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| What makes a religion monotheistic? |
| The belief that there is literally only one god |
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68% |
[ 11 ] |
| The belief that only one god may be worshiped |
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18% |
[ 3 ] |
| No idea |
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12% |
[ 2 ] |
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| Total Votes : 16 |
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 Posted: Mon Mar 01, 2010 8:41 pm
I read The Old Testament: A Very Short Introduction by Michael Coogan recently. In the book, it talked a lot about what monotheism meant for the early Jews. Rather than the idea that's common among Jews, Christians, Muslims, and other monotheists nowadays -that there is literally only one god and that all others are made up- early monotheists believed that gods and goddesses such as Baal did exist, but that the only god who deserved to be worshiped was Yahweh. So, it got me thinking, what exactly is monotheism? Is it the belief that there is only one god or the belief that only one god should be worshiped? And for those of you belong to monotheistic religions, does it surprise you that the early view was that there were multiple gods but that the others didn't deserve worship or does this idea coincide with your beliefs?
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Posted: Mon Mar 01, 2010 8:44 pm
Quote: monotheism |ˈmänəˌθēˌizəm| noun the doctrine or belief that there is only one God. DERIVATIVES monotheist |ˈˈmɑnəˈθi1st| noun & adjective monotheistic |ˌmänəθēˈistik| |ˈˈmɑnəθiˈɪstɪk| |-ˈɪstɪk| adjective monotheistically |ˌmänəθēˈistik(ə)lē| |ˈˈmɑnəθiˈɪst1k(ə)li| |-ˈɪstɪk(ə)li| adverb ORIGIN mid 17th cent.: from mono- [one] + Greek theos ‘god’ + -ism . This would be what I believe monotheism is. I go with what our modern society tells us the definition is. Going by what this says, I must assume I'm polytheistic: Quote: polytheism |ˈpäliθēˌizəm| noun the belief in or worship of more than one god. DERIVATIVES polytheist |-ˌθēist| |ˈˈpɑliˈθi1st| noun polytheistic |ˌpäliθēˈistik| |ˈˈpɑliˈθiˈɪstɪk| |ˈˈpɑləθiˈɪstɪk| |-ˈɪstɪk| adjective ORIGIN early 17th cent.: from French polythéisme, from Greek polutheos ‘of many gods,’ from polu- ‘many’ + theos ‘god.’
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Posted: Mon Mar 01, 2010 8:52 pm
I think most people would go my the current/modern definition that its the belief that there is only one god (like the poster above me does). I, personally, think it depends on however you choose to interpret the idea.
Me, personally, I don't care. I don't believe in any god or pantheon of gods.
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Posted: Mon Mar 01, 2010 10:35 pm
Monotheism is belief in one God.
Monolateralism is the belief that there are many gods but only one God worthy of worship.
Judaism and Christianity were monolateralist religions but eventually developed into monotheism.
No the idea of monolaterism doesn't surprise me. Personally, I fall somewhere in between monolaterist and henotheist.
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Posted: Mon Mar 01, 2010 10:38 pm
Julri I read The Old Testament: A Very Short Introduction by Michael Coogan recently. In the book, it talked a lot about what monotheism meant for the early Jews. Rather than the idea that's common among Jews, Christians, Muslims, and other monotheists nowadays -that there is literally only one god and that all others are made up- early monotheists believed that gods and goddesses such as Baal did exist, but that the only god who deserved to be worshiped was Yahweh. So, it got me thinking, what exactly is monotheism? Is it the belief that there is only one god or the belief that only one god should be worshiped? And for those of you belong to monotheistic religions, does it surprise you that the early view was that there were multiple gods but that the others didn't deserve worship or does this idea coincide with your beliefs? Muslims doesnt think that Christian & Jew. r worshiping the wrong God.... btw in Qur'an Allah often describe Itself as "we" no one really knows why.... wether it is from the 99 names of Allah... or the unlimitedness of God.... btw how do u spell wether? weather?
