Module 4: Judaism & Christianity Flashcards
M4:1
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From whence does the term Judaism come from?
Judaism is named after Judah, the southern of the two Hebrew Kingdoms
How does the Hebrew Bible relate to the Christian Bible?
- Hebrew wrote down religious beliefs gathered to form the Hebrew Bible.
- Christians later turned these to the “Old Testament,” and these became the center of Judaism’s main values.
Yahweh
An all-powerful god of the Hebrews and the basis of the traditions of Judaism
Saul
A leader who fought the Philistines for the Hebrews
- established a monarchy over the Hebrew tribes, whose work was carried on by David
Which leader saved the Hebrews from the Egyptian slavery? (in the bible)
Moses
David
captured the city of Jerusalem, making it the religious and political center of the realm
- his success enlarged the kingdom and his reign was a period of “vitality”
Solomon
the son of David, launched a building program that the biblical narrative describes as including cities, palaces, fortresses, and roads.
What was the most symbolic building built by Solomon?
The Temple of Jerusalem, symbolizes Hebrew Unit and the approval of Yahweh on the Hebrew people
- home of the Ark of the Covenant
What was the name of the region which the Hebrews settled to between the Mediterranean and the Jordan River?
Canaan, migrated from Nile Delta
What was the name of the chest that contained the holiest Hebrew religious articles?
Ark of the Covenant
Covenant
An agreement that people believed to exist between themselves and Yahweh, where if the Hebrews worshipped Yahweh as their only god, he would consider them as chosen people and protect them from their enemies.
What was the foundational event in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam according to the Hebrew Scriptures?
Yahweh appeared to the tribal leader Abraham, promising him that he would be blessed, as would his descendants if they followed Yahweh.
prophets
People who acted as ‘intermediaries’ or connectors between Yahweh and the Hebrew people.
Ex: Moses, Abraham
Compare Hebrew monotheism to the religious outlook of the Mesopotamians.
The Hebrews later believed in ethical monotheism, where goodness was understood to come from a single god. Mesopotamian societies held a more polytheistic belief.
What was more important than kings and priests in the Jewish religion?
Individuals and religious leaders who followed the instructions of Yahweh was the central task for observant Jews to keep the religion .
Which group caused the biggest threat to the Hebrews?
Philistines
- their superior technology and military organization at first made them invincible until the Hebrews found Saul
Baal
fertility god represented as a golden calf
What did Yahweh give to Moses?
the Ten Commandments
When did the kingdom of Jerusalem break into two political halves?
at Solomon’s death
Name the two political halves of Jerusalem
North: Israel, capital Samaria
South: Judah, Jerusalem center
When was the northern kingdom wiped out? By who?
The Assyrians wiped out the northen kingdom in 722 BCE. Judah survived numerous invasions until the Babylonians crushed it in 587 BCE.
Cyrus the Great
a Persian King who conquered the Babylonians and permitted exiles to return to Jerusalem
What is similar about Mesopotamian deities and the Hebrew religion?
Like Mesopotamian deities, Yahweh punished people, but the Hebrews also believed he would protect them all, and make them prosper if they obeyed his commandments.
What eventually gave the way to family or private ownership for Hebrews?
communal use of land, eventually traditions of Judaism replaced tribal identities
Explain the importance of marriage in Jewish life.
Marriage and family were generally important in Jewish life.
Sex was viewed as part of Yahweh’s creation, and the bearing of children was seen as a religious function.
Sons were especially desired because they maintained the family bloodline. A firstborn son became the head of the household upon his father’s death. Mothers oversaw the early education of their children, but fathers provided their education as they got older.
M4:2
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What led to the eventual success of the Assyrians?
The eventual success of the Assyrians came from constant warfare, their army size and organization.
What was the Assyrian base?
northern Mesopotamia in the Tigris and Euphrates River Valleys
- now Southern Iran
Name an invention of the Assyrians
the invention of the concept of a corps of engineers who bridged rivers with pontoons or provided soldiers with inflatable skins for swimming
What eventually destroyed the Assyrian Empire? What is ironic about the Assyrian legacy?
The Babylonians and the Medes completely destroyed the Assyrian Empire.
- ironic because the Babylonians were conquered by Assyrians to expand their empire
______ has brought the Assyrians out of obscurity. Explain the statement
Modern archeology
- Assyrian artists carved reliefs that showed scenes of war as a series of episodes. Using this, they created a visual narrative of events, which sparked the interest of modern archeologists.
Why did Iran’s geographical location and topography explain its role as the highway between western and eastern Asia?
