Creation
Rejected alternatives: el primero creado, el más antiguo
Original: πρωτότοκος
Category: Christology
NEW for this curriculum. Colosenses 1:15 (rank over creation) and 1:18 (rank as first case of resurrection life, ‘primogénito de entre los muertos’). Must be taught with the rank/preeminence sense only, never chronological origin — the historic Arian/Jehovah’s Witness misreading of this exact verse. Reinforce immediately with 1:16-17 (Christ as Creator, not creature). Mandatory theologian review every occurrence.
Deity Godhead
Approved rendering: Deidad
Transliteration: theotēs
Doctrine: Fullness of Deity in Christ Bodily
Rejected alternatives: divinidad (acceptable secondary gloss but weaker, less precise), naturaleza divina
Original: θεότης
Category: Christology
NEW for this curriculum. Colosenses 2:9, the letter’s clearest deity-of-Christ statement. Capitalize; the strongest available abstract Koine term for full, co-equal divine essence. Direct extension of baseline deity_of_christ (Critical). Must not soften to ‘a divine man,’ ‘great holiness,’ or one exalted spirit-being among others. Mandatory theologian review every occurrence.
Reconciliation
Approved rendering: reconciliación
Transliteration: apokatallassō
Doctrine: Reconciliation through the Cross
Rejected alternatives: hacer la paz (alone, insufficiently relational), restaurar (too weak)
Original: ἀποκαταλλάσσω / καταλλαγή
Category: Salvation
NEW for this curriculum, absent from the Romans baseline. Colosenses 1:20, 1:21-22. ‘Reconciliación’ is the exact technical name of the Catholic Sacrament of Confession/Penance (‘el Sacramento de la Reconciliación’). MANDATORY explicit teaching note at every occurrence: this reconciliation was accomplished once, completely, by Christ on the cross — not a recurring rite. Mandatory human theologian review every occurrence. Single highest lexical-collision risk in the curriculum.
Worship Of Angels
Approved rendering: culto a los ángeles
Transliteration: thrēskeia tōn angelōn
Doctrine: Worship of Angels and Spiritual Intermediaries
Rejected alternatives: veneración de los ángeles (equally strong collision; requires the same mandatory note if used)
Original: θρησκεία τῶν ἀγγέλων
Category: Syncretism
NEW for this curriculum. Colosenses 2:18. Sharpest syncretism-collision risk in the entire curriculum, given structured guardian-angel devotion and popular veneration of named angels in Hispanic Catholic piety, plus active Espiritismo/Santería spirit-intermediary practice. Must affirm angels’ created reality (1:16) while categorically rejecting devotional/votive practice directed toward them. Mandatory human theologian review at every occurrence.
High Risk Terms
Faith
Approved rendering: fe
Transliteration: pistis
Doctrine: Faith
Rejected alternatives: devoción religiosa general, creencia cultural heredada
Original: πίστις
Category: Faith
Inherited from Romans package. Colosenses 1:4, 1:23, 2:5, 2:7, 2:12.
Gospel
Approved rendering: evangelio
Transliteration: euangelion
Doctrine: Gospel
Rejected alternatives: buenas nuevas (only as descriptive gloss)
Original: εὐαγγέλιον
Category: Salvation
Inherited from Romans package. Colosenses 1:5, 1:23; reinforced by 1:6’s universal fruit-bearing scope.
Grace
Approved rendering: gracia
Transliteration: charis
Doctrine: Grace
Rejected alternatives: favor merecido, recompensa por buenas obras
Original: χάρις
Category: Salvation
Inherited from Romans package. Colosenses 1:2, 1:6, 4:6, 4:18. 4:6’s ethical extension (gracious speech) must be taught as fruit, not source, of saving grace.
Calling
Approved rendering: llamado
Transliteration: klēsis
Doctrine: Divine Calling
Rejected alternatives: vocación (sin glosa aclaratoria)
Original: κλῆσις
Category: Salvation
Inherited from Romans package. Colosenses 3:15, the single body to which believers were called, grounding corporate unity.
Election
Approved rendering: elección / elegidos
Transliteration: eklektos
Doctrine: Effectual Calling
Rejected alternatives: destino, suerte
Original: ἐκλεκτός
Category: Salvation
Inherited from Romans package. Colosenses 3:12, believers addressed as God’s chosen, holy, and beloved ones.
