religion study guide 2011

8/3/2019 Religion Study Guide 2011

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APHG Mr. Field

Religion Study Guide

1. Define religion in not more than two sentences.A system of beliefs and practices that attempts to order life in terms of culturally perceived ultimate priorities

2. What is the difference between atheist and agnostic?

3. Are all secularists non-religious? Explain!•a process that is leading to increasingly large groups of peoplewho claim no allegiance to any church.Some are atheists. Others simply do not practice. Still others callthemselves spiritual, but not religious.

4. Identify the hearth and describe the spatial diffusion (i.e.where do we find adherents of each religion today, why dideach religion diffuse diffuse) of these major world religions:

a. Christianity

-•Based on Jesus Christ as a divine being; gave exampleto live by•Began to spread during 1st and 2nd centuries -Missionaries•Roman Catholic Church: division into Eastern andWestern churches•Protestant Reformation•Most practiced religion in Africa today!

b. Islam-SW ASIA-•The Archangel Gabriel appeared, Mohammed wrotedown what he said

•Five pillars of Islam:–Belief in one God–Five daily prayers–Generous giving of alms– Ramadan– Pilgrimage to Mecca (hajj)•Holy Places: Mecca and Medina; Jerusalem•Diffusion through conquest and trading•About 85% are Sunni who live throughout the world•About 12% are Shiite who mainly live in Iran, Pakistan,and IraqIslam is considered to be the fastest growing religion in

the United States.

c. Hinduismd. Buddhism

-•Arose in the sixth century B.C. in India•A reaction to the less desirable features of Hinduismsuch as its strict social hierarchy that protected theprivileged and kept millions mired in poverty•Founder: Siddhartha Gautama•Humans achieve the state of Nirvana when they canrenounce all desire (the Four Noble Truths)



•Majority of Buddhists are in China and SE Asia•Theravada - the older, more severe form which requiresthe renouncing of all worldly goods and desires.•Mahayana - focuses on Buddha’s teachings andcompassion.

e. Judaism

-Jerusalem, Israel. SW Asia.f. Sikhism-punjab

g. Shintoism-japan

h. Daoism-china

i. Confucianism-china

5. Many of the religions listed in number 4 are umbrella names(i.e. there are divisions within many of these religions).

Identify the major divisions within the following religions, andidentify where one finds adherents of each division:

a. Christianity-Roman Catholic-Eastern Orthodox- Eastern Europe, former USSRb. Islam-Sunni-majority-Shiite

6. Where in the US would one find many Mormans? Baptists?Lutherans? Roman Catholics? Jews? Muslims?

Mormons-In and around Utah

Baptists-Deep SouthLutheran-Northern Great Plains.

Jews: Florida and New-York

Muslims- Michigan/D.C./LAmajor city areas

Catholics- North East.7. What are the main differences between ethnic & universalizing

religions? Provide three examples of both universalizing andethnic religions.-–Universalizing: ‘conversion religions’–Ethnic: territorial/cultural affinity•Universalizing

Those faiths that claim applicability to all humans–Open to anyone who chooses to make some sort of symboliccommitment

–Christianity, Islam and Buddhism are examples–Individual Founder–Relatively recent origin–Holidays based on events in founder’s life•Ethnic–Strong territorial and cultural group identification–More than simply a declaration of faith–Adoption of a complex lifestyle



–Do not proselytize and live in closed communities that arespatially concentrated–No known founder–Holidays based on local climate and agricultural practice

–Shinto, Hinduism, Daoism, Animism and Judaism areexamples

8. What are some of the general spatial patterns of religion in

North America? In other words, in what regions of the USwould one find large numbers of Roman Catholics? Baptists? Jews? Etc.

9. What is an animistic religion? Where do we find adherents of animistic religions?

-•Retained tribal ethnic religion of people around the world•10% of Africans today•Animists believe certain inanimate objects possess spirits orsouls–Spirits live in rocks, rivers, mountain peaks, and heavenly

bodies•A Shaman — tribal religious figure usually serves as theintermediary between people and the spirits

10. Identify the Five Pillars of Islam

11. Is Hinduism monotheistic or polytheistic? Explain youranswer!

12. How can one tell a Roman Catholic church from aProtestant church? How can one identify an Eastern Orthodox

church? A Jewish synagogue? A mosque?

-Catholic more ornate, Protestant more modest- eastern orthodox-- synagogue--mosque-

13. What is syncretism? Why is the Taj Mahal an example of syncretism?•Syncretism: the mixing of two or more religions that createsunique rituals, artwork, and beliefs.–Confucianism + Taoism + Buddhism

–Japanese Shintoism + Buddhism•Syncretism of Christianity and indigenous beliefs in theAmericas, Africa, and Asia

The Taj Mahal is an example of syncretism because of the Minarets (Islam) and the writing/detailed design from Hinduism.

14. Why was there a rise in secularism around the world in the 20th

century? What regions of the world are more secular? Lesssecular?-–Communist rule (China, former USSR)–Failure of religion to adjust to “modern society”



–Industrialization/Urbanization/Globalization

More secular western Europe

Less secular U.S.A

15. Religious fundamentalism. Is it confined to one religionor many?

•Fundamentalism - a process that is leading to increasingly large groups

of people who claim there is only one way to interpret worship.•Fundamentalists generally envision a return to a more perfect religionand ethics they imagine existed in the past.•Common in the U.S. and in some Islamic nations.•Religious extremism - fundamentalism carried to the point of violence.

16. How have recent immigration patterns affected theUnited States and Europe religiously? Describe reaction to thisin Western Europe.

17. Identify at least four places in the world where there is

religious conflict today. Provide an explanation of what theconflict is about, and how it has affected various groups of people living there.

18. Identify the following houses of worship:

A. B.



C. D.

E. F.

religion study guide 2011

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