Polytheism - 2057 Words

Polytheism Reproduced, with permission, from THE FUTURIST, Published by the World Future Society, 7910 Woodmont Avenue, Suite 450, Bethesda, Maryland 20814 Toward the end of the nineteenth century, the German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche wrote a fictional account of a madman who went about the town proclaiming that God is dead. Nietzsches story is illustrative of a wave of atheism that spread through the intellectual circles of Europe in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, but that never caught on in society at large. The idea of the divine demise, however, did not die: A movement by theologians resurrected Nietzsches thesis in the 1960s, amidst the other forms of radical thinking that characterized that decade.†¦show more content†¦MONOTHEISMS THREE-PRONGED PROBLEM Monotheism also contains another essential problem--one with implications for the future. The Western God of the Jewish-Christian-Islamic tradition illustrates the core difficulty in monotheism, a philosop hical conundrum that has been called the theodicy problem. It is formulated as a trilemma and can best be illustrated this way: Among the following three statements, it is logically possible to reconcile any two of them, but the agreement of two implies that the third is false. The three statements are: 1. God is omnipotent. 2. God loves us. 3. Evil exists. In the first instance, if God can do anything (create the universe, for example), and if the universe contains natural and moral evils (hurricanes and Hitlers, for example), then it would seem that God lacks compassion for the victims, especially when these victims are innocent sufferers. Dostoyevskys character Ivan in The Brothers Karamazov makes this case eloquently when he tells the story of innocent children tortured by cruel soldiers in front of their parents. How could a loving God allow this? The second case is the acceptance of a loving, concerned God and the existence of evil in the world. This implies that even God cann ot find a way to eliminate evil, or at least reserve it as punishment only for those who deserve it. A God who cannot do this is less than omnipotent. Finally, one canShow MoreRelatedEssay Monotheism vs. Polytheism1577 Words   |  7 PagesMonotheism and polytheism are two very different belief systems. Monotheism is the belief in one god and polytheism is the belief in more one than one god. The concept of morality can and does exist within cultures that have only one god, as well as cultures that have multiple gods. Without morality, the world would be a place of extreme chaos and pandemonium. However, the foundation for morality within polytheistic religions is quite contradictory to the foundation for morality with monotheisticRead MoreThe Search For God, Ancient Egypt, By Jan Assmann1016 Words   |  5 PagesPresence and Transcendence† establishes the topic of this book, summarizing the theme of ‘divine presence’ and the concept of a single god and mult iple gods (essentially monotheism vs polytheism). Divided into 2 main parts, the first, aptly named â€Å"The Dimensions of Divine Presence: The Implicit Theology of Egyptian Polytheism†, mainly revolves around implicit theology and what Assmann considers to the be the three dimensions of Egyptian religion: the local and cultic dimension, the dimension of cosmosRead MoreChristianity, And World View Of The World1568 Words   |  7 Pageshumans are equal before him and will be judged by him. As such the notion of equality (of believers at least) is one of the fundamental aspects of monotheism. 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The Beginnings of Religion Polytheism, the belief in many gods, is perhaps the oldest known religion. The best known example is the Greek/Roman mythology, which included Zeus, Apollo, and Aphrodite, among others. One trait that is true of most Polytheistic sects is that there is aRead MoreElements of Religious Traditions785 Words   |  4 Pagessacred. Monotheism meaning one God relates to religions like Christianity, Judaism, and Islam. Polytheism meaning many gods relate to religions like Hinduism, Zen Buddhism and, many religions of ancient civilizations. Pantheism which, is drawn from Polytheism means all of nature. God is everything and everything is God. The concept of being or existence is how these religions see their Gods. Most Polytheism beliefs are that their gods come in the form an actually being such as calves, people, statuesRead MoreAncient Polytheistic Religion Compared to Judaism Essay919 Words   |  4 PagesAncient polytheistic religion compared to Judaism Ancient polytheistic and Judaism are two of the most opposite beliefs possible. Polytheistic belief is the belief in more than just one god. Polytheism was brought to this world by the ancient Egyptians and the ancient Greeks. The Greek gods often took on the form of being humans while the Egyptian gods were the main cornerstone to their beliefs and religion. Judaism or the belief of Monotheism is the belief in one main god. MonotheismRead MoreHow Monotheism As A Type Of Religion973 Words   |  4 Pagesthe pathway to monotheism which begins by humans feeling a spiritual force (mana) and evolves into visualizing that force in physical spirits (animism). As time goes on, the evolution of those spirits as they grow stronger turns them into gods (polytheism) and eventually humans will elevate one god over the others while still acknowledging multiple gods (henotheism). As humans become more enlightened, they come to realize that there is only one true God (monotheism). Original Monotheism The theoryRead MoreWhat Is Monotheism, And Where Did This Idea Come From?1751 Words   |  8 Pagesunderstand better the history of Monotheism, and what it had to do with the Old Testament. Before entering into the history of Monotheism, here is some terminology to help navigate our way forward. Some other words that might be referenced are â€Å"Polytheism†, which is the belief in many Gods, â€Å"Atheism† which is the belief that there is no God, and â€Å"Henotheism† a belief in a particular God, without negating the others of being gods as well.2 Our focus will be sifting through the history, belief of Monotheism