Test Bank for Invitation to World Religions 4th Edition by

Brodd
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Test Bank
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Instructor’s Manual and Test Bank

to accompany
Invitation to World Religions,
Fourth Edition

Jeffrey Brodd
Layne Little
Bradley Nystrom
Robert Platzner
Richard Shek
Erin Stiles

Oxford University Press

2022

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Table of Contents
Contents
Table of Contents ............................................................................................................................ 2
Introductory Comments ................................................................................................................ 10
General Features of the Instructor’s Manual ............................................................................ 10
Chapter 1: An Invitation to the Study of World Religions ........................................................... 12
CHAPTER SUMMARY........................................................................................................... 12
Approaching the Study of World Religions.......................................................................... 12
What Religions Do................................................................................................................ 12
Dimensions of Religions ....................................................................................................... 13
Religions in the Modern World ............................................................................................ 13
An Academic Approach to the Study of Religions............................................................... 13
CHAPTER LEARNING OBJECTIVES .................................................................................. 14
SUGGESTED READINGS, WEBLINKS, AND OTHER MEDIA ........................................ 14
Readings ................................................................................................................................ 14
Weblinks ............................................................................................................................... 15
Film ............................................................................................................................................... 15
KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS ........................................................................................ 15
TEST BANK ............................................................................................................................. 16
Multiple-Choice Questions ................................................................................................... 16
True/False Questions ............................................................................................................ 22
Fill-in-the-Blank Questions .................................................................................................. 25
Essay/Discussion Questions.................................................................................................. 27
Chapter 2: Indigenous Religions of North America ..................................................................... 29
CHAPTER SUMMARY........................................................................................................... 29
The Teachings of Native American Religions ...................................................................... 29
The History of Native American Religions .......................................................................... 30
Native American Religions as a Way of Life ....................................................................... 30
CHAPTER LEARNING OBJECTIVES .................................................................................. 31
SUGGESTED READINGS, WEBLINKS, AND OTHER MEDIA ........................................ 31
Readings ................................................................................................................................ 31
Weblinks ............................................................................................................................... 32

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Films ..................................................................................................................................... 32
SACRED TEXTS ..................................................................................................................... 32
KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS ........................................................................................ 33
TEST BANK ............................................................................................................................. 34
Multiple-Choice Questions ................................................................................................... 34
True/False Questions ............................................................................................................ 39
Fill-in-the-Blank Questions .................................................................................................. 42
Essay/Discussion Questions.................................................................................................. 44
Chapter 3: Indigenous Religions of Africa ................................................................................... 45
CHAPTER SUMMARY........................................................................................................... 45
The Teachings of African Religions ..................................................................................... 45
The History of African Religions ......................................................................................... 46
African Religions as a Way of Life ...................................................................................... 47
CHAPTER LEARNING OBJECTIVES .................................................................................. 48
SUGGESTED READINGS, WEBLINKS, AND OTHER MEDIA ........................................ 48
Readings ................................................................................................................................ 48
Weblinks ............................................................................................................................... 48
Films ..................................................................................................................................... 48
SACRED TEXTS ..................................................................................................................... 49
KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS ........................................................................................ 49
TEST BANK ............................................................................................................................. 49
Multiple-Choice Questions ................................................................................................... 50
True/False Questions ............................................................................................................ 55
Fill-in-the-Blank Questions .................................................................................................. 58
Essay/Discussion Questions.................................................................................................. 60
Chapter 4: Hinduism ..................................................................................................................... 61
CHAPTER SUMMARY........................................................................................................... 61
The Teachings of Hinduism .................................................................................................. 61
The History of Hinduism ...................................................................................................... 62
Hinduism as a Way of Life ................................................................................................... 62
CHAPTER LEARNING OBJECTIVES .................................................................................. 63
SUGGESTED READINGS, WEBLINKS, AND OTHER MEDIA ........................................ 63
Readings ................................................................................................................................ 63
Weblinks ............................................................................................................................... 63

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Other Media .......................................................................................................................... 64

SACRED TEXTS ..................................................................................................................... 64
KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS ........................................................................................ 65
TEST BANK ............................................................................................................................. 66
Multiple-Choice Questions ................................................................................................... 66
True/False Questions ............................................................................................................ 72
Fill-in-the-Blank Questions .................................................................................................. 75
Essay/Discussion Questions.................................................................................................. 77
Chapter 5: Buddhism .................................................................................................................... 78
CHAPTER SUMMARY........................................................................................................... 78
The Teachings of Buddhism ................................................................................................. 78
The History of Buddhism...................................................................................................... 78
Buddhism as a Way of Life .................................................................................................. 79
CHAPTER LEARNING OBJECTIVES .................................................................................. 79
SUGGESTED READINGS, WEBLINKS, AND OTHER MEDIA ........................................ 79
Readings ................................................................................................................................ 79
Weblinks ............................................................................................................................... 80
Other Media .......................................................................................................................... 80
SACRED TEXTS ..................................................................................................................... 80
KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS ........................................................................................ 80
TEST BANK ............................................................................................................................. 82
Multiple-Choice Questions ................................................................................................... 82
True/False Questions ............................................................................................................ 88
Fill-in-the-Blank Questions .................................................................................................. 90
Essay/Discussion Questions.................................................................................................. 92
Chapter 6: Jainism......................................................................................................................... 93
CHAPTER SUMMARY........................................................................................................... 93
The Teachings of Jainism ..................................................................................................... 93
The History of Jainism .......................................................................................................... 94
Jainism as a Way of Life ....................................................................................................... 94
CHAPTER LEARNING OBJECTIVES .................................................................................. 95
SUGGESTED READINGS, WEBLINKS, AND OTHER MEDIA ........................................ 95
Readings ................................................................................................................................ 95
Weblinks ............................................................................................................................... 95

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SACRED TEXTS ..................................................................................................................... 96

KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS ........................................................................................ 96
TEST BANK ............................................................................................................................. 97
Multiple-Choice Questions ................................................................................................... 97
True/False Questions .......................................................................................................... 102
Fill-in-the-Blank Questions ................................................................................................ 105
Essay/Discussion Questions................................................................................................ 107
Chapter 7: Sikhism...................................................................................................................... 109
CHAPTER SUMMARY......................................................................................................... 109
The Teachings of Sikhism .................................................................................................. 109
The History of Sikhism ....................................................................................................... 110
Sikhism as a Way of Life .................................................................................................... 110
CHAPTER LEARNING OBJECTIVES ................................................................................ 111
SUGGESTED READINGS, WEBLINKS, AND OTHER MEDIA ...................................... 111
Readings .............................................................................................................................. 111
Weblinks ............................................................................................................................. 111
SACRED TEXTS ................................................................................................................... 112
KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS ...................................................................................... 112
TEST BANK ........................................................................................................................... 113
Multiple-Choice Questions ................................................................................................. 113
True/False Questions .......................................................................................................... 118
Fill-in-the-Blank Questions ................................................................................................ 122
Essay/Discussion Questions................................................................................................ 123
Chapter 8: Chinese Religions: Confucianism and Daoism ......................................................... 125
CHAPTER SUMMARY......................................................................................................... 125
Teachings of Confucianism and Daoism ............................................................................ 125
The History of Confucianism and Daoism ............................Error! Bookmark not defined.
Ways of Life of Confucianism and Daoism ....................................................................... 126
CHAPTER LEARNING OBJECTIVES ................................................................................ 128
SUGGESTED READINGS, WEBLINKS, AND OTHER MEDIA ...................................... 128
Readings .............................................................................................................................. 128
Documentary Films ............................................................................................................. 128
Popular Films ...................................................................................................................... 129
Weblinks ............................................................................................................................. 129