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Posted: Tue Mar 02, 2010 3:44 am
rmcdra Monotheism is belief in one God. Monolateralism is the belief that there are many gods but only one God worthy of worship. Judaism and Christianity were monolateralist religions but eventually developed into monotheism. No the idea of monolaterism doesn't surprise me. Personally, I fall somewhere in between monolaterist and henotheist. Christianity was never monolateralist, however Judaism definitely was until around 800BC during the Babylonian oppression, which was when the major editations were made to Genesis by author "E" mainly the introduction of the Creation story, which mimicked pre-existing Cultural myths but added the unique spin the YHVH existed before the darkness instead of springing forth from it. It was this aspect of originality and pre-eminence that transformed Judaism into a modern Monotheism
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Posted: Tue Mar 02, 2010 3:48 am
Four Mile Sprint rmcdra Monotheism is belief in one God. Monolateralism is the belief that there are many gods but only one God worthy of worship. Judaism and Christianity were monolateralist religions but eventually developed into monotheism. No the idea of monolaterism doesn't surprise me. Personally, I fall somewhere in between monolaterist and henotheist. Christianity was never monolateralist, however Judaism definitely was until around 800BC during the Babylonian oppression, which was when the major editations were made to Genesis by author "E" mainly the introduction of the Creation story, which mimicked pre-existing Cultural myths but added the unique spin the YHVH existed before the darkness instead of springing forth from it. It was this aspect of originality and pre-eminence that transformed Judaism into a modern Monotheism My mistake, I should have clarified, some of the developing Christian sects before the Nicene Creed were monolaterist.
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Posted: Tue Mar 02, 2010 7:46 am
HollywoodNobody Julri I read The Old Testament: A Very Short Introduction by Michael Coogan recently. In the book, it talked a lot about what monotheism meant for the early Jews. Rather than the idea that's common among Jews, Christians, Muslims, and other monotheists nowadays -that there is literally only one god and that all others are made up- early monotheists believed that gods and goddesses such as Baal did exist, but that the only god who deserved to be worshiped was Yahweh. So, it got me thinking, what exactly is monotheism? Is it the belief that there is only one god or the belief that only one god should be worshiped? And for those of you belong to monotheistic religions, does it surprise you that the early view was that there were multiple gods but that the others didn't deserve worship or does this idea coincide with your beliefs? Muslims doesnt think that Christian & Jew. r worshiping the wrong God.... btw in Qur'an Allah often describe Itself as "we" no one really knows why.... wether it is from the 99 names of Allah... or the unlimitedness of God.... btw how do u spell wether? weather? Whether
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Posted: Tue Mar 02, 2010 2:32 pm
early in Genesis GOd is saying that Adam should be expelled from the garden
"lest he taste of the fruit of the tree of life and become as one of us"...
who was he talking to?
and Muslims while they respect Christians as "people of the Book" also despise us a tritheists
with some justification; Islam certainly seems more monotheistic than CHristianity
and the trinity is unbiblical and hard to explain let alone defend
although people will go to vehement extremes to support their dogma
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Posted: Tue Mar 02, 2010 2:48 pm
chessiejo early in Genesis GOd is saying that Adam should be expelled from the garden "lest he taste of the fruit of the tree of life and become as one of us"... who was he talking to? and Muslims while they respect Christians as "people of the Book" also despise us a tritheists with some justification; Islam certainly seems more monotheistic than CHristianity and the trinity is unbiblical and hard to explain let alone defend although people will go to vehement extremes to support their dogma That's why I take the view that the Godhead is made up of three separate and distinct Gods...Heavenly Father, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost. It makes sense when you see verses such as "lest they become one of us." in the bible. It's the whole Godhead speaking to each other. And yes the trinity is impossible to understand and defend, unless, like you said one goes to vehement extremes to support it.
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Posted: Fri Mar 05, 2010 9:03 pm
Eh, pure monotheism makes no sense to me. Neither does pure polytheism. But the reasons are complicated and I'm too lazy to get into it right now. xd :
It is worth noting though, that while religions may give the appearance of leaning towards one or the other, structurally the world's religions are pretty much the same; there's both manyness and oneness. The difference is more in what the focus of worship is, not whether there is manyness or oneness. Catholicism in particular has a whole slough of "minor deities" such as saints and angels. They're just not worshiped. Just like polytheistic faiths usually have some overarching unity concept such as fate, but it isn't worshiped either.
