Core Glossary
Core Glossary
translation_memory.json is the enforced glossary for every Phase 2 translation in this curriculum. This document summarizes its shape and the principles behind it; see the Glossary Risk Groups for the full per-term entries.
Composition
The glossary currently holds 47 terms spanning all four risk tiers, drawn from the doctrines identified in Doctrine Analysis and grounded in the cultural risks identified in Culture Analysis. Every term entry records:
- The approved Swahili translation and transliteration
- The doctrine risk tier (Critical/High/Medium/Low)
- Explicitly rejected alternatives, with reasons
- Notes explaining any non-obvious translation choice
Governing principles
- Union Version precedent over invention — where the Swahili Union Version already has a settled rendering (Mungu, Yesu, Bwana, Roho Mtakatifu, agano), this glossary follows it rather than proposing an alternative.
- Shared vocabulary, explicit disambiguation — where a term is shared across Christian and Islamic Swahili usage (imani, neema, mtume, nabii), this glossary keeps the shared word rather than inventing a Christian-only neologism, and instead uses the
notesfield to state explicitly where the underlying theology diverges. - Explicit rejection, not silent avoidance — every Critical-risk term records why an alternative is wrong, whether a traditional-religion spirit-world term or an Islamic theological framework, so a translator or reviewer understands the reasoning rather than just following a rule.
- Version-controlled and append-only in Phase 2 — if a new term is discovered during document translation, it is added to translation memory and the version number incremented, never silently improvised per-document (see the AI Translation Requirements’ Translation Memory Load and Enforcement Instructions).
Relationship to the Doctrine Risk Registry
Every glossary term’s doctrine field links back to an entry in doctrine_risk_registry.json, so a term’s risk tier is always traceable to the specific doctrine it protects — the glossary enforces vocabulary, the doctrine registry explains why that vocabulary matters, and for Swahili specifically, whether the underlying risk is theological contestation from Islam, syncretism with traditional African religion, or both at once.
Critical Risk Terms
Grace
Approved rendering: neema
Transliteration: neema
Doctrine: Grace
Rejected alternatives: baraka, bahati
CRITICAL: neema is the correct Union Version term, but it is also standard Islamic Swahili vocabulary for Allah’s favor and bounty (‘neema za Mwenyezi Mungu’), generally understood there as responsive to human piety and obedience rather than wholly unmerited. baraka (blessing) must be avoided as a substitute: it carries strong traditional African and Islamic connotations of a reciprocal blessing bestowed by ancestors, elders, or Allah in response to right conduct or respect shown, which directly undercuts Romans’ ‘apart from works’ argument (4:4-5, 11:5-6). bahati (luck/fortune) must never be used.
Incarnation
Approved rendering: umwilisho
Transliteration: umwilisho
Doctrine: Incarnation
Rejected alternatives: mzimu uliovaa mwili (never use; evokes a spirit possessing/wearing a body, a traditional African spirit-world category)
CRITICAL: umwilisho (from ‘-wili’ / mwili, ‘body/flesh,’ paralleling ‘Neno alifanyika mwili’ in John 1:14) is the established theological term. In Islamic theology, God taking human form is shirk (a form of blasphemous association, since Allah is understood as radically transcendent and non-corporeal) — this makes incarnation a direct doctrinal flashpoint requiring explicit, careful explanation for Muslim-background readers, not a matter of finding a safer word. Additionally, mzimu uliovaa mwili (‘an ancestral spirit that has put on a body’) must never be used, as it would cast the incarnation in terms of traditional African spirit-possession rather than the eternal Son permanently taking on full humanity.
Messiah
Approved rendering: Masiya
Transliteration: Masiya
Doctrine: Messianic Promise
Rejected alternatives: Kristo (acceptable as the standard title-name pairing, but ‘Masiya’ should be used where the Jewish messianic-fulfillment sense itself is being taught)
CRITICAL: Masiya is transliterated directly; Kristo (Christ) is the more common everyday title, functioning almost as Jesus’ surname. Note for Swahili specifically: the Quran itself calls Jesus ‘al-Masih’ (Isa al-Masih), so Muslim-background readers already have a category for a figure called ‘the Messiah’ — but Islamic theology denies his divinity, atoning death, and resurrection. This curriculum must build on the shared title while explicitly clarifying the very different content Romans gives it, rather than assuming the shared word implies shared belief.