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SACRED TEXTS ................................................................................................................... 129

KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS ...................................................................................... 130
TEST BANK ........................................................................................................................... 131
Multiple-Choice Questions ................................................................................................. 131
True/False Questions .......................................................................................................... 137
Fill-in-the Blank Questions ................................................................................................. 140
Essay/Discussion Questions................................................................................................ 142
Chapter 9: Shinto ........................................................................................................................ 143
CHAPTER SUMMARY......................................................................................................... 143
Teachings of Shinto ............................................................................................................ 143
History of Shinto ................................................................................................................. 143
Shinto as a Way of Life .........................................................Error! Bookmark not defined.
CHAPTER LEARNING OBJECTIVES ................................................................................ 144
SUGGESTED READINGS, WEBLINKS, AND OTHER MEDIA ...................................... 144
Readings .............................................................................................................................. 144
Popular Films ...................................................................................................................... 145
Weblinks ............................................................................................................................. 145
SACRED TEXTS ................................................................................................................... 129
KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS ...................................................................................... 146
TEST BANK ........................................................................................................................... 146
Multiple-Choice Questions ................................................................................................. 146
True/False Questions .......................................................................................................... 152
Fill-in-the Blank Questions ................................................................................................. 154
Essay/Discussion Questions................................................................................................ 156
Chapter 10: Zoroastrianism......................................................................................................... 158
CHAPTER SUMMARY......................................................................................................... 158
The Teachings of Zoroastrianism ....................................................................................... 158
The History of Zoroastrianism ............................................................................................ 159
Zoroastrianism as a Way of Life ......................................................................................... 159
CHAPTER LEARNING OBJECTIVES ................................................................................ 160
SUGGESTED READINGS, WEBLINKS, AND OTHER MEDIA ...................................... 160
Readings .............................................................................................................................. 160
Weblinks ............................................................................................................................. 161
Other Media ........................................................................................................................ 161

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SACRED TEXTS ................................................................................................................... 161

KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS ...................................................................................... 161
TEST BANK ........................................................................................................................... 162
Multiple-Choice Questions ................................................................................................. 163
True/False Questions .......................................................................................................... 168
Fill-in-the-Blank Questions ................................................................................................ 171
Essay/Discussion Questions................................................................................................ 173
Chapter 11: Judaism .................................................................................................................... 174
CHAPTER SUMMARY......................................................................................................... 174
The Teachings of Judaism .................................................................................................. 174
The History of Judaism ....................................................................................................... 174
Judaism as a Way of Life .................................................................................................... 176
CHAPTER LEARNING OBJECTIVES ................................................................................ 176
SUGGESTED READINGS, WEBLINKS, AND OTHER MEDIA ...................................... 176
Scholarly Texts ................................................................................................................... 176
Weblinks ............................................................................................................................. 177
Educational Documentaries ................................................................................................ 177
Popular Films ...................................................................................................................... 177
Literature ............................................................................................................................. 177
SACRED TEXTS ................................................................................................................... 178
KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS ...................................................................................... 178
TEST BANK ........................................................................................................................... 181
Multiple-Choice Questions ................................................................................................. 181
True/False Questions .......................................................................................................... 186
Fill-in-the-Blank Questions ................................................................................................ 188
Essay/Discussion Questions................................................................................................ 190
Chapter 12: Christianity .............................................................................................................. 191
CHAPTER SUMMARY......................................................................................................... 191
The Teachings of Christianity ............................................................................................. 191
The History of Christianity ................................................................................................. 191
Christianity as a Way of Life .............................................................................................. 192
CHAPTER LEARNING OBJECTIVES ................................................................................ 193
SUGGESTED READINGS, WEBLINKS, AND OTHER MEDIA ...................................... 193
Readings .............................................................................................................................. 193

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Weblinks ............................................................................................................................. 193

Other Media ........................................................................................................................ 193
SACRED TEXTS ................................................................................................................... 194
KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS ...................................................................................... 194
TEST BANK ........................................................................................................................... 197
Multiple-Choice Questions ................................................................................................. 197
True/False Questions .......................................................................................................... 202
Fill-in-the-Blank Questions ................................................................................................ 205
Essay/Discussion Questions................................................................................................ 207
Chapter 13: Islam ........................................................................................................................ 209
CHAPTER SUMMARY......................................................................................................... 209
The Teachings of Islam ....................................................................................................... 209
The History of Islam ........................................................................................................... 210
Islam as a Way of Life ........................................................................................................ 211
CHAPTER LEARNING OBJECTIVES ................................................................................ 211
SUGGESTED READINGS, WEBLINKS, AND OTHER MEDIA ...................................... 212
Readings .............................................................................................................................. 212
Weblinks ............................................................................................................................. 212
Films ................................................................................................................................... 212
SACRED TEXTS ............................................................................................................... 213
KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS ...................................................................................... 213
TEST BANK ........................................................................................................................... 214
Multiple-Choice Questions ................................................................................................. 214
True/False Questions .......................................................................................................... 220
Fill-in-the-Blank Questions ................................................................................................ 223
Essay/Discussion Questions................................................................................................ 224
Chapter 14: New Religions ......................................................................................................... 226
CHAPTER SUMMARY......................................................................................................... 226
What Is “New” About New Religious Movements? .......................................................... 226
Alternative Christianities and Their Offshoots ................................................................... 226
The Rediscovery of Eastern Religious Thought and the Revival of Esoteric and
Neo-Pagan Thought ............................................................................................................ 227
Violent Tendencies in New Religious Cults ....................................................................... 227
Universalist Religious Thought and the New Atheism....................................................... 227
CHAPTER LEARNING OBJECTIVES ................................................................................ 228
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SUGGESTED READINGS, WEBLINKS, AND OTHER MEDIA ...................................... 228

Readings .............................................................................................................................. 228
Weblinks ............................................................................................................................. 228
Documentary Films ............................................................................................................. 228
Popular Films ...................................................................................................................... 229
SACRED TEXTS ................................................................................................................... 229
KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS ...................................................................................... 230
TEST BANK ........................................................................................................................... 231
Multiple-Choice Questions ................................................................................................. 231
True/False Questions .......................................................................................................... 236
Fill-in-the-Blank Questions ................................................................................................ 239
Essay/Discussion Questions................................................................................................ 241

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Introductory Comments
Invitation to World Religions (IWR) is designed to provide students with the resources they need
to acquire a sound understanding of the essential features of the major traditions. Students typically
are drawn to the study of world religions out of a sense of curiosity, and they pursue their study
with a healthy dose of wonder—circumstances that make for an exciting opportunity for an
instructor. The textbook is also designed to fulfill this promise of sparking students’ curiosity and
wonder, while at the same time emphasizing the need to apply sound academic approaches to the
study of religions. IWR thus strives to strike a balance between objective presentation of material
and attention to the subjective aspects of religion that make it such an alluring field of study. Along
with describing the essential features of the world’s religions, the textbook explores how the
traditions have answered some of the most fundamental human questions—Why are we here?
What is the nature of the universe? How should we live?

