HRT 3M1
January 2011
Intro to World Religions Exam Review
Native Spirituality Review
1. Define and /or give significance(s) to the following terms:
 Animism
 Myths
 The dreaming The dreaming
 Tickster Myth
 Naturism
 Creation Myth
 Shamanism
 Eagle Feather
 Totemism
 Potlatch
 Polytheism
 Sundance Ceremony
 Vision Quest
 Monotheism
 Agnosticism
 Atheism
2. Outline the Ninian Smart Traits for Native Spirituality.
Hinduism Exam Review
1. Define and/or give the significance(s) of the following terms
 karma
 caste system
 samsara
 yoga
 dharma
 untouchables
 Moksha
 Jnana Yoga
 atman
 Bhakti Yoga
 Brahman
 Karma Yoga
 Brahmins
 Raja Yoga
 Kshatriyas
 puja
 Vaishyas
 Laws of Manu
 Shudras
 The Vedas
 Harijans
 Mantra








Om
Bhagavad Gita
maya
Brahma
Shiva
Vishnu
Swastika
Indus Valley
2. In a detailed paragraph, explain the concepts of samsara, karma, dharma, caste, and moksha.
Explain how each and every one of these concepts are connected with the others in some way. (
3. Why is Gandhi an important person in the history of India? Describe at least 3 important events
in Gandhi’s life that helped him achieve his goal. How did Gandhi’s vows of non-violence and
non-cooperation eventually help him achieve his goal?
4. What is the Indus valley civilization and what evidence shows that it was an advanced
civilization?
5. How are the concepts of atman, Brahman and maya connected?
HRT 3M1
Ms. Savarino
January 2011
6. What are some pros and cons of the caste system?
7. How can a lower caste pollute a higher caste?
8. What are the four stages of a Hindu’s life? Are they similar or different from a person’s life in
our society? Explain your opinion?
9. Outline the Ninian Smart Traits for Hinduism.
Buddhism Exam Review
1.
Define and give the significance of the following term/phrases.
 Tripitaka
 Mahayana
 Mandala
 Arhat
 Dharma wheel
 ahimsa
 The Five Precepts
 Nirvana
of Buddhism
 anicca
 Bhikku
 dukka
 Bhikkuni
 anatta
 Additional
 The Eightfold
Precepts
Path
 Bodhisattva
 The Middle
 Theravada
Way/Path








The Four Noble
Truths
samsara
dharma
karma
liberation
sangha
meditation
Dalai Lama
2. What aspects of Hinduism did Siddhartha Gautama disagree with and how was his view
different from the Hindu perspective?
3. Demonstrate how the ideas of samsara, dharma, karma, liberation, and caste system differ in
Hinduism and Buddhism.
4. Describe Siddhartha Gautama’s life story, including how he learned the reality of suffering and
the impermanence of life’s pleasures. How did his life experiences and the environment in
which he lived in affect his conclusions about how one should live his/her life?
5. Describe the Buddha’s first sermon. What was so important about this first sermon?
6. What are the Four Sights? Why were the Four Sights such a shock to Siddhartha and what did
these four sights teach him about life?
7. What are the Three Characteristics of Existence? Explain how the Four Sights may have led
Siddhartha Gautama to discover these truths?
8. What are the Four Noble Truths? Explain each one.
9. What are the eight steps of the Eightfold Path? Explain each one.
HRT 3M1
Ms. Savarino
January 2011
10. What symbolism exists within the Dharma Wheel?
11. What are the differences between Theravada and Mahayana Buddhism?
12. Describe the process by which Vajrayana Buddhists choose a Dalai Lama.
13. Outline the Ninian Smart Traits for Buddhism.
Judaism Exam Review
1. Define and give the significance of the following terms or phrases:
 Talmud
 Mezuzah
 Mishnah
 Conservative
 Torah
Jews
 Oral Torah
 Reform Jews
 Written Torah
 anti-Semitism
 Pesach
 Star of David
 Shabbat
 Rosh
 Menorah
Hashanah
 Tephilin
 Yom Kippur
 Hanukkah
 bat mitzvah
 Orthodox
 bar mitzvah
Jews
 Zionism
 Hunukiah
 Holocaust











chosen people
circumcision
covenant
Diaspora
Exodus
Hellenization
Kashrut
Maccabean
Revolt
prophet
Promised
Land
Monotheistic
2. Explain the covenant that god made with Abraham.
3. What was the Maccabean Revolt? What Jewish festival celebrates the victory of the Maccabean
Revolt?
4. Explain how the Mishnah, Talmud, and Torah are interconnected.
5. What are the four major divisions of Judaism? Compare the characteristics of each division of
Judaism, while exploring the reasons for the Reform movement and the Conservative
movement.
6. Outline the major events and their significances from the time of Abraham to the time of Jesus.
7. What are the Kashrut Laws and why are they followed?
8. What are the historical reasons for anti-Semitism?
9. Outline the Ninian Smart Traits for Judaism.
HRT 3M1
Ms. Savarino
January 2011
Christianity Review
1. Define and/or give the significance of the following terms or phrases:








Eastern Schism
Filioque
Papal infallibility
Eastern Orthodox
idolatry
Crusades
sola scriptura
Assumption







Immaculate
Conception
Ascension
Purgatory
Jehovah’s Witnesses
The Salvation Army
Calvinists





Evangelical
Movement
Baptists
Methodists
Mormons
Anglican (Church of
England)
Lutheran
2. What significant events lead to the split between the Eastern Orthodox Church
and the Western Church (Roman Catholic Church)?
3. What significant events lead to the split between the Roman Catholic Church and
the Anglican Church?
4. What significant events lead to the split between the Roman Catholic Church and
the Protestant Churches? (Corruptions; Martin Luther NOT Martin Luther King).
5. How did the Church respond to the Protestant Reformation?
6. How did Vatican II change the way Catholicism was practiced?
Islam Review
1. Define and give the significance of the terminology below:








Allah
Hadith
Hajj
Hijab
Hijrah
Idolatry
Imam
Islam








Jihad
Ka’bah
Mi’rah
Muslim
Polygamy
Polytheism
Qur’an
salat






sawm
Shahadah
Shari’ah
Sunnah
wudu
Zakat
2. Outline the significant moments of the life of Muhammad. Explain how he changed the state of
the Arabian Peninsula.
HRT 3M1
Ms. Savarino
January 2011
3. Compare the Christian and the Islamic view of Jesus and God.
4. What are the major beliefs of all Muslims? How does it differ from Christian beliefs?
5. What are the Five Pillars of Faith and give a description of each? Why are they called “Pillars”?
6. Describe the distinguishing features of the Mosque and describe the worship that takes place
within it.
7. Explain why Muslims do not use statues, paintings, and images the way that most other
religions do?
8. What sorts of symbols are used in Islam? What do they stand for?
9. What is Jihad? How is it often misinterpreted in the western world?
10. Outline the Ninian Smart Traits for Islam.
1. Look at the chart below that compares basic concepts of Eastern and Western religions. For
each of the 5 major world religions you have learned about, decide if it is an Eastern or Western
world religion. Give an explanation for your choice using specific concepts from each religion.
(NOTE that if this question is on the exam, you will not be able to use the chart below. You will,
however, will be expected to use these concepts to answer the questions)
(3 marks for each religion)
EASTERN RELIGIONS
Afterlife: The goal is to be freed from ignorance
and illusion—to be one with the divine.
WESTERN RELIGIONS
Afterlife: The goal is to be freed from the body
so the soul can live eternally with the divine.
Cause and Effect—ones place in life is
determined by good or bad deeds performed in
previous lives. One accepts one’s destiny as an
effect of their previous lives.
One’s deeds in this lifetime determine their
place in the afterlife. One not rewarded or
punished in this world. Rather, one is punished
or rewarded in the afterlife.
Humans and the divine are one. The
separateness of humans from the divine is
merely and illusion we must overcome.
Human beings are separate from the divine and
from each other, both in this life and in the
afterlife.
Belief that the Divine is present within all things. Belief in one God that is separate and greater
than all of creation.
HRT 3M1
Ms. Savarino
January 2011
Comparative Essay
Compose a comparative essay that addresses the questions posed.
Your essay should include
 an introductory paragraph,
 a concluding paragraph, and
 a body of at least 3 paragraphs.
Take note that your body may contain more than 3 paragraphs depending on how you decide to structure your
essay. Specific and accurate information learned in class should be cited to support your points.
Please pay attention to spelling, grammar, phrasing, paragraphing and transition.
1. Part of religious observance for some of the world religions explored in-class involves abstaining from
various things. Select two religions examined in-class and explain what they abstain from and why. Draw a
connection between abstinence and one’s individual relationship with a higher being.
2. Choose one Eastern and one Western religion. In your essay, contrast the Eastern and Western worldviews
using specific characteristics of the Eastern and Western religions that you chose. Explore at least 3 points
of contrast in your essay.
3. Christianity and Islam both stem from the Jewish tradition. Using the two of the Ninian Smart traits of
religion, draw meaningful comparisons between Christianity, Islam, and Judaism.
4. Draw similarities between at least two important events in the lives of Prince Siddhartha, Muhammad and
Jesus. Explain how these important events affected the face of the religions in which they each founded.
ON YOUR EXAM YOU WILL ONLY BE REQUIRED TO ANSWER ONE!
Literacy Component- You will be reading an article and answering questions.