Incarnation
Approved rendering: encarnación
Transliteration: ho logos sarx egeneto
Doctrine: Incarnation
Original: ὁ λόγος σὰρξ ἐγένετο (theological category; cf. Col 1:19, 2:9)
Category: Christology
Inherited from Romans package. Theological background for Colosenses 1:19, 2:9. Must be taught as the eternal Son’s permanent bodily indwelling of full Deity, not narrowed to the Christmas nativity association.
Spiritual Powers
Approved rendering: tronos, dominios, principados, potestades
Transliteration: thronoi, kyriotētes, archai, exousiai
Doctrine: Supremacy of Christ over Creation / Elemental Spirits and Powers Subordinated to Christ
Rejected alternatives: poderes (too vague), espíritus (risks folk-spirit conflation)
Original: θρόνοι, κυριότητες, ἀρχαί, ἐξουσίαι
Category: Creation
NEW for this curriculum. Colosenses 1:16, 2:10, 2:15. RV1960 four-term list naming the spiritual/angelic power-hierarchy Christ created and now rules absolutely and has publicly triumphed over. High collision risk with Espiritismo, Santería, and folk-Catholic angelic devotion; teach total subordination and public defeat, not an ongoing pantheon to manage.
Head
Approved rendering: cabeza
Transliteration: kephalē
Doctrine: Christ as Head of the Church
Rejected alternatives: líder (strips organic/life-source sense), jefe (strips organic/life-source sense)
Original: κεφαλή
Category: Christology
NEW for this curriculum. Colosenses 1:18, 2:10, 2:19. Organic, life-giving, ruling headship over creation and the church, identical in kind. Same lexical item reused in the household code (ch. 3) — mandatory disambiguating note at every occurrence distinguishing Christ’s unique cosmic/ecclesial headship from any human household-authority application.
Bodily
Approved rendering: corporalmente
Transliteration: sōmatikōs
Doctrine: Fullness of Deity in Christ Bodily
Original: σωματικῶς
Category: Christology
NEW for this curriculum. Colosenses 2:9. Anchors the abstract ‘Deidad’ claim in Christ’s real, permanent physical body, ruling out docetic readings. Reinforce with baseline ‘encarnación’ teaching.
Cross
Approved rendering: cruz
Transliteration: stauros
Doctrine: Reconciliation through the Cross
NEW for this curriculum. Colosenses 1:20, 2:14-15. Must be taught as the saving historical event, not primarily the venerated devotional/artistic crucifix object common in popular piety.
Mystery
Approved rendering: misterio
Transliteration: mystērion
Doctrine: The Mystery of Christ Revealed
Rejected alternatives: secreto (too informal/conspiratorial), enigma
Original: μυστήριον
Category: Syncretism
NEW for this curriculum. Colosenses 1:26-27, 2:2, 4:3. Collides with ‘los misterios del rosario’ and sacramental ‘misterios.’ Must be taught as God’s specific, historically revealed plan — Christ himself, indwelling Gentile believers — not an ongoing devotional category or open-ended esoteric secret.
Human Tradition
Approved rendering: tradición humana
Transliteration: paradosis tōn anthrōpōn
Doctrine: Human Tradition versus Christ’s Sufficiency
Original: παράδοσις τῶν ἀνθρώπων
Category: Syncretism
NEW for this curriculum. Colosenses 2:8. Live sensitivity with Catholic doctrine of Sacred Tradition alongside Scripture. Teach the specific rival syncretistic target of 2:8 with precision, avoiding a general polemic against the concept of tradition as such.
Elemental Spirits
Approved rendering: rudimentos del mundo / elementos del mundo
Transliteration: stoicheia tou kosmou
Doctrine: Elemental Spirits and Powers Subordinated to Christ
Rejected alternatives: fuerzas del universo (too vague), espíritus elementales (risks affirming ongoing personal power)
Original: στοιχεῖα τοῦ κόσμου
Category: Syncretism
NEW for this curriculum. Colosenses 2:8, 2:20. RV1960 primary rendering ‘rudimentos del mundo.’ Direct collision risk with curanderismo and Santería frameworks treating elemental/natural forces as powers to negotiate with. Teach as decisively defeated/nullified in Christ (2:20), not merely relocated.
Baptism
Approved rendering: bautismo
Transliteration: baptisma
Doctrine: Baptism as Union with Christ
Original: βάπτισμα
Category: Union with Christ
NEW for this curriculum. Colosenses 2:12. Live Catholic/Protestant sacramental-efficacy fault line (ex opere operato vs. sign of a reality received by faith). Preserve the verse’s own qualifier ‘mediante la fe en el poder de Dios’ without unilaterally resolving the broader sacramental debate. Mandatory human theologian review.
