Questions for Polytheists?

Well, there have been a lot of good replies, but I'll have my say as well.

Why must there be multiple Gods/Goddesses? What's the purpose for that?

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To me that's like saying, why must there be many galaxies. It's the way that the universe is.

Is there a God/Godess that is completely all-powerful?

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I'm in no position to tell. The universe may have been created by one being, or by a committee. If there was a single creator, she didn't have to be all-powerful: just powerful to do the job. Why did she create other gods? Perhaps she just thought the cosmos looked nicer that way.

Are these Gods/Goddesses eternal? Can new deities/divine beings be created? If so, how?

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I'd say that they are, just as human souls are. Death is a property of matter (see the Second Law of Thermodynamics), not spirit. New deities could obviously be created in the same way that the first ones were. Also, I don't believe that there's a rigid division between human and divine souls: the former may become the latter. Most pagans hold that view: in China there are more ex-human gods than original ones.

Are there no Gods/Goddesses that are all-powerful? Why are they considered Gods/Goddesses then, if they are simply higher beings of existence?

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Be cause that's what a god is: a being sufficiently above us to inspire our worship.

Is there such a thing as evil? Are there evil deities?

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There are bad actions, in the sense of actions which are not conducive to our good. An evil person is one who habitually does evil things. Any being one would consider a god must surely be wise enough not to perform bad actions. But that means actions that would be bad for them, not necessarily ones that would be bad for us.

Animore said:

In the limited experienced I have on polytheistic religions, I have a few questions.

1. Why must there be multiple Gods/Goddesses? What's the purpose for that? If the purpose for different Gods is for each of them to control different factors of nature/the world, why can't one God/Godess handle everything? Why do they have to break off portions?

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Well, look at nature itself and tell me how many things exist in a solitary existence. There are none.

There are so many different aspects to life, death and everything in between. There are so many different experiences, emotions, events and phenomena in this world that there simply cannot be one divine power.

There are multiple stars in the sky; there are multiple planets in all the galaxies that exist; there are billions of humans who go about their lives.

2. Is there a God/Godess that is completely all-powerful? If so, why can't He/She handle things on their own?

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No. That's not really something that exists in polytheistic religions. In European polytheistic religions, the most powerful force in existence is Fate.

3. Are these Gods/Godesses eternal? Can new deities/divine beings be created? If so, how?

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If mythology is to be followed; technically. Gods can 'die' (for lack of a better term) and descend to the Underworld, but even there they still have divine power. Even so, they are known to return to the world of the living. Perhaps a deity's 'death' changes them in some way.

Well, again, if mythology is to be followed, yes. Gods can breed with other gods and mortals.

4. Are there no Gods/Godesses that are all-powerful? Why are they considered God/Godess then, if they are simply higher beings of existence?

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No. They are divine personifications of reality and are of a higher existence. The can affect our world in the most subtle but profound ways possible. People worship gods primarily just out of devotion because these gods stir something deep within their heart.

5. Is there such a thing as evil? Are there evil deities?

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I believe that there are malevolent actions and someon who constantly performs malevolent actions could be considered 'evil' in a mortal sense. These types of people might end up in Tartarus.

Thanks a bunch.

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I hope I helped.

1. Why must there be multiple Gods/Goddesses? What's the purpose for that? If the purpose for different Gods is for each of them to control different factors of nature/the world, why can't one God/Goddess handle everything? Why do they have to break off portions?: Because some people believe that, some people don't believe that. Many deities people have the same proof as one deity people, scriptures. Better management of the universe. If the work-load is distributed among a friendly group of Deities (Gods and/or Goddesses), what is the problem?

2. Is there a God/Godess that is completely all-powerful? If so, why can't He/She handle things on their own?: They all have the capabilities but work in unison. They are not greedy for additional powers.

3. Are these Gods/Godesses eternal? Can new deities/divine beings be created? If so, how?: They are eternal. New Deities come when we encounter new problems. For example, when dissatisfaction and despondency increased among Hindus, a new Goddess, Santoshi Mata, the Goddess of Contentment, arrived. She is Lord Ganesha's daughter. Santoshi Mata - Wikipedia

4. Are there no Gods/Godesses that are all-powerful? Why are they considered God/Godess then, if they are simply higher beings of existence?: Basically all Deities have every power, but they use them judiciously. There are elder Deities and younger Deities. The younger Deities always respect the elder Deities. Younger Deities may be progeny of elder Deities.

