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Author Topic: Deism, theism, panentheism, combinations thereof?  (Read 11670 times)

Ursula

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Re: Deism, theism, panentheism, combinations thereof?
« Reply #30 on: November 04, 2011, 12:48:49 pm »
Quote from: treekisser;4081
I'm an unstable theist and polytheist.


I like "unstable theist"... I jokingly call myself a "soft monotheist" at times................... perhaps because I feel like I know there is "A God(dess)" but I believe in other deities.  If that even makes sense!

Fagan_the_Pagan

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Re: Deism, theism, panentheism, combinations thereof?
« Reply #31 on: November 20, 2011, 11:12:31 pm »
Quote from: HeartShadow;1063
Pantheist and hard polytheist - there is what Is - the Divine, the Universe, whatever.  Be it mechanistic or spiritual (I believe it's spiritual, but) it IS and that's what we have to work with.

polytheist because, well, gods exist and talk to me and it's easier than being crazy. :P .... or at least gets the crazy question out of the way and gives me time to do other stuff.

 
Yeah, this pretty closely sums up what I think.

God in the cosmic sense IS everything.  So, we are a part of that.  And in this way I am pantheistic.  Deity is the spark of life.  Not a thing separate from the material of the universe, but another aspect of everything in the universe.  Divinity is a matter of vibration and energy.  We are all made of energy in a material state.  God is energy in a variety of states, and the divine state is a higher level of vibration than we operate at.

But I am also polytheistic.  There are a number of discreet deities.  Entities operating and vibrating on a higher level than we do.  None of the gods we have ascribed names to are the cosmic god that IS the entire universe, but that doesn't come close to meaning they are not real.  In some way or other, all gods exist.  Some of them are more regional or wide-ranging than others, though.  YHWH, judging by the size of his worship, currently holds the title of widest ranging deity.  

None of these gods MADE the system, as such.  And they cannot break the rules as such either.  But the gods are more aware of how the universe really works, and because they know the game in ways we don't they can do things we can't.
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Fagan_the_Pagan

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Re: Deism, theism, panentheism, combinations thereof?
« Reply #32 on: November 20, 2011, 11:17:13 pm »
Quote from: Ursula;28836
I like "unstable theist"... I jokingly call myself a "soft monotheist" at times................... perhaps because I feel like I know there is "A God(dess)" but I believe in other deities.  If that even makes sense!

 
It makes perfect sense.  "Know" is more emphatic, confident, and authoritative than "believe."

Though if you believe in other deities, I would not hesitate to call you some manner of polytheist.
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Maps

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Re: Deism, theism, panentheism, combinations thereof?
« Reply #33 on: November 25, 2011, 01:44:43 pm »
Quote from: schwertlilie;998
I know there are definitely polytheists and pantheists (and panentheists) around the forum, but is there anyone who combines these kinds of philosophies? How do you reconcile the two (or more)?


Myself, I'm a deist + hard polytheist - I think the world was created by Someone so big and remote that They are impersonal and that They aren't interested in small existences like individual humans. The Greek gods, YHWH, Coyote, etc all occupy a space between that Someone and humans, are created and/or evolved, depending - and because they're close to humanity, they're more approachable & can take an interest in individual people.

Anyone else? :)


I believe almost exactly the same stuff!

I think this is why I'm spiritually incapable of deity worship, because I don't believe in "gods" as personable, omnipresent, omnipotent things. Though I do believe in spirits of all sorts, and magic, and forces that are beyond our immediate scientific perception. I can even reconcile other peoples' beliefs within that framework!

Chatters

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Re: Deism, theism, panentheism, combinations thereof?
« Reply #34 on: November 30, 2011, 08:18:31 am »
Quote from: Maps;31648
I believe almost exactly the same stuff!

I think this is why I'm spiritually incapable of deity worship, because I don't believe in "gods" as personable, omnipresent, omnipotent things. Though I do believe in spirits of all sorts, and magic, and forces that are beyond our immediate scientific perception. I can even reconcile other peoples' beliefs within that framework!

 

This is very similar to me. I believe in spirits, spirits that were human, non human etc and like you said forces that way beyond our perception or understanding. I  lean towards dualist pantheism. I do believe in a divine being that is within nature but is also beyond nature. I believe that there is spirit and a phyisical reality which somehow comes together. My beliefs are quite broad lol. I also lean more towards panentheism. I don't really believe in lots of gods as such but more as spiritual beings. And I believe in angels just to mix it all up - I see them as guardians
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Chatters

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Re: Deism, theism, panentheism, combinations thereof?
« Reply #35 on: November 30, 2011, 08:39:51 am »
Quote from: Chatters;32320
This is very similar to me. I believe in spirits, spirits that were human, non human etc and like you said forces that way beyond our perception or understanding. I  lean towards dualist pantheism. I do believe in a divine being that is within nature but is also beyond nature. I believe that there is spirit and a phyisical reality which somehow comes together. My beliefs are quite broad lol. I also lean more towards panentheism. I don't really believe in lots of gods as such but more as spiritual beings. And I believe in angels just to mix it all up - I see them as guardians


