Question 1

Muhammad claimed to receive revelations:&#10;A) Directly from the mouth of Allah&#10;B) Through a prophetess&#10;C) From an angelic being&#10;D) In the midst of ordinary work

Accepted Answer

According to Islamic tradition, Muhammad received revelations from the angel Gabriel while meditating in a cave near Mecca. These revelations were collected and compiled into the Quran, which is considered the holy book of Islam.

Question 2

Which of the following is not one of the Five Pillars of Islam?&#10;A) Prayer&#10;B) Giving alms to the poor&#10;C) Bearing witness&#10;D) Attendance at Mosque

Accepted Answer

The Five Pillars of Islam include Prayer, Giving alms to the poor, Bearing witness, Fasting during Ramadan, and the Pilgrimage to Mecca. Attendance at Mosque is not considered a Pillar of Islam, although it is strongly encouraged for Muslims to attend Mosque for Friday prayers.

Question 3

Which of the following is true of the Qur'an?&#10;A) It is held to be a direct transcript of messages from God&#10;B) It was compiled over many centuries&#10;C) It has nothing in common with the Hebrew Bible or Christian New Testament&#10;D) There are multiple authors of different suras

Accepted Answer

The Qur'an is considered to be the direct word of God as revealed to the prophet Muhammad over a period of 23 years. It is believed to be inimitable and fully preserved in its original Arabic language.

Question 4

According to Avicenna, what is the distinction between necessary being and contingent being?&#10;A) For a necessary being, existence belongs to its essence; for a contingent being, existence is accidental to its essence&#10;B) Contingent beings have no properties; necessary beings have many properties&#10;C) Necessary beings cannot survive death; contingent beings might survive death&#10;D) Contingent beings are unable to transfer their existence to another being; necessary beings can do this&#10;E) All of the above

Accepted Answer

According to Avicenna, a necessary being is one whose existence is essential to its nature, whereas a contingent being only exists because something else caused it to exist. The essence of a necessary being includes existence, while the essence of a contingent being does not necessarily include existence. This is the main distinction between the two types of being.

Question 5

Which statement most accurately describes Averro&#235;s's views on faith and reason?&#10;A) When faith and reason conflict, we must always side with faith&#10;B) When faith and reason conflict, we must always side with reason&#10;C) When correctly understood, faith and reason will never conflict&#10;D) When correctly understood, faith will always go against reason

Accepted Answer

Averroës believed that when correctly understood, faith and reason will never conflict, as he saw both as paths towards the truth. He believed that reason could help us comprehend and understand the fundamentals of our faith.

Question 6

Averro&#235;s's theory of double truth was often misunderstood by medieval Christians to mean what?&#10;A) The truth of any religious claim should be understood in two ways&#10;B) Contradictory claims from philosophy and theology can both be true in their own ways&#10;C) Religious thinkers must always be aware that other religions also have truth claims&#10;D) There are multiple levels of meaning to truths

Accepted Answer

Averroës's theory of double truth was not about interpreting religious claims in two ways, but rather about acknowledging that philosophical and theological claims can be contradictory but still true in their own respects. Many medieval Christians misinterpreted this as suggesting that there could be contradictory claims from philosophy and theology that were both true.

Question 7

What is the via negativa in theology?&#10;A) The attempt to describe God's attributes by showing what he is not&#10;B) A critique of Muslim theology&#10;C) The theory that God is not only good, but also evil&#10;D) A description of God's human-like qualities

Accepted Answer

The via negativa, also known as apophatic theology, is a theological approach that describes God's attributes by showing what he is not, rather than by attempting to define what he is. It emphasizes the incomprehensibility and transcendence of God, as well as the limitations of human language and concepts.

Question 8

Which of the following was not one of the three great threats to Christianity in the Middle Ages?&#10;A) Jews&#10;B) Atheists&#10;C) Muslims&#10;D) Christian Heretics

Accepted Answer

Atheists were not considered a major threat to Christianity in the Middle Ages as atheism was not a widely recognized or established belief system during this time period. The three great threats to Christianity in the Middle Ages were considered to be Jews, Muslims, and Christian heretics.

Question 9

A common charge against the Christians by Jews and Muslims was what?&#10;A) Polytheism because of Christians' belief in the Trinity&#10;B) Mysticism because of Christians' belief in the Holy Spirit&#10;C) Cannibalism because of Christians' belief that in the Eucharist they ate the body and blood of Christ&#10;D) Colonialism because of Christians' belief they must spread their religion to other lands

Accepted Answer

The belief in the Trinity, which includes God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit, was often misunderstood by Jews and Muslims as polytheism, as it seemed to contradict the monotheistic principle central to both Judaism and Islam.

Question 10

Maimonides was the chief representative of what strain of Jewish thinking?&#10;A) The mystical tradition&#10;B) The Hasidic tradition&#10;C) The Rabbinic tradition&#10;D) The rationalist tradition

Accepted Answer

Maimonides was a prominent figure in the rationalist tradition of Jewish thinking, also known as the Aristotelian tradition, which emphasized the use of reason and inquiry in understanding Judaism and its tenets. He believed that reason and logic were essential to understanding the Torah and that rational thinking could help reconcile apparent contradictions within the faith.

Deck 15: Islam and Judaism in the Middle Ages