Resurrection
Approved rendering: ufufuo
Transliteration: ufufuo
Doctrine: Resurrection of Christ
Rejected alternatives: kufufuka (verb form, acceptable in narrative contexts), kuzaliwa upya (never use; means ‘to be born again/reincarnated’)
CRITICAL: ufufuo is doctrinally precise and well established. The specific risk for Swahili is not a competing native word but a competing theological claim: mainstream Sunni interpretation of Quran 4:157 holds that Jesus was not crucified at all (‘it was made to appear so’), directly denying the historical event Romans 1:4 and 4:25 depend on. This curriculum must state the historical claim of the crucifixion and bodily resurrection plainly rather than assume it is uncontested common ground for readers with Islamic background or exposure.
Salvation
Approved rendering: wokovu
Transliteration: wokovu
Doctrine: Salvation
Rejected alternatives: kuokoka (verb form, acceptable in narrative contexts), peponi (heaven/paradise, never as a stand-alone gloss for salvation itself)
CRITICAL: wokovu is the correct and only viable Union Version term. Risk is not a wrong native word but a wrong theological framework: Islamic soteriology has no atonement or substitutionary framework, understanding entry to paradise as Allah’s mercy weighed against a person’s deeds; readers with Islamic background or exposure may default to a merit-weighing model unless Romans’ basis for salvation in Christ’s finished work (10:9-10) is stated explicitly. peponi (paradise) must never stand in for wokovu itself, as it names a destination, not the saving act.
Son Of God
Approved rendering: Mwana wa Mungu
Transliteration: Mwana wa Mungu
Doctrine: Sonship of Christ
Rejected alternatives: mjumbe wa Mungu (messenger of God, an explicit downgrade and rejected)
CRITICAL: Mwana wa Mungu is the accurate and required full phrase. This is one of the most theologically fraught doctrines for Swahili’s Muslim-influenced readership: Quran 112 (Surah al-Ikhlas), among the most widely memorized verses in Islam, explicitly states ‘Allah does not beget, nor was He begotten.’ The phrase must never be softened to ‘messenger of God’ or otherwise adjusted to avoid this tension; instead, this curriculum must explain that ‘Son of God’ in Romans denotes eternal, unique divine relationship, not physical begetting, directly addressing the most common Muslim objection rather than avoiding it.
High Risk Terms
Adoption
Approved rendering: kufanywa wana
Transliteration: kufanywa wana
Doctrine: Adoption into God’s Family
Rejected alternatives: kuasili (formal legal adoption, acceptable as a supporting gloss)
Compound phrase (‘to be made sons/children’) is preferred as the primary Bible-register rendering; kuasili is the standard legal-administrative word for adoption in modern Swahili and may be used to clarify the full-inheritance-rights sense in Romans 8:17, but should not fully replace the established Bible phrase, which carries more relational and filial warmth.
Apostle
Approved rendering: mtume
Transliteration: mtume
Doctrine: Apostleship
Rejected alternatives: mjumbe (messenger, acceptable as an explanatory gloss)
mtume is the established Christian Union Version term, but is also the standard Swahili title for the Islamic Prophet Muhammad (‘Mtume Muhammad’), and along the Swahili coast this association is often the primary, most immediate sense of the word. Context must make unmistakably clear that Paul’s use of ‘mtume’ in Romans 1:1 refers to his own apostolic commissioning by the risen Christ, not any echo of Muhammad’s prophetic office.
Church
Approved rendering: kanisa
Transliteration: kanisa
Doctrine: Church as God’s People
Rejected alternatives: msikiti (mosque, never use), kusanyiko (assembly, acceptable clarifying synonym)
kanisa is the standard, well-established Christian term (distinct from msikiti, mosque, which must never be confused). Primary risk is that kanisa defaults to institutional or denominational reference (a specific building or organized body, e.g. Kanisa Katoliki, Kanisa la Kiinjili) rather than Romans’ sense of the whole people of God; kusanyiko (assembly/gathering) is a useful clarifying synonym for the local congregation sense.
Election
Approved rendering: uteule
Transliteration: uteule
Doctrine: Effectual Calling
Rejected alternatives: majaliwa (fate/destiny, use only with careful qualification), bahati (luck)
God’s sovereign personal choice. majaliwa (an Arabic-derived term for fate/destiny/what is decreed, closely tied to the Islamic concept of al-qadar, divine predetermination) is a legitimate parallel concept but should be introduced only with explicit definition, since Reformed election in Romans 9 is personal and relational, not the more fatalistic and impersonal associations majaliwa can carry in popular usage. bahati (luck) must never substitute.
