Which answer best describes the problem with the Mandate of Heaven? A. It relies on divine intervention to determine if an emperor acting in an upright manner. B. It was a fictional concept used to explain the destruction of the mythical Xia dynasty. C. It was based on the teachings of Confucius who was never accepted by the Chinese emperors.

A. It relies on divine intervention to determine if an emperor acting in an upright manner.

Explanation:

The Mandate of Heaven was established by the Zhou dynasty. The idea behind it is to the idea to explain the reason the Shang dynasty was overthrown.

The concept of Mandate of Heaven was based on the belief that it is through the power of gods that a ruler is given a divine right to rule over his subjects. However, in the event of a violation of these privileges, the gods can revoke the Mandate of heaven from such a ruler and bestow it on another.

The presence or absence of phenomena like peasant uprisings, invasions by foreign troops, drought, famine, floods, and earthquakes are divine interventions to determine if an emperor acting in an upright manner.

separation of powers, therefore, refers to the division of government responsibilities into distinct branches to limit any one branch from exercising the core functions of another.   the intent is to prevent the concentration of power and provide for checks and balances.  

the traditional characterizations of the powers of the branches of american government are:

* the legislative branch is responsible for enacting the laws of the state and appropriating the money necessary to operate the government.

* the executive branch is responsible for implementing and administering the public policy enacted and funded by the legislative branch.

* the judicial branch is responsible for interpreting the constitution and laws and applying their interpretations to controversies brought before it.

forty state constitutions specify that government be divided into three branches:   legislative, executive and judicial.   california illustrates this approach; "the powers of state government are legislative, executive, and judicial.   persons charged with the exercise of one power may not exercise either of the others except as permitted by this constitution."

while separation of powers is key to the workings of american government, no democratic system exists with an absolute separation of powers or an absolute lack of separation of powers. governmental powers and responsibilities intentionally overlap; they are too complex and interrelated to be neatly compartmentalized. as a result, there is an inherent measure of competition and conflict

minnesota:   minnesota house research,   separation of powers: when statutes and court rules conflict, 2005