Polytheism and philosophical absurdities By
Jack
Kettler
In this study, we
will seek to understand polytheism. First,
is it biblical? Second, is it a
coherent metaphysical philosophy? As in
previous studies, we will look at
definitions, scriptures, commentary evidence
and confessional support for the glorifying
of God in how we live.
“Shew me thy ways, O
LORD; teach me thy paths.” (Psalm 25:4)
Definitions from two sources:
Polytheism:
Polytheism is the
belief that there are many gods. Breaking
the word down, “poly” comes from the
Greek word for “many,” and “theism” from the
Greek word for “God.” Polytheism
has perhaps been the dominant theistic view
in human history. The best-known example
of polytheism in ancient times is
Greek/Roman mythology (Zeus, Apollo,
Aphrodite, Poseidon, etc.). The clearest
modern example of polytheism is
Hinduism, which has over 300 million gods.
Although Hinduism is, in essence,
pantheistic, it does hold to beliefs in many
gods. It is interesting to note
that even in polytheistic religions; one god
usually reigns supreme over the
other gods, e.g., Zeus in Greek/Roman
mythology and Brahman in Hinduism. *
Polytheism:
The teaching that
there are many gods. In the Ancient Near
East, the nation of Israel was faced
with the problem of the gods of other
nations creeping into the theology of
Judaism and corrupting the true revelation
of God. Baal was the god of rain and
exercised a powerful influence over the
religion of many pagan cultures and
even into the Jewish community. This is so
because rain was essential to
survival. Rain meant the crops would grow,
the animals would have water, and
the people would be able to eat. If there
was no rain, death prevailed. Such
visible realities as rain, drought, crops,
and death often carried the
spiritual character of the nation of Israel
into spiritual adultery: worshiping
other gods. The Bible does recognize the
existence of other gods, but only as
false. **
In contrast, Monotheism:
The belief that there
is only one God in all places at all times.
There were none before God and
there will be none after Him. Monotheism is
the teaching of the Bible. **
Scripture teaching against
polytheism:
“See now that I, even
I, am he, and there is no god beside me; I
kill and I make alive; I wound and I
heal; and there is none that can deliver out
of my hand.” (Deuteronomy 32:39
ESV)
“For all the gods of
the nations are idols: but the LORD made the
heavens.” (Psalm 96:5)
“Hear, O Israel: The
LORD our God is one LORD.” (Deuteronomy 6:4)
From the Pulpit Commentary on
Deuteronomy 6:4:
Verses 4-25. - THE
FIRST AND GREAT COMMANDMENT. "In the fear of
Jehovah all true obedience is
rooted (vers. 2, 3); for this is the first
and most intimate fact in the
relation of Israel and Jehovah (Deuteronomy
5:26). But where the supreme fear
of Jehovah hinders men from allowing self to
preponderate in opposition to God,
there will be no stopping at this
renunciation of self-will, though this comes
first as the negative form of the ten
commandments also shows, but there will
come to be a coalescence of the human with
the Divine will; and this is love,
which is the proper condition of obedience,
as the ten commandments also
indicate (Deuteronomy 5:10)" (Baumgarten).
Verse 4. - Hear, O Israel: The
Lord our God is one Lord. This is an
affirmation not so much of the moneity as
of the unity and simplicity of Jehovah, the
alone God. Though Elohim (plu.), he
is one. The speaker does not say, "Jehovah
is alone God," but
"Jehovah our Elohim is one Jehovah" (comp.
for the force of אֶחָד,
Exodus 26:6, 11; Ezekiel 37:16-19). Among
the heathen there were many Baals and
many Jupiters; and it was believed that the
deity might be divided and
communicated to many. But the God of Israel,
Jehovah, is one, indivisible and
incommunicable. He is the Absolute and the
Infinite One, who alone is to be
worshipped, on whom all depend, and to whose
command all must yield obedience
(cf. Zechariah 14:9). Not only to
polytheism, but to pantheism, and to the
conception of a localized or national deity,
is this declaration of the unity
of Jehovah opposed. With these words the
Jews begin their daily liturgy, morning
and evening; the sentence expresses the
essence of their religious belief; and
so familiar is it to their thought and
speech that, it is said, they were
often, during the persecution in Spain,
betrayed to their enemies by the
involuntary utterance of it. (1)
Comments:
Sh’ma Israel Yehovah Eloheinu
Yehovah
Echad.