Religions are multidimensional, and so it is appropriate to present their essential features through
an approach that clearly demarcates the main dimensions. The textbook sets forth three
dimensional categories: teachings, historical development, and way of life (practices and modes
of experience). This use of categories should prove helpful for student readers and for instructors,
in part because it facilitates comparative consideration of the religions.

IWR was written by a team of authors, each with expertise in particular areas but also with
experience teaching survey courses in world religions. We therefore came to the writing of each
chapter with a sense for the book as a whole, thinking comparatively about the religions. Students
likely will benefit from taking something of a comparative approach, and so the textbook strives
to facilitate this without forcing too much by way of “prerequisite” knowledge before reading any
given chapter.

A comparative approach is foundational to the study of world religions (as explained in Chapter 1,
the entire field of religious studies originated as a comparative enterprise). Another vital feature
of a sound academic approach is empathy: the capacity to see things from another’s perspective.
The textbook strives to facilitate opportunities to practice empathy, in part by providing first-
person accounts from adherents of each tradition. IWR also strives to show that religions are
inextricably part of a wider cultural context that includes other interconnected phenomena—the
arts, politics, economics, and so forth.

This Instructor’s Manual is designed to help get the most—for student and instructor—out of
teaching with IWR. All of the material is intended to correlate closely with the textbook, to
supplement its introductory presentation without overextending or straying too far afield.
Especially for instructors with relatively limited experience in teaching world religions, the
Instructor’s Manual will provide a guide for preparations and for assessment of student learning.

General Features of the Instructor’s Manual

Each chapter of this instructor’s manual contains the following:

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• A brief Chapter Summary, organized by the main sections

• Chapter Learning Objectives
• Suggested Readings, Weblinks, and Other Media, including popular and documentary
films
• Suggestions of and weblinks to Sacred Texts, with brief descriptions of their content
• Key Terms and Their Definitions, taken from the book
• A printable pencil-and-paper version of the online Test Bank with over 100 items per
chapter, including:
o Multiple-Choice questions and answers
o True/False questions and answers
o Fill-in-the-Blank questions and answers
o Essay/Discussion questions

The Test Bank, along with PowerPoint Lecture Outlines and a PowerPoint Art Database, are
housed on Oxford Learning Link. Half of the Test Bank questions appear in the student self-
quizzes on Oxford Learning Link. These questions are preceeded by the † symbol.

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Chapter 1: An Invitation to the Study of

World Religions

CHAPTER SUMMARY

This chapter explores the nature of religion and how to study it from an academic perspective. The
main objective is to prepare for the study that follows, but the relatively theoretical and
methodological content of this introductory chapter is relevant and challenging in its own right.

Approaching the Study of World Religions

To learn about the subject matter of world religions is to increase one’s cultural literacy—the
objective that lies at the heart of this study. Religion plays a crucial role in molding, transforming,
and transmitting cultures, and interacts and intermeshes with other cultural aspects, such as politics,
economics, and aesthetics.

The academic study of religion is a relatively recent phenomenon, having been propelled by the
European Enlightenment. The study of “world religions” has been prominent for about a century,
and comes under the scrutiny of some scholars who express concern over the category and
prominent methods of approach, such as implicit assumptions involving Christianity as a dominant
model of what a religion is. A more general concern of scholars has involved attempts to define
the term “religion.” Even though no single definition that pleases everyone has been produced, it
is important when approaching the study of world religions to clarify to some extent the nature of
the subject matter. Definitions have been set forth by notable theorists in several different fields,
among them sociologist Émile Durkheim, psychologist William James, and theologian Paul Tillich.
A popular definition, from the HarperCollins Dictionary of Religion, and a highly regarded
definition from a significant theorist, Bruce Lincoln, illustrate various aspects of the definitional
challenge. Lincoln’s definition bases religion on the concept of the transcendent, examples of
which can be cited from a wide-ranging set of religions.

What Religions Do

In analyzing various functions of religion, we concentrate especially on the fundamental questions

to which religious traditions provide answers. Functionalist explanations of religion have tended
to be limited in scope, sometimes reducing religion to the status of being the effect of some other
phenomenon or phenomena. Durkheim’s theory, for example, reduces religion to being the effect
of societal forces. Sigmund Freud set forth a psychological explanation of religion, calling it the
“universal obsessional neurosis of humanity,” thus reducing religion to being the effect of
psychological malady. Political philosopher Karl Marx, like Freud an atheist, offered a similarly
reductionist and antagonistic explanation, famously labeling religion “the opium of the people.”

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We can widen our vantage point on the functions of religion and produce a fairer and more accurate
depiction by considering the variety of life’s challenges that these traditions help people to face
and to overcome. To this end, we explore three prominent questions that recur in some form in
nearly every religion:
1. What Is Ultimate Reality?
2. How Should We Live in This World?
3. What Is Our Ultimate Purpose?
Theism in its various forms, atheism, and monism are among the concepts that address ultimate
reality. Religions typically describe how ultimate reality is revealed to human beings.
Cosmology—understanding of the nature of the world—relates to issues regarding ultimate reality,
most clearly for those many religions that posit a creator god or that hold the world itself to be
sacred. Religions also explain what it is to be a human being, and these explanations figure largely
into ethical or moral considerations, and thus the question: How should we live in this world?
Given what a religion says about the human condition, what ultimate purpose is the religious life
intended to achieve? Is there a state of existence to which the religious person can hope to aspire
that perfectly completes or even transcends the human condition? Issues involving the problem of
mortality enter into these considerations. Religions do not always function to help accomplish what
“should” be done; in fact, sometimes actions and deeds done in the name of religion involve
conflict and even violence.

Dimensions of Religions

Some scholarly approaches to the world’s religions feature specific categories of phenomena as
the primary means of organizing information. Ninian Smart’s dimensional scheme is one such
approach. This book organizes phenomena into three general categories: teachings, historical
development, and way of life. Teachings include doctrines and myths. A religion’s way of life
encompasses practices, often in the form of rituals, and modes of experience. Historical
development normally incorporates a vast array of social, artistic, and other cultural phenomena.

Religions in the Modern World

A sound analysis of the world’s religions must pay heed to the rapid changes that characterize
the modern world. Historical transformations, accelerated during the past several centuries by
such diverse and powerful factors as colonialism, the scientific revolution, and economic
globalization, have reshaped religious traditions. Recently, considerations of religious
perspectives on the natural world have tended to become more prominent. This book introduces
various specific phenomena: modernization, urbanization, globalization, multiculturalism,
gender issues in religions, the encounter of religion and science, and religions and the
environment.

An Academic Approach to the Study of Religions

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Scholars approach the study of religion in a variety of ways, and although there is no such thing
as the correct approach, it is helpful to keep some basic concepts in mind. One concept is the
maintenance of a healthy balance between the perspective of an insider (one who practices a
given religion) and the perspective of an outsider (one who studies the religion without
practicing it). Another basic concept for the academic approach to religion is empathy, the
capacity for seeing things from another’s perspective. A sound study of the world’s religions also
features a comparative approach, and it is multidisciplinary, or polymethodic, drawing on a
variety of scholarly fields of study, including history, anthropology, sociology, psychology,
philosophy, and women’s studies.

