Monotheism is thebelief that oneGod is the only, or at least the dominantdeity.[1][2][3][4][5] A distinction may be made between exclusive monotheism, in which the one God is a singular existence, and both inclusive and pluriform monotheism, in which multiple gods or godly forms are recognized, but each are postulated as extensions of the same God.[2]
Monotheism is distinguished fromhenotheism, a religious system in which the believer worships one god without denying that others may worship different gods with equal validity, andmonolatrism, the recognition of the existence of many gods but with the consistent worship of only one deity.[6]
Narrow monotheism and wide monotheism exist on a spectrum of belief. Narrow monotheism holds that only one exclusive deity exists, disallowing others, while wide monotheism acknowledges one supreme deity and permits lesser deities. Elements of wide monotheistic thought are found in early religions such asancient Chinese religion,Tengrism, andYahwism.[2][11][12]
'Monotheism' was coined byHenry More in 1660;[16] it was not a term used in the Greco-Roman period. More's usage of the concept was not particularly rigorous by later standards, with it more serving as a marker of "good" religion against bad. For example, More condemned Islam as having "hypocritical" monotheism with Muslims "still truly Pagans", and thought thatpantheists did not count as monotheists either, because "to make theWorld God is to make no God at all". Other writers in the 17th and 18th centuries were similarly lax;Ralph Cudworth wrote that GreekPlatonism was monotheistic, seemingly out of admiration for Platonism.[17]
Monotheism is a complex and nuanced concept. The biblical authors had various ways of understanding God and the divine, shaped by their historical and cultural contexts. The notion of monotheism that is used today was developed much later, influenced by theEnlightenment and Christian views. Many definitions of monotheism are inherently modern and Christian-centered, and do not map easily to the diversity and complexity of the ancient sources.[18]
The term "monotheism" is often contrasted with "polytheism", but many scholars prefer other terms such as monolatry, henotheism, or one-god discourse.[18]
In the Iron-Age South AsianVedic period,[19] a possible inclination towards monotheism emerged. TheRigveda exhibits notions ofmonism of theBrahman, particularly in the comparatively latetenth book,[20] which is dated to the earlyIron Age, e.g. in theNasadiya Sukta. Later, ancient Hindu theology wasmonist, but was not strictly monotheistic in worship because it still maintained the existence of many gods, who were envisioned as aspects of one supreme God, Brahman.[21]
In China, the orthodox faith system held by most dynasties since at least theShang dynasty (1766 BCE) until the modern period centered on the worship ofShangdi (literally "Above Sovereign", generally translated as "God") orHeaven as an omnipotent force.[22] However, this faith system was not truly monotheistic since other lesser gods and spirits, which varied with locality, were also worshipped along withShangdi. Still, later variants such asMohism (470 BCE–c.391 BCE) approached true monotheism, teaching that the function of lesser gods and ancestral spirits is merely to carry out the will ofShangdi, akin to the angels in Abrahamic religions which in turn counts as only one god.
Since the sixth century BCE,Zoroastrians have believed in the supremacy of one God above all:Ahura Mazda as the "Maker of All"[23] and the first being before all others.[24][25][26][27] The prophetZoroaster is credited with the founding of the first monotheistic religion in history sometime as early as the middle of the second millennium BCE, leaving a lasting influence on other belief systems such as Second Temple Judaism and, through it, on later monotheistic religions.[10] Scholars are conflicted whether Zoroastrianism is best characterized as monotheistic, polytheistic, or henotheistic religion[28] due to the centrality ofAhriman as a component or opposite force of Ahura Mazda.
Post-exilic[29] Judaism, after the late 6th century BCE, was the first religion to conceive the notion of a personal monotheistic God within a monist context.[21] The concept ofethical monotheism, which holds that morality stems from God alone and that its laws are unchanging,[30] first occurred inJudaism,[31] but is now a core tenet of most modern monotheistic religions, including Christianity, Islam, Sikhism, and Baháʼí Faith.[32]
Also from the 6th century BCE,Thales (followed by other Monists, such asAnaximander,Anaximenes,Heraclitus,Parmenides) proposed that nature can be explained by reference to a single unitary principle that pervades everything.[29] Numerous ancient Greek philosophers, includingXenophanes of Colophon andAntisthenes, believed in a similar polytheistic monism that bore some similarities to monotheism.[21] The first known reference to a unitary God isPlato'sDemiurge (divine Craftsman), followed byAristotle'sunmoved mover, both of which would profoundly influence Jewish and Christian theology.[29]
According to contemporary Jewish, Christian and Islamic tradition, monotheism was the original religion of humanity; this original religion is sometimes referred to as "the Adamic religion", or, in the terms ofAndrew Lang, the "Urreligion". Scholars of religion largely abandoned that view in the 19th and 20th centuries in favour of anevolutionary progression fromanimism viapolytheism to monotheism. More recently,Karen Armstrong[33] and other authors have returned to the idea of an evolutionary progression beginning withanimism, which developed intopolytheism, which developed intohenotheism, which developed intomonolatry, which developed into true monotheism.[34] This order was reversed by Austrian anthropologistWilhelm Schmidt, who had postulated anUrmonotheismus, "original" or "primitive monotheism" in the 1910s.[35] The evolution of monotheism is bound withuniversal monarchies.[36][37][38]
"Narrow monotheism" is a religion that believes in only one deity, disallowing the possibility of there being other deities. "Wide monotheism" is a religion that believes in only one supreme deity, allowing the possibility of there being other lesser deities. A narrow monotheistic religion will often regard other monotheistic religions as worshipping its own specific deity under a different name or form (hence the Abrahamic religions[which?] believe they worship the same one God). A wide monotheistic religion will often regard other monotheistic religions as worshipping deities lesser than its own specific deity (hence Atenism believes Yahweh to be a lesser deity to Aten). Examples of narrow monotheist religions includes: Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Sikhism, and Baháʼí Faith. Examples of wide monotheism include: Atenism, Native American worship of the Great Spirit, Hinduism, Chinese religions, Tengrism, Mandaeism, Rastafari, Yazidism, Zoroastrianism, Proto-Indo-European religion, Hellenistic religion, and Andaman Islands religion.[39][40][41][42][43][44][45][46][47][48][49]
According toRobin Dunbar, an evolutionary psychologist, the emergence ofdoctrinal religions is closely linked to environmental and social factors. He argues that large, densely populated societies—often arising in agriculturally productive regions—required moreformalized religious structures to maintainsocial cohesion. In particular, the shift from small, kin-based communities to larger settlements increased the need for moralizing gods and centralized rituals. Additionally, the climatic stability of theNorthern Subtropical Zone during theNeolithic facilitated surplus food production, enabling religious specialists to emerge and institutionalize belief systems.[50]
Dunbar identifies two early monotheistic traditions in sub-Saharan Africa. TheCushitic-speaking populations of the central Nile Valley (present-daySudan) circa5th millennium BCE worshippedWaaq, a singularsky deity whose veneration persists among some Cushitic groups. Later,Nilotic-speaking societies migrating southward developed oradopted similar beliefs, with singular deities such asEngai of theMaasai, though often combined with ancestral reverence and spirit veneration.[50] Many Southern Nilotic peoples such as theSamburu andDatooga have substantial Cushitic ancestry from theSavanna Pastoral Neolithic communities believed to be of Cushitic origin.[51][52]
Waaq is the name of a singularGod in the traditional religion of manyCushitic people in theHorn of Africa, denoting an early monotheistic religion. However, this religion was mostly replaced with theAbrahamic religions, such asIslam in the case of theSomali.[53] The termbarwaaqo in the Somali language meansprosperity still includes the name of Waaq. The Somali rendition of the Ethiopianprosperity party isXisbiga Barwaaqo. The Somali city ofAbudwak means 'worship Waaq' in Somali. SomeOromo still follow the traditional monotheistic religion calledWaaqeffanna in theOromo language.[54]
Irreechaa is an annual thanksgiving festival celebrated by the Oromo people, primarily inEthiopia, marking the end of the rainy season and the beginning of theharvest. It is a spiritual occasion dedicated to Waaq, the supreme God in traditional Oromo belief, symbolizing gratitude for nature's abundance. The festival is observed in various regions, with its largest celebration taking place inAddis Ababa, where tens of thousands of people gather near bodies of water to offer prayers, songs, and traditional rituals. Irreechaa not only reflects deep-rooted cultural practices but also promotes unity and peace among the Oromo community and beyond.[55][56][57]
Amenhotep IV initially introducedAtenism in Year 5 of his reign (1348/1346 BCE) during the18th dynasty of theNew Kingdom. He raisedAten, once a relatively obscure Egyptiansolar deity representing the disk of the sun, to the status of Supreme God in the Egyptian pantheon.[58] To emphasise the change, Aten's name was written in thecartouche form normally reserved for Pharaohs, an innovation of Atenism. This religious reformation appears to coincide with the proclamation of aSed festival, a sort of royal jubilee intended to reinforce the Pharaoh's divine powers of kingship. Traditionally held in the thirtieth year of the Pharaoh's reign, this possibly was a festival in honour ofAmenhotep III, who some Egyptologists[who?] think had acoregency with his son Amenhotep IV of two to twelve years.
