Recently a friend told me they thought I was a pretty smart person. When it comes to general knowledge about the social sciences, considering I haven't taken any post graduate classes, their observation, is probably fairly accurate, but as I said, there are so many other areas of life I am as ignorant, or more ignorant than anyone else...and...I also pointed out that knowledge and wisdom, or, knowing how to use/apply knowledge, for the general good, are not the same thing, and being smart, in itself, is not a virtue and sometimes can be a burden because a lot of folks seem to associate being smart with being arrogant...at least that has been my experience...while somewhat flattered by my friends observations I do try to not take myself too seriously regarding what I know or don't know... so... I directed the conservation towards the kind of vocabulary smart people use when discussing their subject matter. I moved the conversation in this direction to make light of and have fun with the subject at hand...but... I don't mean to be disrespectful to people who have spent their lifetime studying, writing, and teaching others. I really do have great respect for scholars, and people in general, who read, think, and are willing to put their thoughts out there for others consideration....anyway...later that evening I sat down and put together a list of vocabulary words I thought smart people might know or use in a discussion. There are two lists. The first list consists of vocabulary words associated with philosophy and theology/religious studies, and the second list are words, smart people in general, might know or use on a regular basis. So what qualifies me to make such a list, one might ask?...Nothing...and...I admit this list are nothing more or less than the musings and ramblings of a lifetime quasi/armchair/philosophy/theology/psychology student and observer of the social sciences who doesn't take himself too seriously most of the time...and...let's just have some fun with this...and...if you see yourself as one of the smart ones check out the list below and ask yourself how many of these words do you know and use on a regular basis...and finally...don't forget...if you don't come out too well on this unscientific list of words you can console yourself by the fact that probably 99% of the general population don't know what the hell most of these words mean either....Have fun....


Philosophy/Theology Vocabulary

1. META-NARRATIVE

2. REDUCTIONISM

3. ARIANISM

4. EXISTENTIAL

5. PARADIGM SHIFT

6. DUALISM

7. APOLOGETICS

8. SEPTUAGINT

9. POMOXIAN

10. ETHNO-CENTRISM

11. KERGMA

12. METAPHYSICS

13. EPISTEMOLOGY

14. MODERNITY

15. SYNERGISM

16. GNOSTIC

17. HERMENEUTICS

18. EMERGENT CHURCH

19. EXEGESIS

20. ORTHOPRAXIS

21. ARCHETYPES

22. NEO-ORTHODOXY

23. DIDACHE

24. CHRISTIAN ANARCHY

25. APOCRYPHA

26. QUIETISM

27. QUANTUM PHYSICS

28. POST-EVANGELICAL

29. PRAXIS

30. PATRISTIC

31. PRE-DESTINATION

32. ESCHATOLOGY

33. PLURALISM

34. VENERATION OF THE MARTYRS

35. NE0-PLATONISM

36. VICAR OF CHRIST

37. IDOLATRY OF IDEOLOGY

38. DISPENSATIONALISM

39. CANONIZATION

40. PANENTHEISM


Smart people vocabulary list continued: General vocab


1. OXYMORON

2. COGNITIVE DISSONANCE

3. EGALITARIAN

4. DIALETIC

5. EMPIRICAL

6. PONTIFICATE

7. IMMANENT

8. ECUMENICAL

9. NIHILISTIC

10. JUDICATE

11. NARCISSISTIC

12. PEJORATIVE

13. EPIPHANY

14. INTEGRATE

15. ANTITHESIS

16. QUANDARY

17. EFFICACIOUS

18. QUASI

19. PSEUDO

20. MUTUALLY EXCLUSIVE

21. INQUISITIVE

22. PARADOX

23. HOLISTIC

24. ANTHROPOMORPHIC

25. AUTONOMOUS

26. ANTIQUARIAN

27. RHETORICAL

28. ENIGMA

29. APOCALYPTIC

30. SUBVERSION

31`. ABSOLUTISM

32. RELATIVISTIC

33. ERUDITE