Core Glossary
Core Glossary: 2 John — English → Telugu
This glossary extends the baseline Romans Language Package (translation_memory.json, bible_term_registry.json) for the 2 John curriculum. Terms marked “Reused (Baseline)” MUST use the exact baseline rendering with no deviation. Terms marked “New (2 John)” are established by this curriculum and must be used consistently across all 2 John materials, and should be added to translation_memory.json before Phase 2 begins.
Baseline Terms Reused Exactly (No Deviation Permitted)
| English Term | Greek | Telugu (Baseline) | Transliteration | Risk (Baseline) | Verse(s) in 2 John |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| God | θεός | దేవుడు | Dēvuḍu | Critical | 1:3 |
| Father | πατήρ | తండ్రి | Tandri | Critical | 1:3, 1:4, 1:9 |
| Jesus | Ἰησοῦς | యేసు | Yēsu | Critical | 1:3, 1:7 |
| Christ | Χριστός | క్రీస్తు | Krīstu | Critical | 1:3, 1:7, 1:9 |
| Son of God (Sonship doctrine) | υἱὸς θεοῦ / τοῦ υἱοῦ τοῦ πατρός | దేవుని కుమారుడు (కుమారుడు reused for “Son”) | Dēvuni Kumāruḍu | Critical | 1:3, 1:9 |
| Incarnation (doctrine) | ἐρχόμενον ἐν σαρκί | శరీరధారణ (root reused; see σάρξ/ἐρχόμενον ἐν σαρκί below for the verse-specific phrase) | śarīradhāraṇa | Critical | 1:7 |
| Grace | χάρις | కృప | kṛpa | High | 1:3 |
| Peace | εἰρήνη | శాంతి | śānti | Medium | 1:3 |
| Lord (exclusion note) | κύριος | ప్రభువు — must NOT be used for κυρία (see below) | prabhuvu | Critical | (avoided at 1:1, 1:5) |
| Fellowship (positive sense, contrast term) | κοινωνία | సహవాసం — must be lexically distinct from the negative κοινωνεῖ of 1:11 (see below) | sahavāsam | Low | (contrast reference) |
| Mutual Edification (one another) | ἀλλήλους | పరస్పర(ం) | parasparam | Low | 1:5 |
| Election (root) | ἐκλογή / ἐκλεκτός | ఏర్పాటు root reused as ఏర్పరచబడిన | Ērparachabaḍina | High | 1:1, 1:13 |
New Terms Established by This Curriculum
| English Term | Greek | Transliteration | Telugu Rendering | Telugu Transliteration | Doctrine | Doctrine Risk | Verse(s) | Rejected Alternatives | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Elder (author’s title) | πρεσβύτερος | presbyteros | పెద్ద | pedda | Apostleship/Church Office | Medium | 1:1 | గురువు, వృద్ధుడు (mere old age) | Must convey recognized pastoral office, not mere seniority or a generic guru-teacher role, per baseline apostleship-doctrine caution. |
| Elect Lady (address) | ἐκλεκτῇ κυρίᾳ | eklektē kyria | ఏర్పరచబడిన కుర్యా | Ērparachabaḍina Kuryā | Divine Calling / Election | Medium | 1:1, 1:5 | ఏర్పరచబడిన ప్రభువు-family terms (forbidden) | κυρία shares a root with κύριος (“Lord”) but means “lady/madam” here. CRITICAL: must never be rendered with ప్రభువు or ప్రభువు-derived vocabulary, which the baseline reserves exclusively for the Lordship of Christ. Preserve referent ambiguity (individual woman vs. congregation). |
| Sister (fellow believer) | ἀδελφή | adelphē | సహోదరి | sahōdari | Church as God’s People | Low | 1:13 | — | Standard Telugu Christian term for a female fellow-believer/relation. |
| Children (recipients) | τέκνα | tekna | పిల్లలు | pillalu | Church as God’s People / Adoption | Medium | 1:1, 1:4, 1:13 | బిడ్డలు (acceptable variant, not preferred) | Preserve literal/spiritual referent ambiguity; do not resolve interpretively in the translated text. |
| Truth | ἀλήθεια | alētheia | సత్యం | satyam | Inspiration/Doctrinal Discernment | High | 1:1, 1:2, 1:3, 1:4 | — | సత్యం carries independent philosophical weight in Hindu tradition (impersonal cosmic Truth, Advaita, Satyagraha legacy). Context must anchor it to the personal, revealed truth of the gospel. Establishes this term for future curricula; should be added to translation_memory.json. |
