Religions Across the Globe Trivia Quiz

Answer: Christianity

Based on the traditions of the Jewish faith and the teachings of Jesus Christ, the Christian religion originated in the Levant in the first century CE. The disciples of Jesus spread the faith throughout the Mediterranean, and it became the official religion of the Roman Empire in 313 CE. From there, Christianity, in various branches, spread across Europe, and European explorers and settlers spread the faith into both North and South America and Oceania beginning in the late 15th century.

Answer: Japan

Developed from traditional Japanese beliefs and practices, Shinto became the state religion of Japan by the medieval period. Shinto is a polytheistic and animist faith which focuses primarily on purity and harmony. Shinto is still practiced by many people in Japan and elsewhere.

Answer: Islam

Building on both the traditions and beliefs of Judaism and Christianity, Islam was founded around 610 CE by the prophet Muhammad. The faith spread quickly throughout the Middle East and Africa, and even reached into Europe and Asia. Islam is currently the second largest religion in the world.

Answer: Buddhism

Known as the Buddha, or The Awakened One, Siddhartha Gautama was born into a Nepalese noble family in either the 5th or 6th century BCE. Renouncing his nobility, he became a wandering teacher and ascetic. Buddhism has no gods, but teaches people to aspire to Nirvana, a concept of liberation from desire, pain, and suffering. Buddhism is mostly prevalent in Southeast Asia.

Answer: Mormonism

Joseph Smith (1805-1844) was the founder of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, or the Mormon Church. While living in western New York State in the 1820s, Smith claimed that an angel directed him to buried golden plates, which he translated into the Book of Mormon, a history of the Christian civilization of ancient America. Smith and his followers moved west in the 1830s, and Smith was killed by a mob in Carthage, Illinois while he was awaiting trial for destruction of a newspaper's printing press in 1844.

Answer: 1534

In 1527, Pope Clement VII refused a petition from English King Henry VIII to divorce his wife, the Spanish princess Catherine of Aragon, on the grounds that she had been wedded to Henry's deceased older brother, Arthur. Determined to marry again to produce a male heir, Henry persuaded the English Parliament to declare him Head of the Church of England in 1534, breaking away from the Roman Catholic Church and the authority of the Pope.

Answer: Hinduism

With roots possibly going back as far as the Indus Valley civilization circa 1750 BCE, modern Hinduism is a mixture of ancient Indian traditions and the faiths of invaders of the sub-continent. Hinduism is a polytheistic faith, with a pantheon of gods. Hinduism is the world's third largest religion, with some 1.2 billion followers.

Answer: Islam

The "Abrahamic" religions of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam can all trace their origins back to the patriarch Abraham, who was from the ancient city of Ur in Sumeria. While modern scholars view the term as a simplistic comparison of the three faiths, it is true that Christianity was built on Jewish traditions and Islam recognizes facets of both Judaism and Christianity.

Answer: 1517

While there were prior attempts at reform within the Catholic Church, the beginning of the Protestant Reformation is generally acknowledged as Catholic priest and theologian Martin Luther's publication of the "Ninety-Five Theses" on October 31, 1517 CE.

This was a document describing Luther's beliefs as to how the Church had become corrupt and strayed from the true teachings of Jesus. Within one hundred and fifty years, Protestantism had spread across Europe.

Answer: Akhenaten

Amenhotep IV became Pharaoh circa 1351 BCE. Within five years, he began to veer away from the worship of "Amun" and other Egyptian gods to that of the "Aten", which is generally accepted as the sun. Amenhotep changed his name to Akhenaten to reflect the new religion, and began to build a new capital, Akhetaten or Amarna.

The new religion did not take hold, however, and the pharaoh's successor, Tutankhaten, soon reverted to the old religion and changed his name to Tutankhamen.