I don`t understand the concept of only one GOD.

[columbus]

Shouldn't the foundation or origin have to be greater to hold everything together. Concerning life or existence that is what I mean.

Well, I suppose in that sense the foundation is greater.
But greater sounds like a judgement. Greater is better.

I don't see it that way. It's all parts of a whole.
Tom

 

[oldbadger]

Why would they look up to something else? would not that be an attachment?

They would always be wondering how they came to be.
They would wonder who created them.

 

[Shad]

Maybe it was the Prehistorical civilization Atlantis who made the symbols in Australia before the Egyptians we know today?

FYI the source he is using is Ancient Aliens. All are crackpots with crackpot ideas no one in archaeology takes seriously.

 

[Spirit of Light]

This world appearance is a confusion: even as the blueness of the sky is an optical illusion.
I think it is better not to let the mind dwell on it, but to ignore it.

When i think of it i do agree with you

 

[Spirit of Light]

Although I don't believe it personally, I also understand that people can have any of a wide variety of beliefs. So in the sense that anything is possible, I do understand it.

I think what you meant to say is you don't believe in it, as intellectually it's a fairly easy concept to understand.

I do not see the Christian God as to main "creator" of all, that is true. But i do belive the Christian God is out there somewhere. But only the Christians need to follow his teaching

 

[Spirit of Light]

Even in biblical scripture, the "one true God" is making more gods! (I said "Ye are gods...")
However, he will always be the God of all others -because he was first -the original -the most high -the beginning and end, etc., etc.
One way to look at it is that God is the sum of all -and we are only a portion -essentially made FROM him -not just BY him.
God's position gives him power over all (that he is).

I understand what you say, but honestly i see it differently I do not see Christian God as the highest of truth.

 

[Jedster]

All those Gods.
What do they look up to.
Who do they revere?

That would ultimately be God.

Yes, however maybe even that God doesn't know where it came from.
{The writer of the creation hymn agrees with me :
The last stanza says
Whence this creation has arisen
– perhaps it formed itself, or perhaps it did not –
the One who looks down on it,
in the highest heaven, only He knows
or perhaps even He does not know.

Full poem at The Hymn of Creation - #embodiedphilosophy

 

[TransmutingSoul]

Dug out this old poem!

One God, One Faith,
One Spirit, One Race,
One Promise, One Aim,
One Love, much to Gain,
One Vision, One End,
One purpose to comprehend.

World Unity now in Play,
One way to portray,
Teach One, Teach All,
To Teach now the call. (TBS23/11/2012)

Oneness is great Regards Tony

 

[ajay0]

In the Prajapita Brahmakumaris, the monotheistic God exists with many secondary deities as well harmoniously.

These deities are delegated work to be done as in a company or organisation for the smooth working of the process.

 

[loverofhumanity]

I struggle to understand those who believe there is only one God. I see it as natural that there are many Gods, Buddhas, and Daos in other dimensions. Just like there are many human beings on earth.

What is your thought about this?

Hi Amanaki.

Oneness is reflected in all the universe. There are no two grains of sands in the entire universe that are identical neither atoms nor humans,


“The sign of Divine Unity is present and visible in all things. If all the granaries of the world were filled with grain, you would be hard-pressed to find two grains that are absolutely identical and indistinguishable in every respect: Some difference or distinction is bound to remain between them.”


‘Abdu’l‑Bahá

Also, I believe that the ‘many gods’ that some worship are actually the ‘attributes of one God’ but when people saw attributes like compassion or love or mercy they throught these attributes were in reality a sign of another god and so erected a statue in the name of that attribute calling it a god. They compartmentalised each attribute in their mind as a separate god.

People have also associated gods with earthly things such as trees, fertility, storms, prosperity, thunder and such but these things represent earthly attributes yet people have made gods of them.

But however we view these things separately they are all part of ‘one’ interconnected whole.

 

[stvdv]

When i think of it i do agree with you

I thought so; reading your posts, I thought this will be something Amanaki can relate with.

 

[sciatica]

The God of Israel defeated gods like Baal.

 

[oldbadger]

Yes, however maybe even that God doesn't know where it came from.
{The writer of the creation hymn agrees with me :
The last stanza says
Whence this creation has arisen
– perhaps it formed itself, or perhaps it did not –
the One who looks down on it,
in the highest heaven, only He knows
or perhaps even He does not know.

Full poem at The Hymn of Creation - #embodiedphilosophy

Hi...
That stanza does not and cannot refer to Deist God, 'cos a Deist God does not look down on creation, but is the all and everything of and within that creation.