These words can be translated into English
as, “Hear, O Israel, Jehovah [Yhvh],
our God [Elohim], is one [echad]
Jehovah [Yhvh].”
“I am he: before me
there was no God formed. Neither shall there
be after me, I, even I, am LORD,
and beside me there is no Saviour.” (Isaiah
43:10)
“I am the first, and
I am the last; and beside me there is no
God.” (Isaiah 44:6)
From Barnes' Notes on the Bible
on Isaiah 44:6:
And I am the last -
In Isaiah 41:4, this is expressed 'with the
last;' in Revelation 1:8, 'I am
Alpha and Omega.' The sense is, that God
existed before all things, and will
exist forever.
And besides me there
is no God - This is repeatedly declared
(Deuteronomy 4:35, Deuteronomy 4:39;
see the note at Isaiah 43:10-12). This great
truth it was God's purpose to keep
steadily before the minds of the Jews; and
to keep it in the world, and
ultimately to diffuse it abroad among the
nations, was one of the leading reasons
why he selected them as a special people,
and separated them from the rest of
mankind. (2)
“Is there a God
beside me? Yea, there is no God; I know not
any?” (Isaiah 44:8)
“And the scribe said
unto him, Well, Master, thou hast said the
truth: for there is one God; and
there is none other but he.” (Mark 12:32)
“As concerning
therefore the eating of those things that
are offered in sacrifice unto idols,
we know that an idol is nothing in the world
and that there is none other God
but one. For though there be that are called
gods, whether in heaven or in
earth, (as there be gods many, and lords
many,) But to us there is but one God,
the Father, of whom are all things, and we
in him; and one Lord Jesus Christ,
by whom are all things, and we by him.”(1 Corinthians 8:4-6)
Ellicott's Commentary
for English Readers says this about 1
Corinthians 8:5 regarding “gods many”:
(5) For though there
be. . . .—This is an hypothetic argument.
“Be” is the emphatic word of the
supposition. Even assuming that there do
exist those beings which are called
“gods” (we have a right to make such a
supposition, for Deuteronomy 10:17,
Psalm 105:2-3, speaks of “gods and lords” of
another kind), the difference
between the heathen, “gods many” and the
“lords and gods” of whom the Old
Testament speaks, is that the former are
deities, and the latter only a casual
way of speaking of angels and other
spiritual subjects and servants of the one
God. This is brought out in the following
verse. (3)
Comment:
1 Corinthians 8:5 is
a favorite proof text in support of multiple
gods by a large Utah based
religion. As seen, Ellicott’s comments
refute this idea.
“Who opposes and
exalts himself against every so-called god
or object of worship, so that he
takes his seat in the temple of God,
proclaiming himself to be God.” (2
Thessalonians 2:4 ESV)
Comment:
Paul explains in 2
Thessalonians 2:4 clarifies what he means in
1 Corinthians 8:5. The gods
mentioned in Corinthians are false gods and
not gods at all.
The next passage from
James has tremendous apologetic value in
defense of monotheism.
“Thou believest that
there is one God; thou doest well: the
devils also believe, and tremble.” (James
2:19)
Comments:
James says even the
devils believe in one God. The devils are
not polytheists. What does this say
about people advancing the idea of many
gods? The devils faith in one God is
not saving faith, yet it is a true
confession much like the demons that would
acknowledge Christ when he cast them out of
the possessed. See Luke 4:41. If
you are advancing the idea that other gods
exist, woe is you, do you really want
the devil’s minions to be a witness against
you?
