Flashcards
Understanding Religion Unit 3 Study Guide
Cards in this deck (51)
- 1The term “scriptural hermeneutics” means: a. ____processes involved in composing the scriptures b. ____discrediting the scriptures c. ____methods of interpreting scripture d. ____composing religious doctrines using scripture e. ____none of the abovec. ____methods of interpreting scripture
- 2Most scripture scholars do not approach the biblical text merely as a container of facts and information.True
- 31. The world behind the text 2. The world within the text 3. The world in front of the text1. AUTHOR CENTERED the world of the author who told the story
2. TEXT CENTERED: the world that the text creates whether it is factual, legendary, or fictional
3. READER CENTERED: the world of the reader who is reading the text, i.e. the world we are currently living in - 4Which of the “centers of meaning” listed below asks: “What prompted the author to write this; what did they mean when they wrote this; and what historical, cultural, or social situations influenced their work?”_____The world behind the text
- 5Which of the “centers of meaning” listed below focuses on the text as a piece of literature—a narrative, a piece of rhetoric, a legal document, a myth, a legend, an historical account, or a poem, etc.?_____The world within the text
- 6Which of the “centers of meaning” listed below focuses on the reader’s experience as they read and reflect on the text?_____The world in front of the text
- 7Which of the “centers of meaning” listed below might employ elements of the historical-critical method like source criticism, form criticism, or redaction criticism?_____The world behind the text
- 8Most scholars who engage in biblical hermeneutics will choose only one of the three centers of meaning discussed in the items above rather than try to explore all three and integrate the results.False
- 9Because language is so basic to human life and community, virtually every faith tradition has sacred texts that play a key role in their history and their daily practice.True
- 10Every sacred text embodies the assumptions and the foundational world view of the religious tradition to which it is associated.True
- 11Every act of reading a text is an act of interpretation. To understand what a text says, what it implies, and what it means personally for the reader are acts of interpretation.True
- 12The “documentary hypothesis” as developed by German scholars in the 19th century has remained virtually unchanged since they first proposed it since its conclusions were so precise and accurate.False
- 13One of the foundation stones of the documentary hypothesis (and really of much of modern biblical scholarship) is the attention paid to varied styles of writing and the historical development of language as it evolves through centuries.True
- 14Most biblical scholars would see the bible as a major and foundational source on which to base a reasoned theology but requiring substantial interpretation and careful scholarship.True
- 15Generally, biblical fundamentalism is characterized by a rigid, dogmatic, uncompromising, and often uninformed adherence to certain perspectives in biblical interpretationTrue
- 16Biblical fundamentalism arises when interpretations of the bible disregard the historical context and cultural situation in which the Scriptures were written.True
- 17Though cautious in its approach, fundamentalism welcomes critical research and the historical-critical method of biblical interpretation.False
- 18Fundamentalism usually does not accept the human character of the divine word but treats the biblical text as if it had been dictated word-for-word by God.True
- 19Even with all the descriptors that can be ascribed to biblical fundamentalism, it remains difficult to precisely define because there is no overarching authority that guides fundamentalist communities. In that sense, it is highly individualistic and holds for only one authority: the Bible itself.True
- 20The fundamentalist way of thinking about the Bible appeals to those who want simple and uncomplicated answers to life’s deepest questions. Unfortunately, such simple answers are not always the best answers.True
- 21The fundamentalist approach to reading and interpreting the bible is often employed when people look for support for their own social and political agenda in a rigid and uncompromising way.True
- 22When the reader allows the words of the Bible to mean only what they seem to say on the surface, they are tending toward fundamentalism.True
- 23We must be careful in our critique of those who adopt the approach of fundamentalism and the literal interpretation of scripture so as not to use sweeping generalizations which can lead to misunderstanding and even unfair judgmentTrue
- 24The fundamentalist commitment to the truth of the Bible is sound in and of itself; but it becomes problematic in how divine revelation, biblical inerrancy, and biblical inspiration are understood within the framework of fundamentalism.True
- 25Fundamentalists tend to view the bible as an infallible owner’s manual for life whose truths are immediately apparent and self-evident to the reader; the majority of biblical scholars and faith traditions do not approach the bible in this way.True
- 26Genre refers to the style, form or content of a particular text. Knowing the genre of a text helps in understanding and interpreting that textTrue
- 27Because the myths and legends in the bible are not historically factual, they are extraneous and have no religious value. They can be ignored.False
- 28From the point of view of modern critical analysis, one could say that there is often a difference between what the bible says and what the Bible intends to teachTrue
- 29All the texts and writings of any given religion have equal levels of authority.False
- 30The term “Pentateuch” refers to the entire Old Testament.False
- 31Prior to the 17th century, the author of the Pentateuch was generally thought to be Moses.True