Severity To The Body
Approved rendering: maltrato del cuerpo
Transliteration: apheidia sōmatos
Doctrine: Self-Made Religion and Ascetic Practice
Original: ἀφειδία σώματος
Category: Syncretism
NEW for this curriculum. Colosenses 2:23. Requires careful, non-inflammatory handling given valued Catholic/Orthodox ascetic and penitential traditions among the target audience; teach the specific self-glorifying, legalistic asceticism condemned, not bodily discipline as such.
Old Self
Approved rendering: viejo hombre
Transliteration: palaios anthrōpos
Doctrine: Putting Off the Old Self
Rejected alternatives: vieja naturaleza (acceptable gloss, not a replacement)
Original: παλαιὸς ἄνθρωπος
Category: Sanctification
NEW for this curriculum. Colosenses 3:9. Identity-level, representative, in-Adam humanity, decisively put off (past tense) through union with Christ’s death — not merely ‘bad habits.’ RV1960 precedent.
New Self
Approved rendering: hombre nuevo
Transliteration: neos / kainos anthrōpos
Doctrine: Putting On the New Self
Original: νέος / καινός ἄνθρωπος
Category: Sanctification
NEW for this curriculum. Colosenses 3:10. Corporate-representative new humanity in Christ, continually renewed toward the image of the Creator. Deliberately echoes ‘imagen’ from 1:15 — teach the distinct-but-related senses carefully; believers’ renewal is derivative, not identical to Christ’s unique status as THE image of God. Retain per RV1960 precedent; no inclusive-language innovation.
Unity In Christ Social
Approved rendering: griego, judío, bárbaro, escita, esclavo, libre
Transliteration: Hellēn, Ioudaios, barbaros, Skythēs, doulos, eleutheros
Doctrine: Unity in Christ across Social and Ethnic Divisions
Original: Ἕλλην, Ἰουδαῖος, περιτομή, ἀκροβυστία, βάρβαρος, Σκύθης, δοῦλος, ἐλεύθερος
Category: Church
NEW for this curriculum. Colosenses 3:11. Comprehensive social-status merism abolished as grounds of status in Christ (‘Cristo es el todo, y en todos’). Connect pedagogically to contemporary ethnic/social hierarchies (indigenous, Afro-descendant, immigrant communities) per the Romans baseline’s unity_of_jews_and_gentiles pattern.
Household Submission
Approved rendering: sujetarse / estar sujetas
Transliteration: hypotassō
Doctrine: Household Codes
Original: ὑποτάσσω
Category: Household
NEW for this curriculum. Colosenses 3:18. Voluntary relational ordering ‘as is fitting in the Lord,’ not a statement of inherent inferiority. Mandatory human theologian and pastoral-sensitivity review; must always be taught as one part of the full mutual-obligation unit (3:18-4:1), never extracted in isolation, given contemporary domestic-authority and abuse concerns.
Sincerity Fearing The Lord
Approved rendering: sinceridad de corazón, temiendo al Señor
Transliteration: haplotēs kardias, phoboumenoi ton Kyrion
Doctrine: Household Codes
Original: ἁπλότης καρδίας, φοβούμενοι τὸν Κύριον
Category: Household
NEW phrase for this curriculum; inherits Critical lordship_of_christ weight through the embedded ‘Señor’ term (reuse baseline ‘Señor’ exactly). Colosenses 3:22. True, undivided motive for service tied to reverence for Christ’s own lordship.
Redemption
Approved rendering: redención
Transliteration: apolytrōsis
Doctrine: Redemption and Forgiveness of Sins
Original: ἀπολύτρωσις
Category: Salvation
NEW for this curriculum (catechetical, not lexical, risk). Colosenses 1:14. Must be taught as a decisive, price-paying deliverance accomplished once by Christ, not a vague liberation or an ongoing sacramental process.
Forgiveness Of Sins
Approved rendering: perdón de pecados
Transliteration: aphesis (tōn) hamartiōn
Doctrine: Redemption and Forgiveness of Sins
Original: ἄφεσις (τῶν) ἁμαρτιῶν
Category: Salvation
NEW for this curriculum. Colosenses 1:14. Risk that Catholic-majority learners default exclusively to sacramental absolution obtained through confession/penance rather than the decisive, once-for-all forgiveness defined here as the substance of redemption. Teach alongside baseline ‘gracia’ and ‘salvación’ notes.
