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Monotheism vs. pantheism
By: Dan Holdgreiwe
The primary meaning of "pantheism" is "the belief that the Divine is
identifiable with the forces of nature and with natural substances,"
and it is this meaning of pantheism which is properly contrasted with
"panentheism" (the belief that the Divine is within the natural world
but not limited to it). This pantheism *denies* all Gods and
Goddesses, at least to the extent that They are understood as anything
more than natural forces. Thus if you believe
that the Goddess is
something more than
the physical planet Earth, you are NOT a
pantheist; you are a panentheist.
A secondary meaning of "pantheism" is "worship that admits
or
tolerates all gods." As this meaning directly contradicts
the primary
meaning, persons using the term should
be careful to specify which
meaning they intend.
(Under this meaning, if there is any god whose
existance
you do not acknowledge -- Satan, for example -- you are NOT
a pantheist.)
Within the pagan community, the term pantheism is used even more
sloppily as a synonym for polytheism and/or animism. This had led
many people who don't meet either of the above definitions to
mistakenly call themselves pantheists.
P> By that, I mean that I believe the Christian God
exists, but
P> don't necessarily worship that
particular deity. If all gods
P> and goddesses
exist, you can worship one of them (Monotheism),
P>
without excluding the existance of the rest of them
That's not monotheism, that's henotheism.
Monotheism is the belief
that only one "God"
exists. Note, however, that monotheism does not
deny
the existance of lesser beings (saints, angels, etc.) who might
also be called "gods" in a polytheistic system. Note also that
Christianity is not truely monotheistic, as it has the top job
shared
three ways.
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