Consider Gill's Exposition of the Entire
Bible on James 2:19:
Thou believest that
there is one God,.... These words are a
continuation of the address of the man
that has works, to him that boasts of his
faith without them, observing to him,
that one, and a main article of his faith,
is, that there is one God; which is
to be understood in the Christian sense,
since both the person speaking, and
the person spoken to, were such as professed
themselves Christians; so that to
believe there is one God, is not merely to
give into this article, in
opposition to the polytheism of the
Gentiles, or barely to confess the God of
Israel, as believed on by the Jews, but to
believe that there are three
persons, Father, Son, and Spirit, and that
these three are the one God;
wherefore this article of faith includes
everything relating to God; as to God
the Father, his being and perfections, so to
Christ, as God, and the Son of
God, and the Messiah, &c. and to the
Holy Spirit; and to believe all this
is right:
thou doest well; for
that there is but one God, is to be proved
by the light of nature, and from the
works of creation and providence, and has
been owned by the wisest of the
Heathens themselves; and is established, by
divine revelation, in the books
both of the Old and of the New Testament;
what has been received by the Jews,
and is well known by Christians, to whom it
is set in the clearest light, and
who are assured of the truth of it: but then
the devils also
believe; the Arabic version reads, "the
devils likewise so believe";
they believe the same truth; they know and
believe there is but one God, and
not many; and they know that the God of
Israel is he; and that the Father, Son,
and Spirit, are the one God; they know and
believe him to be the most high God,
whose servants the ministers of the Gospel
are; and they know and believe that
Jesus is the Holy One of God, the Son of
God, and the Messiah, Acts 16:17.
And tremble; at the
wrath of God, which they now feel, and at
the thought of future torments, which
they expect, Mark 5:7 and which is more than
some men do; and yet these shall
not be saved, their damnation is certain and
inevitable, 2 Peter 2:4 wherefore
it follows, that a bare historical faith
will not profit, and cannot save any;
a man may have all faith of this kind, and
be damned; and therefore it is not
to be boasted of, nor trusted to. (4)
Polytheism by systematic
theologian Charles Hodge:
“As
the word implies, Polytheism is the theory
which assumes the existence of many
gods. Monotheism was the original religion
of our race. This is evident not
only from the teachings of the Scriptures,
but also from the fact that the
earliest historical form of religious belief
is monotheistic. There are
monotheistic hymns in the Vedas, the most
ancient writings now extant, unless
the Pentateuch be an exception.
The
first departure from monotheism seems to
have been nature worship. As men lost
the knowledge of God as creator, they were
led to reverence the physical
elements with which they were in contact,
whose power they witnessed, and whose
beneficent influence they constantly
experienced. Hence not only the sun, moon,
and stars, the great representatives of
nature, but fire, air, and water,
became the objects of popular worship. We
accordingly find that the Vedas
consist largely of hymns addressed to these
natural elements.
These
powers were personified, and soon it came to
be generally believed that a
personal being presided over each. And these
imaginary beings were the objects
of popular worship.
While
the mass of the people really believed in
beings that were “called gods” (1
Cor. 8:5), many of the more enlightened were
monotheists, and more were
pantheists. The early introduction and wide
dissemination of pantheism are
proved from the fact that it lies at the
foundation of Brahminism and Buddhism,
the religions of the larger part of the
human race for thousands of years.
There
can be little doubt that when the Aryan
tribes entered India, fifteen hundred
or two thousand years before Christ,
pantheism was their established belief.
The unknown, and “unconditioned” infinite
Being, reveals itself according to
the Hindu system, as Brahma, Vishnu, and
Shiva,—that is, as Creator, Preserver,
and Restorer. These were not persons, but
modes of manifestation. It was in this
form that the idea of an endless process of
development of the infinite into
the finite, and of the return of the finite
into the infinite, was expressed.
It was from this pantheistic principle that
the endless polytheism of the
Hindus naturally developed itself; and this
determined the character of their
whole religion. As all that is, is only a
manifestation of God, everything
remarkable, and especially the appearance of
any remarkable man, was regarded
as an “avatar,” or incarnation of God, in
one or other of his modes of
manifestation, as Brahma, Vishnu, or Shiva.
And as evil is as actual as good,
the one is as much a manifestation, or,
modus existendi, of the infinite Being
as the other. And hence there are evil gods
as well as good. In no part of the
world has pantheism had such a field for
development as in India, and nowhere
has it brought forth its legitimate effects
in such a portentous amount of
evil. Nowhere has polytheism been carried to
such revolting extremes.
Among
the Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans polytheism
assumed a form determined by the
character of the people. The Greeks rendered
it bright, beautiful, and sensual;
the Romans were more decorous and sedate.
Among barbarous nations it has
assumed forms much more simple, and in many
cases more rational.
