Week 10: Life's Big Questions Flashcards
Before which battle did Constantine see a vision of the cross in the sky?
Milvian Bridge, 312 AD
What did Constantine’s vision tell him to do before the Battle of the Milvian Bridge?
- Conquer by this
- So, he changes the eagle insignia on his soldiers shields, and replace it with a Chi-Rho
True or False: even after his conversion, Constantine displayed pagan symbols on his coins
TRUE
How did Justinian’s plague begin?
Fleas on rats that boarded ships to Egypt
What is thought to be the worst year of existence during Justinian’s reign?
542 AD
Who ruled on behalf of Justinian when he was sick with plague?
His wife, Empress Theodora
How did many interpret Justinian’s plague?
As the wrath and fury of God
True or False: In Ancient Egypt, there was no distinction between Philosophy and Religion.
TRUE
Where does the word Theology derive from, etymologically speaking?
Theos (God)
Logos (Word, Thought)
Where is Philosophy unusually secular?
Greece
In Mesopotamia, why are humans thought to have been created?
Humans are created solely to serve and worship the gods
What is Theodicy
An attempt to justify the existence of evil and wrong despite the existence of an all-rightous God(s)
- AKA Why do God(s) let bad things happen to good people
- Theos (God)
- Dike (justice)
What was the actual natural phenomenon Constantine likely saw, which he subsequently interpreted as a cross?
A sun dog
Which civilization interprets the gods’ actions with regard to theodicy, as being simply incomprehensible?
Mesopotamia
In Mesopotamia, how is human frailty and evil nature explained?
- Since all humans are made from the blood of the slain rebel god, Quingu
Generally, what pattern of thought did the Mesopotamians adopt in times of trouble?
Passive Fatalism
“Let Marduk and Nabu slay your enemies and take care of it”
How is Theodicy explained in Syria-Canaan?
Combat between God and Monster explains why things happen the way they do
How did the Hittites explain Theodicy?
Gods safeguard the righteous, but if they suffer misfortune, it is due to some accidental transgression or negative energy sent their way by a demon or sorcerer
Explain the Greek view on Theodicy, as explained by Homer in the Illiad:
- Zeus has 2 jars
- One is good, the other is bad
- The best humans can hope for, is a sprinkling of both, rather than just the bad one.
Who said that the gods exist, but they don’t care about us?
Xenophanes of Colophon
What is Agnosticism?
- Not knowing one way or the other
- Gods could exist, or they may not, there is no way of knowing
What is Proselytizing?
Winning over converts
Generally in the ancient world, obligation of religion is by actions NOT _________.
NOT faith
Who was one of the earliest Greek skeptics?
Xenophanes
What did Xenophanes say about the gods?
- That WE made gods in OUR OWN IMAGE not the other way around
- He also references other gods, (ex. blue-eyed red haired Thracian gods)
Describe how YHWH punishes:
- He punishes through foreign instruments (ex. foreign invaders or occupiers)
- Those who repent, will be saved
Define: Evocatio
A ritual by which gods of a conquered people were invited back to Rome for cult worship and protection
True or False: the founding myth of the She-Wolf and Romulus and Remus are actually old Etruscan stories
TRUE
What does Livy consider to be Rome’s worst downfall and vice?
Luxury and Greed
Who was famously against foreign religions in Rome?
Cato
What foreign god did the adolescent emperor Eligabalus introduce to Rome?
Eligabal
(From Helios + Baal) (Heliogabalus)
Origin: Syria
What did Eligabalus call himself?
Priest of Eligabal
Define Sol Invictus:
The unconquered son
What was the Pharaoh’s main religious role?
The middle man between the gods and the human world
What title was bestowed upon the heir to the Pharaoh?
Son of Ra
When do most Pharaoh’s become fully divine?
After death
Why did common people really like Osiris?
Because they felt Osiris could grant them a nice afterlife, otherwise difficult to attain
In which period did grave robbing become rampant in Egypt?
Middle Kingdom
The Priests power and influence began to rise in the ____________ period.
Middle Kingdom
What was the Amarna Revolution?
- Revolution in which Akhenaten installed Aten as a monotheistic god of Egypt
- He supressed all cults that didn’t worship Aten
Who reversed the Amarna Revolution?
Tutankhamen
During the time Egypt was fragmented, Upper Egypt was controlled by _______________
High Priest of Amun
(Highest priestly title)
What was the High Priest of Amun ?
- Had much more power than the Pharaoh
- Controlled upper Egypt
- Capital was Thebes
Who famously claimed that ALL gods chose him to rule?
Cyrus II
What marks the death of Zoroastrianism?
The death of the last Sassanian king
What 3 Spartans were given a hero cult?
Lycurgus
Brasidas
Lysander
Define: Apotheosis
The elevation of a mortal to deified status
Which mortals often received cult worship in Ancient Greece?
Oikistai (founders of colonies)
What Hellenistic ruler insisted upon being a God in his own lifetime?
Antiochus IV
Who was the last Roman emperor to be deified?
Constantine
Where at Delphi were Roman Emperors worshipped?
The Tholos
Which ruler worshipped himself at the Tholos at Olympia?
Philip II
