Apatheism Apatheism (/ˌæpəˈθiːɪzəm/ a portmanteau of apathy and theism/atheism), also known as pragmatic atheism or (critically) as practical atheism, is acting with apathy, disregard, or lack of interest towards belief or disbelief in a deity. Apatheism describes the manner of acting towards a belief or lack of a belief in a deity, so it applies to both theism and atheism. An apatheist is also someone who is not interested in accepting or denying any claims that gods exist or do not exist. In other words, an apatheist is someone who considers the question of the existence of gods as neither meaningful nor relevant to their life. Apathetic agnosticism (also called pragmatic agnosticism) claims that no amount of debate can prove or disprove the existence of one or more deities, and if one or more deities exist, they do not appear to be concerned about the fate of humans. Apatheists hold that if it were possible to prove that God does or does not exist, their behavior would not change.[2]
Atheism Atheism is, in a broad sense, the rejection of belief in the existence of deities.[1][2] In a narrower sense, atheism is specifically the position that there are no deities.[3][4][5] Most inclusively, atheism is the absence of belief that any deities exist.[4][5][6][7] Atheism is contrasted with theism,[8][9] which, in its most general form, is the belief that at least one deity exists.[9][10][11] The term "atheism" originated from the Greek ἄθεος (atheos), meaning "without god(s)", used as a pejorative term applied to those thought to reject the gods worshiped by the larger society.[12] With the spread of freethought, skeptical inquiry, and subsequent increase in criticism of religion, application of the term narrowed in scope. The first individuals to identify themselves using the word "atheist" lived in the 18th century during the Age of Enlightenment. Arguments for atheism range from the philosophical to social and historical approaches. Definitions and distinctions Range Concepts
Polytheism Polytheism is a religious construct and a type of theism. Within theism, it contrasts with monotheism, the belief in a singular God. Polytheists do not always worship all the gods equally, but can be henotheists, specializing in the worship of one particular deity. Polytheism was the typical form of religion during the Bronze Age and Iron Age, up to the Axial Age and the gradual development of monotheism or pantheism, and atheism. Terminology[edit] The term comes from the Greek poly ("many") and theoi ("gods") and was first invented by the Jewish writer Philo of Alexandria to argue with the Greeks. Gods and divinity[edit] The deities of polytheism are often portrayed as complex personages of greater or lesser status, with individual skills, needs, desires and histories; in many ways similar to humans (anthropomorphic) in their personality traits, but with additional individual powers, abilities, knowledge or perceptions. Types of deities[edit] Mythology and religion[edit] Neolithic Era
Deism Deism ( i/ˈdiː.ɪzəm/[1][2] or /ˈdeɪ.ɪzəm/) is the belief that reason and observation of the natural world are sufficient to determine the existence of a Creator, accompanied with the rejection of revelation and authority as a source of religious knowledge.[3][4][5][6][7] Deism gained prominence in the 17th and 18th centuries during the Age of Enlightenment—especially in Britain, France, Germany, and the United States—among intellectuals raised as Christians who believed in one god, but found fault with organized religion and did not believe in supernatural events such as miracles, the inerrancy of scriptures, or the Trinity.[8] Deism is derived from deus, the Latin word for god. Overview[edit] Deism is a theological position concerning the relationship between "the Creator" and the natural world. The words deism and theism are both derived from words for god: the former from Latin deus, the latter from Greek theós (θεός). Features of deism[edit] Critical elements of deist thought included:
Monotheism Monotheism characterizes the traditions of Atenism, Babism, the Bahá'í Faith, Cao Dai (Caodaiism), Cheondoism (Cheondogyo), Christianity, Deism, Eckankar, Islam, Judaism, Rastafarianism, Ravidassia religion, Seicho no Ie, Shaivism, Sikhism, Tenrikyo (Tenriism), Vaishnavism, and Zoroastrianism and elements of the belief are discernible in numerous other religions.[4] Origin and development[edit] The word monotheism comes from the Greek μόνος (monos)[5] meaning "single" and θεός (theos)[6] meaning "god".[7] The English term was first used by Henry More (1614–1687).[8] Monolatrism can be a stage in the development of monotheism from polytheism. In Zoroastrianism, Ahura Mazda appears as a supreme and transcendental deity. Currents of monism or monotheism emerge in Vedic India earlier, chiefly with worship of Lord Krishna, which is full-fledged monotheism, but also with e.g. the Nasadiya Sukta. More detailed definitions[edit] Abrahamic religions[edit] Judaism[edit] God, the Cause of all, is one.
Henotheism Henotheism (Greek εἷς θεός heis theos "one god") is the belief in and worship of a single God while accepting the existence or possible existence of other deities that may also be worshipped. The term was originally coined by Friedrich Wilhelm Joseph von Schelling (1775–1854) to depict early stages of monotheism. Max Müller (1823–1900), a German philologist and orientalist, brought the term into common usage.[1] Müller made the term central to his criticism of Western theological and religious exceptionalism (relative to Eastern religions), focusing on a cultural dogma which held "monotheism" to be both fundamentally well-defined and inherently superior to differing conceptions of God. Definition and terminology[edit] Henotheism is closely related to the theistic concept of monolatry, which is also the worship of one god among many. Hinduism[edit] The term "henotheism" was first coined to describe the theology of Rigvedic religion. Hellenistic religion[edit] See also[edit] References[edit]
Monolatrism Monolatrism or monolatry (Greek: μόνος (monos) = single, and λατρεία (latreia) = worship) is the recognition of the existence of many gods, but with the consistent worship of only one deity.[1] The term was perhaps first used by Julius Wellhausen.[citation needed] Monolatry is distinguished from monotheism, which asserts the existence of only one god, and henotheism, a religious system in which the believer worships one god alone without denying that others may worship different gods with equal validity.[2] Atenism[edit] Main article: Atenism The Egyptians had an aberrant period of some form of monotheism during the New Kingdom, in which the pharaoh Akhenaten abolished the official worship of other gods in favor of the sun-disk Aten. In ancient Israel[edit] Recognized scholars have formulated a substantial case for ancient Israel's practice of monolatry.[3] "The highest claim to be made for Moses is that he was, rather than a monotheist, a monolatrist. ... In Christianity[edit] Jeffrey R.