Year 5 is believed to mark the beginning of Amenhotep IV's construction of a new capital,Akhetaten (Horizon of the Aten), at the site known today asAmarna.[59] Evidence of this appears on three of the boundarystelae used to mark the boundaries of this new capital.[citation needed] At this time, Amenhotep IV officially changed his name to Akhenaten (Agreeable to Aten) as evidence of his new worship.[59] The date given for the event has been estimated to fall around January 2 of that year.[citation needed] In Year 7 of his reign (1346/1344 BCE), the capital was moved fromThebes to Akhetaten (near modern Amarna), though construction of the city seems to have continued for two more years.[60] In shifting his court from the traditional ceremonial centres Akhenaten was signalling a dramatic transformation in the focus of religious and political power.[citation needed]
The move separated the Pharaoh and his court from the influence of the priesthood and from the traditional centres of worship, but his decree had deeper religious significance too—taken in conjunction with his name change, it is possible that the move to Amarna was also meant as a signal of Akhenaten's symbolic death and rebirth.[citation needed] It may also have coincided with the death of his father and the end of the coregency.[citation needed] In addition to constructing a new capital in honor of Aten, Akhenaten also oversaw the construction of some of the most massivetemple complexes in ancient Egypt, including one atKarnak and one at Thebes, close to the old temple ofAmun.[citation needed]
In Year 9 (1344/1342 BCE), Akhenaten declared a more radical version of his new religion, declaring Aten not merely the supreme god of the Egyptian pantheon, but the only God of Egypt, with himself as the sole intermediary between the Aten and the Egyptian people.[citation needed] Key features of Atenism included a ban onidols and other images of the Aten, with the exception of a rayed solar disc, in which the rays (commonly depicted ending in hands) appear to represent the unseen spirit of Aten.[citation needed] Akhenaten made it however clear that the image of the Aten only represented the god, but that the god transcended creation and so could not be fully understood or represented.[61] Aten was addressed by Akhenaten in prayers, such as theGreat Hymn to the Aten: "O Sole God beside whom there is none".
The details of Atenist theology are still unclear. The exclusion of all but one god and the prohibition of idols was a radical departure from Egyptian tradition, but scholars[who?] see Akhenaten as a practitioner of monolatry rather than monotheism, as he did not actively deny the existence of other gods; he simply refrained from worshiping any but Aten.[citation needed] Akhenaten associated Aten with Ra and put forward the eminence of Aten as the renewal of the kingship of Ra.[62]
Under Akhenaten's successors, Egypt reverted to its traditional religion, and Akhenaten himself came to be reviled as a heretic.[63]
Bukongo' is the traditional religion of theKongo people, originating from Central Africa ( the former"Ntotila kya Kongo" established parts of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Angola, and the Republic of Congo ). It is based on the belief in a supreme God calledNzambi a Mpungu Tulendo, an abstract, formless entity representing the cycle of the Nza (the Universe) and the source of all life. While it includes practices related to the ancestral community (bakulu) and natural forces that can be embodied by Nzambi a Mpungu, these entities are regarded as respected intermediaries, not as independent deities. As such, Bukongo can be classified as a hierarchical monotheism, with a spiritual structure centered on a single, supreme God.[65]
Native American religions may be monotheistic, polytheistic, henotheistic, animistic, or some combination thereof.Cherokee religion, for example, is monotheist as well as pantheist.[66]
Some researchers have interpretedAztec philosophy as fundamentally monotheistic or panentheistic. While the populace at large believed in a polytheistic pantheon, Aztec priests and nobles might have come to an interpretation ofTeotl as a single universal force with many facets.[70] There has been criticism to this idea, however, most notably that many assertions of this supposed monotheism might actually come from post-Conquistador bias, imposing an Antiquity pagan model onto the Aztec.[71]
Hindu views are broad and range from monism, through pantheism and panentheism (alternatively called monistic theism by some scholars) to monotheism and even atheism. Hinduism cannot be said to be purely polytheistic. Hindu religious leaders have repeatedly stressed that while God's forms are many and the ways to communicate with him are many, God is one. Thepuja of themurti is a way to communicate with the abstract one god (Brahman) which creates, sustains and dissolves creation.[44]
WhenKrishna is recognized to beSvayam Bhagavan, it can be understood that this is the belief ofGaudiya Vaishnavism,[80] theVallabha Sampradaya,[81] and theNimbarka Sampradaya, where Krishna is accepted to be the source of all other avatars, and the source ofVishnu himself. This belief is drawn primarily "from the famous statement of the Bhagavatam"[82] (1.3.28).[83] A viewpoint differing from this theological concept is the concept ofKrishna as anavatar ofNarayana orVishnu. It should be however noted that although it is usual to speak of Vishnu as the source of the avataras, this is only one of the names of the God ofVaishnavism, who is also known as Narayana,Vasudeva and Krishna and behind each of those names there is a divine figure with attributed supremacy in Vaishnavism.[84]
The Rig Veda discusses monotheistic thought, as do theAtharva Veda andYajur Veda:"Devas are always looking to the supreme abode of Vishnu" (tad viṣṇoḥ paramaṁ padaṁ sadā paśyanti sṻrayaḥRig Veda 1.22.20)
"The One Truth, sages know by many names" (Rig Veda 1.164.46)[85]
"When at first the unborn sprung into being, He won His own dominion beyond which nothing higher has been in existence" (Atharva Veda 10.7.31)[86]
"There is none to compare with Him. There is no parallel to Him, whose glory, verily, is great." (Yajur Veda 32.3)[87]
The number of auspicious qualities of God are countless, with the following six qualities (bhaga) being the most important:
Jñāna (omniscience), defined as the power to know about all beings simultaneously
Aishvarya (sovereignty, derived from the wordIshvara), which consists in unchallenged rule over all
Shakti (energy), or power, which is the capacity to make the impossible possible
Bala (strength), which is the capacity to support everything by will and without any fatigue
Vīrya (vigor), which indicates the power to retain immateriality as the supreme being in spite of being the material cause of mutable creations
Tejas (splendor), which expresses His self-sufficiency and the capacity to overpower everything by His spiritual effulgence[88]
In theShaivite tradition, theShri Rudram (Sanskrit श्री रुद्रम्), to which the Chamakam (चमकम्) is added by scriptural tradition, is a Hindustotra dedicated toRudra (an epithet ofShiva), taken from theYajurveda (TS 4.5, 4.7).[89][90] Shri Rudram is also known asSri Rudraprasna,Śatarudrīya, andRudradhyaya. The text is important inVedanta whereShiva is equated to the Universal supreme God. The hymn is an early example of enumerating thenames of a deity,[91] a tradition developed extensively in thesahasranama literature ofHinduism.
