Deck 4: Monotheism: Judaism, Christianity, Islam

Question 1

Which figure was a great king of the ancient Israelites who expanded their domain and built the first temple in Jerusalem?

A) Justinian
B) Solomon
C) Augustine of Hippo
D) Constantine

Answer 1

B

Question 2

In the biblical account, what patriarch of the ancient Israelites led their dramatic exodus from Egypt?

A) Paul
B) Constantine
C) Moses
D) Solomon

Answer 2

C

Question 3

What would one expect to hear in a biblical parable?

A) an explanation of the doctrine of original sin
B) a humble lesson about the nature of God
C) an explication of the Four Noble Truths
D) the story of Justinian's love for Theodora

Answer 3

B

Question 4

Which phrase best describes the Judeo-Christian concept of the covenant?

A) an agreement binding God and his people
B) a style of decoration in Christian catacombs
C) the "good news" of Christ's ministry
D) a challenge to God's authority

Question 5

Which event would most likely be described in a gospel?

A) Abraham's near-sacrifice of his son Isaac
B) Jesus' preaching about the kingdom of God
C) Constantine's dream that he would conquer his enemies
D) Roman soldiers burning Herod's temple

Question 6

What was the apostle Paul's chief accomplishment?

A) to write a moving and dramatic story of Christ's life
B) to issue an edict legalizing Christianity in the Roman world
C) to articulate the first great Christian philosophy of history
D) to write letters advising Christian communities in Greco-Roman cities

Question 7

The capital of the Byzantine empire-the eastern part of the Roman world-was at what city, named for its founder?

A) Bethlehem
B) Rome
C) Constantinople
D) Ravenna

Question 8

Who was the sixth-century Byzantine emperor who temporarily reunited eastern and western Roman empires and revised the Roman law code?

A) Justinian
B) Abraham
C) Constantine
D) Augustine of Hippo

Question 9

How is the church of San Vitale in Ravenna best described?

A) a domed, central-plan church
B) modeled after the Basilica Ulpia
C) the largest church in Christendom
D) the seat of the Roman pope

Question 10

What term describes the half-domed niche at the rear of a basilica-style church?

A) aisle
B) narthex
C) apse
D) transept

Question 11

In the Roman Christian world, what was the purpose of the nave?

A) admit light into a basilica-style church
B) provide space for standing worshippers
C) carry water to Roman cities
D) hold the bones of Christian saints

Question 12

Which statement best describes the city of Ravenna?

A) a lavish new capital built by the emperor Constantine
B) a Roman capital and a showcase of Byzantine-style arts
C) the site of the largest churches of the Roman world
D) the Israelites' holiest city and site of their temple

Question 13

What is best described with the term pendentive?

A) triangular supports for the weight of a dome
B) hanging icons in Byzantine churches
C) decorated space beneath a rounded arch
D) ability of God to see the future

Question 14

Which structure is an example of the basilica-style church, adapting the rectangular spaciousness of Roman law courts to the needs of Christian worship?

A) Solomon's Temple, Jerusalem
B) San Vitale in Ravenna
C) Hagia Sophia
D) St. Peter's, Rome

Question 15

In the year 70, a generation after the life of Jesus, what event devastated the Jewish nation?

A) a massive earthquake that destroyed Near Eastern capitals
B) the death of its beloved King Solomon
C) exile to the imperial city of Babylon
D) destruction of its temple by a Roman army

Question 16

What is the meaning of the Hebrew word messiah, as it was used around the time of Jesus?

A) "anointed by God"
B) "glorious ruler"
C) "teacher"
D) "prophet"

Question 17

Where would an arabesque most likely be found?

A) decorating a mosque in Baghdad
B) supporting a vault in the Hagia Sophia
C) adorning a triumphal arch in Rome
D) sheltering an altar in St. Peter's

Question 18

During a worship service in Sant' Apollinare in Classe, a basilica-style church, worshippers would have entered through part of the building?

A) narthex
B) apse
C) nave
D) atrium

Question 19

What great domed building was reconstructed in the 500's on a gigantic scale by the emperor Justinian?

A) San Vitale in Ravenna
B) St. Peter's in Rome
C) Hagia Sophia
D) the Basilica Ulpia

Question 20

What was an important result of Justinian's reign in the sixth-century Western world?

A) the brief re-unification of Eastern and Western empires
B) legalization of Christianity in the Roman empire
C) establishment of a new pope at Constantinople
D) construction of St. Peter's in Rome

Question 21

Which of these terms describes the Greek-speaking eastern part of the Roman empire and the lavish civilization that arose in the first centuries of official Christianity?

A) Byzantine
B) Diaspora
C) Gregorian
D) Eucharist

Question 22

Which of these is associated with the reign of David as king of the Israelites?

A) the composition of psalms in praise of God
B) the foundation of St. Peter's in Rome
C) the destruction of the temple at Jerusalem
D) the conquest of Egypt and Persia by Israelite armies

Question 23

In the Hebrew Bible, what righteous man finds his faith in God tested by a series of calamities?

