Glossary offering definitions of key concepts in the field of Preaching and Homiletics. Visit www.drpablojimenez.net

1. Pablo A. Jiménez * www.drpablojimenez.net

2. This list defines briefly twenty
concepts related to preaching and
homiletics.
The aim of this glossary is to help
students have a better understanding
of the required readings and the
lectures presented in the course.

3.  The church year is the sequence of celebrations that
the church observes annually. It derives from the
cycles of readings, seasons, festivals and Sabbaths
observed by first-century Judaism. The first
Christian alteration to the Jewish calendar was
establishing Sunday as the day of worship.
 Although in ancient times Sunday was a regular
workday, it soon became the “lord’s day” when the
Christian community gathered to read scripture, to
proclaim the gospel and to share bread.

4.  Thus, the church year organizes its celebrations
around the different Sundays of a given year. In
its current form, the church year has two basic
cycles: the incarnational and the paschal. Both
begin with seasons of preparation (advent and
lent) that precede the feast day related to the
period (Christmas and Easter). The feast days
are followed then by periods of celebration
(epiphany and Pentecost).
 The period between Pentecost and advent is
considered “ordinary time”.

5.  A deductive argument takes a given premise as its
point of departure, deriving from it ideas that are
expounded for the audience.
 Deductive preaching follows deductive logic. It
begins announcing a general idea or “proposition,”
deriving from it“points” and exhortations for the
congregation. Therefore, it moves from
the“general” to the“particular.
 Deductive preaching is the dominant homiletic form
in the Anglo-European Christian tradition.

6. The delivery is the presentation of a
sermon to a congregation in a liturgical
context. It includes verbal aspects such
as the public reading of scripture as well
as the utterance of the sermon.
It also includes non-verbal aspects such
as the body language of the preacher.

7. The doctrinal-topical sermon advances
the church’s position regarding a topic,
presenting the consequences of such
position for the contemporary audience.
The topic under consideration may be
either a Christian doctrine or a
contemporary issue.

8.  Exegesis is the research, explanation and
interpretation of a document. In our context,
it denotes primarily the analysis of the bible.
 Biblical exegesis is a vast field that involves
historical, sociological, linguistic, literary and
theological analysis, among others. The aim
of biblical exegesis is to determine the
original meaning of a biblical text.

9. Expository sermons analyze a distinct
section of a biblical document,
expounding its message for today.
Although they usually take a “pericope”
as their point of departure, they very
well may analyze a unit as short as a
verse or as long as a book of the bible.

10.  Extemporary preaching refers to the delivery of
sermons without notes. The phrase is used with
two different meanings.
 First, sometimes it denotes preaching that is
done with little or no preparation; sermons that
are fashioned on the spur of the moment.
 Second, it refers to the delivery without notes of
a sermon that have been carefully prepared in
advance.

11.  Hermeneutics is the theory of the
interpretation of texts. Biblical hermeneutics
is thus the theory of the interpretation of
scripture.
 It comprises the whole interpretive process,
from the determination of the original
meaning of a text (exegesis) to the
elucidation of its sense for modern hearers
(exposition).

12.  Homiletics is the scientific study of the art of
preaching. It is concerned with every aspect of
the preaching task; from the preparation to the
delivery of the sermon. These questions are
studied in light of the history and the theology of
preaching.
 Therefore, homiletics is an inter-disciplinary field
that involves the integration of exegetical,
theological, historical, sociological, liturgical and
pastoral aspects in to the act of preaching.

13.  A homily is a short discourse addressed to a
congregation during worship. It is usually
seen as a somewhat continuous commentary
on one of the Lectionary readings for the day.
It flows from the reading of scripture to the
celebration of the sacraments. In some
circles, a homily is seen as a specific sermon
form. In other circles, the word “homily” is
considered to be a synonym of “sermon.”

14. An illustration is a literary device that
clarifies an idea. Although it usually
refers to a story or anecdote that
supports or develops a proposition, the
genre also includes similes, metaphors,
analogies, allegories, examples, poems,
and testimonies, among others.

15. An inductive argument moves from the
“particular” to the “general.” It begins
searching for clues and ideas that
ultimately lead to a conclusion (the
“scientific method” is the premier
example of inductive logic).
Inductive preaching, thus, follows
inductive logic.

16.  It calls the preacher to begin analyzing
particular ideas, reaching a general
conclusion toward the end of the sermon.
 Some traditional homiletic styles--such as
narrative preaching--are inductive by nature.
Nonetheless, Fred B. Craddock popularized
the contemporary style known as “inductive
preaching.”

17.  A Greek noun derived from the verb
“kerysso,” which means “to proclaim” or “to
announce." Kerygma refers thus to the
content of the proclamation.
 In biblical theology it has become a technical
term that refers to the single core of the
Christian message. Its wider theological use is
as a reference to the message of the gospel.

18.  A Lectionary is a sequence of selected biblical
readings meant to be read aloud during
public worship.
 The readings may be listed or set out in full.
They may be continuous, semi-continuous, or
isolated.
 See the Revised Common Lectionary:
http://lectionary.library.vanderbilt.edu/index.php

19.  The field of narrative preaching involves at
least three related disciplines: narrative
sermons, narrative hermeneutics, and
narrative theology.
 A narrative sermon organizes its ideas as a
plot. Although most narrative sermons tell
either a biblical or non-biblical story, it is
possible to preach “narrative” sermons based
on non-narrative biblical materials.

20. Preaching is a synonym of proclamation.
Christian preaching is thus the
proclamation of the gospel of Jesus
Christ.
It normally takes the form of a sermon
delivered in a liturgical context.
Nonetheless, preaching can also take
place in less structured settings.

21. Proclamation is the announcement
of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
It includes both verbal forms (such
as the sermon) as well as non-verbal
forms (such as the Lord’s Supper).

22.  A sermon is a discourse addressed to a congregation
during worship. Therefore, a sermon is a “speech-
event," not a document. Although it usually involves
the oral interpretation of a biblical text, it may focus
on telling a story, exploring a topic or analyzing an
event.
 Sermons may be classified by their aim (call to faith,
comfort, challenge, teach); by their form (inductive,
deductive); or by their source (biblical, narrative,
doctrinal).

23. The manuscript is the document that
contains all the ideas that the
preacher will present in the sermon.

24. Sermon or homiletic notes are the
materials that the preacher takes to the
pulpit.
The notes can be as skimpy as a list of key
words or as long as a full manuscript.
Most preachers prefer to preach from an
extended outline, even if they write their
sermons in full.

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