| Love (agape) | ἀγάπη / ἀγαπάω | agapē / agapaō | ప్రేమ | prēma | Walking in Truth and Love | High | 1:1, 1:3, 1:5, 1:6 | స్నేహం (too weak; friendship only) | ప్రేమ is Telugu’s everyday word for all kinds of love, including romantic love. Context must secure the covenantal, self-giving, commanded sense. |
| Walk / walking (conduct) | περιπατέω | peripateō | నడుచుకొను | naḍuchukonu | Walking in Truth and Love | Medium | 1:4, 1:6 (x2) | నడవడం (literal walking only, avoid if idiom unclear) | Established Telugu idiom for “conduct/manner of life,” not literal ambulation. Must be rendered identically at every occurrence in this letter. |
| Commandment | ἐντολή | entolē | ఆజ్ఞ | āgna | Walking in Truth and Love / Perseverance | Medium | 1:4, 1:5, 1:6 (x2) | నియమం (too legalistic/rule-based) | Standard term (cf. దశ ఆజ్ఞలు); ensure relational, Father-given framing, not bare legalism. |
| World | κόσμος | kosmos | లోకం | lōkam | Warning against Deceivers | Medium | 1:7 | — | Negative Johannine sense (fallen world-system) must be distinguished by context from the neutral sense (creation). |
| Deceiver(s) | πλάνος | planos | వంచకులు | van̄chakulu | Warning against Deceivers | High | 1:7 (x2) | అబద్ధికులు (too weak; mere liars) | Must convey deliberate, doctrinally-motivated religious deception, not generic dishonesty or mere differing religious opinion. |
| Confess / confessing | ὁμολογέω | homologeō | ఒప్పుకొను | oppukonu | Warning against Deceivers | High | 1:7 | అంగీకరించు (acceptable synonym; less consistent with Romans 10:9 register) | Register should echo the Romans 10:9 confession vocabulary (public, decisive doctrinal acknowledgment) as its negative mirror image. |
| Coming in the flesh (Incarnation phrase) | ἐρχόμενον ἐν σαρκί | erchomenon en sarki | శరీరమందు వచ్చిన | śarīramandu vachina | Incarnation | Critical | 1:7 | అవతారంగా వచ్చిన (FORBIDDEN — never use) | Direct extension of baseline’s శరీరధారణ (incarnation, Critical, never అవతారం). Mandatory theologian review; the entire doctrinal point of the verse is anti-docetic and anti-avatar. |
| Flesh (of Christ’s true humanity) | σάρξ | sarx | శరీరము | śarīramu | Incarnation / Humanity of Christ | Critical | 1:7 | — | Must affirm real, physical, unqualified human embodiment; render consistently with ἐρχόμενον ἐν σαρκί above. |
| Antichrist | ἀντίχριστος | antichristos | క్రీస్తువిరోధి | Kristuvirōdhi | Warning against Deceivers / Deity & Sonship of Christ | Critical | 1:7 | ఖలనాయకుడు (generic villain — too weak; loses Christological specificity) | Follows established Telugu Bible convention (as used in 1 John). Must retain specific Christological content — active opposition to Christ, not generic evil. Mandatory theologian review. |
| Reward (eschatological) | μισθός | misthos | ప్రతిఫలం | pratiphalam | Perseverance in the Teaching of Christ | Medium-High | 1:8 | జీతం (ordinary economic wages — too transactional) | Guard against merit-earns-salvation misreading; this is reward for post-salvation faithfulness, not salvation’s basis. Cross-reference baseline’s Grace ≠ merit validation rule. |
| Goes ahead / oversteps (doctrinal innovation) | προάγω (προάγων) | proagō (proagōn) | అతిక్రమించువాడు | atikramin̄chuvāḍu | Perseverance in the Teaching of Christ | High | 1:9 | ముందుకు వెళ్లువాడు (too positive; reads as commendable “progress”) | Ironic/negative sense: apparent spiritual “progress” that is actually departure from truth. Must not be rendered with vocabulary implying commendable advancement. |