TheNyaya school of Hinduism has made several arguments regarding a monotheistic view. The Naiyanikas have given an argument that such a god can only be one. In theNyaya Kusumanjali, this is discussed against the proposition of theMimamsa school that let us assume there were many demigods (devas) and sages (rishis) in the beginning, who wrote the Vedas and created the world. Nyaya says that:
[If they assume such] omniscient beings, those endowed with the various superhuman faculties of assuming infinitesimal size, and so on, and capable of creating everything, then we reply that thelaw of parsimony bids us assume only one such, namely Him, the adorable Lord. There can be no confidence in a non-eternal and non-omniscient being, and hence it follows that according to the system which rejects God, the tradition of the Veda is simultaneously overthrown; there is no other way open.[citation needed]
In other words, Nyaya says that the polytheist would have to give elaborate proofs for the existence and origin of his several celestial spirits, none of which would be logical, and that it is more logical to assume one eternal, omniscient god.
Many other Hindus, however, view polytheism as far preferable to monotheism. The famous Hindu revitalist leaderRam Swarup, for example, points to theVedas as being specifically polytheistic,[92] and states that, "only some form of polytheism alone can do justice to this variety and richness."[93]
Sita Ram Goel, another 20th-century Hindu historian, wrote:
I had an occasion to read the typescript of a book [Ram Swarup] had finished writing in 1973. It was a profound study of Monotheism, the central dogma of both Islam and Christianity, as well as a powerful presentation of what the monotheists denounce as Hindu Polytheism. I had never read anything like it. It was a revelation to me that Monotheism was not a religious concept but an imperialist idea. I must confess that I myself had been inclined towards Monotheism till this time. I had never thought that a multiplicity of Gods was the natural and spontaneous expression of an evolved consciousness.[94]
Sikhi is a monotheistic[95][96] and arevealed religion.[97]God in Sikhism is calledAkal Purakh (which means "The Immortal Being") orVāhigurū (Wondrous Enlightener). However, other names likeRama,Brahman,Khuda,Allah, etc. are also used to refer to the same God, who isshapeless,timeless, andsightless:niraṅkār,akaal, andalakh. Sikhi presents a unique perspective where God is present (sarav viāpak) in all of its creation and does not exist outside of its creation. God must be seen from "the inward eye", or the "heart". Sikhs follow the Aad Guru Granth Sahib and are instructed tomeditate on theNaam (Name of God -Vāhigurū) to progress towards enlightenment, as its rigorous application permits the existence of communication between God and human beings.[98]
Sikhism is a monotheistic faith[40][99] that arose in thePunjab region of theIndian subcontinent during the 16th and 17th centuries.Sikhs believe in one, timeless, omnipresent, supreme creator. The opening verse of theGuru Granth Sahib, known as theMul Mantra, signifies this:
One Universal creator God, The supreme Unchangeable Truth, The Creator of the Universe, Beyond Fear, Beyond Hatred, Beyond Death, Beyond Birth, Self-Existent, by Guru's Grace.
Ik Onkār, aSikh symbol representing "the One Supreme Reality"
The word "ੴ" ("Ik ōaṅkār") has two components. The first is ੧, the digit "1" inGurmukhi signifying the singularity of the creator. Together the word means: "One Universal creator God".
It is often said that the 1430 pages of theGuru Granth Sahib are all expansions on the Mul Mantra. Although the Sikhs have many names for God, some derived fromIslam andHinduism, they all refer to the same Supreme Being.
The Sikh holy scriptures refer to the One God who pervades the whole of space and is the creator of all beings in theuniverse. The following quotation from the Guru Granth Sahib highlights this point:
Chant, and meditate on the One God, who permeates and pervades the many beings of the whole Universe. God created it, and God spreads through it everywhere. Everywhere I look, I see God. The Perfect Lord is perfectly pervading and permeating the water, the land and the sky; there is no place without Him.
— Guru Granth Sahib, Page 782
However, there is a strong case for arguing that the Guru Granth Sahib teachesmonism due to its non-dualistic tendencies:
You have thousands of Lotus Feet, and yet You do not have even one foot. You have no nose, but you have thousands of noses. This Play of Yours entrances me.
Sikhs believe that God has been given many names, but they all refer to the One God,VāhiGurū. Sikh holy scripture (Guru Granth Sahib) speaks to all faiths and Sikhs believe that members of other religions such as Islam, Hinduism andChristianity all worship the same God, and the namesAllah,Rahim,Karim,Hari, Raam andPaarbrahm are, therefore, frequently mentioned in the Sikh holy scripture (Guru Granth Sahib) . God in Sikhism is most commonly referred to asAkal Purakh (which means "The Immortal Being") orWaheguru, the Wondrous Enlightener.
The orthodox faith system held by most dynasties ofChina since at least theShang dynasty (1766 BCE) until the modern period centered on the worship ofShangdi (literally "Above Sovereign", generally translated as "High-god") orHeaven as a supreme being, standing above other gods.[45] This faith system pre-dated the development ofConfucianism andTaoism and the introduction ofBuddhism andChristianity. It has some features of monotheism in that Heaven is seen as an omnipotent entity, anoncorporeal force with apersonalitytranscending the world. However, this faith system was not truly monotheistic since other lesser gods and spirits, which varied with locality, were also worshiped along withShangdi.[45] Still, later variants such asMohism (470 BCE–c.391 BCE) approached true monotheism, teaching that the function of lesser gods and ancestral spirits is merely to carry out the will ofShangdi. InMozi'sWill of Heaven (天志), he writes:
I know Heaven loves men dearly not without reason. Heaven ordered the sun, the moon, and the stars to enlighten and guide them. Heaven ordained the four seasons, Spring, Autumn, Winter, and Summer, to regulate them. Heaven sent down snow, frost, rain, and dew to grow the five grains and flax and silk that so the people could use and enjoy them. Heaven established the hills and rivers, ravines and valleys, and arranged many things to minister to man's good or bring him evil. He appointed the dukes and lords to reward the virtuous and punish the wicked, and to gather metal and wood, birds and beasts, and to engage in cultivating the five grains and flax and silk to provide for the people's food and clothing. This has been so from antiquity to the present.
— Will of Heaven, Chapter 27, Paragraph 6, ca. 5th century BCE
Worship ofShangdi and Heaven in ancient China includes the erection of shrines, the last and greatest being theTemple of Heaven in Beijing, and the offering of prayers. The ruler of China in every Chinese dynasty would perform annual sacrificial rituals toShangdi, usually by slaughtering a completely healthy bull as sacrifice. Although its popularity gradually diminished after the advent of Taoism and Buddhism, among other religions, its concepts remained in use throughout the pre-modern period and have been incorporated in later religions in China, including terminology used by early Christians in China. Despite the rising of non-theistic and pantheistic spirituality contributed by Taoism and Buddhism, Shangdi was still praised up until the end of theQing dynasty as the last ruler of the Qing declared himselfson of heaven.
