C. S. Lewis

Theism

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theism

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Theism is the belief in the existence of one or more gods or deities.

There is also a narrower sense in which theism refers to the belief that God/god(s) is immanent in the world, yet transcends it.

The term is attested in English from 1678, and was probably coined to contrast with atheism, a term that is attested from ca. 1587 (see the etymology section of atheism for details).

o 1 A taxonomy of beliefs about deities
o 1.1 Relationship to religion
o 2 Theism
o 2.1 Polytheism
o 2.2 Monotheism
o 3 Atheism
o 4 Agnosticism
o 5 See also

A taxonomy of beliefs about deities

It is possible to categorize views about deities in a variety of ways. One common procedure is to classify views about the existence of deities. This classification system categorizes view about deities as:

o theism — roughly, the opinion that gods or deities exist
o atheism — roughly, a lack of belief in any gods or deities
o agnosticism — roughly, the opinion that it is not possible to know whether gods or deities exist, or the opinion that one does not know.

The main subcategories of theism are:

o polytheism — roughly, the opinion that multiple gods or deities exist

o monotheism — roughly, the opinion that only one god exists. In English, the word "God" (spelled with a capital "G") is often used when referring to the single god of a monotheistic belief system.

This taxonomy is based on opinions about the existence of god or gods. Other taxonomies are possible.

o A different taxonomy could be based on opinions about the nature or characteristics (rather than the existence) of God or the gods. See for instance the article on eutheism and dystheism.

o Some classifications group atheism and agnosticism together under the classification of non-theism — absence of clearly identified belief in any deity.

Other categories of belief include:

o Animism: The belief there are immense amount of deities and spirits, which are to be placated and worshipped.
o Monolatry: The belief that there may be more than one deity, but only one should be worshipped.
o Henotheism: The belief that there may be more than one deity, but one is supreme.
o Kathenotheism: The belief that there is more than one deity, but only one deity at a time should be worshipped. Each is supreme in turn.

Relationship to religion

There are many religions which are theistic, and many others which are atheistic.

o Some theistic religions are: Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Zoroastrianism, Saivism, Vaishnavism, Bahá'í, and Sikhism.
o Some atheistic religions are: Taoism, Confucianism, and Zen Buddhism.

Theism

Polytheism

Polytheism is the belief that there is more than one deity. In practice, polytheism is not just the belief that there are multiple gods; it usually includes belief in the existence of a specific pantheon of distinct deities.

Within polytheism there are hard and soft varieties.

o Hard polytheism views the gods as being distinct and separate beings; an example of this would be ancient Greek Mythology.
o Soft polytheism views the gods as being subsumed into a greater whole. Most forms of Hinduism serve as examples of soft polytheism.

Monotheism

Monotheism is the belief that there is only one deity. There are many forms of monotheism.

o Inclusive monotheism: The belief that there is only one deity, and that all other claimed deities are just different names for it. The Hindu denomination of Smartism is an example of inclusive monotheism.
o Exclusive monotheism: The belief that there is only one deity, and that all other claimed deities are distinct from it and false — either invented, demonic, or simply incorrect. Most Abrahamic religions, and the Hindu denomination of Vaishnavism (which regards the worship of anyone other than Vishnu as incorrect) are examples of exclusive monotheism.
o Pantheism: The view that the universe is identical to a deity.
o Deism: The belief in the existence of a god which, having set up the universe initially, plays no further part in the running of the universe.
o Theism (second definition): The doctrine God(s) is immanent in the world, yet transcends it.
o Panentheism: The belief that the universe is entirely contained within a deity that is greater than just the universe.

Atheism

Atheism is derived from A- (without) and Theos (gods), meaning literally 'without gods.' Essentially it is a 'lack of Theism'- a lack of belief in the existence of gods or deities, which is usually based on reasoning or the lack of evidence to the contrary[citation needed].

Agnosticism

The word "agnostic" was coined by T. H. Huxley, "Darwin's Bulldog", around 1869. Since then, the word has been used in a variety of ways, as follows.

In one sense of the word, agnosticism is the position that it is not possible to know whether or not gods exist. Agnosticism in this sense is an epistemological position about the limits of possible knowledge. It holds that it is not possible to determine whether gods exist. Specifically, it holds that the question of the existence of gods is beyond the scope of science — that it is a question that cannot be answered by science. This position is epistemological agnosticism or strong agnosticism.

In another, more popular sense, of the word, agnosticism is a personal position. When a person describes himself as an agnostic he usually means one of the following:

o he takes no position, pro or con, on the existence of gods.
o he has considered the question of the existence of gods, and has not yet been able to decide whether he believes in the existence of gods or not.

This position is personal agnosticism or weak agnosticism.