CHAPTER LEARNING OBJECTIVES

1. To clarify the importance of studying world religions and briefly to explain the history of this
academic field
2. To introduce the challenge of defining “religion,” with examples of notable attempts
3. To explore three basic questions that point to what religions do
4. To introduce three categories—teachings, historical development, and way of life—that
provide the book with its primary organizational structure
5. To consider various features of religions in the modern world
6. To introduce the most important aspects of an academic approach to the study of religions

SUGGESTED READINGS, WEBLINKS, AND OTHER MEDIA

Readings

• Eliade, Mircea. The Sacred and the Profane: The Nature of Religion. Translated by
Willard R. Trask. New York: Harper and Row, 1961.
• Hinnels, John, ed. The Routledge Companion to the Study of Religion. 2nd ed. Oxford:
Routledge, 2010.
• Livingston, James C. Anatomy of the Sacred: An Introduction to Religion. 6th ed. Upper
Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall, 2009.
• Pals, Daniel. Nine Theories of Religion. 3rd ed. New York: Oxford University Press,
2014.
• Segal, Robert A. and Kocku von Stuckrad, eds. Vocabulary for the Study of Religion. 3
vols. Leiden: Brill, 2015.
• Smart, Ninian. Dimensions of the Sacred: An Anatomy of the World’s Beliefs. Berkeley:
University of California Press, 1996.
• Smith, Jonathan Z. Imagining Religion: From Babylon to Jonestown. Chicago Studies in
the History of Judaism. Chicago: Chicago University Press, 1982.
• Taylor, Mark C., ed. Critical Terms for Religious Studies. Chicago: University of
Chicago Press, 1998.

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Weblinks

• American Academy of Religion (https://www.aarweb.org/)—The largest and most

influential North American academic society for the study of religion.
• Society of Biblical Literature (https://www.sbl-site.org)
• Pew Research Religion and the Public Life Project (https://www.pewforum.org/)—
Excellent source of information on issues involving social and political aspects of
religion.
• The Pluralism Project at Harvard University (http://www.pluralism.org/)—Offers an
impressive array of helpful resources, especially with regard to the world’s religions in
North America
• Religion-Online (http://www.religion-online.org/)

Film

• The Long Search 13— Reflections on the Long Search: Loose Ends (1978), 27 min.

KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS

atheism Perspective that denies the existence of God or gods.

cosmology Understanding of the nature of the world that typically explains its origin and how it
is ordered.
empathy The capacity for seeing things from another’s perspective, and an important
methodological approach for studying religions.
globalization The linking and intermixing of cultures; any process that moves a society toward
an internationalization of religious discourse.
henotheism The belief that acknowledges a plurality of gods but elevates one of them to special
status.
modernization The general process through which societies transform economically, socially,
and culturally to become more industrial, urban, and secular; any transformation of societies
and cultures that leads to the abandonment of traditional religious values.
monism The belief that all reality is ultimately one.
monotheism The belief in only one god.
multiculturalism The coexistence of different peoples and their cultural ways in one time and
place.
mysterium tremendum and fascinans The contrasting feelings of awe-inspiring mystery and of
overwhelming attraction that are said by Rudolf Otto to characterize the numinous experience.
mystical experience A general category of religious experience characterized in various ways,
for example, as the uniting with the divine through inward contemplation or as the dissolution of
the sense of individual selfhood.
myth A story or narrative, originally conveyed orally, that sets forth basic truths of a religious
tradition; myths often involve events of primordial time that describe the origin of things.

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nontheistic Term denoting a religion that does not maintain belief in God or gods.
numinous experience Rudolf Otto’s term for describing an encounter with “the Holy”; it is
characterized by the two powerful and contending forces, mysterium tremendum and fascinans.
pantheism The belief that the divine reality is identical to nature or the material world.
polytheism The belief in many gods.
revealed ethics Truth regarding right behavior believed to be divinely established and
intentionally made known to human beings.
revelation The expression of the divine will, commonly recorded in sacred texts.
ritual Formal worship practice.
secularization The general turning away from traditional religious authority and institutions; any
tendency in modern society that devalues religious worldviews or seeks to substitute scientific
theories for religious beliefs.
theistic Term denoting a religion that maintains belief in God or gods.
transtheistic Term denoting a theological perspective that acknowledges the existence of gods
while denying that the gods are vital with regard to the most crucial religious issues, such as the
quest for salvation.
urbanization The shift of population centers from rural, agricultural settings to cities.

TEST BANK

Multiple-choice and true/false question answers are preceded by an asterisk. Answers to fill-in-
the-blank questions can be found at the end of each question. Questions preceded by † also
appear in student self-assessments.

Multiple-Choice Questions

†1. A primary concern regarding a sound academic approach to the study of world religions
involves the fact that it arose within an intellectual culture that
a) embraced atheistic and agnostic theories of human behavior.
b) ignored the relevance of religion as an important factor in molding society.
*c) tended to take for granted that Christianity was a model of what religion ought to be.
d) was overtly influenced by Communism and therefore tended to undervalue religion.

2. Efforts to understand religion that have continued to the present day were launched by the
European Enlightenment impulse toward categorically separating religion, coupled with
*a) European exploration of distant lands and their unfamiliar “religions.”
b) the expanding influence of British culture, which tended toward special interest in religion.
c) increased power of Hindu and Muslim nations.
d) the rise of deism and thus of a tendency to belittle the “religions” of others.

†3. According to William James, religion is “the feelings, acts and experiences of individual men
_______.”
a) at the time of dying
b) at their most heroic

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c) in relationship to their community of fellow believers

*d) in their solitude

†4. French sociologist Émile Durkheim insists in his definition of religion on

a) an emphasis of its effects on the individual’s psyche.
b) the harm brought about by religion, the “opium” of the people.
*c) the unification brought about by “beliefs and practices,” culminating in a “moral community
called a Church.”
d) the notion of “transcendence” as its essential aspect.

5. The Protestant theologian whose definition of religion connects it to a focus on “man’s

spiritual life” and refers to it as “ultimate concern” is
a) Immanuel Kant.
b) Karl Marx.
c) Rudolf Bultmann.
*d) Paul Tillich.

†6. Bruce Lincoln’s definition of religion emphasizes four “domains.” What are they?
*a) Discourse, practice, community, and institution
b) Essence, existence, freedom, and regeneration
c) Inner, outer, esoteric, and exoteric.
d) Eastern, Western, African, and Australian.

†7. Religion functions in an unhealthy manner as an opiate that deters the suffering individual
from attending to the true cause of affliction, according to
a) Émile Durkheim.
b) Sigmund Freud.
*c) Karl Marx.
d) Paul Tillich.

†8. Underlying Durkheim’s definition is a theory that reduces religion to being

a) a drug-induced illusion.
*b) an effect of societal forces.
c) Christianity, without being open to the possibility of other traditions.
d) the foundation of a person’s sense of being.

†9. For the academic study of religion, as opposed to doing religion or being religious,
a) consideration of the true nature of the divine is the central focus.
b) psychological and sociological studies are not highly relevant.
c) analysis of empirical data is not possible because of the nature of religion.
*d) supernatural beings and events normally are held to be beyond its reach.

†10. Which of the following is not among the prominent questions addressed by religions?
*a) What is the correct definition of “religion”?
b) What is ultimate reality?
c) How should we live in this world?

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d) What is our ultimate purpose?

11. We refer to a religion as theistic when

a) it denies the doctrine of an ultimate reality.
*b) the divine is thought of as God or as gods.
c) it emphasizes theory as opposed to practice.
d) it features an account of creation as an act of God.

†12. Henotheism acknowledges

a) only one god who is thought to be qualitatively removed from the world.
b) the virtue of the gods but sets forth the pursuit of pleasure as the ultimate good for humankind.
c) six separate deities, of the four directions and of the sky and of the earth.
*d) a plurality of gods but elevates one of them to special status.

