Q.1
One initial problem is that for creatures such as us humans, it is hard to grasp the concept of a God without limits. Sometimes this can be addressed by comparing Him with other more familiar things in your life, such as the table at which you may be sitting as you do this quiz. Which would you regard as the WEAKEST amid the following arguments?
  • The table you may be sitting at has finite edges ~ don't try bumping into them! ~ whereas nothing can be beyond the reach of God
  • Once upon a time the table, as such, never existed (if it's made of wood, once upon a time the tree it was made from had yet to germinate) ~ but God has always been in existence, and always will be
  • One day the table will cease to exist (maybe in your lifetime; maybe not) ~ but God will still be there
  • Your table may support you and your activities and, at any moment, contain crucial information about you ~ rather like God
Q.2
Another key belief is about God as the Holy Trinity: three distinct 'persons', yet comprising one God. Which of those listed below is NOT one of these Persons?
  • The Holy Spirit
  • The Holy Bible
  • God the creating and loving Father
  • Jesus Christ, 'His only Son'
Q.3
Which of the following did the missionary St Patrick use to explain the doctrine of the Trinity ('one God in three Persons') to the Irish?
  • Water ~ which remains chemically the same, whether in solid form as ice, liquid as water, or vapourised as steam
  • The three stumps which together comprise a cricket wicket
  • The shamrock plant
  • One same individual who can simultaneously be a father, a farmer and a son (and potentially, other roles besides, such as an amateur musician)
Q.4
The means by which God the Father chose to reveal Himself to the world give us various clues as to His nature. In which of the classical 'elements' did He very first make Himself known in Creation, according to the mystic account at the beginning of Genesis (in the front of the Jewish and Christian Scriptures)?
  • Earth
  • Air
  • Water
  • Fire / light
Q.5
Which of the following appears to be mistaken, or otherwise unreasonable, in identifying or interpreting such a 'theophany' (disclosure of God)?
  • To Moses at the Burning Bush, which was alight yet did not burn up, as a symbol of God's companionship and power
  • To Abraham after the Flood, in the form of a rainbow as His 'covenant' that He would never again bring disaster upon the whole earth
  • To Saul near the gates of Damascus: as a blinding, revealing light which shocked him into turning his priorities around and spreading Jesus' message ~ instead of persecuting His followers
  • The 'Star of Bethlehem' as a heavenly sign of the unusual birth of Jesus, to which important people (the 'Three Wise Men') were bidden on a long journey to offer their respects
Q.6
The following, listed here in alphabetical order, are key elements in God's plan for salvation through the Incarnation*. Which of them should come FIRST if they were in their correct chronological sequence? * 'Incarnation' = 'making flesh', i.e. God 'dwelling among humankind in the Person of Jesus' (The '-carn-' stem of this word is linked with 'carnivore' and indeed 'carnival')
  • Crucifixion
  • Nativity
  • Passion
  • Resurrection
Q.7
It may (perhaps rather selectively and simplistically) be argued that while the God of the Old Testament is generous, He also has what seems to be a vengeful streak ~ there are many stories of tribal and individual bloodshed. Of the equally simplistic options given below, which would probably be the best way to characterise God as encountered in the New Testament?
  • Just
  • Loving
  • Both of the above
  • Neither of the above
Q.8
Jesus Himself inevitably spoke a lot about God and His kingdom, likening these (in parables) to various everyday objects and situations with which His listeners could readily identify. ONE of the following is NOT such a genuine Scriptural example: which one?
  • A 'pearl of great price' which someone could only buy by selling-up all his other possessions
  • A mustard seed which starts out tiny, yet grows to many times its original size
  • A fishing-net cast into the water, whose catch will be sorted later and the worthless fish rejected
  • A place definable only by the absence of humanly familiar negative things, such as conflict, grief and tears
Q.9
Even people with only a very residual link to Christianity or the church, will probably be familiar with the words of the 23rd Psalm: 'The Lord is my shepherd, therefore I shall lack nothing', etc. Jesus Himself would have sung and meditated on this text on numerous occasions, and indeed quoted the immediately previous Psalm at various key points during His Passion. What, about these comforting words, came as the greatest surprise to people who first heard 'the Shepherd's Psalm'?
  • The image of the little fluffy sheep was comfortingly cute when life happened to become tough
  • It was nice to picture God as a protector with His big stick, rather than Him ordering (or even beating) people around with it
  • It was bold to the point of insolence, to claim that an individual believer could aspire to such a close or cosy relationship with the Creator
  • This would make a nice song to sing at poignant family occasions such as weddings and funerals
Q.10
Another entirely reasonable way of discovering what Christians believe about their God is to consider the 4th-century Nicene Creed (with Constantinople revisions), which is formally and collectively recited in worship as a declaration of faith. The following are four key excerpts from that Creed; one of them has been brought forward from the usual order in which they occur (i.e. not answer 4). Which one is out of its proper position in the sequence? 'I/We believe in ...'
  • ... the Father almighty, maker of heaven and earth, and of all things visible and invisible ...
  • ... and in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God, begotten ... before all worlds ... who for our sake ... came down from heaven and was incarnate ...
  • ... and in the Holy Ghost [ = Spirit], the Lord, the giver of life ... who with the Father and the Son is worshipped and glorified, who spoke by the prophets ...
  • ... He shall come again with glory to judge both the quick [ = living] and the dead; whose kingdom shall have no end
0 h : 0 m : 1 s