In
the Bible the gods of the heathen are
declared to be “vanity,” and “nothing,”
mere imaginary beings, without power either
to hurt or to save. (Jer. 2:28;
Isa. 41:29; Isa. 13:17; Ps. 106:28.) They
are also represented as δαιμόνια
(1 Cor. 10:20). This word may
express either an imaginary, or a real
existence. The objects of heathen
worship are called gods, even when declared
to be nonentities. So they may be
called “demons,” without intending to teach
that they are “spirits.” As the word,
however, generally in the New Testament,
does mean “evil spirits,” it is
perhaps better to take it in that sense when
it refers to the objects of
heathen worship. This is not inconsistent
with the doctrine that the gods of
the heathen are “vanities and lies.” They
are not what men take them to be.
They have no divine power. Paul says of the
heathen before their conversion, “ἐδουλεύσατε
το̂ις φυσει μή οὐ̂σι θεοι̂ς”
(Gal. 4:8). The prevalence and persistency
of Polytheism show that it must have
a strong affinity with fallen human nature.
Although, except in pantheism, it
has no philosophical basis, it constitutes a
formidable obstacle to the
progress of true religion in the world.” (5)
Comments:
Polytheism
not only includes the worship of other gods,
it includes the mere belief that
multiple gods exist. Monotheism and
polytheism are irreconcilable.
Not only is
polytheism unbiblical, its ethics and
metaphysics lead to unanswerable
absurdities:
1.Are
the gods finite, infinite, corporeal or
incorporeal?
2.Did
the gods evolve? Have they always been?
3.Are
they like men?
4.Are
they like the Greek and Roman gods?
5.How
do the gods communicate with men?
6.Are
they omniscient, omnipresent, or omnipotent?
7.If
the gods are not omniscient, are they
surrounded by ultimate mystery and
contingency?
8.Are
all the gods associated with this planet?
9.Are
the gods scattered throughout the cosmos and
other planets?
10.Are
there laws or a law structure in the
universe?
11.If
so, where did these laws come from?
12.Did
the gods create these laws?
13.Is
the law structure higher than the gods are?
14.If
so, what are the implications?
15.Is
the law structure god?
16.Do
the gods ever get together and vote on what
the standards for men should be or
for their own standards?
17.Do
they have some kind of debating forum?
18.If
they are like men, how do they travel? A
space ship?
19.Do
the gods communicate with each other? If so,
how? An intergalactic phone
service?
20.How
do the gods define things like good and
evil?
21.Do
the gods define it, or is a law structure
above the gods the source for
definitions?
22.Can
concepts such as good and evil exist in raw
matter? In other words, do concepts
like good and evil have to exist in a mind?
23.If
concepts such as good and evil must exist in
a mind, and many gods exist in the
universe, would not the definition of good
and evil be very subjective, since
there are many minds?
24.Do
all the gods in the universe interpret
things in the same way?
25.How
could you know?
26.If
you pick a particular god to follow, how do
you know that this god is
interpreting ethical ideas properly?
27.How
do you know evil is not good? Can the gods
help explain this?
28.Will
the gods ever defeat evil in the universe?
29.Why
have not the gods defeated it yet?
30.Are
there evil gods in the universe?
31.If
so, could they destroy or defeat the good
gods?
32.The
terms evil and good are relative in a
universe populated with multiple gods,
since not all gods may agree.
33.Can the gods
articulate a coherent theory of knowledge?
34.Are the gods’
empiricists, rationalists?
35.How do the gods solve the “one
and
many” problem?
36.Is
a counsel of multiple authoritative
infallible gods logically coherent? How so?
37.In
the world of men, can anyone know anything
with certainty about the gods?
38.Are
promoters of polytheism engaging in
speculation or pure guesswork when making
any declaration about the gods?
39.Are
assertions about the gods verified,
empirically, rationally, by a vote, just
believe the assertions, a holy man from
India knows, listen to him or doing
yoga (yoke with Brahmin) or mediate long
enough to learn the answers?
In closing:
In
polytheistic systems, there can be no
certain standards. Ethics, logic and
science would be relative to the authority
of each different god or a group of
god’s alliance. Polytheism cannot escape
manifesting itself in multiple contradictory
definitions in regards to ultimate reality.
In trying to ascertain answers to
the above questions, it is apparent that
polytheism is absurd and can say
nothing with certainty in the area of
science, logic and ethics. Polytheism
therefore is irrational.