13. An example of pantheism, the belief that the divine is identical to nature or the material
world, is the ancient Greek and Roman religious philosophy known as
a) Aristotelianism.
b) Epicureanism.
c) Platonism.
*d) Stoicism.

14. Some nontheistic religions assume the existence of divine beings while rejecting the notion
that such beings can truly help humans find spiritual fulfillment; an example is
*a) Buddhism.
b) Islam.
c) Judaism.
d) Zoroastrianism.

15. Among ancient Greeks and Romans, Epicureans were considered to be

*a) atheists.
b) heretics.
c) magicians.
d) quasi-Christians.

16. Monism is described as

a) hierarchical.
b) logical.
*c) nondualist.
d) transtheistic.

†17. Which of the following is not typical of religious revelation?

a) It is recorded in sacred texts or scriptures.
b) It sets forth narratives describing the role of God or the gods in history.
*c) It is brought about through prayer on the part of a congregation of worshippers.
d) It includes pronouncements directly attributed to the divine.

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†18. Among many examples of a place of special significance established by a hierophany is

a) Buddhism’s Bodh Gaya, site of Gautama’s foundational experience of Enlightenment.
b) Christianity’s Church of the Nativity.
c) Islam’s sacred city of Mecca.
*d) All of the above

19. Unlike the early chapters of the Book of Genesis, some religious traditions
a) deemphasize the role of the divine will in bringing about the world.
b) describe the advent of the principal deities after the universe itself has been created.
c) depict gods and humans as sharing the world.
*d) All of the above

20. In certain respects, modern scientific explanations set forth cosmologies that are intriguingly
similar to some religious cosmologies taught in the distant past, such as
a) Aristotle’s concept of the Prime Mover.
*b) Epicurus’s theory of atomism.
c) Shinto’s creation myth.
d) All of the above

†21. The so-called Golden Rule set forth in the Christian New Testament
a) establishes the Christian ethical perspective with regard to the pursuit of wealth.
*b) is pronounced in similar forms in the scriptures of virtually all of the world’s major
traditions.
c) pronounces that God created heaven and earth through the Logos or Word.
d) distinguishes Christianity as being the most altruistic of the world’s major traditions.

†22. Rudolf Otto’s The Idea of the Holy

a) asserts that divine truth can be known only through a mystical experience.
b) promotes Catholic teachings as fundamental to leading a religious life.
*c) describes the encounter with “the Holy” as “numinous.”
d) can be summarized as the application of Platonic philosophy to Jewish theology.

23. Which of the following is not true of spiritual fulfillment?

a) Buddhist nirvana is a form of spiritual fulfillment.
b) Spiritual fulfillment can be said to consist of living in harmony with nature.
c) Christianity offers spiritual fulfillment by offering salvation from the effects of sin.
*d) Spiritual fulfillment is always thought to be achievable in this lifetime.

24. According to Bruce Lincoln’s book Holy Terrors,

a) almost every religious tradition holds a belief in some form of hell.
b) children have an innate capacity for belief in divine beings that diminishes as they grow older.
*c) religion has the potential to facilitate and even to escalate violence.
d) religions that teach the existence of demons also acknowledge the existence of ghosts.

†25. Religious scholar Ninian Smart’s “dimensional” scheme divides the various aspects of
religious traditions into seven dimensions, which include

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*a) doctrinal and ritual.

b) causal and reactionary.
c) artistic and architectural.
d) sacred and profane.

†26. The world religion that most emphasizes doctrines is

a) Buddhism.
*b) Christianity.
c) Hinduism.
d) Judaism.

27. Ninian Smart’s material dimension of religion involves

*a) the place of artistic creations and natural entities in religious traditions.
b) atomic theory.
c) the effects of capitalism on the development of religions.
d) beliefs concerning the social structures underpinning religions.

28. The general process through which societies transform economically, socially, and culturally,
the net effects of which include increased literacy, is
a) globalization.
*b) modernization.
c) colonialism.
d) traditionalism.

29. A significant demographic effect of modernization involving the shift of population centers
from rural, agricultural settings to cities is
a) expatriation.
b) gentrification.
c) centralization.
*d) urbanization.

†30. Globalization is
*a) the linking and intermixing of cultures.
b) imperial expansion and domination.
c) the embrace of a common religion worldwide.
d) the tendency to understand the world cultures in a new way thanks to new technologies.

31. A general feature of modernity is its tendency to

*a) deny the authority of tradition and the past.
b) emphasize the strength inherent in traditional ways of living.
c) look to religion as a means of facing global challenges.
d) reject secular worldviews as socially disadvantageous.

†32. In 2009, the percentage of senior pastors in Protestant Christian churches who are women
was
a) 5 percent.

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*b) 10 percent.
c) 15 percent.
d) 20 percent.

33. Perhaps no single phenomenon has been more challenging to traditional religious ways—and
more nurturing of secularization—than
a) the exploration of space.
*b) the encounter of religion with science.
c) the environmental crisis.
d) the widespread application of the World Wide Web.

†34. Which is an example of a basic and extremely significant scientific question that remains
unanswered?
a) About how old is the universe?
b) Does God exist?
*c) What is the ground of consciousness?
d) What is the meaning of human existence?

35. The nineteenth-century scholar is generally regarded as the founder of the modern field of
religious studies.
a) Sigmund Freud
b) Karl Marx
*c) Friedrich Max Müller
d) Friedrich Nietzsche

36. The attempt to understand a goldfish in a pond is analogous to the study of religion insofar as
it illustrates the
*a) need to balance the perspectives of insider and outsider.
b) pervasive role of the natural world in religious traditions.
c) tendency of religious belief to intensify among people who live alone.
d) problem of focusing only on the individual aspects of religion, without considering the
societal aspects.

†37. The capacity for seeing things from another’s perspective is

a) audacity.
b) complacency.
*c) empathy.
d) synchronicity.

†38. This statement is foundational to the field of religious studies.

*a) To know one just one religion is to know none.
b) If you follow a religion, do not study it.
c) All religions are equally true.
d) Religions evolve; God does not.

39. Psychology is an especially useful disciplinary approach when trying to

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a) explain mythological accounts of the fate of souls in the afterlife.

*b) make sense of the modes of religious experience.
c) discriminate between individual and societal aspects of a religious tradition.
d) interpret the meaning of religious language.

40. The disciplinary approach that in certain respects is the closest to actually doing religion (or
theology) is
a) anthropology.
b) neurotheology.
*c) philosophy.
d) sociology.

True/False Questions

†41. “World Religions” has been a prominent course of study in American colleges and
universities for nearly a century.
*a) True
b) False

†42. The academic study of religion has been an important field of study in universities for
several centuries.
a) True
*b) False

43. Most cultures through history have had neither the conceptual category nor a term meaning
“religion.”
*a) True
b) False

44. Over the course of the past century, scholars from various academic disciplines have
gradually come to a general consensus over how to define the term “religion.”
a) True
*b) False

†45. The attempt to define religion is a relatively recent phenomenon, beginning for the most
part with the European Enlightenment of the eighteenth century.
*a) True
b) False

46. A sound definition of religion need not accommodate the distinction between “religion” and
“spiritual,” because for all practical purposes the terms mean the same thing.
a) True
*b) False

†47. Karl Marx was a thoroughgoing idealist who insisted that religious ideas can cause great
changes in the economy.

