Deck 16: War and Capital Punishment-Society and Violence

Question 1

Since the fifth century C.E. Christian teaching on war has been dominated by the theory of __________.

A) just war
B) non-resistance
C) pacifism
D) preventive war
E) "turn the other cheek"

Answer 1

D

Question 2

First-century C.E. Jewish defenders of the fortress at __________ committed suicide rather than surrender to the Roman attackers.

A) Damascus
B) Jericho
C) Jerusalem
D) Masada
E) Nazareth

Answer 2

D

Question 3

In __________,war heroes sometimes elevated to the status of kami, with shrines to honor them.

A) Daoism
B) Hinduism
C) Islam
D) Shinto
E) Theravada Buddhism

Answer 3

D

Question 4

__________ teaches that the best strategy in war is to draw on the power exerted by the enemy rather than trying to overwhelm the foe with your own force.

A) Daoism
B) Hinduism
C) Islam
D) Jainism
E) Judaism

Question 5

According to the Hindu worldview, wars are an inevitable reality because __________.

A) humans are sinful by nature
B) Satan causes them
C) the warrior class needs work
D) we live in a cosmic age in which hostility and tension are high
E) the world will end soon and the Kingdom of God will begin

Question 6

Aung San Suu Kyi has won the Nobel Peace Prize for the use of Buddhist ideals in her struggle against the military government of __________.

A) Burma (Myanmar)
B) India
C) Sri Lanka
D) Tibet
E) Vietnam

Question 7

__________, known as the "African Gandhi," created an Islamic movement in Sudan to resist colonialism with the same strategy Gandhi used in India.

A) Dalai Lama
B) Gautama Siddhartha
C) Indira Gandhi
D) Thich Nhat Hanh
E) Uztaz Mahmoud Mohamed Taha

Question 8

Some Mahayana Buddhist texts contain passages that allow killing in constrained circumstances provided it is motivated by __________ and carried out with "skillful means."

A) commerce
B) compassion
C) expediency
D) revenge
E) self-defense

Question 9

In 2000, the leader of al-Qaeda, Osama bin Laden, issued a fatwa calling for all Muslims to attack the historic enemies of Islam, __________.

A) Buddhism and Judaism
B) Christianity and Communism
C) Hinduism and Buddhism
D) Hinduism and Sikhism
E) Judaism and Christianity

Question 10

A leader of __________ said that world peace would be established when equality is established between men and women.

A) the Baha'i Faith
B) the International Society for Krishna Consciousness
C) Islam
D) Judaism
E) Sikhism

Question 11

Approximately __________ many people were killed in wars during the twentieth century.

A) 50 million
B) 100 million
C) 500 million
D) 1 billion
E) 5 billion

Question 12

For decades, renowned Zen master __________of Vietnam has advocated an "engaged Buddhism" that works nonviolently and with compassion for peace and justice, even in response to terrorism in the world.

A) the Dalai Lama
B) Gautama Siddhartha
C) Indira Gandhi
D) Thich Nhat Hanh
E) Yohanan ben Zakkai

Question 13

__________ is one of the last democracies in the world to impose capital punishment.

A) Greece
B) Iran
C) Saudi Arabia
D) Syria
E) The United States

Question 14

The two nuclear powers in South Asia today are ___________.

A) Bangladesh and India
B) India and China
C) India and Pakistan
D) India and Sri Lanka
E) Pakistan and Tibet

Question 15

__________ used non-violent resistance rather than armed conflict to end British rule in India.

A) Mahatma Gandhi
B) Nanak
C) Jawaharlal Nehru
D) Siddartha Gautama
E) Winston Churchill

Question 16

According to the teachings of Islam, the "greater jihad" is the __________.

A) individual Muslim's responsibility to struggle against evil in his or her life
B) promise that Allah will destroy the forces of evil at the end of history
C) promise that anyone who dies in a holy war will go directly to paradise at the time of death
D) responsibility of Muslims to fight aggressors who threaten Islam
E) slaughter of the unbelievers of Medina by an army led by the Prophet Muhammad

Question 17

__________ was the religious leader who, after the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, warned that a "war on terrorism" would contribute to a cycle of attacks and counterattacks and would not solve the basic problems.

A) the Chief Rabbi of Jerusalem
B) the Dalai Lama
C) the Grand Shi'ite Ayatollah of Iraq
D) Jerry Falwell
E) Pope John Paul II

Question 18

__________ has the broadest support for the concept of "just war," with criteria for the when and how war may be waged.

A) Christianity
B) Confucianism
C) Daoism
D) Hinduism
E) Islam

Question 19

The teaching that a great conflict between God and the forces of evil will occur at the end of history is found most clearly in the biblical books of __________.

A) Daniel and the Acts of the Apostles
B) Daniel and Revelation
C) Exodus and Hebrews
D) Genesis and Revelation
E) Psalms and the Letter of Paul to the Philippians

Question 20

__________ began with a commitment to end religious violence in India but eventually turned to warfare after suffering persecution?

A) Hinduism
B) Islam
C) Jainism
D) Sikhism
E) Theravada Buddhism

Question 21

The __________ significantly limits the conditions under which capital punishment may be imposed, substituting financial payment for literal application of the principle of "an eye for an eye."

A) Bhagavad Gita
B) Bible
C) Lotus Sutra
D) Talmud
E) Tao te Ching

Question 22

Identify the differences between the Christian and Muslim understandings of a "just war." Choose an example of a recent or contemporary war to illustrate the significance of those differences.

Question 23

The association of American __________ Jews has invited others to join them in opposing capital punishment?

A) Conservative
B) Hasidism
C) Orthodox
D) Reconstructionist
E) Reform

Question 24

Make a religious case for (or against) capital punishment, drawing on at least five of the world's religions.

Question 25

Compare and contrast Daoist, Jewish, and Christian teachings about war.

Question 26

__________ said, "You have heard that it was said, 'An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.' But I say to you, Do not resist an evildoer. But if anyone strikes you on the right cheek, turn the other also"?

A) Jesus
B) Mahatma Gandhi
C) Moses
D) Muhammad
E) Siddartha Gautama

Question 27

__________ justifies capital punishment on the grounds that those who deny their human nature by committing a murder should be removed from the human world?

A) Confucianism
B) Daoism
C) Hinduism
D) Islam
E) Theravada Buddhism

Question 28

What do you think are the best religious reasons in opposition to capital punishment? Why so?

Question 29

Compare and contrast Hindu, Buddhist, and Muslim teachings about war.

Question 30

What do you think are the best religious reasons in favor of capital punishment? Why so?

Question 31

Compare and contrast the teachings on whether and when war is justified in two of the following religions: Hinduism, Theravada Buddhism, Daoism, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.

Question 32

Take and defend a position on the question of whether, given the modern technology of war, it is possible for nations to wage "just wars" today.

Question 33

Most indigenous people in the United States oppose capital punishment because __________.

A) Indigenous cultures do not practice capital punishment
B) People of color have been disproportionately sentenced to death in the United States
C) they are Christians
D) they are more liberal than the rest of the population
E) Tribal governments are not allowed to impose the penalty

Question 34

On balance, which of the following positions best characterizes the teachings of the world's religions on war? Support your position with examples from at least five religions: pacifism, nonresistance, just war, or holy (preventive) war.

Question 35

Discuss and evaluate the International Society for Krishna Consciousness view of capital punishment as merciful, freeing the criminal from the experience of even more violent karmic reactions in the next life.