In contrast,
Christian Monotheism solves “The One and
Many Problem”:
The
“One and Many Problem” is another dilemma
for polytheists. Is reality
ultimately one or many? If reality is
ultimately one, this can manifest itself
as communism or a total state. If reality is
ultimately many, this can lead to
political anarchy. Eastern polytheistic
philosophy contradictory comes down on
the side of the many and at other times the
one manifesting itself as
pantheistic monism. Polytheism has never
produced a system guaranteeing
individual rights. Likewise, Communism
answered the question as noted in favor
of the one or total state and it likewise
never produced any protection for
property rights or individual freedom.
The
monotheistic Christian worldview, on the
other hand, has produced a balance of
individual freedoms and a basis for the
state and church authority. This is
accomplished because of the doctrine of the
Trinity. The Christian God is the
ground and explanation of all reality. God
is one and yet more than one, with a
plurality of persons within the one God.
Politically and religiously this
manifests itself by giving due authority to
the state or church and a proper
place for individual rights and the basis
for appealing abuses of the state or
church by the individual.
Why
is the polytheist unable to articulate a
coherent theory of knowledge that can
justify the use of science, ethics and
logic? The polytheist uses logic and
talks about ethics. They do so without
justifying or demonstrating how their
worldview can account for these things. In
other words, they beg the question.
In addition, mind you, when you point out
this question begging on their part,
you will experience many ad hominem attacks,
which serve as a smoke screen to
cover-up the bankruptcy of their worldview.
Moreover, the polytheist or any
non-Christian
steals from the Christian worldview that can
explain and justify the use of
such things to attack the Christian’s
presuppositions. When informing the
polytheist
of their theft, get ready for emotional
responses or ad hominem attacks.
Christians
have a biblical foundation for seeking
knowledge and obtaining it. God-given
revelation is objective. Ungodly men reject
biblical revelation; they suppress
the truth that God has revealed to them
through creation (Romans 1:18). God has
spoken in the Scriptures, i.e., God’s
special revelation to humanity concerning
what is required of them.
Greg L. Bahnsen
explains the Christian’s worldview ability
to talk intelligently like this:
In
various forms, the fundamental argument
advanced by the Christian apologist is
that the Christian worldview is true because
of the impossibility of the
contrary. When the perspective of God’s
revelation is rejected, then the
unbeliever is left in foolish ignorance
because his philosophy does not provide
the preconditions of knowledge and
meaningful experience. To put it another
way: the proof that Christianity is true is
that if it were not, we would not
be able to prove anything.
What
the unbeliever needs is nothing less than a
radical change of mind – repentance
(Acts 17:30). He needs to change his
fundamental worldview and submit to the
revelation of God in order for any knowledge
or experience to make sense. He at
the same time needs to repent of his
spiritual rebellion and sin against God.
Because of the condition of his heart, he
cannot see the truth or know God in a
saving fashion. (6)
“Blessed art thou, O
LORD: teach me thy statutes.” (Psalm 119:12)
“Study to shew
thyself approved unto God, a workman that
needeth not to be ashamed, rightly
dividing the word of truth.” (2 Timothy
2:15)
Notes:
1.H.
D. M. Spence and Joseph S. Exell, The
Pulpit Commentary, Deuteronomy, Vol.
3, (Grand Rapids, Michigan, Eerdmans
Publishing Company reprint 1978), p.118.
2.Albert
Barnes, THE AGES DIGITAL LIBRARYCOMMENTARY,
Barnes’
Notes
on the Bible, Isaiah, p.1049.
3.Charles
John Ellicott, Bible
Commentary for
English Readers, 1 Corinthians, vol.
2, (London, England, Cassell and
Company), p. 315.
4.John
Gill, Exposition
of the Old and New
Testaments, James, 9 Volumes, Romans,
(Grace Works, Multi-Media Labs),
2011, pp. 39-40.
6.Greg
L. Bahnsen, Always
Ready Directions for
Defending the Faith, (Atlanta,
Georgia, American Vision), p. 122.
“To God, only wise,
be glory through Jesus Christ forever.
Amen.” (Romans 16:27) and “heirs
according to the promise.” (Galatians 3:28,
29)
Mr. Kettler has
previously published articles in the Chalcedon
Report and Contra
Mundum. He and his wife Marea attend
the Westminster, CO, RPCNA Church. Mr.
Kettler is the author of the book defending
the Reformed Faith against attacks,
titled: The Religion That Started in
a Hat. Available at:
www.TheReligionThatStartedInAHat.com