14 Jan Question 26Identify and analyze

RELI448 Comparative Religions

Week 8 Final Exam

Question 1Belief in many gods is called:

polytheism.

monotheism.

agnosticism.

atheism.

Question 2Belief in one God is called:

monotheism.

polytheism.

atheism.

agnosticism.

Question 3Who was the American psychologist who viewed religion as a positive way of fulfilling needs and praised its positive influence on the lives of individuals?

James Frazer

Carl Gustav Jung

Sigmund Freud

William James

Question 4The French thinker who developed the approach of structuralism when he first recognized extraordinary structural similarities in stories told by tribal peoples of the Americas was:

Foucault.

Durkheim.

Derrida.

Levi-Strauss.

Question 5What is the name of the Austrian ethnographer and philologist who argued that all humankind once believed in a single High God and that to this simple monotheism later beliefs in lesser gods and spirits were added?

James Frazer

William James

Wilhelm Schmidt

Carl Gustav Jung

Question 6The second-ranking caste consisted of:

priests.

merchants.

nobles and warriors.

artisans.

Question 7(TCO 8) “Liberation” from personal limitation, egotism, and rebirth is:

satyagraha.

ahimsa.

may.

moksha.

Question 8In the Bhagavad Gita, Krishna counsels Arjuna to:

meditate to experience moksha.

work unselfishly for others.

adhere to one’s duty (dharma) in this life.

engage in nonviolent resistance.

Question 9The highest caste in traditional Hinduism is:

Brahmin

Kshatriya

vaishya

dalit

Question 10The Buddha’s name comes from a Sanskrit word meaning:

Spirit warrior

Middle path

To wake up

The teacher

Question 11The Buddhist term for sorrow or suffering is:

dukkha.

tanha.

anatta.

anichcha.

Question 12By his teachings, Confucius hoped to:

counter the influx of Buddhism into China.

produce virtuous people and create a harmonious society.

make a break with the past and focus China on the future.

draw people closer to Tian (Heaven).

Question 13Confucius taught that people are:

not born good but must be taught goodness.

naturally good and should be left alone.

individuals first and members of a society second.

selfish and need strict laws to control them.

Question 14According to the traditional story, Laozi (Lao tzu) wrote down his teachings only because:

a border guard would not let him pass until he did so.

his students and disciples begged him.

a request came from Confucius.

he needed money.

Question 15In Zhuangzi’s (Chuang Tzu’s) famous dream, he was not certain that he was not:

Confucius.

an ox.

a butterfly.

a Daoist.

Question 16All of the following ancient world religions are major world religions except:

Buddhism.

Hinduism.

Shinto.

Confucianism.

Question 17Taoism does not have this element of a major world religion.

An overall worldview of the universe

Myths about the origin of the universe

A shared religious community

Specific rules of human behavior

Question 18A contract between the Hebrews and their God was called a:

mitzvah.

covenant.

yarmulke.

commandment.

Question 19The first King of Israel was:

Daniel.

Moses.

David.

Saul.

Question 20God first appeared to Moses in:

an Egyptian slave.

a cloud on Mt. Sinai.

a burning bush.

the Red Sea.

Question 21The view that God’s imminent divine judgment and the end of the world is near is:

messianism.

apocalypticism.

redemption.

schism.

Question 22Letters written in the New Testament to instruct, encourage, and solve problems are called:

Gospels.

Epistles.

Acts.

Revelations.

Question 23Muslims believe in:

resurrection of the body.

a final judgment.

neither a resurrection of the body nor a final judgment.

both a resurrection of the body and a final judgment.

Question 24What is the word for a pilgrimage to Mecca?

Hajj

Dhikr

Hadith

Sura

Question 25The name Qur’an means “___________.”

successor

recitation

the book

the writings

Question 26Identify and analyze the Four Noble Truths, in particular, the Noble Eightfold Path. What ideas from Hinduism did Buddhism essentially keep? Describe them. Include enough details to support your answer.

Question 27Compare and contrast Sigmund Freud’s theory about the origin of religions with William James’s theory. How does each of these psychologists view religion (positively or negatively)? Now analyze how the insights of Freud or James might illuminate your religious tradition or the tradition with which you are the most familiar. How would Freud or James understand that tradition? Use specific examples to support your answer (e.g., a specific belief or ritual).