| Abide / remain | μένω (μένων / μένουσαν) | menō | నిలిచియుండు | nilichiyuṇḍu | Perseverance in the Teaching of Christ | High | 1:2, 1:9 (x2) | ఉండు (too weak/generic; loses covenantal-continuity sense) | Core Johannine term; must render identically at every occurrence (v.2 and v.9) to preserve the letter’s internal theological argument. |
| Teaching of Christ (doctrine) | διδαχή τοῦ Χριστοῦ | didachē tou Christou | క్రీస్తు బోధ | Kristu bodha | Perseverance in the Teaching of Christ | High | 1:9, 1:10 | బోధ alone (too generic — reads as any guru’s teaching) | The qualifier “క్రీస్తు” is the doctrinal safeguard against collapse into generic religious instruction; never omit it. |
| Have God / have the Father and the Son (relational idiom) | θεὸν ἔχειν / τὸν πατέρα καὶ τὸν υἱὸν ἔχειν | theon echein / ton patera kai ton huion echein | దేవుడు లేనివాడు / తండ్రిని కుమారుని కలిగియున్నవాడు | Dēvuḍu lēnivāḍu / Tandrini Kumārunī kaligiyunnavāḍu | Perseverance in the Teaching of Christ / Deity of Christ | Critical | 1:9 | — | Idiom for covenantal relationship with God, not literal possession. Do not soften “does not have God” — mandatory theologian review. |
| Receive into the house (ministry-hospitality) | λαμβάνω εἰς οἰκίαν | lambanō eis oikian | ఇంటికి చేర్చుకొను | iṇṭiki chērchukonu | Hospitality and Doctrinal Discernment | Critical (cultural collision) | 1:10 | సాదరంగా ఆహ్వానించు (too warmly hospitable — obscures the doctrinal restriction) | Direct collision with Indian/Telugu hospitality ethic (అతిథి దేవో భవ). Requires accompanying teaching notes clarifying the narrow scope: applies specifically to ministry-sponsoring hospitality toward an active denier of the incarnation, not general courtesy. Mandatory theologian review. |
| Greeting (“Hail”/“Rejoice,” fixed formula) | χαίρειν | chairein | శుభం చెప్పుట | śubham cheppuṭa | Hospitality and Doctrinal Discernment | High (cultural collision) | 1:10, 1:11 (x2) | నమస్కారము చెప్పు (acceptable variant; equally needs cultural framing) | Withholding even a verbal greeting-blessing is symbolically severe in Telugu social custom; must be clearly scoped in teaching materials to this specific doctrinal case. |
| Partake / share in (negative complicity) | κοινωνέω | koinōneō | పాలుపంచుకొను | pālupan̄chukonu | Hospitality and Doctrinal Discernment | High | 1:11 | సహవాసం చేయు (FORBIDDEN in this verse — collides with baseline’s positive fellowship term) | Same Greek root as κοινωνία (fellowship, baseline: సహవాసం, positive) but used negatively here; must remain lexically distinct so support of a deceiver is never read as commendable fellowship. |
| Evil works/deeds | ἔργα πονηρά | erga ponēra | దుష్క్రియలు | duṣkriyalu | Hospitality and Doctrinal Discernment | Medium | 1:11 | చెడు పనులు (acceptable informal variant) | Names doctrinal error’s practical partnership as active moral evil, not mere intellectual mistake. |
| Mercy | ἔλεος | eleos | కనికరం | kanikaram | (Salutation triad; supports Grace doctrine) | Medium | 1:3 | జాలి (too weak; generic pity) | Paired with grace (కృప, baseline) and peace (శాంతి, baseline) in the apostolic greeting triad; denotes covenantal compassion. |
| Ask / request (gentle entreaty) | ἐρωτάω | erōtaō | కోరుచున్నాను (verb form) | kōruchunnānu | Walking in Truth and Love | Low | 1:5 | డిమాండ్ చేయు (too forceful) | Peer-level appeal, distinct from an authoritative command register. |
| Know / known (relational knowledge) | γινώσκω (ἐγνωκότες) | ginōskō (egnōkotes) | సత్యమును ఎరిగినవారు | satyamunu eriginavāru | Inspiration / Faith | Medium-High | 1:1 | తెలిసినవారు (too intellectual/factual only) | Risk of collision with Hindu jñāna-mārga (gnosis-attainment) framework; must be anchored to relational, revelation-received knowledge, not self-attained insight. |
