Q.1
At one or another time God has made Himself (or His presence or Word) manifest to people on earth in a variety of ways. Which of the following is the 'oddest one out'?
  • The Annunciation (by the Archangel Gabriel to the Blessed Virgin Mary)
  • The Good Shepherd
  • The Good Samaritan
  • The blinding light accompanying the conversion of Saul on the road to Damascus
Q.2
As well as believing in God, what other distinctive core beliefs are held and shared by all Catholics?
  • That Baptism ~ within the only true Church ~ is a precondition for salvation of the soul and eternal life
  • That the Holy Bible is another essential form of God's revelation, inspired by Him and free of any error, and by which believers should seek to abide and conduct their lives
  • That the mother Church is God's agency on earth, governed under Him by the Pope ~ whose official pronouncements on all matters of faith and doctrine is guided by the Holy Spirit, and can therefore never be mistaken
  • All of the above
Q.3
Catholics hold that God can be encountered through the Sacraments, so if they are that serious about nurturing and developing this faith, they should be in regular contact with Him. Which of the following is NOT, as such, a sacramental pathway?
  • Penance, through the confession of sins
  • Prayer
  • Receiving the Holy Eucharist at Mass
  • Fellowship within the church family through matrimony (one's own, or one's parents'), baptism and congregant interaction with a priest (who embodies the sacrament of holy orders)
Q.4
The Bible, uniquely precious though it is, cannot ultimately be the only channel of religious wisdom or route to salvation. Which of the following points does NOT help explain this?
  • There would be no hope for anyone who could not access, read or understand it (which was most of the people, during most of Church history) unless the Church could train and provide experts, i.e. priests
  • If the only 'evidence' of God at work were stories from the past (in the Bible), that could only weaken the case for Christianity being in any sense a living religion
  • The Bible as we broadly know it (Old and New Testaments) only took shape about 2,000 years ago; but for the first 3/4 of that timespan, the Western / Christian world had no form of printing to make it widely &/or economically available to ordinary everyday believers
  • The Bible contains many transferable examples and eternal truths, but it can only refer very generally to any saints, miracles, apparitions etc occurring beyond its own historical timescale, nor to such specifics of our modern life as technology. The Spirit, through and in the Church, is responsible for 'work in progress' among the ongoing community of believers
Q.5
In necessarily broad-brush terms here, how do Catholics compare and contrast God's revelation of Himself across the two Testaments of the Bible?
  • The Old Testament God seemed very keen on disciplining His people and occasionally causing, or at least allowing, others to suffer; the New Testament shows God loves everyone unconditionally
  • The Old Testament is about God and the Jews; the New is about Jesus and Christians
  • In the Old Testament God established Himself as the Creator, with a special relationship with His chosen people (the Jews) despite their various failings; in the New Testament, in Jesus, he made Himself open to all people who accept their own shortcomings and sincerely want forgiveness
  • The Old Testament was written in Hebrew and the New Testament in Greek
Q.6
In common with all Christians, Catholics rejoice in the diversity, complexity and richness of God's created world ~ and that He has seen fit to equip us with the ability to recognise, appreciate and respond to these through our senses and intellect. Drawing closer to God in the context of worship will usually and fairly obviously engage the sense of hearing; which of the following other pathways is the LEAST pertinent?
  • The sense of taste and flavour, principally in the Eucharist
  • The sense of smell: in particular, for the fragrance of incense, with all its traditional worshipful connotations, and of holy oils
  • Sight ~ and hence, appreciation and recognition of liturgical colours, devotional architecture and artworks, sculpture and stained glass; candles, processional use of space
  • The sense of touch and posture (kneeling, holding hands [e.g. between a new wedding couple]; the touch of the transmission of faith or status in such rituals as baptism, confirmation and the anointing of the sick)
Q.7
In what kind of God do all Catholics believe?
  • God the Creator, Ruler and Sustainer, who is our Heavenly Father
  • The Living God as revealed amongst humankind in the person of Jesus (Christ) of Nazareth, approximately 2,000 years ago, and His deeds and teachings
  • God as expressed through the power of the Holy Spirit ~ in apparitions and manifestations through scripture, and dwelling in the hearts of living believers at any time
  • All three of the above
Q.8
Which of the following appears to be the clearest and most important, with regard to Catholics and their ongoing experience of God?
  • Being omnipotent (capable of anything), He can choose to perform miracles wherever it pleases Him, even if these seem to run counter to our otherwise normal understanding of the 'laws' of nature. On several occasions these have included apparitions of the Blessed Virgin Mary to believers ~ by no means always particularly learned, scholarly nor pious people
  • He can be known through each of a series of Sacraments such as Baptism, Penance, Marriage and the Mass (communion)
  • 'Catholic' means 'universal' or 'worldwide', and the Church can bring God's presence and comfort into any corner of the globe
  • Through prayer and study we can continually seek to discern His presence and purpose, even in the toughest of situations
Q.9
Catholics readily accept that various things God has said to individuals or groups in scripture, are applicable and indeed mandatory for all who follow Him. Which of these such key pronouncements should be regarded as the most important?
  • The Ten Commandments given through Moses to God's chosen people in the Old Testament: four rules with respect to their individual and corporate relationship with God Himself, then six outlining model patterns of behaviour between and amongst themselves
  • Jesus' commandment to His disciples that they should, as necessary, leave all that was familiar to them and 'Follow me'
  • Jesus' institution (at the Last Supper) of the Communion rite: 'This [Passover bread] is My body, this wine My blood of the new covenant; do this in remembrance of Me' ~ whereby Mass became a key sacrament for all followers and believers
  • (All three of these are integral elements of Christian discipleship and Church membership)
Q.10
The regular channelling of one's thoughts, words and actions can be helpful disciplines in stilling the mind and focusing on God and Godly things. Which of these would be the shortest, quickest and perhaps most 'lightweight' that a Catholic might do?
  • Genuflecting (going down on one knee) &/or signing oneself with the cross
  • Saying the rosary (a prayer-sequence aided by beads)
  • Reciting the creed, individually or collectively within an act of worship
  • Reading a portion of scripture, perhaps with the aid of an approved commentary
0 h : 0 m : 1 s