5. Is there such a thing as evil? Are there evil deities?: No.There are no evil Deities. Hindus have various views on evil. Some think good and evil exists, some don't. For explanation, you will need to study a little more about Hinduism.

As a Norse Pagan, I will tell answer these questions from my perspective:

1. Why are there multiple gods? Each god has its own role in the Pantheon. In my case, Odin, is considered to be the chief deity, and he is a personification of the force that brings forth intelligence, wisdom, and enlightenment, and also, he represents wind, which is the philosophical element associated with intellectualism. Baldr and Thor, his sons, are the gods of light strength respectively. Polytheism satisfies the need to symbolize multiple aspects of nature. Monotheism, on the other hand sees that there is one all powerful deity who is like a ruler or king, or that all aspects of nature are encompassed by one god.

2. Part of the point of polytheism is that each deity has its own role. Also, none of the gods control the world. They are more like the energetic sides of ideas to be learned from. They exist on various planes. Within the overlapping spiritual dimension, within nature, and within the mind. They aren't monarchs or oligarchs or any "rulers" of that sort. There is no omnipotent force. Nature is the highest power, and gods are part of nature.

3. There is some debate on this, especially within Heathenry, as the death of the gods is an important topic within the theology. Baldr has already been slain by Loki, and all of the gods will meet their fate at Ragnarök, the end and beginning of the world. Baldr still resides in Hel, and he will return to life after Ragnarök. The gods can die, but their essence will always remain, allowing them to come back again.

4. I think that this one has been sufficiently covered by my answer to number two.

5. I don't believe in a dualistic structure of good and evil. These things vary subjectively. Loki, the god of darkness, deception, and death, is the closest thing we have to a Devil in the Norse religion, however, he is still worthy of praise because he provides balance, and his son, Jörmungandr, will incite Ragnarök, allowing the gods to die and return in a revitalised state. There is no good and evil. There is, however, darkness and light. Both are essential to maintaining balance, which seems to be central to polytheism in general. The deities often have inverses and enemies, which represents this.

Animore said:

In the limited experienced I have on polytheistic religions, I have a few questions.

1. Why must there be multiple Gods/Goddesses? What's the purpose for that? If the purpose for different Gods is for each of them to control different factors of nature/the world, why can't one God/Godess handle everything? Why do they have to break off portions?
2. Is there a God/Godess that is completely all-powerful? If so, why can't He/She handle things on their own

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the orthodox christian trinity has the answer to these two questions. God is love. you must have more than one so that love has a meaning.

3. Are these Gods/Godesses eternal? Can new deities/divine beings be created? If so, how?

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yes, they are eternal

4. Are there no Gods/Godesses that are all-powerful? Why are they considered God/Godess then, if they are simply higher beings of existence?

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they are all powerful and all loving.

5. Is there such a thing as evil? Are there evil deities?

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no.

they are eternal beings of a spiritual nature. they seek fellowship and have their truth. they are not all powerful nor omniscient.
we came about on our own spawned from a great spirit.

eternal beings are quite wary of humanity.

you wouldn't just meet them ,and they have much to defend and be responsible for.

Unveiled Artist said:

Because nature isnt one thing. The sun is different then the moon. The moon different than the earth. Spirits, in my view, arent like the abrahamic god who is all powerful. Spirits of nature are the life of their individual part of nature and are unique in their own identity as I am different than you or John.

One god devalues the variety of life whether we believe in gods or not.

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I take it you say no one God of your Gods is all powerful. This is a problem because multiple classes of Godhood require multiple versions of evidence, they also require multiple reasons and its hard to link them together. It also leaves alot of questions. Such as how would these Gods come to an agreement. How do they react and intervene in creation as separate beings. I believe God has a book which is a love letter which has historical and logical weight to it. The bible fills this blank but polytheistic beliefs do not.