A) Job
B) Plotinus
C) Abraham
D) Solomon

Question 24

In the Gospel of Matthew's Sermon on the Mount, what one would expect to hear?

A) an explanation of the doctrine of original sin
B) sayings that reinforce Jesus' relation to Hebrew law
C) an explication of the Four Noble Truths
D) the story of Justinian's love for Theodora

Question 25

Which topic or concept is most closely associated with the ideas of Augustine of Hippo, an early "father" of the Christian church?

A) the Torah
B) the One or the Good
C) apocalypse
D) original sin

Question 26

Who was the Roman emperor who first legalized Christianity and founded the first St. Peter's in Rome?

A) Justinian
B) Solomon
C) Augustine of Hippo
D) Constantine

Question 27

Where would one most likely find a squinch?

A) sheltering an altar in St. Peter's
B) standing next to the throne of Justinian
C) supporting a dome in a Byzantine church
D) decorating a private home in Pompeii

Question 28

Which structure could be described as a "domed basilica"-that is, having the rectangular spaciousness of the basilica style and the grandeur of a domed interior?

A) Hagia Sophia
B) St. Peter's, Rome
C) Pantheon, Rome
D) Sant' Apollinare in Classe

Question 29

The term responsorial would be most relevant in a discussion of what topic?

A) pictorial decoration of a Byzantine-era church
B) Church policy prohibiting sacred images in churches
C) Muhammad's early struggles against religious opponents
D) chants and hymns sung in early Christian churches

Question 30

Where would a portrait of the emperor Justinian most likely be found?

A) in the temple of Solomon in Jerusalem
B) painted on a wall of St. Peter's in Rome
C) in mosaic on a church wall in Ravenna
D) in a battle scene on a Roman imperial arch

Question 31

The Qur'an (Koran) was revealed to what prophet?

A) Isaiah
B) Jesus
C) Abraham
D) Muhammad

Question 32

What is the name of the most sacred shrine of Islam, located in Mecca?

A) Qa'aba
B) Church of the Holy Sepulcher
C) Dome of the Rock
D) Mosque of Cordoba

Question 33

To what ancient city would you travel to see the Muslim shrine called the Dome of the Rock, built on the former site of the Jewish Temple?

A) Mecca
B) Constantinople
C) Jerusalem
D) Ravenna

Question 34

How do devout Muslims regard the figure of Muhammad?

A) as the Son of God and redeemer of humanity
B) as the heavenly judge of souls entering the afterlife
C) as reigning in heaven at the right hand of God
D) as the messenger of the one true God

Question 35

What term best applies to the set of sacred symbols and images that developed within the emerging religion of Christianity?

A) iconography
B) pendentive
C) pagan
D) monophonic

Question 36

Which work would best serve as an example of Christians' adaptation of pagan motifs and symbols for their own religious art?

A) the Second Temple in Jerusalem
B) The Good Shepherd
C) Gregorian chant
D) Mosque of Córdoba

Question 37

What event or development caused a final decline of Roman authority in the Western empire, starting about the year 400?

A) an earthquake that destroyed most of Rome
B) a violent civil war between rival emperors
C) a new wave of barbarian invasions
D) a Christian army that sacked the capital

Question 38

What describes the Abbasid Muslim capital of Baghdad in the years 762-1258?

A) founded by Muhammad as the spiritual center of Islam
B) finally conquered and occupied by a Christian army
C) site of Islam's third holiest shrine, the Dome of the Rock
D) home to a center of learning called the House of Wisdom

Question 39

What term or topic would be most useful in describing the Mosque of Córdoba?

A) hypostyle hall
B) domed basilica
C) calligraphy
D) mosaic

Question 40

Which work would best serve as an example of Christians' adaptation of pagan customs, motifs, and symbols for their own religious art?

A) Mosque of Damascus
B) the Sarcophagus of Junius Bassus
C) arabesque
D) House of Wisdom

Question 41

Define the Hebrew concept of the covenant and illustrate with references to the ancient Israelites' history and sacred writings.

Question 42

Explain Christianity's success in the late Roman world by reference to its religious teachings and practices.

Question 43

Briefly discuss Augustine's views on human nature and the course of human history.

Question 44

Summarize the artistic differences between the churches of Latin Christianity and the Byzantine world.

Question 45

Explain how the churches of Ravenna incorporated pagan Roman traditions and artistic forms into early Christian art and architecture.

Question 46

Identify the beliefs of Islam that supported the faith's militant expansion.

Question 47

Illustrate the development of early Muslim civilization, with reference to specific intellectual and artistic achievements.

Question 48

Discuss the merger between Roman civilization and Christian idea in the art and architecture of the Byzantine empire. In your answer refer to examples from at least three of these Byzantine arts: architecture, mosaic painting, fresco painting, or sculpture. In each example, analyze the fusion between Roman styles of art and Christian belief or story.

Question 49

Compare the concept of God in the religions of the ancient Hebrews, early Christians, and Muslims. In your answer, note similarities and differences among these religions' concept of divinity, illustrating your answer with references to their sacred scriptures and religious art.