Faith
Approved rendering: imani
Transliteration: imani
Doctrine: Faith
Rejected alternatives: kutumaini (reserve for ‘hope/trust’ in general contexts)
imani is the standard, well-established term, shared as Islamic vocabulary for religious belief generally (as in the Five Pillars’ ‘iman’). Risk: readers may hear ‘imani’ as confessional religious identity or intellectual assent to a creed rather than Romans’ sense of personal, saving trust in Christ specifically; context must make the object of faith explicit throughout.
Gospel
Approved rendering: Injili
Transliteration: Injili
Doctrine: Gospel
Rejected alternatives: habari njema (acceptable as an explanatory gloss only)
Injili is the established Union Version term (from Arabic/Greek euangelion via Injil). Risk: Islamic theology holds that Allah gave Isa (Jesus) a scripture called al-Injil which Muslims believe was subsequently lost or corrupted (the tahrif doctrine); Muslim-background or coastal readers may hear ‘Injili’ through this lens as referring to a superseded or corrupted text rather than the trustworthy canonical Gospel. This must be addressed explicitly, not assumed away.
Holy Spirit
Approved rendering: Roho Mtakatifu
Transliteration: Roho Mtakatifu
Doctrine: Sanctification
Rejected alternatives: roho (never use alone), pepo (never use; spirit associated with possession), mzimu (never use; ancestral spirit)
Roho Mtakatifu is the settled Trinitarian term. roho alone is dangerously ambiguous in everyday Swahili, covering any spirit, including troubling or possessing ones; pepo specifically denotes a spirit understood to possess a person (kupagawa na pepo, spirit possession, a live traditional and Islamic-jinn-adjacent category along the coast) and mzimu denotes an ancestral spirit. Roho Mtakatifu must always be used in full, never shortened, to keep clear distance from this active traditional and folk-Islamic spirit-world vocabulary.
Imputed Righteousness
Approved rendering: haki iliyohesabiwa
Transliteration: haki iliyohesabiwa
Doctrine: Justification by Faith
Rejected alternatives: haki iliyopatikana kwa matendo (righteousness earned by works, the explicit rejected opposite)
‘Reckoned/credited righteousness,’ paired with the ‘justification’ entry above. Distinguishes righteousness credited to a believer from righteousness earned through deeds (haki iliyopatikana kwa matendo), a distinction with no ready equivalent in either traditional African merit-based social standing or Islamic deeds-weighing soteriology, and must be explicitly taught rather than assumed.
Justification
Approved rendering: kuhesabiwa haki
Transliteration: kuhesabiwa haki
Doctrine: Salvation
Rejected alternatives: kusamehewa dhambi (too narrow, ‘to be forgiven sins’)
Compound phrase (‘to be counted/reckoned as righteous’) is the established Union Version rendering and required in full; no single Swahili word captures the forensic, declarative sense. Must not be abbreviated to kusamehewa dhambi (forgiveness of sins), which loses the ‘declared righteous’ dimension distinct from mere pardon.
Lord
Approved rendering: Bwana
Transliteration: Bwana
Doctrine: Lordship of Christ
Rejected alternatives: Mola (reserve for Islamic-register poetic use only), mkuu (boss/chief, too weak)
Bwana is the established Union Version term. In Romans 10:9 the confession ‘Jesus is Lord’ = Yesu ni Bwana. Mola, a common Islamic-register term for ‘Lord/Master’ (Allah), should be avoided in this Christian curriculum to keep the confession clearly distinct from Islamic devotional vocabulary; mkuu is too weak, missing the term’s full sovereign and worshipful sense.
Obedience Of Faith
Approved rendering: utii wa imani
Transliteration: utii wa imani
Doctrine: Obedience of Faith
Rejected alternatives: utii wa sheria (obedience to law/rules, a works-based misreading)
Romans 1:5 and 16:26. Compound phrase required to keep obedience as the fruit and expression of faith, not a separate meritorious duty. utii wa sheria (obedience to rules/law) must not substitute, as Islamic-influenced readers in particular may default to a submission-to-rules framework (Islam literally means ‘submission’) rather than obedience flowing from prior faith.
Power Of God
Approved rendering: nguvu za Mungu
Transliteration: nguvu za Mungu
Doctrine: Power of God for Salvation
Rejected alternatives: nguvu za kichawi (witchcraft power, never use)
nguvu za Mungu is standard. In much of African Christianity, the gospel is effectively preached and received as a ‘power encounter’ — Christ’s power over spirits, witchcraft, and misfortune — which is a genuine bridge for Romans 1:16, but this curriculum must guard against reducing ‘power of God for salvation’ to raw supernatural power displays divorced from the moral and relational content of salvation from sin. nguvu za kichawi (witchcraft power) must never be used or implied as an analogy.
