Test your basic knowledge |

DSST Introduction To World Religions

Subjects : dsst, culture

Instructions:

Answer 50 questions in 15 minutes.
If you are not ready to take this test, you can study here.
Match each statement with the correct term.
Don't refresh. All questions and answers are randomly picked and ordered every time you load a test.

This is a study tool. The 3 wrong answers for each question are randomly chosen from answers to other questions. So, you might find at times the answers obvious, but you will see it re-enforces your understanding as you take the test each time.

1. Which of the following Buddhist sects is credited with instilling the idea of nationalism among the Japanese?
Yahweh's covenant with Abraham. In the covenant - Yahweh declared that the descendants of Abraham would have a special relationship with him.
Meng-zi reinforced Confucius's teaching that people were innately good - whereas Xun-zi taught that people were innately evil.
Confucianism
Nichiren

2. Instead of statues - Eastern Orthodox rites use what as ornamentation in their churches?
Fourth Commandment; The Fourth Commandment - Honor thy Father and thy Mother - applies not only to relationships within the family unit - but to the relationship between civil authority and members of the civil society.
Icons
God's goodness can heal illness as well as sin
Torah; The Torah scroll is kept in the ark and read from during services

3. Unlike most religions - Hinduism has no...
A Taoist endeavors to live a simple life. Taoism teaches inaction as the highest principle of being.
Ritual; A code of moral conduct; An afterlife
Use of Latin for the Bible and for church services; One of the changes of the Reformation was the translation of the Bible into vernacular languages and their use in church services. The Roman Catholic Church continued to use Latin for church service
Founder

4. The Mishnah
Church's selling of indulgences
The first collection of Jewish laws
The caste system.
Jainism

5. The best explanation of why Muslims pray prostrate on the ground is...
To show their humility before Allah
The representation of an eternal Buddha; one of many Buddhas
Augustine; Among Augustine's contributions to Christian thought are the doctrine of original sin and the description of 'caritas -' or Christian love - the love of God and the love of one another.
Judaism; Christianity; Islam

6. What statement is true about the Indian caste system?
Moksha
It describes Allah as a strict - distant - and unresponsive god
Who would appoint bishops
The caste system is both religious and social in nature.

7. The primary factor that has motivated the growth of Islamic fundamentalism is the...
The struggle within a Muslim to live a good life
Exposure to Western culture and the growing secularization of Muslim nations; Exposure to Western culture and the growing secularization of Muslim nations
Nonviolence
Disappeared after the Assyrians captured Israel

8. The natural world is an integrated whole.
Celebrates the birth of Krishna - the incarnation of the god Vishnu - the protector and preserver.
Shinto
An accurate explanation of Taoist teachings
In response to the works of scientists and philosophers like Darwin and Marx

9. 'Jen' in Confucianism is the...

10. A major difference between Buddhism and Hinduism is Buddhism's rejection of...
The caste system
Profess one's Islamic faith
Vedanta; The Vedanta system holds that all the world - including humans - is an illusion
Icons

11. Example of the animistic theory of religion; based on worship of the spirits - known as kami - of natural objects - such as stones and trees.
Hindus; part of the epic 'Mahabharata'
Hinduism
Reverence toward family and tradition
Shinto

12. Which religions hold similar general beliefs about heaven and hell?
A path to release the mind from distractions
Judaism - Christianity - and Islam
Ahura Mazda
Baal Shem Tov

13. 'Kami' is the name of the spirits of people - places - and nature in which religion?
Empty their minds of all thoughts and desires
Were political rulers; The caliphs were considered successors to Muhammad - but after the first four - caliphs were political - rather than both political and religious - leaders
The recognition of Jesus as the messiah of Israel and the savior of all peoples
Shinto

14. Conflict over teachings within Hinduism resulted in the development of Buddhism - Sikhism - and...
Jainism
Returning to Allah what is his
Roman Catholics
Trash hauler

15. The four stages in Hinduism are student - seeker - ascetic - and...
Ordinary people could easily understand and practice Islam; The practices of Islam are easy to understand and to practice even by the poorest and uneducated.
Householder
Bring the gift of God's grace
Neither has priests. Neither Jewish rabbis nor Muslim imans are priests; both are teachers and leaders of services - which is not the same as a priest whose role is to make sacrifices.