Medium Risk Terms
Holy
Approved rendering: santo
Transliteration: hagios
Doctrine: Sanctification
Rejected alternatives: puro en sentido ritual
Original: ἅγιος
Category: Sanctification
Inherited from Romans package. Colosenses 1:22, 3:12.
Church
Approved rendering: iglesia
Transliteration: ekklēsia
Doctrine: Church as God’s People
Rejected alternatives: la Iglesia (institución jerárquica en sentido católico-institucional)
Original: ἐκκλησία
Category: Church
Inherited from Romans package. Colosenses 1:18, 1:24, 4:15-16. Retain lowercase, gathered-people sense including specific house-churches at 4:15-16.
Kingdom Of God
Approved rendering: reino de Dios
Transliteration: basileia tou theou
Doctrine: Kingdom Mission
Original: βασιλεία
Category: Kingdom
Inherited from Romans package. Colosenses 1:13, specifically ‘el reino de su amado Hijo.‘
Peace
Approved rendering: paz
Transliteration: eirēnē
Doctrine: Peace with God
Rejected alternatives: tranquilidad emocional
Original: εἰρήνη
Category: Salvation
Inherited from Romans package. Colosenses 1:2, 1:20 (cosmic scope), 3:15 (congregational scope) — note the scope difference between occurrences.
Sin
Approved rendering: pecado
Transliteration: hamartia
Doctrine: Universal Human Accountability
Rejected alternatives: falta (euforismo minimizador)
Original: ἁμαρτία
Category: Sin
Inherited from Romans package. Colosenses 1:14, 2:13.
Glory
Approved rendering: gloria
Transliteration: doxa
Doctrine: Deity of Christ
Original: δόξα
Category: God
Inherited from Romans package. Colosenses 1:11, 1:27, 3:4.
Power Of God
Approved rendering: poder de Dios
Transliteration: dynamis theou
Doctrine: Power of God for Salvation
Original: δύναμις
Category: God
Inherited from Romans package pattern. Colosenses 1:11, 1:29, 2:12 (faith in the power of God).
Creation
Approved rendering: creación / crear
Transliteration: ktisis / ktizō
Doctrine: Supremacy of Christ over Creation
Original: κτίσις / κτίζω
Category: Creation
NEW for this curriculum. Colosenses 1:15, 1:16, 1:23. Must retain agency (‘en él,’ ‘por medio de él’) so Christ is Creator, not a mere channel; includes visible and invisible orders (1:16).
Sustains All Things
Approved rendering: subsistir (en él)
Transliteration: synistēmi
Doctrine: Christ’s Sustaining Providence
Original: συνίστημι
Category: Christology
NEW for this curriculum. Colosenses 1:17, ‘todas las cosas en él subsisten’ (RV1960). Christ’s ongoing, active sustaining of the universe’s coherence, not merely its origin. ‘Subsisten’ is precise but abstract for lower-literacy readers; may be glossed pastorally as ‘se mantienen unidas por él’ without altering the Bible-text rendering.
Body Of Christ
Approved rendering: cuerpo
Transliteration: sōma
Doctrine: Christ as Head of the Church
Original: σῶμα
Category: Church
NEW for this curriculum. Colosenses 1:18, 1:24, 2:19, 3:15. The church as Christ’s organic corporate body, dependent on him as Head, reinforced by the ligament/joint imagery of 2:19.
Preeminence
Approved rendering: preeminencia
Transliteration: prōteuō / archē
Doctrine: Christ as Head of the Church
Original: πρωτεύω / ἀρχή
Category: Christology
NEW for this curriculum. Colosenses 1:18. Christ’s unqualified first rank in every category (creation and resurrection). Formal, literary register; reinforce with plain-language gloss ‘el primer lugar en todo.‘
Blood Of Christ
Approved rendering: sangre
Transliteration: haima
Doctrine: Reconciliation through the Cross
NEW for this curriculum. Colosenses 1:20. Real, historical, sacrificial atoning death; avoid purely symbolic/ritual readings.
Philosophy
Approved rendering: filosofía
Transliteration: philosophia
Doctrine: Warning against False Teaching and Syncretism
Original: φιλοσοφία
Category: Syncretism
NEW for this curriculum. Colosenses 2:8. Names the specific syncretistic system troubling Colossae, not reasoned thought in general.