Righteousness
Approved rendering: haki
Transliteration: haki
Doctrine: Salvation
Rejected alternatives: uadilifu, wema
haki is the established term but is also the everyday word for ‘justice’ and ‘a right’ (haki za binadamu, ‘human rights’), a broader civic sense than Romans’ theological sense of right standing before God received by faith. uadilifu (moral uprightness/integrity) is close but emphasizes achieved character rather than a status received; haki remains the correct choice but requires context to keep the theological sense from collapsing into the civic-justice sense.
Saints
Approved rendering: watakatifu
Transliteration: watakatifu
Doctrine: Sainthood
Rejected alternatives: wacha-Mungu (the God-fearing, too broad)
watakatifu can be read, especially by readers with Catholic-influenced or traditional-devotional background, as an elevated, venerated minority (canonized figures) rather than all ordinary believers. Romans 1:7’s address to ‘all God’s beloved… called to be saints’ must be rendered so it is unmistakably corporate and inclusive of every believer.
Sanctification
Approved rendering: utakaso
Transliteration: utakaso
Doctrine: Sanctification
Rejected alternatives: utakatifu (reserve for the state of holiness itself, not the process), usafi wa kidini (religious/ritual purification)
utakaso names the process of being made holy by the Spirit (Romans 6-8). usafi wa kidini (religious/ritual purification) must be avoided as a substitute; it evokes both Islamic ritual purification and traditional African cleansing rites performed by a healer (mganga) to remove spiritual defilement, which are external ritual acts distinct from the Spirit’s internal moral transformation Paul describes.
Sin
Approved rendering: dhambi
Transliteration: dhambi
Doctrine: Universal Human Accountability
Rejected alternatives: kosa (mistake/error, too weak), uchafu (ritual impurity/uncleanness)
dhambi (an Arabic-derived term shared with Islamic usage, dhanb) is well established, but must be distinguished from uchafu (ritual impurity/uncleanness, relevant in both Islamic and traditional purification contexts) and from kosa (a mere mistake). Romans 1:18-3:20’s weight of moral guilt before a personal, holy God should be stated explicitly rather than assumed from the word alone.
Medium Risk Terms
Abba
Approved rendering: Aba
Transliteration: Aba
Doctrine: Adoption into God’s Family
Aramaic term of intimacy preserved as a transliteration in the Union Version text of Romans 8:15 (‘Aba, Baba’). Keep the transliteration paired with Baba to match reader expectation from the existing Swahili Bible text.
Called
Approved rendering: aliyeitwa
Transliteration: aliyeitwa
Doctrine: Divine Calling
Rejected alternatives: alialikwa (invited, too weak)
Context-sensitive: in 1:1 = called to apostleship; in 1:7 = called to be saints; in 8:28-30 = effectual calling to salvation. alialikwa (invited) is too weak and must not be used, as it implies an optional invitation rather than a divine summons.
Calling
Approved rendering: wito
Transliteration: wito
Doctrine: Divine Calling
Rejected alternatives: mwaliko
Noun form for the act/state of being called. wito also carries the modern secular sense of ‘vocation’ (career calling), a useful bridge concept, but must be anchored explicitly to God’s initiative in this curriculum’s usage.
Covenant
Approved rendering: agano
Transliteration: agano
Doctrine: Davidic Covenant
Rejected alternatives: mkataba (contract, too transactional)
agano is the deeply established term (naming the two Testaments themselves: Agano la Kale/Agano Jipya). Relational covenant bond, not a mere transactional mkataba (contract); the term’s centrality to the canon’s own name in Swahili is an asset here.
Father
Approved rendering: Baba
Transliteration: Baba
Doctrine: Adoption into God’s Family
Baba (capitalized) for God as Father is standard and doctrinally clear, and resonates well with strong traditional African family and elder-respect values, which can be a genuine relational bridge for Romans 8’s adoption language.
Gentiles
Approved rendering: Mataifa
Transliteration: Mataifa
Doctrine: Unity of Jews and Gentiles
Rejected alternatives: wapagani (pagans, too pejorative for Paul’s general use)
Mataifa (‘the nations’) is the standard Union Version rendering, correctly conveying ‘non-Jewish peoples’ without the pejorative charge wapagani (pagans/heathens) would carry. Use wapagani only where the source text specifically intends idol-worshippers, not as a general synonym for Gentiles.
