Deck 6: The Rise of the Biblical Tradition

Question 1

What was a common symbol of early Christianity?

A) an anchor
B) a bird
C) a lion and a lamb
D) a fountain in a garden

Answer 1

A

Question 2

Which grouping of Hebrew texts contains the Torah ?

A) the Psalms
B) the Gospel
C) the New Testament
D) the Law

Answer 2

D

Question 3

Who were the three most important kings of the United Monarchy of Canaan?

A) Saul, David, and Solomon
B) Abraham, Isaac, and Saul
C) Methuselah, Noah, and David
D) Job, Jacob, and Solomon

Answer 3

A

Question 4

Into what groupings did the ancient Hebrews divide their Bible?

A) the Law, the Prophets, and the Writings
B) the Psalms, the Tenets, and the Epistles
C) the Gospel, the Babylonian Letters, and the Writings
D) the Creation Story, the Pauline Letters, and the Book of Revelation

Question 5

The English word "Bible" comes from the Greek name of what ancient city?

A) Babel
B) Byblos
C) Athens
D) Byzantium

Question 6

What is the Septuagint ?

A) a Latin version of the Greek Bible
B) a translation into Sanskrit of the Greek Bible
C) a Greek version of the Hebrew Bible
D) a translation into Latin of the Hebrew Bible

Question 7

Why were early Christians persecuted by the government of Rome?

A) They refused to worship the state gods.
B) They rebelled openly against the government.
C) They broke the law by engaging in sacrificial rites.
D) They encouraged vandalism against Roman properties.

Question 8

What central doctrine of early Christianity became the basis on which believers proclaimed Jesus as Christ?

A) the belief in the Virgin Birth
B) the belief in the Resurrection
C) the belief in the forgiveness of sins
D) the doctrine of monotheism

Question 9

What are the four most important sources of information about the life of Jesus?

A) the books of Revelation, Leviticus, and the Psalms
B) the Dead Sea Scrolls, Lamentations , and Proverbs
C) the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John
D) Acts of the Apostles , Song of Solomon , and the Pauline Letters

Question 10

Who were the apologists?

A) Christians who acknowledged their sins and expressed the desire to repent
B) writers who defended Christianity against attacks from the Roman Empire
C) critics of Christian worship practices
D) people who lamented the expulsion of mankind from the Garden of Eden

Question 11

What famous church was built in Rome during the reign of the Emperor Constantine?

A) Saint Mark's Cathedral
B) Saint Peter's Basilica
C) the Coliseum
D) Saint John's Cathedral

Question 12

According to the Bible, who was the father (patriarch) of the Hebrews?

A) David
B) Abraham
C) Noah
D) Isaac

Question 13

What did the Chi-Rho monogram refer to?

A) commonly cited Biblical proverbs
B) Psalms used during Christian worship services
C) early Christian beliefs about the afterlife
D) the first two letters of the Greek word for "Christ"

Question 14

In 312 CE, which emperor issued a decree in Milan of toleration for Christianity (and other religions)?

A) Emperor Justinian
B) Emperor Diocletian
C) Emperor Constantine
D) Emperor Romulus

Question 15

What is the meaning of the Greek word from which the term "prophet" is derived?

A) one who sees the future
B) one who literally converses with God
C) a shepherd
D) one who speaks for another

Question 16

Who were the two sons of Abraham that went on to found the Hebrew and Arab nations?

A) Jacob and Joseph
B) Judah and Mohammed
C) Isaac and Ishmael
D) David and Solomon

Question 17

What is the Biblical meaning of "covenant"?

A) a shelter or refuge
B) an agreement between God and humans
C) a prophecy that determines human destiny
D) a sacred text

Question 18

What are the Beatitudes?

A) early Christian saints
B) blessings delivered during Mass
C) core teachings of Jesus
D) musical pieces performed during Mass

Question 19

What was the "Babylonian Captivity"?

A) the period immediately before the coming of Christ
B) the enslavement of the Babylonian people
C) the imprisonment of the Babylonian people
D) a period of Hebrew exile

Question 20

Who became the most important figure in the spread of the Christian church after the death of Jesus?

A) Peter
B) John
C) Matthew
D) Paul

Question 21

What did excavators of Dura-Europos find? What does this tell us about religious life in the 3^rd century?

Question 22

In the Book of Job:

A) God tests the faith and loyalty of a righteous man.
B) a prophet leads the Israelites out of captivity.
C) a teacher is persecuted by Roman authorities.
D) the kingdom of Israel fractures.

Question 23

What is antiphonal singing?

A) dissonant singing
B) singing in which two sections of the congregation alternate in chanting lines from psalms
C) singing in which the congregation and cantor sing simultaneously with one another, but to different texts
D) singing featuring the cantor alone

Question 24

In the Hebrew Bible's book of Genesis, God tells _______ to sacrifice his son.

A) Isaac
B) Abraham
C) Adam
D) Job

Question 25

What famous church was built in Jerusalem during the reign of the Emperor Constantine?

A) the Church of Notre Dame
B) Hagia Sophia
C) the Church of the Holy Sepulcher
D) Saint Peter's Basilica

Question 26

What is the difference between a "prophet" and a "seer"? What was the main function of prophets in the Judeo-Christian traditions?

Question 27

What is the term for the courtyard through which Christians entered a basilica?

A) the transept
B) the atrium
C) the clerestory
D) the nave

Question 28

What is the term for a wall painting done on wet plaster?

A) aquifer
B) pieta
C) fresco
D) tufa

Question 29

Which of the following terms identifies the books included in the modern Christian Bible (Old and New Testaments)?

A) catechism
B) pentateuch
C) canon
D) apocrypha

Question 30

What is the term for an underground cemetery, especially common during early Christianity?

A) catacomb
B) apse
C) narthex
D) palimpsest

Question 31

Which gospel contains Jesus's "Sermon on the Mount"?

A) John
B) Matthew
C) Luke
D) Mark

Question 32

What is responsorial singing?

A) singing in which the choir responds to the congregation's lines
B) singing in which two sections of the congregation alternate in chanting lines from psalms
C) singing in which the congregation chants beneath the cantor's melody
D) singing in which the congregation responds with simple refrains to the cantor's lines

Question 33

How have events in the Book of Exodus been used to symbolize the plight and aims of later generations?

Question 34

What book(s) of the New Testament provide the "good news" for Christians?

A) Corinthians
B) the Acts
C) Revelation
D) the four Gospels

Question 35

Explain the image/metaphor of the "good shepherd" in Christianity.

Question 36

What is the Hebrew term for "the anointed one," referring to a savior?

A) yahweh
B) rabbi
C) messiah
D) Israelite

Question 37

What is the significance of the notion of "models and types" in biblical studies?

Question 38

What is the primary purpose of the Hebrew Bible's Decalogue?

A) to provide a theory of mathematics
B) to tell the story of the Hebrew people
C) to provide a list of ethical commands
D) to list the books of the Old Testament

Question 39

What musical tradition had the greatest influence on early Christian churches?

A) early troubadour songs
B) Jewish chanting of sacred texts
C) the musical practices of the Roman Empire
D) the musical practices of Classical Greece

Question 40

What is the term for the belief that there are many gods, but only one is to be worshipped?

A) henotheism
B) paganism
C) polytheism
D) gnosticism