Religion Trivia

by Jeff Wilson

On Saturday, November 8, the University of Waterloo held its Open House for prospective students. Since I’m the Associate Chair, Undergraduate for the Department of Religious Studies, I was on hand to staff our table. Because we were surrounded by all the other programs in the Faculty of Arts, I had to think about what I would do to make us stand out. So I created a simple game. I used an over-sized foam die, a cardboard box, and a small folding table. Visitors to the booth could throw the die, and whatever number came up, I would ask them a corresponding trivia item from a set of six pre-prepared questions. If they got it right, I let them choose a piece of candy (if they got it wrong I still gave them a random piece of candy—it was after Halloween and I wanted to get rid of all the leftovers!).

So, I wonder, how would you have fared? Here are the questions I asked.

QUESTION #1

According to the most recent survey data, approximately what percentage of Canadians identify as Christian? Is it:

85%

65%

45%

QUESTION #2

Which of these nations isn’t in the top five in terms of having the largest Muslim population in the world? Is it:

Egypt

Indonesia

Nigeria

QUESTION #3

The Unitarian Universalist Church of Winnipeg conducted the first same-sex marriage in Canadian history. What year did that take place? Was it:

1974

1994

2004

QUESTION #4

Nearly all countries base their economic policies on Gross National Product (GDP). However, the Buddhist country of Bhutan focuses instead on which of the following? Is it:

Gross Economic Sustainability

Gross Stock Development

Gross National Happiness

QUESTION #5

In 2017 Arkansas erected a monument of the Ten Commandments at the state capitol. Which of these is not one of the ways that people reacted? Is it:

Evangelicals held a 72-hour-long prayer rally

A Satanic temple displayed a statue of a demon in front of the capitol building

A man ran over the monument with his car

QUESTION #6

Jainism is a 2500-year-old Indian religion. Which of these dietary practice does orthodox Jainism allow? Is it:

Eating food after dark

Eating fruit that has fallen off a tree

Drinking alcohol

OK, time to find out how you did. For Question #1, the answer is 45%. The most recent data from surveys in 2023 shows Christian affiliation in Canada is at 44%. This is a significant change since 2001, when Christians made up 77% of the population. The main driver is a huge increase in the number of non-religious Canadians, but increasing religious diversity also plays a part. I told Open House attendees that they could learn more about Canadian religious phenomena in our course Religion in Canada.

For Question #2, the answer is Egypt. Indonesia is the country with the largest Muslim population: 242.7 million. In order, the next biggest ones are Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, and Nigeria. Egypt’s population is majority Muslim, but the country’s size isn’t large enough to crack the top five. I told attendees they could learn about Islam by taking our course Christianity, Judaism, Islam.

For Question #3, the answer is 1974. This was more than 30 years before national same-sex marriage rights were recognized in Canada in 2005. Generally speaking, LGBTQ+ inclusion has occurred in liberal religious denominations before it was achieved in general society, making congregations important organizing spaces and refuges for LGBTQ+ persons. I told attendees they could learn more about social issues in our course Religious Diversity and Social Development.

For Question #4, the answer is Gross National Happiness. Since 2008, the Bhutanese constitution has officially enshrined Gross National Happiness as the country’s economic indicator. Gross National Happiness measures sustainable and equitable economic development, environmental conservation, promotion of culture, and good governance. I told attendees they could learn more in our course Buddhism.

For Question #5, the answer is that there wasn’t a 72-hour prayer rally. Less than 24 hours after the monument was unveiled, a Christian resident upset at what he believed to be a violation of the principle of separation of church and state ran it over and destroyed it. When it was rebuilt in 2018,  The Satanic Temple brought in a large statue of a demon on a flatbed truck to publicize what they considered the hypocrisy of allowing some religious images but not others. I told attendees they could learn more about church and state issues in our course Religion and Politics.

For Question #6, the answer is Jains are allowed to eat fruit that has fallen naturally from a tree. This involves no harm to the plant, so it is permissible. Back in the day, eating food after the sun set meant you might not see bugs that had landed on it, who would be harmed (and going out to collect food after dark meant you might step on and injure small creatures). Drinking alcohol is also not permitted. Other Jain food prohibitions include drinking unstrained water (which could contain small organisms), eating meat, and eating root vegetables (that might have many small lives in or on them). I told attendees they could learn more about Jainism in our course Religions of Asia.

So, how much candy did you win? There’s certainly a lot to learn about religions and their interactions with society, which are main topics in our field of Religious Studies. But beyond the trivia aspect, a reason I bring it up in this newsletter is that we could run a game like this at the IGR table at the annual Multicultural Festival. We could come up with our own six interesting things about religion or various religions that we want to quiz people on, and see how they do. We could even have interesting trivia questions about religion in the Waterloo region. It’s a chance to test people, deliver some knowledge in response, and draw them into conversation. The big, colourful die is a magnet for people (especially kids), who irresistibly want to roll it. So it brings in people who would otherwise walk on by, and increases fun encounters with the public. What six questions would you suggest for an Interfaith Grand River trivia game?