Glory
Approved rendering: utukufu
Transliteration: utukufu
Doctrine: Deity of Christ
Rejected alternatives: heshima (honor/respect, too weak)
utukufu is standard and well established. heshima (honor/respect, also central to traditional African social values around elders and authority) is too weak on its own for God’s radiant, self-revealing divine glory in passages like Romans 1:23 and 9:5.
God
Approved rendering: Mungu
Transliteration: Mungu
Doctrine: Deity of Christ
Rejected alternatives: Mwenyezi Mungu (acceptable Islamic-register synonym, avoid in Christian doctrinal contexts to prevent conflation)
Mungu (of Bantu origin, not an Arabic loan) is the standard term shared across Christian and Islamic Swahili usage alike, referring to the one God both traditions worship, which is a genuine point of contact. Mwenyezi Mungu (‘God, the All-Powerful/All-Capable’) is the more specifically Islamic-register phrase and should generally be avoided in this curriculum’s doctrinal exposition to keep the text’s own register clearly Christian rather than blended.
Holy
Approved rendering: mtakatifu
Transliteration: mtakatifu
Doctrine: Sanctification
Rejected alternatives: safi (clean, reserve for ritual/physical cleanliness only)
mtakatifu (from Arabic quddus/taqdis root) is the only viable and well-established term, shared as devotional vocabulary across Christian and Islamic usage alike. safi (clean) must not substitute; it carries ritual/ceremonial purity connotations (relevant to both Islamic wudu and traditional cleansing rites) distinct from moral holiness.
Intercession
Approved rendering: maombezi
Transliteration: maombezi
Doctrine: Prayer and Intercession
Rejected alternatives: kuwaombea mizimu (never use; ‘to petition the ancestral spirits’)
maombezi (from -omba, ‘to ask/pray’) is the correct general term for prayer on behalf of others (Romans 8:26-27). This must be kept entirely distinct from traditional practices of petitioning ancestral spirits (mizimu) for intervention in the living community’s affairs, a real and active practice in traditional African religion across much of inland Swahili-speaking East Africa; Christ’s and the Spirit’s intercession in Romans 8 must not be assimilated to this ancestor-mediation framework.
Israel
Approved rendering: Israeli
Transliteration: Israeli
Doctrine: Unity of Jews and Gentiles
Standard proper name; note the modern nation-state of Israel shares the identical Swahili name, and East African public opinion on the contemporary state varies, so context should clarify when the biblical people/covenant referent, not the contemporary state, is meant.
Jesus
Approved rendering: Yesu
Transliteration: Yesu
Doctrine: Lordship of Christ
Rejected alternatives: Isa (the Quranic Arabic form, reserve only for explicit interfaith-dialogue contexts)
Yesu is the standard Union Version form used across all Swahili Christian traditions. Isa is the name used in the Quran and in Islamic devotional Swahili; using Isa in this Christian curriculum could suggest the Quranic figure (who is not affirmed as divine or crucified) is simply interchangeable with the biblical Jesus, so Yesu must be used consistently, with Isa reserved only for explicit, clearly-framed comparative or apologetic discussion.
Kingdom Of God
Approved rendering: Ufalme wa Mungu
Transliteration: Ufalme wa Mungu
Doctrine: Kingdom Mission
Rejected alternatives: dola la Mungu (state/nation of God, too political)
Established Union Version term. God’s sovereign spiritual reign, distinct from any this-worldly political kingdom or nation-state (dola), a distinction worth making given East Africa’s own post-colonial nation-building political vocabulary.
Law
Approved rendering: sheria
Transliteration: sheria
Doctrine: Fulfillment of Prophecy
Rejected alternatives: amri (individual commandment, acceptable for specific commands)
sheria is the standard Union Version term for the Mosaic Law/Torah and the ordinary word for civil law. Note: sheria shares an etymological root with ‘Sharia’ (Islamic religious law), so for readers with strong Islamic exposure the term may evoke a comprehensive divinely-revealed legal-religious system in a way that usefully parallels Paul’s argument about the Law’s demands, provided the curriculum still distinguishes the Mosaic Law’s specific redemptive-historical role from a Sharia-style total life-code.
Mission
Approved rendering: utume / uinjilisti
Transliteration: utume / uinjilisti
Doctrine: Mission to the Nations
Rejected alternatives: propaganda (never use)
utume (from the same root as mtume, ‘apostle/one sent’) and uinjilisti (evangelism, from Injili) both retain established Christian meaning. Note the same mtume-root ambiguity flagged under ‘apostle’ can recur here and should be clarified by context; avoid propaganda given its manipulative connotation in modern political usage.