| Forever / eternity | αἰών (εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα) | aiōn | నిత్యము | nityamu | (supports Perseverance/Truth doctrines) | Low-Medium | 1:2 | యుగయుగములు (acceptable poetic variant) | Linear, unending duration; lower risk than “resurrection” but same general caution against cyclical/samsara-adjacent readings. |
| Joy | χαρά (and χαίρω root) | chara | ఆనందం | ānandam | Walking in Truth and Love (tone) | Low-Medium | 1:4 (ἐχάρην), 1:12 | సంతోషం (acceptable synonym) | Shares a root with the greeting-word χαίρειν (1:10-11); translators/teachers should note this wordplay when teaching from the Greek, though natural Telugu equivalents differ by context. |
| Face to face (idiom) | στόμα πρὸς στόμα | stoma pros stoma | ముఖాముఖిగా | mukhāmukhigā | (non-doctrinal; models relational presence) | Low | 1:12 | నోటికి నోరు (literal — avoid; unnatural in Telugu) | Natural Telugu idiom preferred over literal “mouth to mouth” translation, per idiom-handling policy. |
Doctrine-to-Term Cross-Reference
| Curriculum Doctrine | Primary Terms |
|---|---|
| Walking in Truth and Love | ἀλήθεια (సత్యం), ἀγάπη (ప్రేమ), περιπατέω (నడుచుకొను), ἐντολή (ఆజ్ఞ), ἀλλήλους (పరస్పరం) |
| Warning against Deceivers Denying the Incarnation | πλάνος (వంచకులు), ἀντίχριστος (క్రీస్తువిరోధి), ὁμολογέω (ఒప్పుకొను), ἐρχόμενον ἐν σαρκί (శరీరమందు వచ్చిన), σάρξ (శరీరము), κόσμος (లోకం) |
| Hospitality and Doctrinal Discernment | λαμβάνω εἰς οἰκίαν (ఇంటికి చేర్చుకొను), χαίρειν (శుభం చెప్పుట), κοινωνέω (పాలుపంచుకొను), ἔργα πονηρά (దుష్క్రియలు) |
| Perseverance in the Teaching of Christ | μένω (నిలిచియుండు), προάγω (అతిక్రమించువాడు), διδαχή τοῦ Χριστοῦ (క్రీస్తు బోధ), μισθός (ప్రతిఫలం), θεὸν ἔχειν (దేవుడు కలిగియుండుట) |
Critical Collision-Avoidance Summary (for Phase 2 automated validation)
| Risk Point | Rule |
|---|---|
| κυρία (1:1, 1:5) vs. κύριος | NEVER render κυρία (“lady”) with ప్రభువు or ప్రభువు-derived vocabulary. |
| κοινωνεῖ (1:11) vs. κοινωνία | NEVER render the negative “shares in evil works” with సహవాసం (reserved for positive fellowship in Christ). |
| ἐρχόμενον ἐν σαρκί / σάρξ (1:7) | NEVER use అవతారం or any avatar-descent vocabulary. |
| ἀντίχριστος (1:7) | NEVER soften to a generic “evil person” or “false prophet” term lacking specific Christological content. |
| λαμβάνω εἰς οἰκίαν / χαίρειν (1:10-11) | NEVER translate or teach as a general anti-hospitality principle; scope is limited to active deniers of the incarnation in a ministry-sponsoring context. |
| θεὸν οὐκ ἔχει (1:9) | NEVER soften “does not have God” to a milder equivalent. |
All new terms above should be submitted to translation_memory.json (version increment) before Phase 2 segment translation begins, per the baseline’s Translation Memory Load and Enforcement Instructions.
Critical Risk Terms
God
Approved rendering: దేవుడు
Transliteration: Dēvuḍu
Doctrine: Deity of Christ / God the Father
Rejected alternatives: భగవంతుడు
Original: θεός
Category: God
Inherited from Romans package. In 2 John 1:9 the phrase ‘does not have God’ must retain its full severity — do not soften.
Father
Approved rendering: తండ్రి
Transliteration: Tandri
Doctrine: Adoption into God’s Family / Sonship of Christ
Rejected alternatives: సృష్టికర్త
Original: πατήρ
Category: God
Inherited from Romans package. Source of the original love-command (1:4); named alongside the Son as the ground of covenantal relationship (1:3, 1:9).