Circumcision Of Christ
Approved rendering: circuncisión
Transliteration: peritomē
Doctrine: Shadow and Fulfillment of the Ceremonial Law
Original: περιτομή
Category: Covenant
NEW for this curriculum. Colosenses 2:11. Spiritual union with Christ’s death replaces the physical rite as covenant marker; requires OT background many nominal believers lack.
Certificate Of Debt
Approved rendering: acta de la deuda / acta de los decretos
Transliteration: cheirographon (tōn dogmatōn)
Doctrine: Reconciliation through the Cross
Rejected alternatives: quirógrafo (too opaque for target reading level; may appear in teacher-facing background notes only)
Original: χειρόγραφον (τῶν δογμάτων)
Category: Salvation
NEW for this curriculum. Colosenses 2:14. RV1960 legal-debt metaphor for the cancelled record of condemnation, cancelled at the cross; requires brief explanatory gloss for readers without legal-Latin literacy.
Triumph Over Powers
Approved rendering: triunfar sobre / despojar
Transliteration: thriambeuō, apekdyomai
Doctrine: Elemental Spirits and Powers Subordinated to Christ
Original: θριαμβεύω, ἀπεκδύομαι
Category: Creation
NEW for this curriculum. Colosenses 2:15. Christ’s cross as decisive Roman-triumph-style victory over rulers and authorities; reinforces spiritual_powers entry — total, public, decisive defeat, not ongoing negotiation.
Self Made Religion
Approved rendering: culto voluntario / religión de invención propia
Transliteration: ethelothrēskia
Doctrine: Self-Made Religion and Ascetic Practice
Original: ἐθελοθρησκία
Category: Syncretism
NEW for this curriculum. Colosenses 2:23. Self-devised, human-willed religious practice, not commanded by God. Danger is self-origination, not zeal itself; powerless against the flesh.
Shadow And Substance
Approved rendering: sombra
Transliteration: skia
Doctrine: Shadow and Fulfillment of the Ceremonial Law
Original: σκιά
Category: Syncretism
NEW for this curriculum. Colosenses 2:17. Old covenant ceremonial observances (feasts, new moons, sabbaths) as a shadow of realities now present in Christ; requires OT ceremonial-law background.
Humility Context Sensitive
Approved rendering: humildad
Transliteration: tapeinophrosynē
Doctrine: Warning against False Teaching and Syncretism / Putting On the New Self
Original: ταπεινοφροσύνη
Category: Sanctification
NEW for this curriculum. Colosenses 2:18, 2:23 (counterfeit, performative sense); 3:12 (genuine Christian virtue). Context-sensitive: flag which sense is active per occurrence, parallel to the Romans baseline’s called/calling pattern.
Bond Of Love
Approved rendering: vínculo (del amor)
Transliteration: syndesmos (tēs agapēs)
Doctrine: Putting On the New Self
Original: σύνδεσμος (τῆς ἀγάπης)
Category: Sanctification
NEW for this curriculum. Colosenses 3:14. Love as the completing, unifying ligament binding all the virtues; reinforces the body-organic imagery of ‘cabeza’/‘cuerpo.‘
Household Love Obligation
Approved rendering: amad, no seáis ásperos
Transliteration: agapate, mē pikrainesthe
Doctrine: Household Codes
Original: ἀγαπᾶτε, μὴ πικραίνεσθε
Category: Household
NEW for this curriculum. Colosenses 3:19. Husbands’ corresponding sacrificial, non-harsh obligation; must be taught together with household_submission, never extracted alone.
Household Obedience
Approved rendering: obedecer
Transliteration: hypakouō
Doctrine: Household Codes
Original: ὑπακούω
Category: Household
NEW for this curriculum, distinct sense from baseline ‘obediencia de la fe.’ Colosenses 3:20, 3:22. Household/social obedience (children, slaves), not the soteriological phrase from Romans 1:5.
Inheritance Reward
Approved rendering: herencia
Transliteration: klēronomia
Doctrine: Household Codes
Original: κληρονομία
Category: Household
NEW for this curriculum. Colosenses 3:24. Full inheritance from the Lord promised even to enslaved believers; reinforces baseline adopción’s ‘full heirs, not second-class’ teaching in a context where it is especially pointed.