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a) True
*b) False

†48. Neither Freud nor Marx ever tried actually to define religion; rather, they tried to explain it
away.
*a) True
b) False

†49. Bruce Lincoln’s definition of religion could not leave room for an atheistic tradition.
a) True
*b) False

50. Theology, the field of inquiry that focuses on considering the nature of the divine, is an
important example of doing and being religious.
*a) True
b) False

51. Usually, explanation of the nature and role of the divine takes center stage in a religion’s
belief system.
*a) True
b) False

†52. Monotheism is the belief in one god who is more powerful than the rest.
a) True
*b) False

†53. Quasi-divine figures, such as angels and demons, though difficult to categorize, are
important elements of religion nonetheless.
*a) True
b) False

†54. According to a May 2015 Pew Forum study, 8.2 percent of people in the United States
identify as atheist, agnostic, or “nothing in particular.”
a) True
*b) False

55. Some Hindus are monistic and some are polytheistic, but never at the same time.
a) True
*b) False

56. Among nontheistic religions in particular, revelation usually combines textual transmission
with a direct experience of revelation.
a) True
*b) False

†57. Religious cosmologies typically describe both the origin and the status of the universe.

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*a) True
b) False

†58. In monotheistic religions, the world is normally depicted as a kind of illusion, somehow not
altogether real or permanently abiding.
a) True
*b) False

59. A religion that teaches that the world is inherently sacred naturally discourages a sense of
stewardship toward the natural world.
a) True
*b) False

†60. Some religions, Christianity among them, teach that both revealed ethics and individual
conscience work together as means of distinguishing right from wrong.
*a) True
b) False

61. The challenge of mortality—the fact that we are destined to die—is invariably the primary
motivating force behind religion.
a) True
*b) False†

†62. The traditional Catholic doctrine of purgatory anticipates an intermediary destiny

somewhere between the perfect bliss of heaven and the horrible agony of hell.
*a) True
b) False

†63. Rudolf Otto gives preference to the mystical experience, a category that includes such
phenomena as Buddhist nirvana.
a) True
*b) False

†64. Experiencing transcendence does not depend upon believing in God or gods.
*a) True
b) False

65. Both Jainism and Judaism call for extensive attention to historical development to best
understand the context of their teachings and practices.
a) True
*b) False

66. A general feature of modernity is its tendency to embrace the authority of tradition and the
past.
a) True
*b) False

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67. A century ago, only about 10 percent of the global population lived in cities; today, more
than half of us are urbanites.
*a) True
b) False

68. The great majority of people today live in traditionally religious societies, sheltered from the
presence of religious ways of life other than their own.
a) True
*b) False

69. The biblical account of creation is commonly and naturally taught alongside the theory of
evolution in public schools in predominantly Christian societies today.
a) True
*b) False

†70. One effect of feminist theory has been to reveal contributions of women through the ages
that hitherto have been largely ignored.
*a) True
b) False

71. A key concept required for the academic approach to religion is empathy.
*a) True
b) False

Fill-in-the-Blank Questions

72. Until the late decades of the nineteenth century, theorists applied the term “world religion”
only to _______. (Christianity)

73. Whereas “faith” is a natural term to use when studying Christianity, it can hardly be applied
to the study of Confucianism or _______. (Shinto)

74. Enlightenment thinkers, most influentially the German philosopher _______, conceived of
religion as something separate from the various phenomena the human mind is capable of
perceiving. (Immanuel Kant)

75. American psychologist _______ emphasizes in his definition the individual nature of
religion. (William James)

76. Bruce Lincoln in his definition bases religion on the concept of the _______ rather than on
“supernatural beings” or the like. (transcendent)

77. According to Bruce Lincoln’s definition, the fourth “domain” of religion is _______.
(institution)

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78. In the words of sociologist _______, “a definition is not more or less true, only more or less
useful.” (Peter Berger)

79. Psychologist _______ asserted that religion is “the universal obsessional neurosis of
humanity.” (Sigmund Freud)

80. _______ is the belief in many gods. (Polytheism)

81. _______ explicitly denies the existence of God or gods. (Atheism)

82. Hindus who embrace _______ believe that all reality is ultimately one. (monism)

83. Historian of religions _______ describes the hierophany as a manifestation of the sacred that
helps a people to establish its cosmology. (Mircea Eliade)

84. Religious understanding of the nature of the world is known as _______. (cosmology)

85. Some religions emphasize _______, asserting that God, or some other supernatural force
such as Hindu dharma (ethical duty), has established what constitutes right behavior. (revealed
ethics)

86. _______ Buddhism refuses to make much at all of death beyond acknowledging its natural
place in the order of things. (Zen)

87. Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, and Sikhism all maintain belief in _______, the “wheel of
life.” (samsara)

88. According to _______, a genuine experience of “the Holy” is characterized by two powerful
and contending forces, mysterium tremendum and fascinans. (Rudolf Otto)

89. Both the numinous and nirvana are examples of _______ states of existence. (transcendent)

90. Rather than depending on empirical verifiability or rational coherence for their power,
_______ are simply accepted by believers as true accounts. (myths)

91. Modes of experience such as Buddhist _______ are by definition beyond the reach of
empirical observation and of description. (nirvana)

92. Historical transformations, accelerated during the past several centuries by such diverse and
powerful factors as colonialism, the scientific revolution, and economic_______, have reshaped
religious traditions. (globalization)

93. The net effects of modernization include increased literacy, improved education, enhanced
technologies, self-sustaining economies, and the increased role of _______ in various aspects of
society. (women)

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94. The most pronounced religious effects of globalization pertain to the closely related
phenomenon of _______, the coexistence of different peoples and their cultural ways in one time
and place. (multiculturalism)

95. For many individuals who live in religiously _______ societies, it is difficult to regard any
one religious worldview as the only viable one. (pluralistic)

96. Globalization, like modernization, has nurtured the notably modern process of _______, the
general turning away from traditional religious authority and institutions. (secularization)

97. The encounter of religion and science can clearly be observed by noting the impact of
Charles Darwin’s _______. (Origin of Species)

98. One basic concept with regard to a proper academic approach to the study of religions is the
maintenance of a healthy balance between the perspective of an insider and the perspective of an
_______. (outsider)

99. A sound study of the world’s religions, emphasized by Friedrich Max Müller, features a
_______ approach. (comparative)

100. Along with being cross-cultural, religious studies is multidisciplinary, or _______, drawing
on the contributions of various disciplines and fields of study. (polymethodic)

101. Swiss psychologist _______ made vital contributions to the study of religious symbolism
and of the general role of the unconscious mind in the religious life. (Carl Jung)

Essay/Discussion Questions

102. Why must one have an awareness of world religions to be an educated person?

103. Identify and discuss the importance of some of the “don’ts” of the academic study of world
religions.

104. Discuss the analogy that compares religions to houses as a means of understanding the
relevance of defining “religion.”

105. Based on examples presented in this chapter, explain how definitions reveal as much about
the intentions of the individual theorist as they do about the nature of religion.

106. What is the significance for an academic approach to religion of sociologist Peter Berger’s
comment on the challenge of defining religion, “a definition is not more or less true, only more
or less useful”?

107. Explain the significance of the “transcendent” for the definition of religion set forth by
Bruce Lincoln.

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108. Cite examples of the material dimension of religion, noting how other dimensions might
also be relevant.

