PO 201 Exam 2 Terms Study Guide
Questions And Actual Answers.
Epicurus - Answer Definition: The Epicurus of Samos was a teacher. His philosophy wanted to provide
security to people in a hostile world. He claimed that there were natural explanations for natural
phenomena so there was no higher power meaning that people did not need to be motivated by fearing
God. He offered insight into happiness with friendship, collectivism, and intellectual pursuits. Since he
claimed that people were free from God, that meant that people had total free will. Epicurus also
claimed that there was no distinction between the soul and the body therefore when someone dies,
their soul also dies and it is the end.
Relation: His importance is that Epicurus' teaching was the doctrine of Epicurean schools. And the
hippies of the 80s also carried this way of thinking.
Positive Law (Aquinas) - Answer Definition: Man made laws written and enforced by us. They must be
made by public authorities because public authorities are the only entities capable of enforcing law on
earth. Higher level forms of law can tell us that something is wrong but can't specifically identify the
actions that are wrong
Relation: Importance is that Aquinas claimed that positive law should be informed by natural law.
Magna Carta (1215) - Answer Definition: It is a charter that was signed by King John on June 15, 1215.
The purpose was that it gave a group of 25 barons the right to overrule royal directives and notably
reduced the king's power.
Relation: The importance of Magna Carta is that it was the first constitutional document agreed to in the
western world.
Original Sin - Answer Definition: Eating from the Tree of Knowledge and defying God created this term.
It led to the belief in the depravity of humanity so any human desire meant punishment.
Relation: The importance of this term is that it created the groundwork of Augustine's sexist ideas. Since
it was Eve who ate from the tree and she was a woman, she was seen as unintelligent since she defied
, God's order. This idea then led to the subordination of women and it went as far as claiming that
childbirth was given to women as a punishment.
Coercive Law - Answer Definition: It tells subjects that they will be punished if they don't comply. This is
the idea that since a king is in charge of law enforcement and if they break a rule, they cannot be
punished because there is no one above the king who can give law enforcement the order to punish the
king for breaking the law.
Relation: The importance of this term is that it is the second way that a law binds according to Aquinas.
This also relates to dictatorship in today's world because a dictator is in charge of everything including
the police and the military so when they break a law, there is no one to punish them meaning that they
are above the law and are free to do whatever they want.
Protestant Reformation - Answer Definition: It was a religious reform resulting in the creation of a
branch of Christianity called Protestantism, a name used collectively to refer to the many religious
groups that separated from the Roman Catholic Church due to differences in doctrine.
Relation: The Reformation led to the reformulation of certain basic tenets of Christian belief and resulted
in the division of Western Christendom between Roman Catholicism and the new Protestant traditions.
Eschatology - Answer Definition: Belief that end times are near. They also believed that martyrdom is
more honorable than a renouncement of faith. Since most religions such as Christianity were illegal back
then and looked down upon, it was better for people to act like they were good law abiding citizens
when they died than to look like someone who did not obey the rules and died a sinner.
Relation: The importance of this term is that it corresponds with the goal of early Christians which was to
gain the kingdom of heaven. You are to be in the world and not of the world. You need to live without
being a sinner and your only goal should be to get into heaven.
Papal Monarchy - Answer Definition: After Investiture, popes exhibited massive amounts of power
institutionally. For example, they had total control over appointment of church officials, church property,
and church's judicial appellate process. The exhibition of power extended to temporal political affairs
when a Pope made a lot of political moves like crowning the king of Bulgaria and declaring the magna
carta void. Popes claimed individual sovereignty and had plenitude of power. They were seen as
recipients of the keys to heaven so they claimed authority over both religious and political planes.
Questions And Actual Answers.
Epicurus - Answer Definition: The Epicurus of Samos was a teacher. His philosophy wanted to provide
security to people in a hostile world. He claimed that there were natural explanations for natural
phenomena so there was no higher power meaning that people did not need to be motivated by fearing
God. He offered insight into happiness with friendship, collectivism, and intellectual pursuits. Since he
claimed that people were free from God, that meant that people had total free will. Epicurus also
claimed that there was no distinction between the soul and the body therefore when someone dies,
their soul also dies and it is the end.
Relation: His importance is that Epicurus' teaching was the doctrine of Epicurean schools. And the
hippies of the 80s also carried this way of thinking.
Positive Law (Aquinas) - Answer Definition: Man made laws written and enforced by us. They must be
made by public authorities because public authorities are the only entities capable of enforcing law on
earth. Higher level forms of law can tell us that something is wrong but can't specifically identify the
actions that are wrong
Relation: Importance is that Aquinas claimed that positive law should be informed by natural law.
Magna Carta (1215) - Answer Definition: It is a charter that was signed by King John on June 15, 1215.
The purpose was that it gave a group of 25 barons the right to overrule royal directives and notably
reduced the king's power.
Relation: The importance of Magna Carta is that it was the first constitutional document agreed to in the
western world.
Original Sin - Answer Definition: Eating from the Tree of Knowledge and defying God created this term.
It led to the belief in the depravity of humanity so any human desire meant punishment.
Relation: The importance of this term is that it created the groundwork of Augustine's sexist ideas. Since
it was Eve who ate from the tree and she was a woman, she was seen as unintelligent since she defied
, God's order. This idea then led to the subordination of women and it went as far as claiming that
childbirth was given to women as a punishment.
Coercive Law - Answer Definition: It tells subjects that they will be punished if they don't comply. This is
the idea that since a king is in charge of law enforcement and if they break a rule, they cannot be
punished because there is no one above the king who can give law enforcement the order to punish the
king for breaking the law.
Relation: The importance of this term is that it is the second way that a law binds according to Aquinas.
This also relates to dictatorship in today's world because a dictator is in charge of everything including
the police and the military so when they break a law, there is no one to punish them meaning that they
are above the law and are free to do whatever they want.
Protestant Reformation - Answer Definition: It was a religious reform resulting in the creation of a
branch of Christianity called Protestantism, a name used collectively to refer to the many religious
groups that separated from the Roman Catholic Church due to differences in doctrine.
Relation: The Reformation led to the reformulation of certain basic tenets of Christian belief and resulted
in the division of Western Christendom between Roman Catholicism and the new Protestant traditions.
Eschatology - Answer Definition: Belief that end times are near. They also believed that martyrdom is
more honorable than a renouncement of faith. Since most religions such as Christianity were illegal back
then and looked down upon, it was better for people to act like they were good law abiding citizens
when they died than to look like someone who did not obey the rules and died a sinner.
Relation: The importance of this term is that it corresponds with the goal of early Christians which was to
gain the kingdom of heaven. You are to be in the world and not of the world. You need to live without
being a sinner and your only goal should be to get into heaven.
Papal Monarchy - Answer Definition: After Investiture, popes exhibited massive amounts of power
institutionally. For example, they had total control over appointment of church officials, church property,
and church's judicial appellate process. The exhibition of power extended to temporal political affairs
when a Pope made a lot of political moves like crowning the king of Bulgaria and declaring the magna
carta void. Popes claimed individual sovereignty and had plenitude of power. They were seen as
recipients of the keys to heaven so they claimed authority over both religious and political planes.