 

[Jim]

I struggle to understand those who believe there is only one God. I see it as natural that there are many Gods, Buddhas, and Daos in other dimensions. Just like there are many human beings on earth.

What is your thought about this?

Random thoughts:

- I think that it’s misleading to think of the God of Abraham as being only one God, as opposed to many or none. I think that misses the point of the “no other god” passages, and in fact diverts attention from it. I think that those passage are about idolatry, and not about how many God is. I don’t think that He has any number. There is not one of Him, or three, or many, or zero. Now that I think of it, those “no other god” passages might be about what you’ve been saying about following only one path at a time. Allowing people in an Abrahamic community to follow other gods would undermine the well-being and progress of people on the Abrahamic path. I don’t know if that’s true or not, I made that up just now.

- I don’t know how to relate my God to the gods of other paths, and I don’t even try. To me it’s like different coordinate systems, like rectangular and polar coordinates. Maybe if I tried, I could calculate coordinates in my frame of reference for the gods in other frames of reference, but for now I don’t know of any reason for me to do that.

- My God is purely a mental device for understanding what I read in Abrahamic scriptures. Sometimes it’s the creator and sustainer of everything. Sometimes it’s one or another of some human characters in the stories of Abrahamic religions. Sometimes it’s some powers and influences in us and in the world around us that help bring out the best in us, in society and in the world around us.

 

[Aupmanyav]

What is wrong with idolatry? It is only a device to focus attention. Christians have their book, cross, Mother Mary, Saints to focus on, the Muslims have their Kaaba or even the direction of Salah. Why should it be always towards Kaaba. As Guru Nanak and Saint Kabir said, 'does God not exist in other directions?' Is that not idolatry?

 

[Jim]

What is wrong with idolatry? It is only a device to focus attention. Christians have their book, crfoss, Mother Malry, Saints to focus on, the Muslims have their Kaaba or even the direction of Salah. Why should it be always towards Kaaba. As Guru Nanak and Saint Kabir said, 'does God not exist in other directions?' Is that not idolatry?

It may or may not be, depending on the circumstances, and why and how people are doing it.

 

[Etritonakin]

I understand what you say, but honestly i see it differently I do not see Christian God as the highest of truth.

I believe we will eventually know that God is the most basic truth possible -and all that has become of it so far. In other words, God's nature would BE logic, math, the basis of physics, etc. -but possessing or developing self-awareness, etc.

As for the biblical God specifically, I agree that it all (what is recorded in scripture) seems a bit... weird, messy, confusing -even harsh and horrific, etc. -but not when seen from the perspective of God making gods of men in as short a time as possible -no more than about 120 years of personal experience each -and about 6,000 from Adam (not the Earth).
Also, biblical scripture seems to portray God as favoring Israel over others, but what it actually says is that they were simply first to go through (both good and bad) what all will go through to become gods.
They were chosen for that purpose -not that they are seen as better in any way by God. I like to think about it as everyone getting on the same bus which is going to the same place.
Everyone will have forever -and a vast universe -so order now really doesn't make much difference.

 

[columbus]

'cos a Deist God does not look down on creation, but is the all and everything of and within that creation.

You and I share that image of God.
But not all deists do. I've conversed with some, including here on RF, who seem to see God very much like the Abrahamic God(separate from and higher than) Creation. They just don't think God meddles, or changes His Mind, or things like that the way Abrahamic theists generally do.
Tom

 

[Sundance]

I struggle to understand those who believe there is only one God. I see it as natural that there are many Gods, Buddhas, and Daos in other dimensions. Just like there are many human beings on earth.

What is your thought about this?

To me, one or many (or none at all) is a product of each person’s conception of God or gods. Monotheism is rooted in one that’s very specifically defined. While I am a henotheist/monolater (a person who believes in many deities but worships one, especially as supreme), I can most certainly understand where such a conception can originate from.

 

[Sundance]

I suppose us polytheists don't tend to turn deification into some sort of wang measuring contest. One doesn't need be the apex of something to be worthy of worship (aka, a deity). I'll confess that sort of competitive, hierarchical thinking has always bothered me. No surprise I have a hard time processing it's prevalence in monotheist theologies.

To speak as a henotheist, on the one hand, Q, I would certainly agree with you regarding not needing to be the apex of something in order to be a deity. Indeed. However, conceptions of God or gods are — like everything else humans devise — are bound to operate in accordance with the uses of human language. That is to say, we as human beings rank things hierarchically or gravitate towards certain things more so than others all the time, and the way we speak reflects it. Understanding this, it would make sense that one feels that whichever god or goddess is most worthy of worship could potentially take on the aspects of lesser deities in a syncretistic way, thereby becoming – essentially – the One and Only God.