InChinese andTurco-Mongol traditions, the Supreme God is commonly referred to as the ruler of Heaven, or the Sky Lord granted with omnipotent powers, but it has largely diminished in those regions due toancestor worship,Taoism'spantheistic views and Buddhism'srejection of a creator God. On some occasions in the mythology, the Sky Lord as identified as a male has been associated to mate with an Earth Mother, while some traditions kept the omnipotence of the Sky Lord unshared.[citation needed]
God in theBaháʼí Faith is taught to be the Imperishable, uncreated Being Who is the source of existence, too great for humans to fully comprehend. Human primitive understanding of God is achieved through his revelations via his divine intermediaryManifestations.[108][109] In the Baháʼí faith, such Christian doctrines as theTrinity are seen as compromising the Baháʼí view that God is single and has no equal,[110]and the very existence of the Baháʼí Faith is a challenge to the Islamic doctrine of the finality of Muhammad's revelation.[111]
God in the Baháʼí Faith communicates to humanity through divine intermediaries, known asManifestations of God.[112] These Manifestations establish religion in the world.[109] It is through these divine intermediaries that humans can approach God, and through them God brings divine revelation and law.[113]
The Oneness of God is one of the core teachings of theBaháʼí Faith. Theobligatory prayers in the Baháʼí Faith involve explicit monotheistic testimony.[114][115] God is the imperishable, uncreated being who is the source of all existence.[116] He is described as "a personal God, unknowable, inaccessible, the source of all Revelation, eternal,omniscient,omnipresent andalmighty".[117][118] Although transcendent and inaccessible directly, his image is reflected in his creation. The purpose of creation is for the created to have the capacity to know and love its creator.[119] God communicates his will and purpose to humanity through intermediaries, known asManifestations of God, who are the prophets and messengers that have founded religions from prehistoric times up to the present day.[112]
Amongearly Christians, there was considerable debate over the nature of theGodhead, with some denying the incarnation but not the deity of Jesus (Docetism) and others later calling for anArian conception of God. Despite at least one earlier localsynod rejecting the claim of Arius, thisChristological issue was to be one of the items addressed at theFirst Council of Nicaea.
The First Council of Nicaea, held inNicaea (in present-dayTurkey), convoked by theRoman EmperorConstantine I in 325, was the firstecumenical[121] council ofbishops of theRoman Empire, and most significantly resulted in the first uniform Christiandoctrine, called theNicene Creed. With the creation of the creed, a precedent was established for subsequent general ecumenical councils of bishops (synods) to create statements of belief andcanons of doctrinalorthodoxy—the intent being to define a common creed for theChurch and addressheretical ideas.
Christian orthodox traditions (Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, Roman Catholic, and most Protestants) follow this decision, which was reaffirmed in 381 at theFirst Council of Constantinople and reached its full development through the work of theCappadocian Fathers. They consider God to be a triune entity, called the Trinity, comprising three "persons",God the Father,God the Son, andGod the Holy Spirit. These three are described as being "of the same substance" (ὁμοούσιος).
Christians overwhelmingly assert that monotheism is central to the Christian faith, as the Nicene Creed (and others), which gives the orthodox Christian definition of the Trinity, begins: "I believe in one God". From earlier than the times of theNicene Creed, 325 CE, various Christian figures advocated[122] the triunemystery-nature of God as a normative profession of faith. According toRoger E. Olson and Christopher Hall, through prayer, meditation, study and practice, the Christian community concluded "that God must exist as both a unity and trinity", codifying this in ecumenical council at the end of the 4th century.[123]
Most modern Christians believe theGodhead is triune, meaning that the three persons of the Trinity are in one union in which each person is also wholly God. They also hold to the doctrine of aman-godChrist Jesus asGod incarnate. These Christians also do not believe that one of the three divine figures is God alone and the other two are not but that all three are mysteriously God and one. Other Christian religions, includingUnitarian Universalism,Jehovah's Witnesses,Mormonism and others,do not share those views on the Trinity.
Some Christian faiths, such asMormonism, argue that the Godhead is in fact three separate individuals which include God the Father, His Son Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost,[124] each individual having a distinct purpose in the grand existence of human kind.[125] Furthermore, Mormons believe that before the Council of Nicaea, the predominant belief among many early Christians was that the Godhead was three separate individuals. In support of this view, they cite early Christian examples of belief insubordinationism.[126]
Unitarianism is a theological movement, named for its understanding of God as one person, in direct contrast to Trinitarianism.[127]
Some in Judaism and some in Islam do not consider Trinitarian Christianity to be a pure form of monotheism due to the pluriform monotheistic Christian doctrine of theTrinity, classifying it asshituf in Judaism and asshirk in Islam.[128][129][130] Trinitarian Christians, on the other hand, argue that the doctrine of the Trinity is a valid expression of monotheism, citing that the Trinity does not consist of three separatedeities, but rather the threepersons, who existconsubstantially (as onesubstance) within a singleGodhead.[131][132]
Arabic calligraphy reading "Allah, may his glory be glorified"
In Islam,God (Allāh) isall-powerful andall-knowing, the Creator, Sustainer, Ordainer and Judge of the universe.[133][134]God in Islam is strictly singular (tawhid)[135] unique (wahid) and inherently One (ahad), all-merciful and omnipotent.[136] Allāh exists on theAl-'Arsh[Quran7:54], but theQuran states that "No vision can encompass Him, but He encompasses all vision. For He is the Most Subtle, All-Aware." (Quran6:103)[134] Allāh is the only God and the same God worshiped inChristianity andJudaism(Q29:46).[137]
Islam emerged in the 7th century CE in the context of both Christianity and Judaism, with some thematic elements similar toGnosticism.[138][139][140][141][142][143][144][145] Islamic belief states thatMuhammad did not bring a new religion from God, but rather the same religion as practiced byAbraham,Moses,David,Jesus and all the otherprophets of God.[146] The assertion of Islam is that the message of God had been corrupted, distorted or lost over time, and the Quran was sent to Muhammad in order to correct the lost message of theTawrat (Torah),Injil (Gospel) andZabur.[147][148][149][150][151][152]
The Quran asserts the existence of a single and absolute truth that transcends the world; a unique and indivisible being who is independent of the creation.[153] The Quran rejects binary modes of thinking such as the idea of aduality of God by arguing that bothgood and evil generate from God's creative act. God is a universal god rather than a local, tribal or parochial one; an absolute who integrates all affirmative values and brooks no evil.[154]Ash'ari theology, which dominated Sunni Islam from the tenth to the nineteenth century, insists on ultimate divine transcendence and holds that divine unity is not accessible to human reason. Ash'arism teaches that human knowledge regarding it is limited to what has been revealed through the prophets, and on such paradoxes as God's creation of evil, revelation had to acceptbila kayfa (without [asking] how).[155]
Tawhid constitutes the foremost article of the Muslimprofession of faith, "There is no god butGod, Muhammad is the messenger of God.[156] To attribute divinity to a created entity is the only unpardonable sin mentioned in the Quran.[154] The entirety of the Islamic teaching rests on the principle oftawhid.[157]
Medieval Islamic philosopherAl-Ghazali offered a proof of monotheism fromomnipotence, asserting there can only be one omnipotent being. For if there were two omnipotent beings, the first would either have power over the second (meaning the second is not omnipotent) or not (meaning the first is not omnipotent); thus implying that there could only be one omnipotent being.[158]
As they traditionally profess a concept of monotheism with a singular entity as God, Judaism[159] and Islam reject the Christian idea of monotheism. Judaism uses the termShituf to refer to non-monotheistic ways of worshiping God. Although Muslimsvenerate Jesus (Isa in Arabic) as a prophet and messiah, they do not accept the doctrine that he was a begotten son of God.