Jesus
Approved rendering: యేసు
Transliteration: Yēsu
Doctrine: Lordship of Christ
Original: Ἰησοῦς
Category: Christology
Inherited from Romans package. Shared Protestant/Catholic Telugu Bible form.
Christ
Approved rendering: క్రీస్తు
Transliteration: Krīstu
Doctrine: Sonship and Deity of Christ
Original: Χριστός
Category: Christology
Established Telugu Bible transliteration fixed by the baseline’s transliteration standards (12_ai_translation_requirements.md); not a separate translation_memory.json key in the Romans baseline, but enforced here with the same non-negotiable priority. Never drop when paired with ‘teaching’ (క్రీస్తు బోధ) — the qualifier carries doctrinal content.
Lord
Approved rendering: ప్రభువు
Transliteration: prabhuvu
Doctrine: Lordship of Christ
Rejected alternatives: స్వామి
Original: κύριος (contrast term for κυρία, 1:1, 1:5)
Category: Christology
Inherited from Romans package. Does not occur as a rendering anywhere in 2 John’s text; its exclusion is itself a Critical collision-avoidance control — NEVER use ప్రభువు or ప్రభువు-derived vocabulary for κυρία (‘elect lady,’ 1:1, 1:5), which shares a root with κύριος in Greek but means ‘lady/madam.‘
Son Of God
Approved rendering: దేవుని కుమారుడు
Transliteration: Dēvuni Kumāruḍu
Doctrine: Sonship of Christ
Rejected alternatives: అవతారపురుషుడు
Original: υἱὸς θεοῦ / τοῦ υἱοῦ τοῦ πατρός
Category: Christology
Inherited from Romans package. 2 John 1:3’s variant phrase ‘the Son of the Father’ (τοῦ υἱοῦ τοῦ πατρός) and 1:9’s idiom ‘has both the Father and the Son’ must reuse కుమారుడు exactly rather than introduce a different Telugu term for the same eternal, co-equal Sonship doctrine.
Incarnation
Approved rendering: శరీరధారణ
Transliteration: śarīradhāraṇa
Doctrine: Incarnation
Rejected alternatives: అవతారం
Inherited from Romans package (doctrine-name root). 2 John 1:7 requires the verse-specific predicate phrase శరీరమందు వచ్చిన (see coming_in_the_flesh below), directly built on this root. NEVER అవతారం.
Coming In The Flesh
Approved rendering: శరీరమందు వచ్చిన
Transliteration: śarīramandu vachina
Doctrine: Incarnation / Warning against Deceivers Denying the Incarnation
Rejected alternatives: అవతారంగా వచ్చిన (FORBIDDEN — never use)
Original: ἐρχόμενον ἐν σαρκί
Category: Christology
New term, verse-specific phrase (1:7) built on the baseline’s శరీరధారణ root. NEVER అవతారం — the entire doctrinal point of the verse is anti-docetic and anti-avatar, heightened by Tirupati’s Venkateswara avatar-descent tradition. Mandatory human theologian review.
Flesh
Approved rendering: శరీరము
Transliteration: śarīramu
Doctrine: Incarnation / Humanity of Christ
Original: σάρξ
Category: Christology
New term. Must affirm real, physical, unqualified human embodiment (1:7); render consistently with coming_in_the_flesh above.
Antichrist
Approved rendering: క్రీస్తువిరోధి
Transliteration: Kristuvirōdhi
Doctrine: Warning against Deceivers Denying the Incarnation / Sonship and Deity of Christ
Rejected alternatives: ఖలనాయకుడు
Original: ἀντίχριστος
Category: Christology
New term, following established Telugu Bible convention (as used in 1 John). Must never soften to a generic ‘evil person’ or ‘false prophet’ term lacking specific Christological content (1:7). Mandatory human theologian review.
Have God
Approved rendering: దేవుడు లేనివాడు / తండ్రిని కుమారుని కలిగియున్నవాడు
Transliteration: Dēvuḍu lēnivāḍu / Tandrini Kumārunī kaligiyunnavāḍu
Doctrine: Perseverance in the Teaching of Christ / Sonship and Deity of Christ
Original: θεὸν ἔχειν / τὸν πατέρα καὶ τὸν υἱὸν ἔχειν
Category: Sanctification
New term, idiom for covenantal relationship (or its absence) with God (1:9). Do not soften ‘does not have God’ into a milder phrase. Mandatory human theologian review.