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Posted: Fri Mar 05, 2010 9:26 pm
Starlock Eh, pure monotheism makes no sense to me. Neither does pure polytheism. But the reasons are complicated and I'm too lazy to get into it right now. xd : It is worth noting though, that while religions may give the appearance of leaning towards one or the other, structurally the world's religions are pretty much the same; there's both manyness and oneness. The difference is more in what the focus of worship is, not whether there is manyness or oneness. Catholicism in particular has a whole slough of "minor deities" such as saints and angels. They're just not worshiped. Just like polytheistic faiths usually have some overarching unity concept such as fate, but it isn't worshiped either. No we don't! They aren't deities and any powers they may seem to have come from God.
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Posted: Fri Mar 05, 2010 9:43 pm
chessiejo early in Genesis GOd is saying that Adam should be expelled from the garden "lest he taste of the fruit of the tree of life and become as one of us"... who was he talking to? and Muslims while they respect Christians as "people of the Book" also despise us a tritheists with some justification; Islam certainly seems more monotheistic than CHristianity and the trinity is unbiblical and hard to explain let alone defend although people will go to vehement extremes to support their dogma He was talking to Jesus and the Holy Spirirt of course. And the Trinity is necessary because a God is love in Himself. That's only possible because His three seperate aspects love each other. How would an alone, unfeeling god come up with an emotion like that? No, the origin is in the unity of this being who is three seperate aspects in one. And God shouldn't be completely understood. The mystery is part of what shows us that He is higher then us. Read Mere Christianity or the Shack though, and I think you'll begin to see why the Trinity is necessary, good and biblical, unless you're trying not to get it.
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Posted: Fri Mar 05, 2010 9:50 pm
Semiremis Starlock Eh, pure monotheism makes no sense to me. Neither does pure polytheism. But the reasons are complicated and I'm too lazy to get into it right now. xd : It is worth noting though, that while religions may give the appearance of leaning towards one or the other, structurally the world's religions are pretty much the same; there's both manyness and oneness. The difference is more in what the focus of worship is, not whether there is manyness or oneness. Catholicism in particular has a whole slough of "minor deities" such as saints and angels. They're just not worshiped. Just like polytheistic faiths usually have some overarching unity concept such as fate, but it isn't worshiped either. No we don't! They aren't deities and any powers they may seem to have come from God. I didn't say they are deities. It's why I put "minor deities" in quotes. I'm mostly pointing out that structurally, monotheism and polytheism really aren't all that different. Honestly, though, I've also seen plenty of Catholics who - regardless of what they SAY - by all outward appearances pay significant homage to figures like the Virgin Mary or their patron saint. By all outward appearances, it's polytheistic practice, even if the ideological focus is not, since significant attention is being given to something other than the one God. But there are people better at discussing this than I am. Namely the religion professor I had several years ago who discussed this at length in a class and the other comparative religion scholars who have observed/studied this sort of thing a lot more than I have. sweatdrop
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Posted: Fri Mar 05, 2010 10:27 pm
Starlock I didn't say they are deities. It's why I put "minor deities" in quotes. I'm mostly pointing out that structurally, monotheism and polytheism really aren't all that different. They are opposite ends of the spectrum but there are many variations in between. Soft polytheism, henotheism, pantheism, panentheism, monolateralism,... Quote: Honestly, though, I've also seen plenty of Catholics who - regardless of what they SAY - by all outward appearances pay significant homage to figures like the Virgin Mary or their patron saint. Paying homage/venerating is not the same as worship. Worshiping the saints is a heresy. Quote: By all outward appearances, it's polytheistic practice, even if the ideological focus is not, since significant attention is being given to something other than the one God. So cooking is a pagan practice, having holidays is a pagan practice, any type of ritual is a pagan practice? Is that what you are trying to imply? Hell if this is the case why try to distinguish any religion or anything at all? Quote: But there are people better at discussing this than I am. Namely the religion professor I had several years ago who discussed this at length in a class and the other comparative religion scholars who have observed/studied this sort of thing a lot more than I have. sweatdrop While there are similaries on the surface level for many religions (there's nothing new under the sun), they have thier beliefs and practices for often times differing ontological, theological, ethical, historical, and cultural reasons.
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