The tetragrammaton inPaleo-Hebrew (10th century BCE to 135 CE), oldAramaic (10th century BCE to 4th century CE), and squareHebrew (3rd century BCE to present) scripts
Judaism is traditionally considered one of the oldest monotheistic religions in the world,[160] although up to the 8th century BCE the Israelites werepolytheistic, with their worship including the godsEl,Baal,Asherah, andAstarte.[161][162] Yahweh was originally thenational god of theKingdom of Israel and theKingdom of Judah.[163] During the 8th century BCE, the worship ofYahweh in Israel was in competition with many other cults, described by the Yahwist faction collectively asBaals. The oldest books of theHebrew Bible reflect this competition,[164] as in the books ofHosea andNahum, whose authors lament the "apostasy" of the people of Israel, threatening them with the wrath of God if they do not give up their polytheistic cults.[165]
As time progressed, thehenotheistic cult of Yahweh grew increasingly militant in its opposition to the worship of other gods.[161] Some scholars date the start of widespread monotheism to the late 8th century BCE, and view it as a response toNeo-Assyrian aggression.[166][167] Later, the reforms ofKing Josiah imposed a form of strictmonolatrism. After the fall of Judah and the beginning of theBabylonian captivity, a small circle of priests and scribes gathered around the exiled royal court, where they first developed the concept of Yahweh as the sole God of the world.[21]
God, the Cause of all, is one. This does not mean one as in one of a pair, nor one like a species (which encompasses many individuals), nor one as in an object that is made up of many elements, nor as a single simple object that is infinitely divisible. Rather, God is a unity, unlike any other possible unity.[170]
Some in Judaism and Islam reject the Christian idea of monotheism.[159] Modern Judaism uses the termshituf to refer to the worship of God in a manner which Judaism deems to be neither purely monotheistic (though still permissible for non-Jews) nor polytheistic (which would be prohibited).[129]
Mandaeism or Mandaeanism (Arabic:مندائيةMandāʼīyah), sometimes also known as Sabianism, is a monotheistic,Gnostic, andethnic religion.[171][172]: 1 Mandaeans considerAdam,Seth,Noah,Shem andJohn the Baptist to be prophets, with Adam being the founder of the religion and John being the greatest andfinal prophet.[173]: 45 The Mandaeans believe in one God commonly namedHayyi Rabbi meaning 'The Great Life' or 'The Great Living God'.[174] The Mandaeans speak a dialect ofEastern Aramaic known asMandaic. The name 'Mandaean' comes from the Aramaicmanda meaning "knowledge", as does Greekgnosis.[175][176] The term 'Sabianism' is derived from theSabians (Arabic:الصابئة,al-Ṣābiʾa), a mysterious religious group mentioned three times in theQuran alongside the Jews, the Christians and theZoroastrians as a 'people of the book', and whose name was historically claimed by the Mandaeans as well as by several other religious groups in order to gain the legal protection (dhimma) offered byIslamic law.[177] Mandaeans recognize God to be the eternal, creator of all, the one and only in domination who has no partner.[178]
Rastafari, sometimes termed Rastafarianism, is classified as both anew religious movement andsocial movement. It developed inJamaica during the 1930s. It lacks any centralised authority and there is much heterogeneity among practitioners, who are known as Rastafari, Rastafarians, or Rastas.
Rastafari refer to their beliefs, which are based on a specific interpretation of theBible, as "Rastalogy". Central is a monotheistic belief in a single God—referred to asJah—who partially resides within each individual. The former emperor of Ethiopia,Haile Selassie, is given central importance. Many Rastas regard him as an incarnation of Jah on Earth and as theSecond Coming of Christ. Others regard him as a human prophet who fully recognised the inner divinity within every individual.
God in Yazidism created the world and entrusted it into the care of sevenHoly Beings, known asAngels.[46][179][47] The Yazidis believe in a divine Triad.[46][47][180] The original, hidden God of the Yazidis is considered to beremote and inactive in relation to his creation, except to contain and bind it together within his essence.[46] His firstemanation is the AngelMelek Taûs (Tawûsê Melek), who functions as the ruler of the world and leader of the other Angels.[46][47][180] The secondhypostasis of the divine Triad is theSheikh 'Adī ibn Musafir. The third isSultan Ezid. These are the three hypostases of the one God. The identity of these three is sometimes blurred, with Sheikh 'Adī considered to be a manifestation of Tawûsê Melek and vice versa; the same also applies to Sultan Ezid.[46] Yazidis are calledMiletê Tawûsê Melek ("the nation of Tawûsê Melek").[181]
God is referred to by Yazidis asXwedê,Xwedawend,Êzdan, andPedsha ('King'), and, less commonly,Ellah andHeq.[182][183][179][46][184] According to some Yazidi hymns (known asQewls), God has 1,001 names, or 3,003 names according to other Qewls.[185][186]
Faravahar (or Ferohar) is one of the primary symbols of Zoroastrianism, believed to be the depiction of a Fravashi (guardian spirit).
By some scholars, the Zoroastrians ("Parsis" or "Zartoshtis") are sometimes credited with being some of the first monotheists and having had influence on other world religions.[187][188] But this theory has been widely criticized, even by Zoroastrians, who consider that their religion believes in two gods, not one god.
Gherardo Gnoli comments that the Islamic conquest of Persia caused a huge impact on the Zoroastrian doctrine:[3]
"After the Islamic conquest ofPersia and the migration of many Zoroastrians to India and after being exposed to Islamic and Christian propaganda, the Zoroastrians, especially the Parsis in India, went so far as to deny dualism and consider themselves completely monotheists. After several transformations and developments, one of the distinctive features of the Zoroastrian religion gradually faded away and almost disappeared from modern Zoroastrianism."
Maneckji Nusserwanji Dhalla described the doctrine of theGayomarthians sect as another attempt to mitigate the dualism that has always been the essence of Zoroastrianism. This was due to the Prophet Muhammad's emphasis on monotheism and the Muslims' mockery of the doctrine of worshipping two gods, which made the Zoroastrians view dualism as a defect, so they added monotheism, which led to the Zoroastrians' division into sects and he mentions examples of the Zoroastrian attempt to establish a monotheistic belief by diminishing the importance of Ahriman, including that Ahura Mazda and Ahriman were created from time, or that Ahura Mazda himself allowed the existence of evil, or that Ahriman was a corrupt angel who rebelled against Ahura Mazda. Then he mentions the name of a Persian book from the15h century in which it is written that the Magi (Zoroastrians) believe that Allah and Iblis are brothers.[1]
The head deity of theProto-Indo-European religion was the god*Dyḗus Pḥatḗr. A number of words derived from the name of this prominent deity are used in variousIndo-European languages to denote a monotheistic God. Nonetheless, in spite of this, Proto-Indo-European religion itself was not monotheistic.[189]
InEastern Europe, the ancient traditions of the Slavic religion contained elements of monotheism. In the sixth century AD, the Byzantine chroniclerProcopius recorded that the Slavs "acknowledge that one god, creator of lightning, is the only lord of all: to him do they sacrifice an ox and all sacrificial animals."[190] The deity to whom Procopius is referring is the storm godPerún, whose name is derived from*Perkwunos, the Proto-Indo-European god of lightning. The ancient Slavs syncretized him with the Germanic godThor and the Biblical prophetElijah.[191]
Fictionalized portrait ofXenophanes from a 17th-century engraving
The surviving fragments of the poems of the classical Greek philosopherXenophanes of Colophon suggest that he held views very similar to those of modern monotheists.[192] His poems harshly criticize the traditional notion of anthropomorphic gods, commenting that "...if cattle and horses and lions had hands or could paint with their hands and create works such as men do,... [they] also would depict the gods' shapes and make their bodies of such a sort as the form they themselves have."[193] Instead, Xenophanes declares that there is "...one god, greatest among gods and humans, like mortals neither in form nor in thought."[194] Xenophanes's theology appears to have been monist, but not truly monotheistic in the strictest sense.[21] Although some later philosophers, such asAntisthenes, believed in doctrines similar to those expounded by Xenophanes, his ideas do not appear to have become widely popular.[21]
AlthoughPlato himself was a polytheist, in his writings, he often presentsSocrates as speaking of "the god" in the singular form. He does, however, often speak of the gods in the plural form as well. TheEuthyphro dilemma, for example, is formulated as "Is that which is holy loved by the gods because it is holy, or is it holy because it is loved by the gods?"[195]
The development of pure (philosophical) monotheism is a product of theLate Antiquity. During the 2nd to 3rd centuries,early Christianity was just one of several competing religious movements advocating monotheism.
