Font size
WorksheetsStage 19 Culture: Mystery Cults
Total questions: 25
Worksheet time: 17mins
Why are Mystery Cults called Mystery Cults?
They sought to answer the world's mysteries
Their religious texts were written like mystery books
Their rites & rituals were unknown to outsiders
That is the name that they gave themselves
What are the Mystery Cults that we have learned about?
Isis
Hades
Bacchus
Mithras
Demeter
The festival for Isis, on March 5th, marked the beginning of Spring and what other season?
Hunting
Sailing
Election
Autumn
Who was the god of wine, freedom, and fertility?
Isis
Osiris
Mithras
Bacchus
True or False: The Bacchanalia were quiet celebrations.
True: they were a time where followers would meditate in the woods
False: they were violent parties ending in human sacrifice
True: they were small household gatherings with immediate family
False: they were associated with mania from the use of alcohol and other trance-inducing techniques
Although the exact initiation rites are unknown, we do know that there were acts of ________ during induction to the cult of Isis.
repentance
fasting
pilgrimage
reading from the sacred text
Why was the beginning of sailing season important to the Romans & Egyptians?
War ventures
Grain transport
Ancient citizens liked traveling
Sailing was a religious activity
With what group was Mithras popular?
Roman emperors
Egyptian women
Low-class Greeks
Roman soldiers
True or False: Bacchanalia were only attended by men at first.
True
False
What was the main motivator for people to join the cult of Demeter?
Members were promised some advantages in the afterlife
Members were promised a good harvest
Members would meet their true love
Members would be able to bring back their loved ones from the underworld
Pick two: What was said to happen to someone once they joined the cult of Isis?
Initiates met Isis personally
Initiates got to sail on the Nile River
Initiates were promised life after death
Initiates became gods themselves
With which two gods was Mithras associated?
Helios (Greek)
Mercury (Roman)
Zeus (Greek)
Sol Invictus (Roman)
Who told Mithras that he was destined to slay the mystic white bull?
a Raven
Jupiter
Isis
the Earth
The central myth of Mithraism is a _______ story.
love
mystery
creation
murder
Who was the Greek goddess of grain, whose daughter was abducted by Hades?
Demeter
Hera
Persephone
Athena
Which part of Demeter's story involved her reunion with her daughter, Persephone?
the "descent" (loss)
the "search"
the "ascent"
True or False: The Golden Ass gives us a complete account of the rites and rituals of the cult of Isis.
True
False
In the myth of Mithras, what happenes to the bull?
The bull turns into the god Hades
The bull and Mithras get married
The bull eats Mithras
The bull turns into the moon
True or False: Isis is worshipped as the giver of life
True
False
At the procession of Isis, who was not present
Dancers
Priests
Soldiers
Priestesses
Who was the husband of Isis?
Osiris
Horus
Bacchus
For which cults was there notable participation of women?
Isis
Bacchus
Mithras
Demeter
Which of the following was not part of the initiation process for the cult of Demeter?
Sacrificing a bull
Singing & dancing
Purification through sacred baths
Three days of fasting
Which natural phenomena was attributed to Mithras?
Night and day
Time
The weather
The creation of animals and plants
Name at least one similarity that Mystery Cults have to the 5 major modern religions.