16. Ka'bah
Judaism - Christianity - and Islam
Pentecostals believe that they receive special powers from God.; One special power is the ability to 'speak in tongues.'; Pentecostals believe that they receive special powers from God and one of those powers is the ability to speak in tongues.
The most sacred to Muslims
Relied on by the faithful of the Pure Land sect to Buddhism to enter the Land of Bliss

17. Hadith
Five Pillars
Pacifism
Collections of sayings and actions of Muhammad
An emphasis on monasticism; an emphasis on the compassion of Buddha; the transformation of Siddharta Gautama into an Ultimate Being - one of many Buddhas; the belief that the 'Great Vehicle' has room to transport all souls to nirvana

18. 'Shivah' - in Judaism
Baal Shem Tov
Zoroastrianism
The first week of mourning after a death
Belief that God will save the world from its sins by sending a messiah

19. Dualism (in religious terms)
Jews
Description of certain ideas in terms of their opposites - such as good and evil and yin and yang
Baghdad; Baghdad was an important center of Islamic power during the caliphates.
Enter the state of nirvana - or enlightenment

20. In the Roman Catholic Church - the feast of the Epiphany broadly commemorates...
Rejection of the caste system
Nichiren
The recognition of Jesus as the messiah of Israel and the savior of all peoples
All people are created equal; The Baha'i movement preaches equality of the sexes - the importance of education - an end to prejudice - and the value of leading a good life.

21. Ancestor worship was an important part of...
Rite of passage
David
Mayan religion
Christianity

22. Zeus
The caste system
The Islamic concept of the community of Muslim believers
The father of the gods in the Greek pantheon.
Shinto; Shinto was - and remains - a specifically Japanese religion.

23. Bodhisattvas help others to find enlightenment...
The desire to convert nonbelievers and spread the religion
Quality of human-heartedness. 'Jen' may also be translated as social virtue or goodness.
Orthodox
While delaying their own entrance into nirvana

24. Judaism is unique in that it...
Judaism; Islam
Is as much a cultural designation as a religious one
Men and women sitting together
Angels - heaven - and hell

25. In Taoism - yin is...
Female - nurturing - and passive
Exposure to Western culture and the growing secularization of Muslim nations; Exposure to Western culture and the growing secularization of Muslim nations
Rite of passage
The desire to convert nonbelievers and spread the religion

26. The grace of Buddha Amitbha.
Relied on by the faithful of the Pure Land sect to Buddhism to enter the Land of Bliss
Benevolence
Magic
Hindus; part of the epic 'Mahabharata'

27. Judaism varies from Christianity and Islam in its lack of emphasis on...

28. The ecumenical movement has resulted in changes within...
Sencond Vatican Council
Roman Catholicism
The growing materialism of Islam around the 800s
Rejection of the caste system

29. The first Christians believed that...
Written religious teachings; Indigenous religious practices are preliterate - so there were no written religious teachings - although modern anthropologists and similar researchers have written them down for various cultures.
Salvation came as a gift from God
Female and male; Yin represents the female principle and earth. It is passive and dark. Yang represents the male principle and heaven. It is action - heat - and light. Together - they represent harmony.
Both branches of Buddhism believe that Gautama Buddha is one of many Buddhas; Theravada Buddhists see Gautama as a saint and great teacher and Mahayana Buddhists see him as a savior who helps others to enlightenment.

30. What belief systems are neither monotheistic nor polytheistic?
Men and women sitting together
Jewish mysticism
Orthodox branch; Orthodox Jews conform most closely to the tenets of Judaism as revealed by God. They are not concerned with adapting Judaism to the world outside of the Jewish community.
Buddhism; Confucianism; Taoism

31. In Hinduism - ahimsa is the principle of...
Judaism; Islam; Traditional African religions
Respect that one person shows another; 'Li' is defined as correct behavior - or etiquette - between individuals.
Nonviolence
Monasticism

32. Sufism is characterized by...
Experiencing a feeling of oneness with Allah; Sufism is a mystical movement within Islam that is characterized by asceticism.
Achieved enlightenment
Any gods
It removes the stain of original sin

33. The primary purpose of the bar mitzvah and the bat mitzvah is to...
A path to release the mind from distractions
Recognize when a boy and a girl are considered adults in Judaism.
Trash hauler
Judaism; Islam

34. What is NOT considered a theocracy?

35. Missionary work was never important to what religion?
Shinto; Shinto was - and remains - a specifically Japanese religion.
That Jesus was both human and divine; Arius taught that Jesus was not equal with God the Father and eternal. The Emperor Constantine called the Council of Nicea to deal with the issue - which was dividing the early Church.
Helps others to find nirvana
Asoka; Asoka - a ruler of the Maurya dynasty in India in the third century B.C.E. - converted to Buddhism and sent missionaries to convert the people of his huge empire. As a result - Buddhism is the predominant religion of Asia.