"The One" (Τὸ Ἕν) is a concept that is prominent in the writings of theNeoplatonists, especially those of the philosopherPlotinus.[196] In the writings of Plotinus, "The One" is described as an inconceivable, transcendent, all-embodying, permanent, eternal, causative entity that permeates throughout all of existence.[49]
A number of oracles ofApollo fromDidyma andClarus, the so-called "theological oracles", dated to the 2nd and 3rd century CE, proclaim that there is only one highest god, of whom the gods of polytheistic religions are mere manifestations or servants.[197] 4th century CE Cyprus had, besides Christianity, an apparently monotheistic cult ofDionysus.[198]
TheHypsistarians were a religious group who believed in a most high god, according to Greek documents. Later revisions of this Hellenic religion were adjusted towards monotheism as it gained consideration among a wider populace. The worship of Zeus as the head-god signaled a trend in the direction of monotheism, with less honour paid to the fragmented powers of the lesser gods.
Aboriginal Australians are typically described aspolytheistic in nature.[199] Although some researchers shy from referring toDreamtime figures as "gods" or "deities", they are broadly described as such for the sake of simplicity.[200]
In Southeastern Australian cultures, the sky fatherBaiame is perceived as the creator of the universe (though this role is sometimes taken by other gods likeYhi orBunjil) and at least among theGamilaraay traditionally revered above other mythical figures.[201] Equation between him and the Christian god is common among both missionaries and modern Christian Aboriginals.[202]
TheYolnguhad extensive contact with the Makassans and adopted religious practises inspired by those of Islam. The god Walitha'walitha is based on Allah (specifically, with thewa-Ta'ala suffix), but while this deity had a role in funerary practises it is unclear if it was "Allah-like" in terms of functions.[203]
The religion of theAndamanese peoples has at times been described as "animistic monotheism", believing foremost in a single deity,Pūluga, who created the universe.[204] However, Pūluga is not worshipped, and anthropomorphic personifications of natural phenomena are also known.[205]
David Hume (1711–1776) said that monotheism is less pluralistic and thus lesstolerant thanpolytheism, because monotheism stipulates that people pigeonhole their beliefs into one tenet.[206] In the same vein,Auguste Comte said that "Monotheism is irreconcilable with the existence in our nature of the instincts of benevolence" because it compels followers to devote themselves to a single Creator.[207]Mark S. Smith, an Americanbiblical scholar and ancient historian, wrote that monotheism has been a "totalizing discourse", often co-opting all aspects of a social belief system, resulting in the exclusion of "others".[208] Jacob Neusner suggests that "the logic of monotheism ... yields little basis for tolerating other religions".[209]
Ancient monotheism is described[by whom?]as the instigator ofviolence in its early days because it inspired theIsraelites to wage war upon theCanaanites who believed in multiple gods.[210]Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan regarded monotheism as a cause of violence, saying: "The intolerance of narrow monotheism is written in letters of blood across the history of man from the time when first the tribes of Israel burst into the land of Canaan. The worshippers of the one jealous God are egged on to aggressive wars against people of alien [beliefs and cultures]. They invoke divine sanction for the cruelties inflicted on the conquered. The spirit of old Israel is inherited by Christianity and Islam, and it might not be unreasonable to suggest that it would have been better for Western civilization if Greece had moulded it on this question rather than Palestine."[211] BothRegina Schwartz andSarvepalli Radhakrishnan do not present quantitative data demonstrating that polytheist states waged less aggressive and cruel wars. In addition, according to the academic consensus, the Israelites neither were monotheist at that stage, nor "burst into Canaan."
McDaniel, J. (20 September 2013). "A Modern Hindu Monotheism: Indonesian Hindus as 'People of the Book'".The Journal of Hindu Studies.6 (3). Oxford University Press (OUP):333–362.doi:10.1093/jhs/hit030.ISSN1756-4255.
Zoroastrian Studies: The Iranian Religion and Various Monographs, 1928 – Page 31,A. V. Williams Jackson – 2003
Global Institutions of Religion: Ancient Movers, Modern Shakers – Page 88, Katherine Marshall – 2013
Ethnic Groups of South Asia and the Pacific: An Encyclopedia – Page 348, James B. Minahan – 2012
^TheosArchived 2007-05-26 at theWayback Machine, Henry George Liddell, Robert Scott,A Greek-English Lexicon, at Perseus
^The compoundμονοθεισμός is current only inModern Greek. There is a single attestation ofμονόθεον in a Byzantine hymn (Canones Junii 20.6.43; A. Acconcia Longo and G. Schirò,Analecta hymnica graeca, vol. 11 e codicibus eruta Italiae inferioris. Rome: Istituto di Studi Bizantini e Neoellenici.Università di Roma, 1978)
^More, Henry (1660).An Explanation of the Grand Mystery of Godliness. London: Flesher & Morden. p. 62.
^Sharma, Chandradhar (1962). "Chronological Summary of History of Indian Philosophy".Indian Philosophy: A Critical Survey. New York: Barnes & Noble. p. vi.
^abcWells, Colin (2010)."How Did God Get Started?".Arion.18.2 (Fall). Archived fromthe original on 8 May 2021. Retrieved26 December 2020....as any student of ancient philosophy can tell you, we see the first appearance of a unitary God not in Jewish scripture, but in the thought of the Greek philosopher Plato...
^"Ethical monotheism".britannica.com. Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.Archived from the original on 26 December 2014. Retrieved25 December 2014.
^Nikiprowetzky, V. (1975). Ethical monotheism. (2 ed., Vol. 104, pp. 69-89). New York: The MIT Press Article Stable.JSTOR20024331
^Armstrong, Karen (1994).A History of God: The 4,000-Year Quest of Judaism, Christianity and Islam. New York City, New York: Ballantine Books.ISBN978-0-345-38456-0.
^Compare:Theissen, Gerd (1985)."III: Biblical Monotheism in an Evolutionary Perspective".Biblical Faith: An Evolutionary Approach. Translated byBowden, John. Minneapolis: Fortress Press (published 2007). p. 64.ISBN978-1-4514-0861-4. Retrieved13 January 2017.Evolutionary interpretations of the history of religion are usually understood to be an explanation of the phenomenon of religion as a result of a continuous development. The model for such development is the growth of living beings which leads to increasingly subtle differentiation and integration. Within such a framework of thought, monotheism would be interpreted as the result of a continuous development from animism, polytheism, henotheism and monolatry to belief in the one and only God. Such a development cannot be proved. Monotheism appeared suddenly, though not without being prepared for.
^Armstrong, Karen (1994).A History of God: The 4,000-Year Quest of Judaism, Christianity and Islam. New York City, New York: Ballantine Books. p. 3.ISBN978-0-345-38456-0.
^Darnell, J. C., & Manassa, C. (2007). Tutankhamun's Armies: Battle and conquest during ancient Egypt's Late Eighteenth Dynasty. John Wiley & Sons.
