Questions on the Readings on Western and Eastern Beliefs and Religion

Stone Inscription Zheng He left on Ceylon (Sri Lanka)
1. How did Ceylon (Sri Lanka) treat Zheng He on earlier voyages? How did Zheng He react? How would Da Gama have reacted?

In earlier voyages, the local rulers of Ceylon were unfriendly so Zheng He quickly departed from the location. Da Gama would have killed the local rulers and conquer the lands of Sri Lanka by establishing a colony there as a port, and convert the local people into Roman Catholics.
2. How many different religions were there in Sri Lanka during this time? Who were the main gods?

There were 3 different religions in Sri Lanka during Zheng He’s expedition in Sri Lanka: Buddhism, Islam, and Hinduism. The main gods from these respective religions were Buddha for Buddhism, Allah for Islam, and the god Shiva for Hinduism.
3. What was the Chinese reaction toward this religious diversity, based on the evidence of the trilingual inscription left by Zheng He?

Their reaction toward this religious diversity was to deal with this “cosmopolitan trading community” by offering “lavish tributes” of gold, silver, and silk to each of the respected gods.
4. How would the Christian explorers probably have reacted to this diversity?

Christian explorers would have either held them as captives or enslave them, especially to the Muslims since they are the Christian’s enemy.

The Pope on New Discovered Lands:

1. What is the Romanus Pontifex, and what does it show about how the Christian (Catholic) Church thought about non-Christian cultures?

The Romanus Pontifex was a papal bull which is the most authoritative announcement a pope can make as the representative of the Christian god on Earth. It authorized the Portuguese King do subdue, enslave, or conquer any non-Christian or Muslim peoples whom the Portuguese might encounter on their voyages of discovery between Cape Bojador and the Indies.
2. What is this idea of the Monarchia Universalis, and who would be the "universal monarch"?

The idea of the Monarchia Universalis was an idea of having a universal Christian empire. The universal monarch would be the Pope or the Priest.
3. Did the missionaries during the Portuguese and Spanish Age of Exploration--remember, only six or seven decades after Zheng He's voyages ended--show any curiosity about foreign ideas of religious truth?

The missionaries during the Portuguese and Spanish Age of Exploration did not show curiosity about foreign ideas of religious truth and instead focus on seeking for people to convert to Christianity or Roman Catholic. “Only a few members of the clergy who travelled to Asia were required to study the basics of the religions of Islam, Hinduism, or Buddhism. Most of them were satisfied to dismiss all other religions as the work of the Devil.”

Requerimiento

1. What's the basic message of this Christian (Catholic) text to all non-Christians in the North and South American continents?

The basic message of this text was for all non-Christians in the North and South American continents to obey the priests sent from the Highnesses of Spain to what they, the priests, have preached and taught to them—to convert to Christians (Catholic). Only if all non-Christians in the North and South American continents do well in obeying the priests, the Spanish conquistadors will leave them alone, without servitude, and allow them to live freely. But if they do not follow this requerimiento, or “requirement”, the Spanish conquistadors will enter the country forcefully, declare war against the, and enslave all of them.