• Welcome to Religious Forums, a friendly forum to discuss all religions in a friendly surrounding.

    Your voice is missing! You will need to register to get access to the following site features:
    • Reply to discussions and create your own threads.
    • Our modern chat room. No add-ons or extensions required, just login and start chatting!
    • Access to private conversations with other members.

    We hope to see you as a part of our community soon!

Atheism or Polytheism in Abrahamic Religions?

The Sum of Awe

Brought to you by the moment that spacetime began.
Staff member
Premium Member
Is it possibly to be an Atheist and at the same time fit under the Abrahamic label? In the same way there are atheist Pagans and atheist Dharmics and atheist LHPs and etc.

And is it possible for an Abrahamic religion to be polytheistic? Or is monotheism required?
 

Zardoz

Wonderful Wizard
Premium Member
Is it possibly to be an Atheist and at the same time fit under the Abrahamic label? In the same way there are atheist Pagans and atheist Dharmics and atheist LHPs and etc.
Strong Atheist? No, I would think not. Weak Atheist/Agnostic? Yes, very possible.

And is it possible for an Abrahamic religion to be polytheistic? Or is monotheism required?
Some, but not all. But, best not go there, or we will have a debate in the DIR, lol
 

Pegg

Jehovah our God is One
Is it possibly to be an Atheist and at the same time fit under the Abrahamic label? In the same way there are atheist Pagans and atheist Dharmics and atheist LHPs and etc.

And is it possible for an Abrahamic religion to be polytheistic? Or is monotheism required?

the reason why the Abrahamic religions are called such is because they believe in Abrahams God. Abraham worshiped Jehovah/Yahweh and Jah was the only true God...the Creator of Heaven and Earth and mankind.

So according to Abraham, his God was a real live entity...not a myth or a legend or an impersonal force such as energy. Abrahams God has a personal name, he has feelings, he has purposes and goals...he is interested in mankind. If you believe in Abrahams God, you cannot be an atheist unless you are only in the religion because your family is....but someone who truly believes in God is not an atheist.
 

Willamena

Just me
Premium Member
"The Abrahamic God" has less to do with what Abraham believed, and more to do with what Abraham is seen by many to have believed from a modern perspective. So however atheists or polytheists might "fit the label," it's doubtful that it is anything but syncretism.
 

Levite

Higher and Higher
Is it possibly to be an Atheist and at the same time fit under the Abrahamic label? In the same way there are atheist Pagans and atheist Dharmics and atheist LHPs and etc.

And is it possible for an Abrahamic religion to be polytheistic? Or is monotheism required?

As far as I know, monotheism is a requirement, at least for the "Big Three," in the sense that polytheism is completely incompatible with their theological teachings.

Atheism? I don't know. First of all, I am actually skeptical about true atheism. Most of the atheists I've known who are still at all interested in associating with Judaism are not really atheists, they're just strongly agnostic-- in other words, they aren't 100% convinced there's no God, they just tend to think He doesn't exist as such-- or they're not atheistic, they just don't believe in a personal God.

But even for fully avowed atheists, there do seem to be a number who claim Judaism as a mantle. They can get away with this at all because Judaism is more than a religion, it's a socioreligious ethnicity (combining religion, nationality, and cultural ethnicity in one, inextricably), so even though they are trying to ignore the religious aspects of it, there are still cultural aspects that they can grab on to.

And yet I remain skeptical. The cultural and religious aspects of Judaism are ultimately not severable, and I have never yet encountered a Jewish atheist who participated fully in Jewish society and Jewish practice. When you take Jewish practice, ritual observance, and study out of the picture, you aren't left with a whole lot-- what is left is less of a framework for daily life and living, and more of a hobby, I find.

Atheist Jews remain Jews because under Jewish Law, if one is born to a Jewish mother or converted to Judaism properly according to Jewish Law, one remains Jewish for life, regardless of one's actions. But to what extent they can be said to actually be living a Jewish life? That I don't know.

And I definitely don't know about atheists in Christianity and Islam, which have fewer cultural aspects and no national aspects, and less theological room for flexibility. It seems like "Christian atheist" or "Muslim atheist" would be difficult labels to make mean anything.
 

Mehr Licht

Ave Sophia
It would depend on how you you are using the term gods imo. One God with a capital "G" (in three hypostasis in orthodox Christianity) but there could still be a multitude of small "g" gods angels, principalities, defied humans /"partakers of the divine nature" ("I say ye are gods..."), etc.. Heck, even Satan is called "the god of this world" by Paul.
 

arthra

Baha'i
For Baha'is anyway... Abrahamic or derived from Abraham He was monotheistic and opposed use of idols..an iconoclast in His time. Abraham was also the Source of so many lines of descent:


"Among the great prophets was His Holiness Abraham who being an iconoclast and a herald of the oneness of God, was banished from His native land.