36. In which denomination may a woman be ordained as either a priest or minister?
Episcopal
Religious practice of ancient Egyptians
Thomas Aquinas
To show their humility before Allah

37. Mariology refers to devotion to the Virgin Mary in...
Lack of hierarchical structure; Unlike the Roman Catholic Church that has the pope at its head - Eastern Orthodox churches are ruled by a network of patriarchs.
Primacy of the pope in determining matters of Christian doctrine. The Eastern Church believed that authority in matters of faith rested more with the Bible and church councils than with the pope.
Developed over time; he doctrine of papal supremacy was first declared by Pope Damasus I who reigned in the 4th century. He based his declaration on Jesus' words - 'Thou are Peter and upon this rock I shall build my church.'
Roman Catholicism; Roman Catholics have a special devotion to the Virgin Mary that is a major difference with other Christian denominations.

38. Buddhism declined in India until...
Eased kosher restrictions;
It was absorbed into Hinduism. Over time - Hinduism adopted some of the concepts of Buddhism and Buddha became one of many Hindu gods.
Upanishads
The most sacred to Muslims

39. Traditional African religions DO NOT include...
Men and women sitting together
Has no set list of beliefs that followers must accept
Ecumenism.
A vision quest

40. The Apostles Creed - Nicene Creed - and Athanasian Creed do NOT what in common?
After the Assyrians destroyed Israel; The Jewish Diaspora began after the destruction of the kingdom of Israel by the Assyrians in the 8th century B.C.E.
No
All Protestant denominations accept all three of the creeds
No schools that teach religion to their followers

41. The Kabbalah is similar to the material found in the...
Shinto; The Japanese government set up national shrines - mandated the teaching of Shinto in schools - and used State Shinto to further its military aims. It was banned after World War II.
A compilation of ancient Jewish oral law and rabbinical teachings
The struggle within a Muslim to live a good life
Tantras of Tibetan Buddhism

42. How is the belief in God - by whatever name - similar in Christianity - Islam - and Judaism?
Myths explain the natural world and the reasons for the religious beliefs and customs of a group
God is the creator of the world; All three religions believe that God is the creator of the world - and is all knowing - all powerful - and all present.
Nichiren
Benevolence

43. Agnostic
Things like ambition - wealth - and power keep people from their real purpose in life
Returning to Allah what is his
A person who is not sure whether there is a supreme being or not
Primacy of the pope in determining matters of Christian doctrine. The Eastern Church believed that authority in matters of faith rested more with the Bible and church councils than with the pope.

44. The delivery of the Jews from Persia is celebrated during...
Martin Luther
Baghdad; Baghdad was an important center of Islamic power during the caliphates.
Native American religions.
Purim

45. In what deities do both good and evil co-exist?
Reassert Church doctrine as a result of the Protestant Reformation
Female - nurturing - and passive
Ahura Mazda
Hinduism

46. Confucian concept of 'li'

47. Is Monasticism found in Islam?
Pork
Female and male; Yin represents the female principle and earth. It is passive and dark. Yang represents the male principle and heaven. It is action - heat - and light. Together - they represent harmony.
No
Angels - heaven - and hell

48. Islam and Christianity share a belief in...
Anglicans; Thomas Cranmer - who was the first Protestant archbishop of Canterbury and a leader of the English Protestant Reformation - wrote the 'Book of Common Prayer -' which remains the official liturgy of the Anglican communion of churches.
Luther denied the infallibility of the pope.
Angels - heaven - and hell
Can be entered by living a good life and reciting the name of Amitabha

49. The 'Good News' of which Jesus spoke was...

50. In Taoism - the source of all things is...
Luther denied the infallibility of the pope.
Judaism
An imperceptible presence in the universe
Ritual; A code of moral conduct; An afterlife