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This test consists of 15 multiple choice questions and 5 short answer questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Why does Heloise argue for special dispensations?
(a) Not everyone can emulate the sufferings of Christ the same way.
(b) She does not want certain nuns to be sent away from the convent.
(c) Monastic life was designed for ascetics, not for everyone.
(d) Monastic life should not be imposed on people who will only fail at it.

2. What does Abelard say life becomes in poverty?
(a) A common store.
(b) A firm law.
(c) A resource.
(d) A community.

3. What qualities must distinguish an Abbess, in Abelard's opinion?
(a) Lifelong chastity.
(b) Learning and teaching.
(c) Broad life experience.
(d) Management experience.

4. What does Abelard say was honored by St. Paul and St. Jerome?
(a) Motherhood
(b) Prostitution.
(c) Virginity
(d) Widowhood.

5. To what does Abelard respond at first in Letter 7?
(a) Heloise's request for patience.
(b) Heloise's demand for information.
(c) Heloise's request for leniency.
(d) Heloise's initial quotes about nuns' practices.

6. How many nuns are needed to run a convent, according to Abelard?
(a) One.
(b) Three.
(c) Seven.
(d) Five.

7. What does Letter 7 describe to Heloise?
(a) Examples of women favored by the church.
(b) Reasons why women should receive lighter burdens.
(c) Reasons why women should not receive lighter burdens.
(d) Examples of women who bore more than men could bear.

8. What did the sender of Letter 9 advise Abelard to do?
(a) Get a judgment from the Abbot of Citeaux.
(b) Flee the country.
(c) Gather supporters.
(d) Appeal to the pope.

9. Who does Heloise say in Letter 6 Abelard should imitate?
(a) Her.
(b) The pope.
(c) The abbot.
(d) Christ.

10. What did Abelard do right before he died?
(a) Write to the pope.
(b) Profess his faith.
(c) Declare his love to Heloise.
(d) Write to Peter the Venerable.

11. Where did Peter the Venerable send Abelard?
(a) Chalon.
(b) Citeaux.
(c) Nantes.
(d) Laon.

12. What should nuns primarily think about, according to Abelard?
(a) The history of God and the church.
(b) The inner life.
(c) God's relationship to man.
(d) The nature of God.

13. What was the thing based on that Heloise asked Abelard to give her?
(a) The devout acts of Christ.
(b) The freedom she enjoyed before becoming a nun.
(c) The rule of St. Benedict.
(d) The story of Mary Magdalene.

14. Which role is not mentioned by Abelard when he describes the roles necessary to run a convent?
(a) A wardrobe.
(b) A shepherd.
(c) A cellaress.
(d) A portress.

15. What provision does Heloise ask Abelard to include in what he makes for her?
(a) Exceptions for the old, young, and weak.
(b) Exclusions for nuns who do not follow the rules.
(c) Special standards for the more devout nuns.
(d) Rewards for nuns who are the most devout.

Short Answer Questions

1. What does Heloise ask Abelard in Letter 6?

2. How are things distributed in poverty, according to Abelard?

3. How had Abelard handled the sender of Letter 9's recommendation?

4. From whom was Abelard seeking refuge?

5. What else does Heloise ask Abelard in Letter 6?

(see the answer keys)

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