- 32Prior to modern approaches to scripture study, many thought that God somehow dictated the words of scripture directly to the biblical author.True
- 33Around the 17th century, some scholars began to notice some odd discrepancies in biblical texts. For example, there are really two accounts of Noah and the flood that offer conflicting reports. And they realized that there were some words and concepts in the texts once attributed to Moses that he could never have known. These discrepancies made them: a. ___lose their faith b. ___decide that the Bible was no longer a reliable source of truth c. ___plunge deeper into the biblical texts to explore deeper and more complex meanings d. ___eliminate those texts from the bible e. ___none of the above.c. ___plunge deeper into the biblical texts to explore deeper and more complex meanings
- 3417th-century biblical scholar, Richard Simon, proposed that if Moses did write a basic foundational text, additions and redactions must have been made after him. His theory was widely accepted and proved to be the bases for later discoveries in the mid-19thFalse
- 35Two scholars from the mid-19th century who contributed a great deal to the advancement of modern biblical scholarship and the “historical-critical” method are: (choose two from the list below) a. ____Bernard Botte b. ____Karl H. Gaff c. ____Peter Berger d. ____Karl Rahner e. ____Julius Wellhausenb. ____Karl H. Gaff
e. ____Julius Wellhausen - 36Biblical scholars since the 18th century have more or less generally agreed on a theory regarding the formation and development of the Pentateuch. This is called “the documentary hypothesis.” They suggest that: a. _____there are two main authors at work in the text: Moses and Joshua b. _____ God is the sole author of the text, even though he made use of human authors to write down his words. c. _____there seem to be distinct sources for the Pentateuch and other texts of the Old Testament whose work appears to have been done at different times in history. God inspired them to write but did not dictate the words to them d. _____ Moses was the original author but there were later editors who were part of four different schools of thought editing and four different periods of historyc. _____there seem to be distinct sources for the Pentateuch and other texts of the Old Testament whose work appears to have been done at different times in history. God inspired them to write but did not dictate the words to them
- 37Because of additional research in the late 20th and early 21st centuries, the documentary hypothesis is no longer viable for scripture scholars.False
- 38If something happens by means of a natural process, then it can't be attributed to God.False
- 39Another clue that points to the different sources in a given biblical text is the presence of double accounts of the same story which offers different versions with slight or even substantial variations in language, vocabulary, and styleTrue
- 40One place where we find double accounts of a story is in the book of Genesis where we find two distinct accounts of creationTrue
- 41Most scholars seem to agree that as the earliest and most comprehensive of the biblical sources, it was probably written in Jerusalem around the 10th or early 9th century BC a. Elohist b. Yahwist c. Deuteronomic d. Priestlyb. Yahwist
- 42Probably written in the 8th and 7th centuries BC (according to the original documentary hypothesis) this source represents a major effort to reassess the tradition and reassert its central authority. a. Elohist b. Yahwist c. Deuteronomic d. PriestlyDeuteronomic
- 43According to the original documentary hypothesis, this source was written after the kingdom was divided and it shows evidence of favoring issues and concerns of the Northern Kingdom, therefore it was most likely written in the Northern Kingdom. a. Elohist b. Yahwist c. Deuteronomic d. PriestlyElohist
- 44It seems that this biblical source integrates several older sources into the Pentateuch as we know it today and seems to have been written during the exile in Babylon sometime in the 500’s BC. a. Elohist b. Yahwist c. Deuteronomic d. Priestlyd. Priestly
- 45Most biblical scholars would see the bible as a major and foundational source on which to base a reasoned theology but requiring substantial interpretation and careful scholarship.True
- 46From the perspective of wide biblical scholarship, appreciating that the truths of the bible are communicated in varied forms of human language provides a basis for a balanced and more accurate interpretation of biblical texts.True
- 47The first creation account in Genesis 1:1-23 seems generally to be ascribed which of the following source: a. Elohist b. Yahwist c. Deuteronomic d. Priestlyd. Priestly
- 48The account of the “Fall” in Genesis 3:1-13 seems generally to be ascribed which of the following source: a. Elohist b. Yahwist c. Deuteronomic d. Priestlyb. Yahwist
- 49It seems that Judaism as we know it today came together during the exile when the Temple worship was no longer available, and emphasis was placed on … (Select from below those items that correctly complete this sentence above) a. _____ the primordial synagogue service (common prayer & reading, study, and proclamation of scripture) b. _____ the Exodus story c. _____ circumcision d. _____ incense offerings e. _____ the weekly Sabbath meal f. _____ all of the above g. _____ none of the abovea. _____ the primordial synagogue service (common prayer & reading, study, and proclamation of scripture)
c. _____ circumcision
e. _____ the weekly Sabbath meal - 50The science of archeology found many interesting artifacts when employed in biblical research but sadly never produced any substantive data to aid in the exploration of scripture itself.False
- 51—
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- Flashcards on Understanding Religion Unit 3 Study Guide, created by Key Marie on 07/10/2026.
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