Peace
Approved rendering: amani
Transliteration: amani
Doctrine: Peace with God
Rejected alternatives: utulivu (calm, too passive/psychological)
amani is the standard term and carries strong positive national and cultural resonance in East Africa (particularly Tanzania’s post-independence ethos of ‘amani na utulivu,’ peace and stability, associated with Julius Nyerere’s legacy). Romans 5:1’s relational, judicial peace with God through justification must be distinguished from this broader civic/political sense of national peace and from utulivu’s merely psychological calm.
Prophecy
Approved rendering: unabii
Transliteration: unabii
Doctrine: Fulfillment of Prophecy
Rejected alternatives: uaguzi (divination, never use)
unabii is God-inspired declaration; must be distinguished from uaguzi (divination/fortune-telling), a live traditional practice performed by waganga (traditional healers/diviners) across much of the Swahili-speaking region.
Prophet
Approved rendering: nabii
Transliteration: nabii
Doctrine: Inspiration of Scripture
Rejected alternatives: mchawi (witchdoctor/sorcerer, never use)
nabii (Arabic loanword) is standard and shared with Islamic usage for both Old Testament and Quranic prophetic figures, which is a genuine point of contact but requires care: readers may assume OT prophets fit a Quranic prophetology (each bringing a new revealed book that supersedes the last) rather than the biblical pattern of a unified, progressively unfolding covenant history. mchawi (witchdoctor/sorcerer) must never be used, given the active traditional distinction between true prophecy and traditional divination.
Providence
Approved rendering: uangalizi wa Mungu
Transliteration: uangalizi wa Mungu
Doctrine: Providence
Rejected alternatives: majaliwa (use with caution; carries Islamic predetermination connotations), bahati
uangalizi wa Mungu (‘God’s watchful care/oversight’) is preferred over majaliwa (fate/divine decree, al-qadar) as the primary term, to keep Romans 8:28’s personal, purposive, relational sense of God’s care distinct from a more impersonal Islamic predetermination framework; majaliwa may be referenced comparatively but should not be the default rendering. bahati (luck/chance) must never be used.
Seed Of David
Approved rendering: wa uzao wa Daudi
Transliteration: wa uzao wa Daudi
Doctrine: Davidic Covenant
Rejected alternatives: mzao wa Daudi (acceptable singular-form gloss)
Romans 1:3; the Union Version phrasing ‘wa uzao wa Daudi’ is the recognized Bible-register form conveying physical lineage and OT covenant fulfillment.
Spiritual Gifts
Approved rendering: vipawa vya Roho
Transliteration: vipawa vya Roho
Doctrine: Spiritual Gifts
Rejected alternatives: uwezo wa kichawi (never use; ‘power of witchcraft’), vipaji (natural talents, too weak)
vipawa vya Roho (‘gifts of the Spirit’) is standard evangelical Swahili usage. uwezo wa kichawi (witchcraft power) must never be used or implied, given the real and active presence of traditional beliefs in witchcraft (uchawi) and traditional healers (waganga) in much of the Swahili-speaking interior. vipaji (natural talents) is too weak, missing the Spirit-given, grace-based origin.
Low Risk Terms
David
Approved rendering: Daudi
Transliteration: Daudi
Doctrine: Davidic Covenant
Union Version standard proper name form. Note: Daudi (Dawud) is also a revered prophet-king figure in Islamic tradition, which is a point of shared recognition, though the Islamic Dawud narrative differs from the biblical covenant narrative Romans depends on.
Exhort
Approved rendering: kuonya na kutia moyo
Transliteration: kuonya na kutia moyo
Doctrine: Mutual Edification
Context-sensitive: use kusihi (entreaty, beseeching) for urgent appeal; kutia moyo (encourage, literally ‘to put in heart’) for edification/encouragement contexts.
Fellowship
Approved rendering: ushirika
Transliteration: ushirika
Doctrine: Christian Fellowship
Rejected alternatives: urafiki (friendship, too general)
ushirika conveys shared participation/communion well and is the standard Christian term (also used for the Eucharist as Ushirika Mtakatifu). urafiki (ordinary friendship) is too general for the shared-life-in-Christ sense.
Thanksgiving
Approved rendering: shukrani
Transliteration: shukrani
Doctrine: Thanksgiving
Standard term, shared as Islamic vocabulary too (shukrani/shukr). No significant risk.
Referenced passages