AP World History : Religions

Study concepts, example questions & explanations for AP World History

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Example Questions

Example Question #51 : Religions

Which of these statements about Siddhartha Gautama is inaccurate?

Possible Answers:

He was born into wealth and nobility

He was determined to find an end to human suffering

He was a contemporary of Pericles

None of these statements are inaccurate

He founded Buddhism

Correct answer:

None of these statements are inaccurate

Explanation:

Siddhartha Gautama is the founding figure of Buddhism. He lived in the sixth and fifth centuries BCE, making him a contemporary of the famous Greek politician Pericles. He was born into wealth and nobility, which he promptly rejected and then subsequently dedicated his life to finding an end to human suffering.

Example Question #52 : Ap World History

Which of these best describes syncretism?

Possible Answers:

None of these answers accurately describes syncretism

The spread of ideas along trading routes

The blending of elements from more than one religion

The idea that religion is primarily spread by military conquest

The process by which a language emerges to act as de facto lingua franca for a diverse group of people

Correct answer:

The blending of elements from more than one religion

Explanation:

Syncretism is the name given to the blending of elements from more than one religion into a distinct system of worship. Examples include the blending of Confucianism, Taoism, and Legalism in China during and after the Warring States period. Syncretism often created distinct religions (like the Cult of Saints in Latin America), by mixing longstanding and native elements of paganism with the tenets of a newly introduced major organized religion.

Example Question #52 : Religions

Which religious council, attended by Emperor Constantine in 325 CE, established Christianity as a viable and structured religion under the Roman Empire, even allowing it concessions over Latin Paganism?

Possible Answers:

The Council of Trent

The First Council of Nicaea

The Quintisext Council

The Council of Ephesus

The Council of Constantinople

Correct answer:

The First Council of Nicaea

Explanation:

The First Council of Nicaea effectively ended the view of Christianity as foreign or harmful to the Roman Empire and allowed it to grow into a state-sanctioned religion, supported by a rigid structure of bishops ruling over diocese, much like the structure of Roman state designations.

Example Question #1 : Religions 600 Ce To 1450

Which of the following is not one of the Five Pillars of Islam?

Possible Answers:

Pilgrimage to Mecca 

Paying a tithe for the needy

Fasting during Ramadan

Prayer five times a day

Marriage before an imam 

Correct answer:

Marriage before an imam 

Explanation:

Faith--the belief that there is no god but Allah and Muhammad is his Prophet--is the missing pillar here, not marriage. 

Example Question #1 : Religions 600 Ce To 1450

Which of these is not an ideological difference that contributed to the schism between the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches?

Possible Answers:

The use of leavened bread in communion 

The Virgin Birth

Latin Vs Greek as the language of the church 

The Supremacy of the Pope

Married men entering the priesthood 

Correct answer:

The Virgin Birth

Explanation:

The Virgin birth is a core tenet of Christian faith. The others are all examples of practices that different factions within the Church debated. 

Example Question #3 : Religions 600 Ce To 1450

Which of the following is not a pillar of Islam?

Possible Answers:

Alms-giving

Pilgrimage to Mecca

Prayer five times daily

Celibacy of Clerics

Fasting during Ramadan

Correct answer:

Celibacy of Clerics

Explanation:

Muslim clerics are encouraged to marry and have families in contrast to the Catholic Church. The other four listed answers are, indeed, pillars of Islam. The fifth pillar of Islam (not listed) refers to the purity of faith. 

Example Question #1 : Religions 600 Ce To 1450

Which of the following societies was not defined by the belief in a polytheistic religion?

Possible Answers:

Ancient Greece

Ancient Egypt 

The Ottoman Empire

The Mughal Empire

The Aztec Empire

Correct answer:

The Ottoman Empire

Explanation:

The Ottoman Empire was filled with believers of Judaism, Orthodox Christianity, and Islam, all monotheistic religions. The Mughal Empire was characterized by the peaceful co-existence of Muslim and Hindu believers. Ancient Greece was characterized by a polytheistic religious belief system, as were Ancient Greece and Egypt, as well as the Aztec Empire.

Example Question #5 : Religions 600 Ce To 1450

Mansa Musa, Emperor of Mali, made a famous pilgrimage to Mecca as he was a devout _____________.

Possible Answers:

Jew

Hindu

Christian

Buddhist

Muslim

Correct answer:

Muslim

Explanation:

Mansa Musa was a devout Muslim; pilgrimage to Mecca is considered a holy commandment by many devout Muslims. Devout Christians and Jews view Jerusalem as the holiest city and the most important pilgrimage site. Mali has never had a large Hindu or Buddhist community, nor have they ever had a ruler practice either of those religions.

Example Question #57 : Religions

Which sect of Christianity is most closely associated with Iconography?

Possible Answers:

Protestantism

Calvinism

Puritanism

Quakerism

Eastern Orthodox

Correct answer:

Eastern Orthodox

Explanation:

The use of Icons to depict saints, the messiah, and Mary became synonymous with the orthodox churches of the Byzantine and Russian Empires. Quakerism, Puritanism, and Calvinism are all branches of Protestantism that admonished the Catholic traditions of iconography that they claim broke the commandment against idol worship.

Example Question #59 : Ap World History

Which religious practice is a fusion of Islamic and Hindu influences?

Possible Answers:

Orthodox Hinduism

Sikhism

Shari'a

Sunni

Shi'a

Correct answer:

Sikhism

Explanation:

Sikhism emerged from the spread of Islamic powers into the Indian Sub-Continent. Because of its geo-political beginnings, Sikhism remains strongest in the southern part of Pakistan and Northern India where the two cultures clashed.

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