Unit 7: Religion: Vocabulary

Question 1

The space within which daily activity occurs.

Answer 1

Activity space

Question 2

The belief that inanimate objects, such as hills, trees, rocks, rivers, and other elements of the natural landscape, possess souls and can help or hinder human efforts on Earth.

Answer 2

Animistic religion

Question 3

Religion founded in the sixth century BCE and characterized by the belief that enlightenment would come through knowledge, especially self‐knowledge; elimination of greed, craving, and desire; complete honesty; and never hurting another person or animal. Buddhism splintered from Hinduism as a reaction to the strict social hierarchy maintained by Hinduism.

Answer 3

Buddhism

Question 4

The strict social segregation of people—specifically in India’s Hindu society—on the basis of ancestry and occupation.

Answer 4

Caste system

Question 5

Religion based on the teachings of Jesus. According to Christian teaching, Jesus is the son of God, placed on Earth to teach people how to live according to God’s plan.

Answer 5

Christianity

Question 6

A philosophy of ethics, education, and public service based on the writings of Confucius and traditionally thought of as one of the core elements of Chinese culture.

Answer 6

Confucianism

Question 7

From the Greek “to disperse,” a term describing forceful or voluntary dispersal of a people from their homeland to a new place. Originally denoting the dispersal of Jews, it is increasingly applied to other population dispersals, such as the involuntary relocation of Black peoples during the slave trade or Chinese peoples outside of Mainland China, Taiwan and Hong Kong.

Answer 7

Diaspora

Question 8

One of three major branches of Christianity, the Eastern Orthodox Church, together with the Roman Catholic Church, a second of the three major branches of Christianity, arose out of the division of the Roman Empire by Emperor Diocletian into four governmental regions: two western regions centered in Rome, and two eastern regions centered in Constantinople (now Istanbul, Turkey). In 1054 CE, Christianity was divided along that same line when the Eastern Orthodox Church, centered in Constantinople; and the Roman Catholic Church, centered in Rome, split.

Answer 8

Eastern Orthodox Church

Question 9

The systematic killing or extermination of an entire people or nation.

Answer 9

Ethnic cleansing

Question 10

A religion that is particular to one, culturally distinct, group of people. Unlike universalizing religions, adherents of ethnic religions do not actively seek converts through evangelism or missionary work.

Answer 10

Ethnic religion

Question 11

Literally “wind‐water.” The Chinese art and science of placement and orientation of tombs, dwellings, buildings, and cities. Structures and objects are positioned in an effort to channel flows of sheng‐chi (“life‐breath”) in favorable ways.

Answer 11

Feng Shui

Question 12

The Muslim pilgrimage to Mecca, the birthplace of Muhammad.

Answer 12

Hajj

Question 13

One of the oldest religions in the modern world, dating back over 4000 years, and originating in the Indus River Valley of what is today part of Pakistan. Hinduism is unique among the world’s religions in that it does not have a single founder, a single theology, or agreement on its origins.

Answer 13

Hinduism

Question 14

Belief systems and philosophies practiced and traditionally passed from generation to generation among peoples within an indigenous tribe or group.

Answer 14

Indigenous religions

Question 15

Boundaries between the world’s major faiths.

Answer 15

Interfaith boundariea

Question 16

Boundaries within a single major faith.

Answer 16

Intrafaith boundaries

Question 17

The youngest of the major world religions, Islam is based on the teachings of Muhammad, born in Mecca in 571 CE. According to Islamic teaching, Muhammad received the truth directly from Allah in a series of revelations during which Muhammad spoke the verses of the Qu’ran (Koran), the Islamic holy book.

Answer 17

Islam

Question 18

A doctrine within Islam. Commonly translated as “Holy War,” Jihad represents either a personal or collective struggle on the part of Muslims to live up to the religious standards set by the Qu’ran.