Panentheism Panentheism (from Greek πᾶν (pân) "all"; ἐν (en) "in"; and θεός (theós) "God"; "all-in-God") is a belief system which posits that the divine (be it a monotheistic God, polytheistic gods, or an eternal cosmic animating force[1]) interpenetrates every part of nature and timelessly extends beyond it. Panentheism differentiates itself from pantheism, which holds that the divine is synonymous with the universe.[2] Unlike pantheism, panentheism maintains the identity and significance of the non-divine in the world.[3] Ancient panentheism[edit] In the Americas (Pre-European)[edit] According to Charles C. In Europe[edit] Modern philosophy[edit] The German philosopher Karl Christian Friedrich Krause (1781–1832) seeking to reconcile monotheism and pantheism, coined the term panentheism ("all in God") in 1828. In religion[edit] Bahá'í Faith[edit] In the Bahá'í Faith, God is described as a single, imperishable God, the creator of all things, including all the creatures and forces in the universe.
Pantheism Pantheism is the belief that the universe (or nature as the totality of everything) is identical with divinity,[1] or that everything composes an all-encompassing, immanent God.[2] Pantheists thus do not believe in a distinct personal or anthropomorphic god.[3] Some Eastern religions are considered to be pantheistically inclined. Definitions[edit] Pantheism is derived from the Greek roots pan (meaning "all") and theos (meaning "God"). As a religious position, some describe pantheism as the polar opposite of atheism.[5] From this standpoint, pantheism is the view that everything is part of an all-encompassing, immanent God.[2] All forms of reality may then be considered either modes of that Being, or identical with it.[7] Others hold that pantheism is a non-religious philosophical position. History[edit] The term was borrowed and first used in English by the Irish writer John Toland in his work of 1705 Socinianism Truly Stated, by a pantheist. Recent developments[edit] "Mr. Other[edit]
Theism Gods in the Triumph of Civilization Theism, in the broadest sense, is the belief that at least one deity exists.[1] In a more specific sense, theism is commonly a monotheistic doctrine concerning the nature of a deity, and that deity's relationship to the universe.[2][3][4][5] Theism, in this specific sense, conceives of God as personal, present and active in the governance and organization of the world and the universe. As such theism describes the classical conception of God that is found in Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Sikhism and Hinduism. The use of the word theism to indicate this classical form of monotheism began during the scientific revolution of the seventeenth century in order to distinguish it from the then-emerging deism which contended that God, though transcendent and supreme, did not intervene in the natural world and could be known rationally but not via revelation.[6] The term theism derives from the Greek theos meaning "god". Types[edit] Monotheism[edit] Deism[edit]
Transtheistic Transtheistic is a term coined by philosopher Paul Tillich or Indologist Heinrich Zimmer, referring to a system of thought or religious philosophy which is neither theistic, nor atheistic,[1] but is beyond them. The term has more recently also been applied to Buddhism,[2] Advaita Vedanta[3] and the Bhakti movement.[4] Paul Tillich uses transtheistic in The Courage to Be (1952), as an aspect of Stoicism. Tillich stated that Stoicism and Neo-Stoicism are the way in which some of the noblest figures in later antiquity and their followers in modern times have answered the problem of existence and conquered the anxieties of fate and death. Like Zimmer trying to express a religious notion that is neither theistic nor atheistic. The courage to take meaninglessness into itself presupposes a relation to the ground of being which we have called "absolute faith." Martin Buber criticized Tillich's "transtheistic position" as a reduction of God to the impersonal "necessary being" of Thomas Aquinas.[7]
Understanding (and refuting) the arguments for God Michael Shermer has made a career of skepticism — he is the founder of Skeptic, for one — but in his 2000 book, How We Believe: The Search for God in an Age of Science, he does not come across as the hardcore atheist you might expect. (He prefers "nontheist.") One can appreciate his honesty and integrity. Certain fundamentalists and atheists alike see the question of God as an either-or proposal, not content on the murky speculations presented by the other "side." 1. / 2. This argument results in an infinite regress. 3. Shermer borrows from Martin Gardner by stating that this is a "mysterian mystery" — the idea that nothing is unknowable is due to our minds being unable to process the thought of it. 4. As Shermer points out, if the first point were true, you would have to add the false, ignoble, and worst, all of which would also be God. 5. Shermer points out that there are many design flaws in nature, such as the hind legs of a python and a whale’s flipper. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10.
The Latest "Cosmos" Episode Has the Best Argument Yet Against Creationism Neil Tyson approaches a black hole.Fox. To be a Young Earth creationist is to hold a truly unique place in the history of wrongness. These religious ideologues don't just deny human evolution; their belief in a universe that is only a few thousand years old commits them to an enormity of other errors, including many beliefs that fly in the face of modern physics. Last night's episode of Cosmos, devoted to explaining the nature of space, time, and the speed of light, presented a stunning case in point. For as host Neil deGrasse Tyson explained, if creationists were right about the extreme youth of the universe, then we wouldn't even be able to see the vast majority of the stars in the sky. The logic is unavoidable: Light travels at a fixed speed of 186,000 miles per second. The Crab Nebula. The Crab Nebula is far away, but not that far: It is actually still part of our own Milky Way galaxy. According to some beliefs, that [6,500 years] is the age of the whole universe.