^abOstler, Jeffry. The Plains Sioux and U.S. Colonialism from Lewis and Clark to Wounded Knee. Cambridge University Press, Jul 5, 2004.ISBN0521605903, pg 26.
^abcDubs, Homer H. (1959). "Theism and Naturalism in Ancient Chinese Philosophy".Philosophy East and West.9 (3/4):163–172.doi:10.2307/1397096.ISSN0031-8221.JSTOR1397096.It does not necessarily imply monotheism, however, since, in addition to the Supreme High-god or Heaven, there were also the ordinary gods (shen) and the ancestral spirits (guei), all of whom were worshipped in the Jou royal cult.
^Mallory, J. P.; Adams, D.Q. (2006).The Oxford Introduction to Proto-Indo-European and the Proto-Indo-European World. Oxford, England: Oxford University Press. pp. 408–411 and 423–434.ISBN978-0-19-929668-2.
^abSchürmann, Reiner; Lily, Reginald (2003).Broken Hegemonies. Bloomington, Indiana: Indiana University Press. pp. 143–144.ISBN0-253-34144-2. Retrieved25 March 2017.
^abMcLaughlin, Elsie (22 September 2017)."The Art of the Amarna Period".World History Encyclopedia.Archived from the original on 2 May 2021. Retrieved4 July 2020.In Regnal Year 5, the pharaoh dropped all pretense and declared Aten the official state deity of Egypt, directing focus and funding away from the Amun priesthood to the cult of the sun disk. He even changed his name from Amenhotep ('Amun is Satisfied') to Akhenaten ('Effective for the Aten,') and ordered the construction of a new capital city, Akhetaten ('The Horizon of Aten') in the desert. Located at the modern site of Tell el-Amarna, Akhetaten was situated between the ancient Egyptian cities of Thebes and Memphis on the east bank of the Nile.
^Mark, Joshua J. (3 August 2017)."Amarna Period of Egypt".World History Encyclopedia.Archived from the original on 17 February 2022. Retrieved10 February 2022.
^ Swaminarayan bicentenary commemoration volume, 1781-1981. p. 154: ...Shri Vallabhacharya [and] Shri Swaminarayan... Both of them designate the highest reality as Krishna, who is both the highest avatara and also the source of other avataras. To quote R. Kaladhar Bhatt in this context. "In this transcendental devotieon (Nirguna Bhakti), the sole Deity and only" is Krishna.New Dimensions in Vedanta Philosophy - Page 154Archived 2023-04-20 at theWayback Machine, Sahajānanda, Vedanta. 1981
^Elkman, S.M.; Gosvami, J. (1986).Jiva Gosvamin's Tattvasandarbha: A Study on the Philosophical and Sectarian Development of the Gaudiya Vaishnava Movement. Motilal Banarsidass Pub.
^Dimock Jr, E.C.; Dimock, E.C. (1989).The Place of the Hidden Moon: Erotic Mysticism in the Vaisnava-Sahajiya Cult of Bengal. University Of Chicago Press.page 132Archived 2023-04-20 at theWayback Machine
^Flood, Gavin D. (1996).An introduction to Hinduism. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. p. 341.ISBN0-521-43878-0. Retrieved21 April 2008.gavin flood. "Early Vaishnava worship focuses on three deities who become fused together, namely Vasudeva-Krishna, Krishna-Gopala, and Narayana, who in turn all become identified with Vishnu. Put simply, Vasudeva-Krishna and Krishna-Gopala were worshiped by groups generally referred to as Bhagavatas, while Narayana was worshipped by the Pancaratra sect."
^Gupta, Ravi M. (2007).Caitanya Vaisnava Vedanta of Jiva Gosvami. Routledge.ISBN978-0-415-40548-5.
^Matchett, Freda (2000).Krsna, Lord or Avatara? the relationship between Krsna and Visnu: in the context of the Avatara myth as presented by the Harivamsa, the Visnupurana and the Bhagavatapurana. Surrey: Routledge. p. 4.ISBN0-7007-1281-X.
^For an overview of the Śatarudriya see: Kramrisch, pp. 71-74.
^For a full translation of the complete hymn see: Sivaramamurti (1976)
^For theŚatarudrīya as an early example of enumeration of divine names, see: Flood (1996), p. 152.
^Goel, Sita Ram (1987).Defence of Hindu Society. New Delhi, India: Voice of India. Archived fromthe original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved23 August 2011."In the Vedic approach, there is no single God. This is bad enough. But the Hindus do not have even a supreme God, a fuhrer-God who presides over a multiplicity of Gods." – Ram Swarup
^Goel, Sita Ram (1987).Defence of Hindu Society. New Delhi, India: Voice of India. Archived fromthe original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved23 August 2011.
^Goel, Sita Ram (1982).How I became a Hindu. New Delhi, India: Voice of India. p. 92.
^Mark Juergensmeyer, Gurinder Singh Mann (2006).The Oxford Handbook of Global Religions. US: Oxford University Press. p. 41.ISBN978-0-19-513798-9.
^Ardinger, Barbara (2006).Pagan Every Day: Finding the Extraordinary in Our Ordinary Lives. Weisfer. p. 13.ISBN978-1-57863-332-6.
^The spellingTengrism is found in the 1960s, e.g. Bergounioux (ed.),Primitive and prehistoric religions, Volume 140, Hawthorn Books, 1966, p. 80.Tengrianism is a reflection of the Russian term,Тенгрианство. It is reported in 1996 ("so-called Tengrianism") in Shnirelʹman (ed.),Who gets the past?: competition for ancestors among non-Russian intellectuals in Russia, Woodrow Wilson Center Press, 1996,ISBN978-0-8018-5221-3,p. 31 in the context of the nationalist rivalry overBulgar legacy. The spellingsTengriism andTengrianity are later, reported (deprecatingly, in scare quotes) in 2004 inCentral Asiatic journal, vol. 48-49 (2004),p. 238Archived 2023-03-26 at theWayback Machine. The Turkish termTengricilik is also found from the 1990s. MongolianТэнгэр шүтлэг is used in a 1999 biography ofGenghis Khan (Boldbaatar et al.,Чингис хаан, 1162-1227,Хаадын сан, 1999,p. 18Archived 2023-04-20 at theWayback Machine).
^"There is no doubt that between the 6th and 9th centuries Tengrism was the religion among the nomads of the steppes" Yazar András Róna-Tas,Hungarians and Europe in the early Middle Ages: an introduction to early Hungarian history, Yayıncı Central European University Press, 1999,ISBN978-963-9116-48-1,p. 151Archived 2023-04-06 at theWayback Machine.
Hence all the power of magic became dissolved; and every bond of wickedness was destroyed, men's ignorance was taken away, and the old kingdom abolished God Himself appearing in the form of a man, for the renewal of eternal life.
— St. Ignatius of Antioch inLetter to the Ephesians, ch.4, shorter version, Roberts-Donaldson translation
We have also as a Physician the Lord our God Jesus the Christ the only-begotten Son and Word, before time began, but who afterwards became also man, of Mary the virgin. For 'the Word was made flesh.' Being incorporeal, He was in the body; being impassible, He was in a passable body; being immortal, He was in a mortal body; being life, He became subject to corruption, that He might free our souls from death and corruption, and heal them, and might restore them to health, when they were diseased with ungodliness and wicked lusts
— St. Ignatius of Antioch inLetter to the Ephesians, ch.7, shorter version, Roberts-Donaldson translation
The Church, though dispersed throughout the whole world, even to the ends of the earth, has received from the apostles and their disciples this faith: ...one God, the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven, and earth, and the sea, and all things that are in them; and in one Christ Jesus, the Son of God, who became incarnate for our salvation; and in the Holy Spirit, who proclaimed through the prophets the dispensations of God, and the advents, and the birth from a virgin, and the passion, and the resurrection from the dead, and the ascension into heaven in the flesh of the beloved Christ Jesus, our Lord, and His manifestation from heaven in the glory of the Father 'to gather all things in one,' and to raise up anew all flesh of the whole human race, in order that to Christ Jesus, our Lord, and God, and Savior, and King, according to the will of the invisible Father, 'every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth, and that every tongue should confess; to him, and that He should execute just judgment towards all...'
