WeAreAllOne
Member
Is Christianity polytheistic? My basis for this is that the Devil is treated as a God, he is even indirectly assumed to be more powerful in influencing people than God is. I see two Gods. What do you think?
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Is Christianity polytheistic?
- Thread starter WeAreAllOne
- Start date
Mike182
Flaming Queer
ooooo, good question!WeAreAllOne said:
christians don't worship the devil, so i guess they would say that becasue they only worship oen god, they are monotheistic
but then, that rests on your definition of mono/polythiesm - if you define a monotheistic religion as one where only one god is worshiped, then yes it is - if you define a monotheistic religion as only accepting teh existence of one God, then yes (if you accept the devil to have God-like status)
WeAreAllOne
Member
Does the definition of polytheism require the God to be worshiped or only exist?
Thats the question then, after taking into account Mike's post.
Thats the question then, after taking into account Mike's post.
linwood
Well-Known Member
I would think merely existing would validate a godlike being.WeAreAllOne said:
I realise this is rationalised away because angels and such are "lesser" than the Big-G but to my mind they possess godlike qualities..they are gods.
They may not be worshipped but they are acknowledged.
A recurring theme, this.
A lot depends on one's definition of "worship" and "God."
Some defend Christianity as strictly monotheistic, but with a plethora of aknowledged celestial inhabitants.
Others hold that if you pray to it or accord it extraordinary powers it's a "God" and you're worshiping it.
A lot depends on one's definition of "worship" and "God."
Some defend Christianity as strictly monotheistic, but with a plethora of aknowledged celestial inhabitants.
Others hold that if you pray to it or accord it extraordinary powers it's a "God" and you're worshiping it.
WeAreAllOne
Member
how do we define God then? seems like a weird question but I've never thought about that before. hmmm...
Halcyon
Lord of the Badgers
I made a thread about this subject a while back, you can find it here if you want to read it - its full of counter-arguments as well.
How do you define God? Well, the modern view of what a god is has been warped by the shear number of adherants to the Abrahamic model. Most people will now tell you that God is the creator of the world, the supreme being. But if you look to history, or even in the bible, it is clear that this God is the god of one man - Abraham - his descendants and his ancestors (if you count the mythological figures of Noah and Adam as ancestors), and of the region formally known as Canaan.
The concept of gods and goddesses in the original meaning is one of spiritual beings which number in their millions, each worshipped by and looking after an individual, a family or small group of people i.e. a village. Its only with the advent of Christianity that one god was singled out from the multitude and hailed as Lord of Creation
How do you define God? Well, the modern view of what a god is has been warped by the shear number of adherants to the Abrahamic model. Most people will now tell you that God is the creator of the world, the supreme being. But if you look to history, or even in the bible, it is clear that this God is the god of one man - Abraham - his descendants and his ancestors (if you count the mythological figures of Noah and Adam as ancestors), and of the region formally known as Canaan.
The concept of gods and goddesses in the original meaning is one of spiritual beings which number in their millions, each worshipped by and looking after an individual, a family or small group of people i.e. a village. Its only with the advent of Christianity that one god was singled out from the multitude and hailed as Lord of Creation
A
angellous_evangellous
Guest
No. Christians confess that there is only one God. See our creeds. www.creeds.netWeAreAllOne said:
A
angellous_evangellous
Guest
Remember that Christianity came out of Judaism, which developed strict monotheism in Babylon. The Jews as an entire people worshiped God as Creator. The book of Genesis is a Hebrew myth, not a Christian creation.Halcyon said:
Katzpur
Not your average Mormon
I agree. There are several places in the Bible where "gods" (lower-case "g") are mentioned. Sometimes God (i.e. the Christian God, the Eternal Father, etc.) is said to be the "God of gods." Whenever people say that all "gods" mentioned in the Bible are "false gods," it makes me wonder... Does that make God a "God of false gods"? I think that acknowledging "gods" as beings with godlike qualities or attributes is not the same thing as worshipping them, and I don't think it's polytheistic, either. If these "gods" exist, but have no power or authority over us or our universe, I fail to see beliving that they exist as a big deal.linwood said:
Just 'cause they inhabit the heavens, doesn't make them gods... at least not to those of us that don't believe we become gods when we "go" thereSeyorni said:
Folks worship satan... for us Christians, that doesn't afford him god powers. Sure he has powers over people, but so do people.... peer pressure from other people can be a pretty powerful manipulator. Does that make the peers doing the pressuring gods? I don't think so!Seyorni said:
Green Gaia
Veteran Member
No...and neither is Hinduism.WeAreAllOne said:
Glad we settled that.
Katzpur
Not your average Mormon
I would agree that not every being that is in Heaven is a "god," but what about the "gods" that "God" is the "God" of? Who are they?StewpidLoser said:Just 'cause they inhabit the heavens, doesn't make them gods... at least not to those of us that don't believe we become gods when we "go" there
Halcyon
Lord of the Badgers
I know that angellousangellous_evangellous said:
, but until Christianity came along YHWH was the god of the Jews, it wasn't until Paul's 'crusade' that He was spread to other peoples.Back to the original topic. Zeus was the God of gods in Greece, Jupiter held the same position in Rome, Ra in Egypt - they were all at the top, but many other deities existed all subservient to the top God. Sound familar? It should do because its exactly the same case with Christianity.
If you call the religions of ancient Greece and Rome polytheistic, then you must also call Christianity polytheistic.
I can hear people already saying "But we only worship the God at the top, thus we're monotheistic".
Of course this is true, but if an ancient Roman only worshipped Jupiter, does that make him monotheistic? The answer is yes, monotheistic individuals within a polytheistic theology. He acknowledged the presence of other gods but did not worship them - just like a modern day Christian acknowledges the presence of Michael, Gabriel, Saints, Satan etc with YHWH's heavenly host, but does not worship them.
(Insert counter-argument below)