109. How are the roles of women in religions changing?

110. In what ways might the study of another person’s religion be analogous to studying a
goldfish in a pond?

111. Explain how political science serves as an instructive parallel for the academic study of
religion.

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Chapter 2: Indigenous Religions of North

America

CHAPTER SUMMARY

This chapter explores indigenous religions of North America. Although we explore these religions
together in a single chapter, it is important to note that there is much diversity in the indigenous
religions of North America. Today, over 700 tribal nations are recognized in the United States
alone. In the past, there were many more. The human landscape of North America changed
dramatically with the arrival of Europeans, colonization, and conquest. Native American religions
are highly complex belief systems, with sophisticated cosmologies and firm ethical principles.
Furthermore, they have changed—and continue to change—in response to interaction with other
belief systems, other cultures, and technological advances.

The Teachings of Native American Religions

Most Native American religions do not have a specific creed or statement of belief. Rather,
essential teachings are revealed in mythic narratives and shared and enacted through religious
practice. There are many creation stories in the myths of native North America. Some myths focus
on the creation of the earth and the origins of humans in general, and others simply account for the
origins of one particular people. Some myths tell of people coming to the surface of the earth from
deep underground, and others tell of humans being fashioned from corn by creator gods.

Some Native religions, like those of the Great Plains tribes, hold a belief in a supreme being,
sometimes known as the Great Spirit. Many Native American religions also share a belief in a
supreme force or sacred power. The Navajo of the southwestern United States teach of a Holy
Wind, which is a spiritual force that inhabits every element of creation. The creation narratives of
indigenous North American religions differ significantly from each other in their accounts of the
origin of humans. Some myths describe how humans were created, and others focus on how they
came to live in a particular geographic locale. Native American mythologies contain teachings
about how to live properly in the world. From myths, people learn to live respectfully with others
in society, to make a living off the land, and to understand the meaning of life.

Many indigenous North American religions emphasize the interrelationship of all things. This
often extends to humanity’s relationship with animals. As a result of this interconnectedness, many
Native American religions emphasize the importance of maintaining balance among all things.
The focus on balance extends to the physical landscape. According to many Native American
religious traditions, humans are often thought to live in a reciprocal relationship with the land.

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The History of Native American Religions

Just like large scale world religions, Native American religious traditions have developed
historically and have both resisted and accommodated cultural changes. The religious landscape
of North America was diverse and varied. However, the expansion of European imperialism from
the sixteenth through the early twentieth century ravaged and radically influenced indigenous
religious traditions in the Americas. Throughout North America, the effects of colonialism on
indigenous peoples were disastrous: indigenous populations were devastated by disease and
warfare, forced to move far away from their ancestral homelands, and sometimes enslaved or
indentured to work for the colonists.

However, indigenous religious traditions were never entirely eradicated, even when Native peoples
identified as Christians. When the Spanish conquistadors arrived in Mesoamerica, the indigenous
religion of the Mayan peoples was banned, written versions of holy texts were burned, and the
Maya were often forcibly converted to Roman Catholicism. Although many Mayan people today
identify as Catholic, elements of indigenous religion remain. In the United States today, many
Native Americans identify as Catholics, Protestants, or nondenominational Christians. However,
as with the Maya, this does not necessarily mean that the beliefs and practices of Native religions
are no longer relevant. Furthermore, Christianity is sometimes understood as an indigenous
American religion by Native Christians.

Many resistance movements developed in Native communities in response to European-American

encroachment throughout North America. Such movements often had an overtly religious
dimension, and indigenous religious leaders were frequently at the forefront of resistance
movements. Many movements had influence far and wide and can therefore be understood as pan-
Indian religious movements. One such movement was the Ghost Dance. The Native American
Church can be considered another resistance movement.

Despite the history of antagonism toward Native religions in North America, many non–Native
Americans are interested in learning about Native religious traditions. Today, people in the United
States and elsewhere are attracted to what they view as the nature-centered focus of Native
religions. Some Native Americans appreciate the growing interest of non-Natives in indigenous
religions. However, non-Native interest in Native religious practices has also been criticized by
Native thinkers. Critics argue that selective adoption of certain practices, like peyote use, removes
the activity from the cultural and historical context in which it developed.

Native American Religions as a Way of Life

Followers of Native American religions often do not make stark distinctions between what is
“religious” and what is “secular.” Myths instill everyday life with a sacred quality; therefore, many
actions have a religious dimension.

In Native American religions, healing the sick is often part of religious practice. Healers may use
religious knowledge to cure physical and mental illnesses. Navajo healing ceremonies use an art
form known as sand painting. The chapter also discusses the importance of medicine bundles in
Navajo and other Native traditions.

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The chapter addresses gender and identity in Native American traditions. Two-spirit people, those
whose gender is not exclusively male or female, have had prominent roles in many Native religions.
The chapter focuses on significant rites of passage like the Kinaalda, which marks the transition
to adulthood among Navajo young women. Women have also been important healers. One well-
known twentieth-century spiritual healer was Mabel McKay (1907–1993), a Pomo woman of
northern California. When she was young, Mabel was called to be a link between her people and
the spirit world, and spirit guides told her that she would develop a special gift of healing.

Like other religions around the world, Native American traditions use rituals to recognize
important changes in a person’s social status. Such rituals are known as rites of passage. Often,
rites of passage mark the transition from childhood to adulthood. Many Native cultures have
elaborate rites marking this transition for young women and men. The Navajo puberty rite for girls
is known as the Kinaalda. A rite of passage common to many North American religions is the
Vision Quest. This is the attempt by an individual to communicate with the spirit world. It is
especially well known among peoples of the Great Plains and Great Lakes region, like the Sioux
and the Ojibwa.

Rites of renewal are rituals that seek to renew the sacred balance of all things. Such rites are often
seasonal because they are designed to correspond with the cycle of planting and harvesting or
moving herd animals for grazing. They may aim to enhance natural processes like rainfall or the
growth of crops. Among Pueblo peoples like the Hopi and Zuni, kachina dances are a type of
renewal rite. Rites of purification are used to ritually purify and cleanse the body. In North
American religions from Mexico to Alaska, sweat lodge ceremonies are used as rites of
purification.

CHAPTER LEARNING OBJECTIVES

1. To understand the diversity and similarities of North American indigenous religious

traditions
2. To understand the teachings of Native North American religions
3. To become familiar with different practices of Native American religions
4. To learn about the impact of European colonialism on indigenous religions of North America
5. To understand religious change in recent centuries

SUGGESTED READINGS, WEBLINKS, AND OTHER MEDIA

Readings

• Brown, Joseph Epes. Teaching Spirits: Understanding Native American Religious

Tradition. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2001.
• DeLoria, Vine Jr. God Is Red: A Native View of Religion. New York: Dell, 2003.
• Gill, Sam. Native American Religions: An Introduction. Boston: Thomson Wadsworth,
2005.

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• Hirschfelder, Arlene, and Paulette Molin. An Encyclopedia of Native American Religions.

New York: Facts on File, 1992.
• Kehoe, Alice Beck. The Ghost Dance: Ethnohistory and Revitalization. Long Grove, IL:
Waveland, 2006.
• Neihardt, John G., and Black Elk. Black Elk Speaks: Being the Life Story of a Holy Man
of the Oglala Sioux. Omaha: University of Nebraska Press, 1961.
• Silko, Leslie Marmon. Ceremony. 1988.