Receive Into House
Approved rendering: ఇంటికి చేర్చుకొను
Transliteration: iṇṭiki chērchukonu
Doctrine: Hospitality and Doctrinal Discernment
Rejected alternatives: సాదరంగా ఆహ్వానించు
Original: λαμβάνειν εἰς οἰκίαν
Category: Hospitality
New term. Direct collision with the Indian/Telugu hospitality ethic అతిథి దేవో భవ. Requires accompanying teaching notes narrowing scope to ministry-sponsoring hospitality toward an active, public denier of the incarnation (1:10), never general courtesy. Mandatory human theologian review.
High Risk Terms
Grace
Approved rendering: కృప
Transliteration: kṛpa
Doctrine: Grace
Rejected alternatives: పుణ్యం, కర్మఫలం
Original: χάρις
Category: Salvation
Inherited from Romans package. First of the greeting triad (grace, mercy, peace) in 2 John 1:3.
Election
Approved rendering: దేవుని ఏర్పాటు
Transliteration: Dēvuni Ērpāṭu
Doctrine: Effectual Calling / Election
Rejected alternatives: విధి, కర్మ
Original: ἐκλεκτός / ἐκλογή
Category: Salvation
Inherited from Romans package (root). Extended in this curriculum via the participle ఏర్పరచబడిన for ‘elect lady’ (1:1) and ‘elect sister’ (1:13).
Elect Lady
Approved rendering: ఏర్పరచబడిన కుర్యా
Transliteration: Ērparachabaḍina Kuryā
Doctrine: Church as God’s People / Election
Rejected alternatives: ఏర్పరచబడిన ప్రభువు-family terms (forbidden)
Original: ἐκλεκτῇ κυρίᾳ
Category: Church
New term. κυρία (‘lady’) shares a root with κύριος (‘Lord’) but must NEVER be rendered with ప్రభువు or ప్రభువు-derived vocabulary. Preserve the individual-woman-or-congregation referent ambiguity (1:1, 1:5).
Truth
Approved rendering: సత్యం
Transliteration: satyam
Doctrine: Walking in Truth and Love / Truth Indwelling and Known by Believers
Original: ἀλήθεια
Category: Faith
New term establishing this curriculum’s rendering; future curricula in this pipeline should reuse. సత్యం carries independent weight in Hindu philosophical tradition (impersonal cosmic Satya, Advaita, the Satyagraha legacy). Context must anchor every occurrence (1:1, 1:2, 1:3, 1:4) to the personal, revealed, Christ-centered truth of the gospel.
Love
Approved rendering: ప్రేమ
Transliteration: prēma
Doctrine: Walking in Truth and Love
Rejected alternatives: స్నేహం
Original: ἀγάπη / ἀγαπάω
Category: Christian Living
New term establishing this curriculum’s rendering. ప్రేమ is Telugu’s everyday word for love of every kind, including romantic love. Context (the ఆజ్ఞ/commandment framing) must secure the covenantal, self-giving, commanded sense at every occurrence (1:1, 1:3, 1:5, 1:6).
Deceiver
Approved rendering: వంచకులు
Transliteration: van̄chakulu
Doctrine: Warning against Deceivers Denying the Incarnation
Rejected alternatives: అబద్ధికులు
Original: πλάνος
Category: Sin
New term. Must convey deliberate, doctrinally-motivated religious deception (1:7), not generic dishonesty or a merely different religious opinion in India’s pluralistic religious landscape.
Confess
Approved rendering: ఒప్పుకొను
Transliteration: oppukonu
Doctrine: Warning against Deceivers Denying the Incarnation
Rejected alternatives: అంగీకరించు
Original: ὁμολογέω
Category: Faith
New term. Register must echo the baseline’s Romans 10:9 salvation-confession vocabulary, since 2 John 1:7 functions as its negative mirror image (the deceivers’ refusal to confess).
Reward
Approved rendering: ప్రతిఫలం
Transliteration: pratiphalam
Doctrine: Eschatological Reward for Perseverance
Rejected alternatives: జీతం
Original: μισθός
Category: Eschatology
New term. Must not be read through a merit-earns-salvation lens (cross-reference baseline’s Grace ≠ merit validation rule); this is reward for post-salvation faithfulness, not salvation’s basis (1:8).