Iran was the area where nomads met urban dwellers, as they migrated south from the broad steppes of Russia/Central Asia into Iran
Medes
Indo-European-speaking people who migrated from Persia
What gave the Medes a huge military advantage?
horses (horse-breeding)
Why did the balance of power in western Asia shift east of Mesopotamia?
the rise of the Medes
Who conquered the rising Persians?
Cyrus the Great, a Persian king
After his victories, Cyrus made sure the Persians were portrayed as _____
liberators
Who is Darius?
the successor of Cyrus, who called himself “King of Kings.”
the Persian Empire lasted until _____
it became part of the empire of Alexander the Great
Under Darius, how did Persians govern the empire?
they divided the empire into districts and appointed either Persian or local nobles as administrators called satraps to head each one.
Communication and trade were eased by ________
a sophisticated system of roads linking the empire from the coast of Asia Minor to the valley of the Indus River
What two factors lifted Cyrus above the common level?
- more benevolent and generous
- freed the Hebrews from Babylon
What were the 2 goals of Cyrus the Great?
- control the shore of the Mediterranean
- secure eastern Iran from further invasions by nomads
Ahuramazda
the chief god of the initial polytheistic religion of Persians. Zoroaster was very devoted to this god and emphasizes his teachings in a text called the “Avesta.” he emphasizes individuals’ responsibility to choose between moral forces of order.
- would preside over the last judgement (like Osiris) to determine each person’s eternal fate
Angra Mainyu
Zoroaster’s view of forces of disorder as a malevolent deity
Magi
priests in Zoroastrianism
Zoroastrianism
religion based on teachings of Zoroaster that emphasized individuals’ responsibility to choose between good and evil
Name Ahuramazda’s forces of order and forces of disorder
Order: creation, truth, order
Disorder: nothingness, chaos, falsehood, disorder
Dualism
the concept that Ahuramazda and Angra Mainyu were locked together in a cosmic battle for the human race
Parsis
Persians (Zoroastrians) settled in India to seek a land of religious freedom away from the oppression in Muslim Iran.
Zoroastrianism later became
the official religion of the Persian Empire ruled by the Sassanid Dynasty
States first developed in _____
Sumer, southern Mesopotamia
M4:3
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What created the Jews movement in opposition to the Romans to spread?
the civil wars that destroyed the Roman Republic left their mark on Judaea, where Jewish leaders took sides in the conflict, creating turmoil in the area.
Zealots
encouraged armed rebellion against Roman rule
Messiah
a descendant of King David who would destroy the Romans and create a period of happiness and plenty for the Jews
pagan
originally meaning those who lived in the countryside, those who practiced religions other than Judaism or Christianity
How did Jesus’ definition of the Messiah differ from the popular opinion?
Jesus preached a heavenly kingdom of eternal life in a life after death compared to the popular opinion that the Messiah will save them in earthly life rather than the spiritual life.
What are the four gospels of the Bible?
Mark, John, Luke, Matthew
- later termed as the New Testament
What are the Gospels? What does it mean?
“good news”
- records of Jesus’s teachings, written to build a community of faith.
Jesus insisted that …
he taught in his own name, not in the name of Yahweh.
Jesus insisted that …
he taught in his own name, not in the name of Yahweh.
Passover
a highly emotional point in the Jewish year that marked the Jews’ departure from Egypt under Moses
What alarmed Pilate about the group traveling with Moses?
Moses believed that these crowds would spark violence
What was the significance of the teaching that Jesus had risen from the dead?
It served as a central element of faith. It served to show what would happen to other people by following faith as great as Jesus for God, and also removed hate or fear that some people had of him (Jesus).
Because they (Christians) expected Jesus to return, they _______
regarded earthly life and institutions as unimportant.
Eucharist/Lord’s Supper
final meal that Jesus shared with his apostles before his crucifixion
Paul of Tarsus
the catalyst in the spread of Jesus’ teachings and formation of the Christian Church
- comfortable in both the Roman and Jewish worlds
What was another factor behind the spread of Christianity besides Paul?
the breadth of the Roman Empire (their empire was universal, thus making Christians believe universally)
Paul urged that who are accepted on an equal basis?
non-Jews (Gentiles), including people from all social classes
Name some ways that Christian teachings attracted people.
- it was a “mystery religion,” offering special teachings that would give them immortality
- Christianity promised this immortality widely unlike many other religions
- Christians stressed the ideal of striving for a goal, and Christianity gave its devotee a sense of identity and community
- Christians often called each other brothers and sisters, and provided love and support for widows, orphans, and the poor, as they would do for their families.
Bishops
a Christian Church official with jurisdiction over a certain area and the power to determine the correct interpretation of Christian teachings
- began to assert that they had the right to determine the correct interpretation of Christian teachings and to choose their successors
Trinity
Father, Son, Holy Spirit
Yahweh Alternate names
The Eternal One
Translates to: “to be”
