Theological Terms: U to Y
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Uncial
The Greek characters of upper case: ABGDE, etc. Different copies of Greek manuscripts appear in Uncial form. Minuscules are the lower case letters of the Greek alphabet order and rank.

Unitarianism
     A theological error that holds to the unity of God by denying the Trinity, the deity of Jesus, and the deity of the Holy Spirit.  Unitarians teach the unity of God and hold to a common system of believing as you will about God, salvation, sin, etc.  They often profess to have no dogma.  Unitarians also hold to the universal redemption of all humankind.

Universalism
      The teaching that all people will eventually be saved through the universal redemption of Jesus.  Some universalists teach that even the devil, after a time of punishment, will be redeemed.  

Vellum
A material used for writing, like paper. It was made from animal skins, usually from cattle, sheep, goats, and antelope. The hair was scraped off of the skins, then they were washed, smoothed, and dressed with chalk. Vellum was used until the late Middle Ages until paper was introduced into Europe from China via Arab traders. Vellum lasted longer than papyrus and was tougher, but the edges sometimes became torn and tattered. The two oldest parchment manuscripts are the Codex Vaticanus (from Egypt) and the Codex Sinaiticus.

Venial Sin
     In Catholicism, a sin but not as bad as mortal Sin. It lessens the grace of God within a person's soul.

Vicarious Atonement
     The theory of the atonement which states that Christ's death was "legal."  It satisfied the legal justice of God.  Jesus bore the penalty of sin when he died on the cross.  His death was a substitution for the believers.  In other words, he substituted himself for them upon the cross.  Jesus hung in our place as He bore our sin in his body on the cross.  See 1 Pet. 2:24.

Word, The
     In Greek the word for "word" is logos. It is used in many places, but of special interest is how it is used of Jesus. In John 1:1 it says, "In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God." The Word is divine and the word "became flesh and dwelt among us" (John 1:14). In other words, Jesus is the Word of God who represents God to us and us to God.
The term is also used to describe the Scriptures (Rom. 9:6; Heb. 4:12), Christ's teaching (Luke 5:1), and the gospel message (Acts 4:31).

The Word of God:

• is inspired: "All scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness" (2 Tim. 3:16).
• is truth: "all thy commandments are truth" (Psalm 119:151).
• makes free: "...If you abide in My word, then you are truly disciples of mine; and you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free" (John 8:32).
• produces faith: "So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ" (Rom. 10:17, NASB).
• judges: "For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart" (Heb. 4:12).

Worship
     The obligation of God's creation to give to Him all honor, praise, adoration, and glory due Him because He is the holy and divine creator. Worship is to be given to God only (Exodus 20:3; Matt. 4:10). Jesus, being God in flesh (John 1:1,14 ; Col. 2:9), was worshipped (Matt. 2:2,11; 14:33; John 9:35-38; Heb. 1:6).

Wrath
     Biblically, it is the divine judgment upon sin and sinners. It does not merely mean that it is a casual response by God to ungodliness, but carries the meaning of hatred, revulsion, and indignation. God is by nature love (1 John 4:16), however, in His justice He must punish sin. The punishment is called the wrath of God. It will occur on the final Day of Judgment when those who are unsaved will incur the wrath of God. It is, though, presently being released upon the ungodly (Rom. 1:18-32) in the hardening of their hearts.
     Wrath is described as God's anger (Num. 32:10-13), as stored up (Rom. 2:5-8), and as great (Zech. 7:12). The believer's deliverance from God's wrath is through the atonement (Rom. 5:8-10). "For God has not destined us for wrath, but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ" (1 Thess. 5:9).

Yin and Yang 
     A dualistic philosophy of passive and active, good and bad, light and dark, positive and negative, male and female, etc., and that they are in opposition, each is part of the whole and works together.

Yoga
     A philosophical as well as physical way of life emphasizing harmony of body and mind.  The philosophy of yoga is based in Eastern Metaphysical beliefs.  The goal of the philosophy is to help a person become balanced in mind and body and attain self-enlightenment.  Yoga, apart from its metaphysical teachings, is beneficial to the body. 

Zodiac
     The stars in the heavens divided into twelve main groups.  Imaginary patterns are imposed upon various star patterns as an aid to remember the stars.  In Astrology, the Zodiac signs signify personality types for the people born under them.  The Zodiac signs are determined by durations of time in the calendar.   The twelve signs are Aries, Taurus, Gemini, Cancer, Leo, Virgo, Libra, Scorpio, Sagittarius, Capricorn, Aquarius, and Pisces.

1. Adapted from Baker's Dictionary of Theology, p. 470.