Goes Ahead
Approved rendering: అతిక్రమించువాడు
Transliteration: atikramin̄chuvāḍu
Doctrine: Perseverance in the Teaching of Christ
Rejected alternatives: ముందుకు వెళ్లువాడు
Original: προάγω (προάγων)
Category: Sanctification
New term. Ironic/negative sense of claimed spiritual ‘progress’ that is actually departure from truth (1:9); must never use vocabulary implying commendable advancement.
Abide
Approved rendering: నిలిచియుండు
Transliteration: nilichiyuṇḍu
Doctrine: Perseverance in the Teaching of Christ / Truth Indwelling and Known by Believers
Rejected alternatives: ఉండు
Original: μένω (μένων / μένουσαν)
Category: Sanctification
New term. Core Johannine term; must be rendered identically at both occurrences (1:2 and 1:9) to preserve the letter’s internal theological argument.
Teaching Of Christ
Approved rendering: క్రీస్తు బోధ
Transliteration: Kristu bodha
Doctrine: Perseverance in the Teaching of Christ
Rejected alternatives: బోధ alone (too generic)
Original: διδαχὴ τοῦ Χριστοῦ
Category: Sanctification
New term. The qualifier క్రీస్తు is the doctrinal safeguard against collapse into generic guru/religious instruction (గురు బోధ); never omit it (1:9, 1:10).
Greeting
Approved rendering: శుభం చెప్పుట
Transliteration: śubham cheppuṭa
Doctrine: Hospitality and Doctrinal Discernment
Rejected alternatives: నమస్కారము చెప్పు
Original: χαίρειν
Category: Hospitality
New term. Withholding even a verbal greeting-blessing is symbolically severe in Telugu social custom (1:10, 1:11); must be scoped in teaching materials to this specific doctrinal case, not a general model for treating outsiders.
Partake
Approved rendering: పాలుపంచుకొను
Transliteration: pālupan̄chukonu
Doctrine: Complicity in a Deceiver’s Evil Works
Rejected alternatives: సహవాసం చేయు (FORBIDDEN in this verse — collides with baseline’s positive fellowship term)
Original: κοινωνέω
Category: Hospitality
New term. Shares its Greek root with κοινωνία/సహవాసం (positive fellowship) but must remain lexically distinct in this negative sense (1:11) so support of a deceiver is never read as commendable spiritual fellowship.
Know
Approved rendering: సత్యమును ఎరిగినవారు
Transliteration: satyamunu eriginavāru
Doctrine: Truth Indwelling and Known by Believers
Rejected alternatives: తెలిసినవారు
Original: γινώσκω (ἐγνωκότες)
Category: Faith
New term. Risk of collision with the Hindu jñāna-mārga (path-of-knowledge/gnosis) framework; must be anchored to relational, revealed, gift-received knowledge shared by all believers (1:1), not a self-attained esoteric insight.
Medium Risk Terms
Peace
Approved rendering: శాంతి
Transliteration: śānti
Doctrine: Peace with God
Rejected alternatives: మనశ్శాంతి
Original: εἰρήνη
Category: Salvation
Inherited from Romans package. Third of the greeting triad in 2 John 1:3.
Mercy
Approved rendering: కనికరం
Transliteration: kanikaram
Doctrine: Trinitarian Greeting: Grace, Mercy, and Peace
Rejected alternatives: జాలి
Original: ἔλεος
Category: God
New term for this curriculum. Second of the greeting triad (1:3); must denote God’s covenantal compassion, not generic pity.
Elder
Approved rendering: పెద్ద
Transliteration: pedda
Doctrine: Church as God’s People / Apostleship
Rejected alternatives: గురువు, వృద్ధుడు
Original: πρεσβύτερος
Category: Church
New term. The author’s self-designation (1:1), conveying recognized pastoral/apostolic-era office, not mere seniority or a generic guru-teacher role.
Children
Approved rendering: పిల్లలు
Transliteration: pillalu
Doctrine: Church as God’s People / Adoption
Rejected alternatives: బిడ్డలు
Original: τέκνα
Category: Church
New term. Preserve the literal-household/spiritual-congregation referent ambiguity; do not resolve interpretively (1:1, 1:4, 1:13).
