Download AP Human Religion Study Guide 1. Religion is a culturalsystem of

AP Human Religion Study Guide
1. Religion is a culturalsystem of beliefs, traditions and practices often centered around the worship of a deity or
dieties
2. Universalizing religions are those who seek to convert nonbelievers. Give examples.
3. Ethnic religions are associated with a particular ethnic group, you must be born into the religion. Give an example.
4. What is the difference between monotheistic and polytheistic religions? Give examples of each.
Monotheistic is the belief in one god, examples Judaism, Zoroastrianism, Christianity and Islam
Polytheistic is the belief in many gods, examples: ancient Greeks, Romans and Norse peoples
5. Animism is the belief that souls and gods inhabit all or most objects, especially natural objects, such as trees, stones
and bodies of water. Give an example. Example: Shinto traditional religion of Japanese people
6. Study the Major World Religions Map.
7. Hinduism: oldest of all the world religions, origins along the Indus River, combination of Indus Valley ideas and Aryan
mythology
Basic Beliefs: Reincarnation, karma, dharma. moksha
Holy Text: Vedas
Caste System: complex division of society into different classes
-What are the classifications? Brahmins were priests and top administrators, Kshatriyas were warriors, Vaisyas were
merchants and Shudras were agricultural workers and artisans
-Who is not included? Dalits (untouchables) who do the the jobs Hindus consider to be spiritually and physically
unclean
-Where do they worship? Hindu temple or in their homes
8. Buddhism: Offshoot of Hinduism, rejected the caste system
Founder: Siddhartha Gautama, the “enlightened one”
Basic Beliefs: karma, reincarnation
Four Noble Truths: 1. Life is suffering, 2. Suffering is cuased by human desire or craving, 3. Suffering can be ended, 4.
The way to eliminate desire is through the Eightfold Path (Right Understanding, Right Thought, Right Speech, Right
Action, Right Livelihood, Right Effort, Right Mindfulness, and Right Concentration)
Theravada Buddhism (describe & where is it found): More conservative than other sects, closely representing the
teaching of Buddha with very little interpretation, found in Sri Lanka, Burma and Thailand
Mahayana Buddhism (describe & where is it found): More spiritual and mystical components, spread to China,
Korea, Japan and SE Asia
Vajrayana (describe & where is it found): Elements of Mahayana sects and contains a vriety of esoteric elements like
mandalas, found in Tibet and Mongolia
9. Judaism: Oldest religion believing in God, “Chosen People”
Ethnic or Universalizing Religion? Ethnic
Diaspora (define): expulsion of Jews from the region
Sacred Text: Torah
Kosher foods: food must be prepared in accordance with a long list of dietary lawas
Influenced what other two major religions? Christianity and Islam
10. Christianity: Has the most followers worldwide, offshoot of Judaism
Basic Beliefs: believe Jesus is the Messiah, obedience to commandments, acknowledgment of an afterlife, God is allpowerful perfect being, forgiven for sins, and everyone can attain salvation
Significance of prayer: They can communicate with God through prayer
What do the places of worship look like?
Who are Coptic Christians? Descendants of early Christians who live in Egypt and Ethiopia
What is the Protestant Reformation? 1517 when Martin Luther wrote his 95 statements against the Catholic Church
began a time period where people began to break away from the Catholic Church and begin Protestant churches
What is the great Schism? 1054 whent Christianity split into two major groups, Roman Catholics and WEastern
Orthodox
11. Islam Youngest or newest religion believing in God
Founder: Muhammad
Basic Beliefs: Muhammad is the last and greatest prophet of God
Five Pillars: 1) Profession of faith, 2) Prayer 5 times a day towards Mecca, 3) Charity, purification of wealth, 4)
Fasting during the month of Ramadan, 5) Pilgrimage or Hajj at least once to Mecca
Holy Text: Qur’an
Place of worship: Mosque
12. Other Large Religious Groups
What are the three major Chinese fold religions? Chinese Buddhism, Confucianism and Taoism
What do African Traditional Religions focus on? Maintaining the order of society and life
Sikhism is a combination of which religions? What is a unique characteristics of men? Founded in Northern India,
preaches equality for all, combination of Hinduism and Islam, mend do not cut their hair keeping it wrapped in
turbans
Shinto: Where is it found? Animistic religion of Japan
13. What is the difference between sacred and profane landscapes?
Sacred have religious or spiritual meaning; profane landscapes are ordinary, unholy places of the world
14. What are mystic-religious sites? Give an example. Places in which God or another deity comes into direct contact
with humans. Examples: Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem for Muslims because they believe that is where Muhammad
rose into heaven to speak with God; Buddhists the Bodhi Tree is believed to be the place where Buddha attained
enlightenment
15. What are designated areas for burial called? cemeteries
16. Why did the management of cemeteries become essential in the 19th century? Public health and sanitation
17. In many places, like China, what threatens agricultural land? Competition for burial land
18. What Hindus practice instead of burials? Who are burials reserved for? Cremation, burials are reserved for children,
ascetics and people with certain diseases
19. What did the Taliban forbid when they took control of Afghanistan?
-Western non-Islamic leisure activities (playing music, flying kites, watching television and surfing the internet
-Soccer stadiums were converted to settings for executions and floggings
-Men were beaten for shaving their beards and women stoned for committing adultery
-Homosexuals were buried alive and prostitutes were hanged in front of large audiences
-Thieves had their hands cut off and women wearing nail polish had their fingers cut off
20. What political reform did the Indian government impose to ensure equality?
Government plan to devise a quota system designed to give untouchables more places in the country’s universities
which generated strong opposition
21. Which religions were most affected by Communism? Why?
Christianity, Islam and Buddhism, religious doctrine was a threat to the success of revolution, communism was the
doctrine all were to follow
22. Which religious group did the Vietnam War hurt? How?
Buddhism, shrines were destroyed and vandalized, monks immolated themselves as a form of protest, government
discouraged religious activities
23. Which religious groups are fighting in Ireland? Why?
Roman Catholics and Protestants, It was and English colony and after independence the Protestant north decided to
remain part of the UK. Catholics in Northern Ireland have been discriminated against
24. Which three major religious groups see the Middle East as a sacred space?
Judaism, Christianity and Islam
25. What were the Crusades? Which two groups were mainly involved?
1099 European Christians launched the Crusades to recapture Jerusalem back from the Muslims; Christians and
Muslims
26. What was the result of WWII in Palestine?
British announced it would withdraw from Palestine, United Nations voted to partition Palestine into two
independent states, one Jewish and one Muslim
27. Describe the Israeli vs Palestinian Perspective in Israel/Palestine.
Israeli: small country with a Jewish majority, people live extremely close to international borders, has military
control over the Golan Heights and West Bank, support construction of a barrier to deter Palestinian attacks, built
settlements in the West Bank. Call the wall a security fence
Palestinian: Five groups consider themselves Palestinians (people who live in the West Bank, Gaza and E Jerusalem,
citizens who are Muslim, people who fled from Israel to other countries after the 1967 Six-Day War, citizens of other
countries such as Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia; Struggle of power between the Fatah and Hamas
Parties, see Jewish immigration as a hostile act, call the wall racial segregation wall