Chapter 6 Learning Guide – Religion

Key Issue 1 – Where Are Religions Distributed?

Pgs. 168 - 178

1. Define universalizing religion:

2. Define ethnic religion:

Universalizing Religions

3. Give the percentage of the world’s Christian population belonging to each of

Christianity’s 3 major branches.

4. Regarding Eastern Orthodox churches, how many separate churches are there,
and which has the largest membership?

5. What percentage of Latin Americans are Roman Catholic?

6. Protestants comprise 28% of North Americans. List the 5 largest denominations.

7. Complete the chart with names of smaller branches of Christianity and their
location of concentration.
Branch of Christianity Region of Predominance

8. Half of the world’s Muslims live in the Middle East. The other half live in 4
countries outside the Middle East. Name them.
 9. Give the percentage of each of Islam’s 2 greatest branches: Sunni & Shiite (Shia).

10. Only in 5 countries do Shiite Muslims number more than Sunni. What are they?

11. Buddhism is built around “Four Noble Truths” as taught by the Buddha.
Summarize them.

12. Complete this chart dividing Buddhism into its 3 main branches.
Branch % of Global Regions of Predominance
Buddhist Population

13. Why are Buddhists difficult to count?

Ethnic Religions

14. Where are Hindus concentrated? What percent of all Hindus live there?

15. Where are most of the rest?

Make a note or two (that seem of geographic interest) about each of the following ethnic
religion listed in #’s 16 – 20.

16. Confucianism:

17. Daoism:
18. Shintoism:

19. Judaism:

20. Animism:
 Chapter 6 Learning Guide – Religion

Key Issue 2 – Why Do Religions Have Different Distributions?

Pgs. 178 – 191

Origin of Religions

1. Complete the chart below describing the origins and branches of the major
universalizing religions.
Christianity Islam Buddhism
Year of Origin

Founder

Major Branches &

Main Belief of Each
Branch

Regarding Hinduism

2. How was its origin different than universalizing religions?

3. When did it originate?

 4. Where did it originate?

5. What 2 ancient peoples beliefs blended to form Hinduism?

Diffusion of Religions

6. Give 3 explanations for the diffusion of Christianity.

7. Give 3 ways in which Islam spread.

8. Give 2 reasons for the expansion of Buddhism.

9. Provide 3 examples of cases in which religions, or religious practices, have

blended.
Religions Which Have Blended Location

Regarding Judaism

10. How is its distribution very different from other ethnic religions?

11. What was the diaspora?

12. How were most Jews treated as they lived among other nationalities?

13. What is the origin of the term ghetto?

Holy Places

14. What is a pilgrimage?

15. Read the section Holy Places and make notes on 3 case studies: Buddhism, Islam
& Hinduism.
Holy Sites
Buddhist

Islamic

Hindu

The Calendar

16. Complete the chart below regarding religious calendars.

What is the most prominent feature of the What is the principle purpose of the
calendar in an ethnic religion? calendar in a universalizing religion?
17. How is the Jewish calendar typical of the ethnic use of the calendar?

18. What is the solstice?

19. Both the Jewish and the Muslims use a lunar calendar, yet in a different way and
with very different results. Explain.

20. How is the date of Easter related to physical geography (the natural world)
through the calendar?

21. Why do different Christian branches celebrate Easter on different days?

22. How is this similar to Buddhism’s major holidays?

 Chapter 6 Learning Guide – Religion

Key Issue 3 – Why Do Religions Organize Space in Distinctive Patterns?

Pgs. 191 – 195

1. In what 2 ways do religious structures often stand out in a landscape?

Places of Worship

2. For what 2 reasons does a church, the physical structure, play a more critical
role than in other religions?

3. Complete the following chart to express unique visible features of Christian

churches.
Christian Branch or Region Unique Design/Typical Feature
Orthodox Christianity

Protestant (esp. N. America)

Northeast U.S.

Southeast U.S.

Southwest U.S.

Latin America

4. How is a Muslim mosque viewed differently than a Christian church?

5. Identify 4 specific, visible features of a typical mosque.

6. How are Hindu temples different than both churches and mosques?
7. List 3 typical visible features of a Hindu temple.

8. What is the religious purpose of a Buddhist pagoda?

9. How was pilgrimage a part of the development of pagodas?

10. Formal worship in a pagoda is not typical. Where does it usually take place?

Sacred Space

11. Christian practice burial of the dead. Complete the flow chart below to indicate
the history of this practice.





12. Complete the chart below with brief notes on the disposal of the dead in ways
other than burial.
Hindus

Parsis

Micronesia
13. Complete the chart below with brief notes on the religious settlements indicated.

Utopian Settlements

Salt Lake City, Utah

Puritans

Administration of Space

14. Define hierarchical religion:

15. List the Roman Catholic hierarchy, indicating geographic region and leader who
heads it.

16. Why are parishes in Latin America so much larger than in Europe?

17. Describe an autonomous religion:

18. In the absence of a hierarchy, what is the only formal organization of territory in
Islam?

19. What holds Islam together?

20. Complete the chart below to categorize other religions and denominations.
Autonomous Religions Hierarchical Religions
 Chapter 6 Learning Guide – Religion

Key Issue 4 – Why Do Territorial Conflicts Arise Among Religious Groups?

Pgs. 195 – 203

Religion Versus Government Policies

1. In what ways did the Taliban government of Afghanistan raise conflicts with
Western/modern ideas after it took control of the country in 1996?

2. What aspect of Hinduism has clashed with Western/modern ideas?

3. What western groups criticized this aspect? Why?

4. How has the Indian government responded to this issue?

5. In Russia/Soviet Union, how did each of the following attempt to limit the
influence of religion, specifically the Eastern Orthodox Church?
Czar Peter the Great:

Communism:
6. What happened, and is continuing to happen, in each of the following regions of
the Russian Empire/Soviet Union since the fall of Communism in the 1990s?
Complete the chart below by adding THREE more countries to each category
and then describing what is going on at the present time in that region.

Historic Catholic Regions Historic Muslim Regions

Croatia, Czech Republic, Hungary, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, …
Lithuania, …
Currently… Currently…

7. How was the Vietnam War detrimental to Buddhism in Southeast Asia?

8. How were Communist regimes detrimental to Buddhism in Southeast Asia?

Religion Versus Religion

9. Define fundamentalism:

10. Fundamentalism is increasing in the world today and its growth contributes to
conflicts. Why is it increasing?

11. What are two religious groups in conflict in Ireland?

12. Where are the majority of these groups located?

13. What 3 religions are in constant conflict over the land in the Middle East?
14. What was the military campaign by the Christians to recapture their Holy Land
from the Muslims?

15. Complete the chart below regarding the perspective on the Holy Land.
Palestinian Perspective Israeli Perspective