Answer 18

Jihad

Question 19

Religion with its roots in the teachings of Abraham (from Ur), who is credited with uniting his people to worship only one god. According to Jewish teaching, Abraham and God have a covenant in which the Jews agree to worship only one God, and God agrees to protect his chosen people, the Jews.

Answer 19

Judaism

Question 20

Tower attached to a Muslim mosque, having one or more projecting balconies from which a crier calls Muslims to prayer.

Answer 20

Minarets

Question 21

Belief system in which one supreme being is revered as creator and arbiter of all that exists in the universe.

Answer 21

Monotheistic religion

Question 22

Voluntary travel by an adherent to a sacred site to pay respects or participate in a ritual at the site.

Answer 22

Pilgrimage

Question 23

Belief system in which multiple deities are revered as creators and arbiters of all that exists in the universe.

Answer 23

Polytheistic religions

Question 24

One of three major branches of Christianity (together with the Eastern Orthodox Church and the Roman Catholic Church). Following the widespread societal changes in Europe starting in the 1300s ce, many adherents to the Roman Catholic Church began to question the role of religion in their lives and opened the door to the Protestant Reformation wherein John Huss, Martin Luther, John Calvin, and others challenged many of the fundamental teachings of the Roman Catholic Church.

Answer 24

Protestant

Question 25

Defined by geographers Robert Stoddard and Carolyn Prorak in the book Geography in America as “a system of beliefs and practices that attempts to order life in terms of culturally perceived ultimate priorities.”

Answer 25

Religiom

Question 26

Religious fundamentalism carried to the point of violence.

Answer 26

Religious extremism

Question 27

Religious movement whose objectives are to return to the foundations of the faith and to influence state policy.

Answer 27

Religious fundamentalism

Question 28

One of three major branches of Christianity, the Roman Catholic Church, together with the Eastern Orthodox Church, a second of the three major branches of Christianity, arose out of the division of the Roman Empire by Emperor Diocletian into four governmental regions: two western regions centered in Rome, and two eastern regions centered in Constantinople (now Istanbul, Turkey). In 1054 CE, Christianity was divided along that same line when the Eastern Orthodox Church, centered in Constantinople; and the Roman Catholic Church, centered in Rome, split.

Answer 28

Roman Catholic Church

Question 29

Place or space people infuse with religious meaning.

Answer 29

Sacred sites

Question 30

The idea that ethical and moral standards should be formulated and adhered to for life on Earth, not to accommodate the prescriptions of a deity and promises of a comfortable afterlife. A secular state is the opposite of a theocracy.

Answer 30

Secularism

Question 31

Community faith in traditional societies in which people follow their shaman—a religious leader, teacher, healer, and visionary. At times, an especially strong shaman might attract a regional following. However, most shamans remain local figures.

Answer 31

Shamanism

Question 32

Adherents of one of the two main divisions of Islam. Also known as Shiahs, the Shiites represent the Persian (Iranian) variation of Islam and believe in the infallibility and divine right to authority of the Imams, descendants of Ali.

Answer 32

Shi’ite

Question 33

Religion located in Japan and related to Buddhism. Shintoism focuses particularly on nature and ancestor worship.

Answer 33

Shintoism

Question 34

Adherents to the largest branch of Islam, called the orthodox or traditionalist. They believe in the effectiveness of family and community in the solution of life’s problems, and they differ from the Shiites in accepting the traditions (sunna) of Muhammad as authoritative.

Answer 34

Sunni

Question 35

Religion believed to have been founded by Lao‐Tsu and based upon his book entitled “Tao‐te‐ching,” or “Book of the Way.” Lao‐Tsu focused on the proper form of political rule and on the oneness of humanity and nature.

Answer 35

Taoism

Question 36

A belief system that espouses the idea that there is one true religion that is universal in scope. Adherents of universalizing religious systems often believe that their religion represents universal truths, and in some cases great effort is undertaken in evangelism and missionary work.

Answer 36

Universalizing religion

Question 37

The movement to unite the Jewish people of the diaspora and to establish a national homeland for them in the promised land.

Answer 37

Zionism