Fairness Equity
Approved rendering: equidad
Transliteration: isotēs
Doctrine: Household Codes
Rejected alternatives: justicia (rejected — reserved exclusively for the baseline Critical Salvation-doctrine term to prevent doctrinal cross-contamination)
Original: ἰσότης
Category: Household
NEW for this curriculum. Colosenses 4:1. Masters’ obligation to treat slaves fairly; RV1960 periphrasis ‘haced lo justo’ may also be used but ‘equidad’ is preferred as the stable glossary term.
Love
Approved rendering: amor
Transliteration: agapē
Doctrine: Love and Hope
Original: ἀγάπη
Category: Faith
NEW for this curriculum. Colosenses 1:4, 1:8, 3:14. Selfless, covenantal love; distinguish from dominant romantic/telenovela cultural associations.
Hope
Approved rendering: esperanza
Transliteration: elpis
Doctrine: Love and Hope
Original: ἐλπίς
Category: Faith
NEW for this curriculum. Colosenses 1:5, 1:23, 1:27. Confident, promise-grounded certainty; distinguish from the fatalistic, wishful ‘ojalá’ connotation common in everyday Spanish.
Suffering For The Gospel
Approved rendering: padecimientos / sufrimientos
Transliteration: pathēma
Doctrine: Christ-Centered Ministry and Suffering
Original: πάθημα
Category: Ministry
NEW for this curriculum. Colosenses 1:24. Paul’s apostolic, missional sufferings ‘for your sake’; must not be read as adding merit to Christ’s atoning work (possible collision with indulgence/merit frameworks). Clarify as missional, not atoning, suffering.
Maturity Perfection
Approved rendering: maduro / perfecto
Transliteration: teleios
Doctrine: Wisdom and Knowledge in Christ versus False Wisdom
Original: τέλειος
Category: Faith
NEW for this curriculum. Colosenses 1:28, 4:12. Completeness/maturity in Christ; ‘maduro’ is the safer primary rendering, avoiding the sinless-perfection misreading that ‘perfecto’ alone could invite.
Wisdom
Approved rendering: sabiduría
Transliteration: sophia
Doctrine: Wisdom and Knowledge in Christ versus False Wisdom
Original: σοφία
Category: Faith
NEW for this curriculum. Colosenses 1:9, 2:3, 2:23. Teach the contrast between God-given wisdom found only in Christ (2:3) and the mere ‘appearance of wisdom’ (2:23) of the false teachers.
Knowledge Epignosis
Approved rendering: conocimiento (pleno)
Transliteration: epignōsis
Doctrine: Wisdom and Knowledge in Christ versus False Wisdom
Original: ἐπίγνωσις
Category: Faith
NEW for this curriculum. Colosenses 1:9-10. Full, accurate knowledge of God’s will; reused polemically against the false teachers’ claim to superior gnosis (2:3). Link pedagogically to the false-teaching warnings of chapter 2.
Low Risk Terms
Apostle
Approved rendering: apóstol
Transliteration: apostolos
Doctrine: Apostleship
Original: ἀπόστολος
Category: Church
Inherited from Romans package. Paul’s self-designation grounding the letter’s authority (Colosenses 1:1).
Thanksgiving
Approved rendering: acción de gracias
Transliteration: eucharistia
Doctrine: Thanksgiving
Original: εὐχαριστία
Category: Faith
Inherited from Romans package. Colosenses 1:12, 2:7, 3:15, 3:17, 4:2.
Fellowship
Approved rendering: compañerismo
Transliteration: koinōnia
Doctrine: Christian Fellowship
Rejected alternatives: comunión de los santos (fórmula creedal católica específica)
Original: κοινωνία (implicit)
Category: Church
Inherited from Romans package. Implicit in Colosenses 2:19, 3:15-16, 4:15-16 community language.
Eye Service
Approved rendering: servicio de ojos
Transliteration: ophthalmodoulia, anthrōpareskos
Doctrine: Household Codes
Original: ὀφθαλμοδουλία, ἀνθρωπάρεσκος
Category: Household
NEW for this curriculum. Colosenses 3:22. Performative obedience visible only when watched, contrasted with sincere service.
Impartiality Of God
Approved rendering: parcialidad / favoritismo
Transliteration: prosōpolēmpsia
Doctrine: Household Codes
Original: προσωπολημψία
Category: Household
NEW for this curriculum. Colosenses 3:25. God’s impartial judgment of wrongdoing regardless of social status.
Referenced passages