For, in the name of God, the Father and Lord of the universe, and of our Savior Jesus Christ, and of the Holy Spirit, they then receive the washing with water
— Justin Martyr inFirst Apology, ch. LXI,Donaldson, Sir James (1950),Ante Nicene Fathers, Volume 1: Apostolic Fathers, Justin Martyr, Irenaeus, Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company,ISBN978-0-8028-8087-1{{citation}}:ISBN / Date incompatibility (help)
^Mohammed Amin."Triangulating the Abrahamic faiths – measuring the closeness of Judaism, Christianity and Islam".Archived from the original on 22 February 2016. Retrieved20 January 2016.Christians were seen as polytheists, due to the doctrine of the Trinity. In the last few hundred years, rabbis have moderated this view slightly, but they still do not regard Christians as being fully monotheistic in the same manner as Jews or Muslims. Muslims were acknowledged as monotheists.
^"Islamic Practices". Universal Life Church Ministries.Archived from the original on 7 March 2016. Retrieved20 January 2016.It is the Islamic belief that Christianity is not monotheistic, as it claims, but rather polytheistic with the trinity-the father, son and the Holy Ghost.
^Lesson 10: Three Persons are Subsistent Relations, Catholic Thinkers: "The fatherhood constitutes the Person of the Father, the sonship constitutes the Person of the Son, and the passive aspiration constitutes the Person of the Holy Spirit. But in God "everything is one where there is no distinction by relative opposition." Consequently, even though in God there are three Persons, there is only one consciousness, one thinking and one loving. The three Persons share equally in the internal divine activity because they are all identified with the divine essence. For, if each divine Person possessed his own distinct and different consciousness, there would be three gods, not the one God of Christian revelation. So you will see that in this regard there is an immense difference between a divine Person and a human person."
^TrinityArchived 2021-04-30 at theWayback Machine,Encyclopædia Britannica: "The Council of Nicaea in 325 stated the crucial formula for that doctrine in its confession that the Son is "of the same substance [homoousios] as the Father", even though it said very little about the Holy Spirit. Over the next half century, Athanasius defended and refined the Nicene formula, and, by the end of the 4th century, under the leadership of Basil of Caesarea, Gregory of Nyssa, and Gregory of Nazianzus (the Cappadocian Fathers), the doctrine of the Trinity took substantially the form it has maintained ever since. It is accepted in all of the historic confessions of Christianity, even though the impact of the Enlightenment decreased its importance."
^Peters, F.E. (2003).Islam. Princeton University Press. p. 4.
^Lawson, Todd (2011).Gnostic Apocalypse and Islam: Qurʼan, Exegesis, Messianism and the Literary Origins of the Babi Religion. London: Routledge.ISBN978-0-415-49539-4.
^Tisdall, William (1911).The Sources of Islam: A Persian Treatise. London: Morrison and Gibb. pp. 46–74.
^Rudolph, Kurt (2001).Gnosis: The Nature And History of Gnosticism. London: T&T Clark Int'l. pp. 367–390.ISBN978-0-567-08640-2.
^Hoeller, Stephan A. (2002).Gnosticism: New Light on the Ancient Tradition of Inner Knowing. Wheaton, IL: Quest Books. pp. 155–174.ISBN978-0-8356-0816-9.
^Smith, Andrew (2006).The Lost Sayings of Jesus: Teachings from Ancient Christian, Jewish, Gnostic, and Islamic Sources--Annotated & Explained. Skylight Paths Publishing.ISBN978-1-59473-172-3.
^Tillman, Nagel (2000).The History of Islamic Theology from Muhammad to the Present. Princeton, NJ: Markus Wiener Publishers. pp. 215–234.ISBN978-1-55876-203-9.
^Accad (2003): According to Ibn Taymiya, although only some Muslims accept the textual veracity of the entire Bible, most Muslims will grant the veracity of most of it.
^Tamara Sonn (2009)."Tawḥīd". In John L. Esposito (ed.).The Oxford Encyclopedia of the Islamic World. Oxford: Oxford University Press.ISBN978-0-19-530513-5.Archived from the original on 11 August 2017. Retrieved29 July 2017.
^MonotheismArchived 2022-04-12 at theWayback Machine,My Jewish Learning, "Many critical scholars think that the interval between the Exodus and the proclamation of monotheism was much longer. Outside of Deuteronomy the earliest passages to state that there are no gods but the Lord are in poems and prayers attributed to Hannah and David, one and a half to two and a half centuries after the Exodus at the earliest. Such statements do not become common until the seventh century B.C.E., the period to which Deuteronomy is dated by the critical view."
^Othmar Keel, Christoph Uehlinger, Gods, Goddesses, and Images of God in Ancient Israel, Fortress Press (1998); Mark S. Smith, The Origins of Biblical Monotheism: Israel's Polytheistic Background and the Ugaritic Texts, Oxford University Press (2001)
^Omarkhali, Khanna (2017).The Yezidi religious textual tradition, from oral to written: categories, transmission, scripturalisation, and canonisation of the Yezidi oral religious texts: with samples of oral and written religious texts and with audio and video samples on CD-ROM. Harrassowitz Verlag.ISBN978-3-447-10856-0.OCLC994778968.
^Mallory, J. P.; Adams, D.Q. (2006).The Oxford Introduction to Proto-Indo-European and the Proto-Indo-European World. Oxford, England: Oxford University Press. pp. 408–411 and 423–434.ISBN978-0-19-929668-2.
^E. Kessler,Dionysian Monotheism in Nea Paphos, Cyprus: "two monotheistic religions, Dionysian and Christian, existed contemporaneously in Nea Paphos during the 4th century C.E. [...] the particular iconography of Hermes and Dionysos in the panel of the Epiphany of Dionysos [...] represents the culmination of a pagan iconographic tradition in which an infant divinity is seated on the lap of another divine figure; this pagan motif was appropriated by early Christian artists and developed into the standardized icon of the Virgin and Child. Thus the mosaic helps to substantiate the existence of pagan monotheism." [(AbstractArchived 2008-04-21 at theWayback Machine)
^David Hume said that unlike monotheism, polytheism is pluralistic in nature, unbound by doctrine, and therefore far more tolerant than monotheism, which tends to force people to believe in one faith.(David Hume,Dialogues Concerning Natural Religion and the Natural History of Religion, ed. J. C. A. Gaskin, New York: Oxford University Press, 1983, pp. 26-32.
^Berchman, Robert M. (May 2008). "The Political Foundations of Tolerance in the Greco-Roman Period". InNeusner, Jacob;Chilton, Bruce (eds.).Religious Tolerance in World Religions. Templeton Foundation Press (published 2008). p. 61.ISBN978-1-59947-136-5. Retrieved3 July 2016.Jacob Neusner [...] claims that 'the logic of monotheism ... yields little basis for tolerating other religions.'
^Regina Schwartz,The Curse of Cain: The Violent Legacy of Monotheism, The University of Chicago Press, 1997ISBN978-0-226-74199-4
^Arvind Sharma, "A Primal Perspective on the Philosophy of Religion", Dordrecht, Springer, 2006, p.29.
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