  Having said this I do not worship a god or goddess as such. I have a lot of respect and reverence for nature, so my practise includes leaning toward green witchcraft and the everyday - gardening, making herb crafts, cooking magic etc. My practise is very down to earth and simple. My practise as a witch also includes ancestor worship and as I believe that spirits can return back to the land to look after some part of it, ancestor worships feels right to me
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Maps

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Re: Deism, theism, panentheism, combinations thereof?
« Reply #36 on: November 30, 2011, 02:27:09 pm »
Quote from: Chatters;32320
This is very similar to me. I believe in spirits, spirits that were human, non human etc and like you said forces that way beyond our perception or understanding. I  lean towards dualist pantheism. I do believe in a divine being that is within nature but is also beyond nature. I believe that there is spirit and a phyisical reality which somehow comes together. My beliefs are quite broad lol. I also lean more towards panentheism. I don't really believe in lots of gods as such but more as spiritual beings. And I believe in angels just to mix it all up - I see them as guardians

 
Quote from: Chatters;32323
Having said this I do not worship a god or goddess as such. I have a lot of respect and reverence for nature, so my practise includes leaning toward green witchcraft and the everyday - gardening, making herb crafts, cooking magic etc. My practise is very down to earth and simple. My practise as a witch also includes ancestor worship and as I believe that spirits can return back to the land to look after some part of it, ancestor worships feels right to me


Yeah, agreed. I have niggling attractions toward the idea of gods and deities for some reason, though I have tried communication and direct worship and it just wasn't fulfilling at all for me, so I stopped. That said, while I don't believe in "gods" as omnipresent, omnipotent, and/or omniscient entities, I'm undecided on how to acknowledge their existence...

I believe in angels as well, though whether or not they're of the same or different kind of entity is beyond my current belief system. :B

Maps

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Re: Deism, theism, panentheism, combinations thereof?
« Reply #37 on: December 05, 2011, 11:11:52 pm »
Quote from: Fagan_the_Pagan;31163
Yeah, this pretty closely sums up what I think.

God in the cosmic sense IS everything.  So, we are a part of that.  And in this way I am pantheistic.  Deity is the spark of life.  Not a thing separate from the material of the universe, but another aspect of everything in the universe.  Divinity is a matter of vibration and energy.  We are all made of energy in a material state.  God is energy in a variety of states, and the divine state is a higher level of vibration than we operate at.

But I am also polytheistic.  There are a number of discreet deities.  Entities operating and vibrating on a higher level than we do.  None of the gods we have ascribed names to are the cosmic god that IS the entire universe, but that doesn't come close to meaning they are not real.  In some way or other, all gods exist.  Some of them are more regional or wide-ranging than others, though.  YHWH, judging by the size of his worship, currently holds the title of widest ranging deity.  

None of these gods MADE the system, as such.  And they cannot break the rules as such either.  But the gods are more aware of how the universe really works, and because they know the game in ways we don't they can do things we can't.

 
So yeah I guess carrying on from that other thread, all of this makes a lot of sense to me. However, it makes sense to me in the abstract; in theory. In practice? I'm a bit iffier for some reason.

I will admit there are probably other hangups I have; one of them possibly being that I'm hesitant to try and categorize and rationalize all of the stuff in between us and (capital G) God? You know, in a... God/Universe/All/physical laws/matter sort of interpretation. It's definitely overwhelming, and couple that with the fact that the only experience I have with any (lowercase g) god is second-hand. I think at this point, unless I get clubbed by the presence/influence of a deity, my theological focus will be upon the grand, omnipresent, and impersonal. And even if I were to suddenly have reason to believe in personal gods (it might happen, who knows), then I would still feel intellectually and spiritually drawn to big, grand God first and foremost. Would that still make me a deist? Don't think anyone else would think so, but you'd have to ask me when I'm there. :B

AradiaRose

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Re: Deism, theism, panentheism, combinations thereof?
« Reply #38 on: December 13, 2011, 01:26:39 am »
Quote from: Hyacinth Belle;1580
I posted about this on the old board a while ago... here's what I said. :P

I consider myself a panentheist and polytheist. I guess the panentheist part of me is the Taoist part... I see divinity, or divine energy, in everything and beyond everything: the best name I have for this is Tao. It's not personified or self-aware.

Then I see the gods as the aware/personified part of that divine energy. This aware divinity may be connected to something physical or be beyond it (wait, or both?!... lol.). Although I hesitate to say I see the gods as the aware manifestation of Tao, that's kind of the best way I have to explain it. Hope that makes sense.


I also agree with this sentiment for the most part, although I may use a different analogy to explain to myself or my friends. To me, there is that Taoist interconnectivity and energy and the gods are how I choose to interpret that energy. I also feel that recognizing gods who others have worshipped helps me to forge a stronger connection with that overall energy. I find that I am happiest when I am in tune the overall "energy" of the world (i.e., if traveling I will always make an effort to thank/make an offering to the diety that is most closely associated historically with that land or that people).
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