Walk
Approved rendering: నడుచుకొను
Transliteration: naḍuchukonu
Doctrine: Walking in Truth and Love
Rejected alternatives: నడవడం (literal walking only)
Original: περιπατέω
Category: Christian Living
New term. Established Telugu idiom for conduct/manner of life, not literal ambulation. Must be rendered identically at every occurrence (1:4, 1:6 x2).
Commandment
Approved rendering: ఆజ్ఞ
Transliteration: āgna
Doctrine: Walking in Truth and Love / Perseverance in the Teaching of Christ
Rejected alternatives: నియమం
Original: ἐντολή
Category: Christian Living
New term. Standard Telugu Christian term (cf. దశ ఆజ్ఞలు); must read as relational, Father-given, not bare legalism (1:4, 1:5, 1:6 x2).
World
Approved rendering: లోకం
Transliteration: lōkam
Doctrine: Warning against Deceivers Denying the Incarnation
Original: κόσμος
Category: Sin
New term. The negative Johannine sense (fallen world-system, 1:7) must be distinguished by context from the neutral sense (the created world) already used elsewhere for the same Telugu word.
Evil Works
Approved rendering: దుష్క్రియలు
Transliteration: duṣkriyalu
Doctrine: Complicity in a Deceiver’s Evil Works
Rejected alternatives: చెడు పనులు
Original: ἔργα πονηρά
Category: Sin
New term. Names doctrinal error’s practical partnership as active moral evil, not mere intellectual mistake (1:11).
Low Risk Terms
Fellowship
Approved rendering: సహవాసం
Transliteration: sahavāsam
Doctrine: Christian Fellowship
Rejected alternatives: స్నేహం
Original: κοινωνία (contrast root for κοινωνέω, 1:11)
Category: Church
Inherited from Romans package. Reserved exclusively for the POSITIVE sense in this curriculum; must NEVER be used to render 2 John 1:11’s κοινωνεῖ (‘shares in evil works’), which uses the distinct negative-sense term పాలుపంచుకొను instead.
Sister
Approved rendering: సహోదరి
Transliteration: sahōdari
Doctrine: Church as God’s People
Original: ἀδελφή
Category: Church
New term. Standard Telugu Christian term for a female fellow-believer or another congregation addressed with the same ‘elect’ language (1:13).
One Another
Approved rendering: పరస్పరం
Transliteration: parasparam
Doctrine: Walking in Truth and Love / Mutual Edification
New term for this curriculum, consistent with the baseline’s Mutual Edification doctrine vocabulary root (పరస్పర క్షేమాభివృద్ధి). Renders ἀλλήλους in 1:5 (‘that we love one another’).
Forever
Approved rendering: నిత్యము
Transliteration: nityamu
Doctrine: Truth Indwelling and Known by Believers
Rejected alternatives: యుగయుగములు
Original: αἰών (εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα)
Category: Eschatology
New term. Linear, unending duration describing truth’s permanence in believers (1:2); lower risk than resurrection-type terms but same general caution against cyclical/samsara-adjacent readings.
Ask
Approved rendering: కోరు
Transliteration: kōru
Doctrine: Walking in Truth and Love
Rejected alternatives: డిమాండ్ చేయు
Original: ἐρωτάω
Category: Christian Living
New term. Peer-level entreaty/appeal, distinct from an authoritative command register (1:5).
Joy
Approved rendering: ఆనందం
Transliteration: ānandam
Doctrine: Joy in Christian Fellowship
Rejected alternatives: సంతోషం
Original: χαρά / χαίρω (ἐχάρην)
Category: Christian Living
New term. Pastoral gladness (1:4) and hoped-for complete joy (1:12); shares a Greek root with the withheld greeting χαίρειν of 1:10-11 — useful for teaching, not a translation constraint since Telugu naturally uses distinct words.
Face To Face
Approved rendering: ముఖాముఖిగా
Transliteration: mukhāmukhigā
Doctrine: Joy in Christian Fellowship
Rejected alternatives: నోటికి నోరు (literal ‘mouth to mouth’ — unnatural)
Original: στόμα πρὸς στόμα
Category: Church
New term. Natural Telugu idiom for direct, personal communication (1:12), preferred over a literal translation per the baseline’s idiom-handling policy.
Referenced passages