Weblinks

• American Academy of Religion (http://www.aarweb.org/)

• Beliefnet (http://www.beliefnet.com/)

• National Museum of the American Indian (https://americanindian.si.edu/)

• National Archives (https://www.archives.gov/research/alic/reference/native-

americans.html)
Films

• In the Light of Reverence (2001) 72 min., Independent Television Service in association

with Native American Public Telecommunications and the Corporation for Public
Broadcasting

• Popol Vuh: The Creation Myth of the Maya (1989), 60 min.

• Native-American Religions (2007), 27 min.

• In Beauty I Walk: The Navajo Way to Harmony (2002), 28 min.

• Kinaalda: A Navajo Rite of Passage (2000) 56 min., Women Make Movies.

SACRED TEXTS

Older translation of the Popol Vuh

Navajo creation narratives
Hopi origin myths by Edmund Nequatewa

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KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS

American Indian Religious Freedom Act 1978 U.S. law to guarantee freedom of religious
practice for Native Americans.
axis mundi (ak’suhs moon’dee; Latin) An academic term for the center of the world, which
connects the earth with the heavens.
Black Elk Famous Lakota religious leader.
Changing Woman Mythic ancestor of the Navajo people who created the first humans.
chantway The basis of Navajo ceremonial practice; includes chants, prayers, songs, and other
ritual practice.
cry ceremony Sacred mourning ceremony involving songs, dances, and stories about the
deceased, all of which aid the spirit of the deceased in transition to the next world.
Ghost Dance Religious resistance movements in 1870 and 1890 that originated in Nevada
among Paiute peoples.
hogan (hoh’gahn; Pueblo) A sacred structure of Pueblo peoples.
Holy People Ancestors to the Navajo people, described in mythic narratives.
Holy Wind Navajo conception of a spiritual force that inhabits every element of creation.
Jump Dance Renewal dance of Yurok people.
kachina (kah-chee’nah; Hopi) Pueblo spiritual beings.
Kinaalda (kee-nahl’dah) Rite of passage for young Navajo women.
McKay, Mabel A Pomo woman who was well known as a healer and basket-weaver.
Native American Church A church founded in early twentieth century based on Peyote
religion.
Parker, Quanah Comanche man who called for the embrace of peyote religion.
peyote (pay-oh’tee) Hallucinogenic cactus used in many Native American religions.
Popol Vuh (poh-pohl voo’; Quiché Mayan, “council book”) The Quiché Mayan book of
creation.
Quetzalcoatl (ket-zuhl-kuh-wah’-tuhl; Aztec) Aztec god and important culture hero in Mexico.
rites of passage Rituals that mark the transition from one social stage to another.
rites of renewal Rituals that seek to enhance natural processes, like rain or fertility, or enhance
the solidarity of a group.
sand painting A painting made with sand used by Navajo healers to treat ailments.
Sun Dance Midsummer ritual common to many Native American religions; details vary across
cultures.
sweat lodge A structure built for ritually cleansing and purifying the body.
tipi (also teepee) A typical conical structure of the tribes of the Great Plains, which is often
constructed with a sacred blueprint.
trickster A common figure in North American mythologies; trickster tales often teach important
moral lessons.
Two Spirit An additional gender identity in many Native North American cultures; often
thought to have special spiritual powers.
trickster A common figure in North American mythologies; trickster tales often teach important
moral lessons.
vision quest A ritual attempt by an individual to communicate with the spirit world.
Wovoka A Paiute man whose visions started the Ghost Dance of 1890.

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TEST BANK

Multiple-choice and true/false question answers are preceded by an asterisk. Answers to fill-in-
the-blank questions can be found at the end of each question. Questions preceded by † also
appear in student self-assessments.

Multiple-Choice Questions

†1. Which of the following is false?

a) Native American religions are very diverse.
*b) There is one form of Native American religion.
c) Native American religions change over time.
d) Native American religions are practiced in many areas today.

2. The creation narratives of indigenous religions may address which of the following?
a) The origins of humanity
b) The origins of sacred power
c) The creation of the earth
*d) All of the above

†3. The essential teachings of Native American religions are often found in
*a) sacred narratives or myths.
b) books written by gods or deities.
c) specific statements of belief of creeds.
d) sermons and liturgies.

4. The Sun Dance is

a) practiced by only the Hopi peoples.
b) widely practiced in many Native American religious cultures.
c) a midsummer Native American ritual that spans nearly two weeks.
*d) Both b and c

†5. The god Quetzalcoatl is recognized in

a) Cherokee religion.
b) all Native American religions.
c) Modoc religion.
*d) Aztec religion.

†6. What is the Popol Vuh?

a) The Cherokee god of corn
b) The coming-of-age rite for Navajo girls
c) Another name for the Sun Dance
*d) A Mayan creation narrative

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7. In the Popol Vuh,

a) the creation of humans took several tries.
b) stories about hero twins are relayed.
c) humans were created perfectly on the first try.
*d) Both a and b

†8. Which of the following is an important method of healing?

*a) Sandpainting
b) Kinaalda
c) Planting Corn
d) Basketry

9. Myths may contain lessons concerning

a) how to behave appropriately in social situations.
b) how to farm or subsist off the land.
c) life and death.
*d) All of the above

†10. Who was Black Elk?

*a) A famous Lakota religious leader
b) One of the kachinas
c) One of the hero twins in Popol Vuh
d) The Aztec corn god

11. Mt. Shasta is a sacred place to

a) the Aztecs.
*b) many Native communities in northern California.
c) the Maya.
d) the Native communities of the southeastern United States.

†12. Tales about the landscape are important to the White Mountain Apache because they
a) help Arizona businesses decide where to develop land.
b) have helped people convert to Christianity.
*c) convey important moral teachings.
d) None of the above

†13. The Pueblo peoples are from

*a) the Southwestern United States.
b) the Northwestern United States.
c) eastern Canada.
d) Alaska.

†14. Mabel McKay was well known for

a) her skill in healing the sick.
b) her skill in basketry.
c) initiating the Kinaalda.

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*d) Both a and b

15. The ancestral spirits of the Pueblo peoples are known as

a) the Hero Twins.
*b) kachinas.
c) Jump Dancers.
d) None of the above

†16. Trickster figures in mythology

a) teach important life lessons through their actions.
b) are often animals.
c) always rescue humanity from decline.
*d) Both a and b

17. Which of following were aspects of ancient Mayan religion?

a) Complex pantheon of gods
b) Penitential bloodletting
c) A three-layered cosmos
d)*All of the above

18. The colonial powers of Spain, France, and Britain

a) were not interested in the religious lives of Native Americans.
b) thought European settlers should adopt indigenous American religions.
*c) aimed for the conversion to Christianity of Native peoples, sometimes through force.
d) thought that Christianity was inappropriate for non-Europeans.

†19. The 1819 Civilization Fund Act

a) aimed to educate native children in an effort to “civilize” them.
b) led to the development of many boarding schools.
c) aimed to eradicate Christianity in the Americas.
*d) Both a and b

†20. When the Spanish conquistadors arrived in Mesoamerica,

a) the indigenous religion of the Mayan peoples was banned.
b) written versions of holy texts were burned.
c) the Maya were often forcibly converted to Roman Catholicism.
*d) All of the above

21. Which is true about the Ghost Dance?

a) It originated in the fifteenth century as a religious response to the Spanish conquest of Mexico.
*b) It began with a nineteenth-century religious leader of the Northern Paiute who had an
important vision.
c) It is another term for a kachina dance.
d) It is only performed by women.

†22. Who was Wovoka?

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