World Religions quiz 1-3

Question 1         

What is the ritual marking the coming of age ceremony for girls in some branches of Judaism?

c)            Bat Mitzvah

Question 2          What is one belief that Jews, Christians, and Muslims DO NOT share?

the Trinity

Question 3          What date is significant because it was the year that the Romans destroyed the Temple in Jerusalem?

70 CE

Question 4          The process of interpreting Scripture to discern God's will is called

midrash

Question 5          The first of the two major periods of Jewish history is called

Biblical Judaism

Question 6          The most traditional group of Jews is called

Orthodox

Question 7          The group of Jews who conduct services in Hebrew and allow women rabbis are the

Conservative

Question 8          The books of the Tanakh that contain the prophets are called

Nevi'im

Question 9          For Jews, God is 'personal,' meaning he is understood to have characteristics such as

Love, reason, and will

Question 10        The Jews who settled in Germany and Eastern Europe are called the

Ashkenazim

Quiz 2

Question 1          Circumcision is a sign of the covenant between God and

Abraham

Question 2          The holy day in Judaism known as the "Day of Atonement" is

Yom Kippur

Question 3          During Sukkot, Jews gather four species of plants. Which one is associated with the heart and the emotions?

etrog

Question 4          Ushpizin" means

guests

Question 5          Which of the covenants do scholars specifically associate with the restoration of the order of creation God established in the beginning as narrated in the book of Genesis? The covenant with

Noah

Question 6          Jews observe Shabbat

from sundown on Friday until sundown on Saturday

Question 7          Pesach celebrates

the Exodus of the Jews from Egypt

Question 8          The name for Hasidic Jews comes from a Hebrew word meaning

loving devotion

Question 9          The married couple in the film Ushpizin are members of a Jewish group founded by Rebbe Nachman called

Breslov Hasids

Question 10        The most conservative of Orthodox Jews, sometimes referred to as the "Ultra-Orthodox" are called

a)            Haredi

Quiz 3

Question 1          The language Jesus and his disciples probably spoke was

Aramaic

Question 2          The writings of the New Testament grew out of

a)            oral tradition

b)            the life and experience of the early church

Correct Answer                a and b

Question 3          The title "Christ" is the Greek translation of an Aramaic word that means

anointed one

Question 4          According to Pelikan, the conclusion of the Sermon on the Mount confirms the special status of Jesus as not only Rabbi but as

prophet

Question 5          Paul's attitude toward the Jews (called "Israel" in Romans 9-11) is that they

will be saved because of the original covenant with Abraham

Question 6          In the 1st chapter of John, what does John the Baptist first call Jesus when he sees him coming toward him?

the Lamb of God

Question 7          Jesus's first miracle, related in the 2nd chapter of John, is

turning water into wine

Question 8          In the 3rd chapter of John, Jesus tells Nicodemus that in order to "see the Kingdom of God" a person must

be born again

Question 9          The 1st chapter of Acts says that after his resurrection, Jesus

appeared to his disciples for forty days and spoke to them about the kingdom of God

Question 10        In the 2nd chapter of Acts, what happens to the followers of Jesus in Jerusalem?

they are filled with the Holy Spirit and speak in other tongues

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• Describe the approach to the academic study of religion called “empathetic objectivity”

Ø  No evaluation of truth claims of particular traditions

• What does it mean to take a “phenomenological” approach to religions?

Ø  “facts on the ground,” understanding from the point of view of a believer in a particular tradition

• Be able to name 5 of Ninian Smart’s dimensions of religion and be able to give one example of each

Ø  Mythic, Doctrinal, Ethical, Ritual, Experiential, Social, Material

• Be able to recognize and describe three theories about the existence of religion: insider, materialist, and functional. What are some examples of people who hold each theory?

Ø  The “insider” (religious) theory – religion is a response to sacred reality. Example: Judaism – religious texts, laws, rituals are revealed by God.

Ø  The “materialist” theory – no sacred reality; only material world exists. Religion is an outgrowth of material reality. Examples: Marx, Freud.

Ø  The “functional” theory – sacred reality may or may not exist, but focus is on how religion fulfills human needs. Examples: James, Durkheim

• Who said “religion is the opium of the people?” What did he mean? What is your own view of his theory?

Karl Max said the following:

Ø  “Man makes religion, religion does not make man.”

Ø  “Religion is the sigh of the oppressed creature, the heart of a heartless world, the soul of soulless conditions. It is the opium of the people.”

• Basic theories of religion of Freud, James, and Durkheim.

Ø  Freud: describes theory of the actual origins of religion and its function in the individual psyche

Ø  Durkheim: “God” = projection of a society’s rules, expectations, ethics, organization. Religion functions as the organizing principle of a society and is the “glue” that holds society together (moral and social order).

• Basic definitions of theism, atheism, agnosticism, nontheism.

Ø  theism – sacred reality exists in the form of a divine Being or beings (‘personal’ God/gods = divine beings who have personal identity, intelligence, and will).

Ø  nontheism – rejects theism (personal God/gods). Can be religious or non-religious.

Religious examples: most forms of Buddhism, Jainism, some Quakers

Ø  atheism – God/gods do not exist

Ø  agnosticism – we don’t know enough to say whether or not God/gods exist (can be religious or non-religious)

• What are four things that Jews, Christians and Muslims have in common?

Ø  All three traditions believe God has given human beings specific commandments and a moral framework for living the best human life.

Ø  All three believe in the central role of scripture in revealing God’s nature and will to humankind (although the three have different scriptures).

Ø  All three believe that God acts in human life and history.

Ø  All three trace their ancestry to Abraham and his covenant with God.

• the two major periods of Jewish history (names and approximate dates), how  different, significance of date 70 C.E.

Ø  Biblical Judaism: (from about 2,000 BCE – 70 CE)

• What is a covenant? Basics of covenant with Noah, Abraham, Moses. What was the agreement? What is the “sign” of each covenant?

Ø  A covenant is an agreement between two contracting parties.

Ø  Noah: This covenant was between God and all humanity

Ø  Abraham: This is the founding covenant of Judaism, since it creates a special relationship with Abraham and his descendents. God promised would bless and multiple Abraham’s descendents.

Ø  Moses: The covenant between God and the Jewish people is renewed on Mt. Sinai through the giving of more specific laws through the 10 commandments and other related laws interpreted in the books of Exodus and Leviticus.

• What are two basic characteristics of the Jewish God?

Ø Not to be rude, but to clarify on CJ's answer: 

Ø Christians and Jews worship the same Father, but Christians recognize Jesus as the promised Messiah, while Jews do not.

• What is the “problem” with humankind according to Judaism? What is the solution?

Ø  According to Jewish, man can divorce for any reasons.

• three basic division of the Hebrew bible – Hebrew names and general nature of each

Ø  Torah (in the narrow sense “Torah” refers to the first five books of the Tanakh, called the Books of Moses: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy). Jews also use “Torah” in a broader sense to refer to all teaching, written or oral, revealed by God.

Ø  Nevi’im – the prophets

Ø  Ketuvim – ‘the writings’ (everything else – Psalms, Provers, Song of Songs, Job, etc.)