"He founded a family upon which the blessing of God descended; and it was owing to this religious basis and ordination that the Abrahamic house progressed and advanced. Through the divine benediction, noteworthy and luminous prophets issued from the lineage of His Holiness. There appeared Isaac, Ishmael, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, Aaron, David and Solomon.

"The Holy Land was conquered by the power of the Covenant of God with Abraham, and the glory of the Solomonic wisdom and sovereignty dawned. All this was due to the religion of God which this blessed lineage established and upheld. It is evident that throughout the history of Abraham and His posterity this was the source of their honor, advancement and civilization. Even today the descendants of His household and lineage are found throughout the world."

~ Abdu'l-Baha, Baha'i World Faith, p. 270
 
Last edited:

Caladan

Agnostic Pantheist
Is it possibly to be an Atheist and at the same time fit under the Abrahamic label? In the same way there are atheist Pagans and atheist Dharmics and atheist LHPs and etc.

And is it possible for an Abrahamic religion to be polytheistic? Or is monotheism required?
I don't know about Christians and Muslims. but Jews are twice as likely than other groups to be atheists in places such as North America.
many people are spiritually atheistic, but have a cultural Abrahamic niche. the last 200 years saw a steady movement of secularization in western society, in the process of the general emancipation in Europe, Jews for example went from being a religious based group to a culture based group.
 

JacobEzra.

Dr. Greenthumb
And is it possible for an Abrahamic religion to be polytheistic? Or is monotheism required?

Well, according to Muslims, Trinitarian Christianity is polytheistic. And I have seen it only once, but supposedly Kabbalist are or resemble polytheist.

But I doubt you will find any self-described Abrahamic polytheist.
 

Caladan

Agnostic Pantheist
For what its worth. there is modern Semitic Paganism, or Jewish Paganism. I guess much in the same spirit of Jewish Buddhism.
 

Quiddity

UndertheInfluenceofGiants
I don't understand the point of saying Jewish Buddhism? It would be like saying Catholic Buddhism?
 

Caladan

Agnostic Pantheist
I don't understand the point of saying Jewish Buddhism? It would be like saying Catholic Buddhism?
Have you never heard of Wiccan Christians?
I'm not justifying it either way. whatever works for people is good for me. but I am also sure that if you look hard enough you will find Catholic Buddhists.
 

Quiddity

UndertheInfluenceofGiants
Have you never heard of Wiccan Christians?
I'm not justifying it either way. whatever works for people is good for me. but I am also sure that if you look hard enough you will find Catholic Buddhists.

I don't doubt it. I just don't get it is all I'm saying.

It would be akin to the early christians calling themselves the New Jews or something like that.
 

Caladan

Agnostic Pantheist
I don't doubt it. I just don't get it is all I'm saying.

It would be akin to the early christians calling themselves the New Jews or something like that.
People always end up finding some kind of a niche. sometimes it can turn out well.
 

Pegg

Jehovah our God is One
Well, according to Muslims, Trinitarian Christianity is polytheistic. And I have seen it only once, but supposedly Kabbalist are or resemble polytheist.

But I doubt you will find any self-described Abrahamic polytheist.

I dont think polytheistic means there are not multiple spirit beings/gods
I think a polytheistic religion is one which 'worships multiple' spirit beings/gods.

Because the bible lists numerous gods such as the gods created by the nations, Satan himself is called a god in the scriptures and so is Jesus. So its not that there does not exist multiple gods....but that the Abrahamic religion worships only 'one' of them....The Almighty.

Hinduism on the other hand is polytheistic because a devotee can worship a multitude of different gods...not just one.
 

JacobEzra.

Dr. Greenthumb
I dont think polytheistic means there are not multiple spirit beings/gods
I think a polytheistic religion is one which 'worships multiple' spirit beings/gods.

Because the bible lists numerous gods such as the gods created by the nations, Satan himself is called a god in the scriptures and so is Jesus. So its not that there does not exist multiple gods....but that the Abrahamic religion worships only 'one' of them....The Almighty.

Hinduism on the other hand is polytheistic because a devotee can worship a multitude of different gods...not just one.

I know what polytheism is. I was commenting on how. Trinitarian Christianity(which of course doesn't includ jw) is seen as polytheistic to a muslim because of the lack of understand of the doctrine. Some Muslims see the trinitarians such as Catholics as polytheistic because when they say they worship the father, son and holy spirit, they think the catholics are worship three individual, nonconnected gods.

And they are right to think that due to their flawed understanding.
 

fschmidt

Old Testament Reactionary
If you define atheism as lack of belief in a supernatural god, then yes this doesn't conflict with the Old Testament.
 
Last edited by a moderator:

ChristineES

Tiggerism
Premium Member
Is it possibly to be an Atheist and at the same time fit under the Abrahamic label? In the same way there are atheist Pagans and atheist Dharmics and atheist LHPs and etc.

And is it possible for an Abrahamic religion to be polytheistic? Or is monotheism required?

I think they might be able to, if they follow the commands of the faith, although there are a couple of them that including loving God.
 
Top