638 Sentences With "polytheistic" | Random Sentence Generator

James Hillman is the psychoanalyst writer of the polytheistic soul.

But if soccer is a religion, then it is a polytheistic one.

Not only did multiple cultures, including Roman and Parthian, converge there, so did many religions, monotheistic and polytheistic.

That lead me to gods, and other polytheistic religions, with multiple gods that always felt more like people.

Statues of Aphrodite dating from 300AD show how stubbornly the polytheistic religion persisted, even as Christianity was taking hold.

When Rome burned in 63 A.D., imperial officials responded by persecuting the early Christians for abandoning the city's polytheistic faith.

In part, ISIS's iconoclasm there has flowed from the polytheistic history of Palmyra, which stands in rebuke to their Salafist convictions.

Later, August Walla (1936-2001), who became known for text-and-image paintings and murals that expressed a polytheistic outlook, also moved in.

I think of it as a polytheistic aesthetic, and it's my response to the stress of having to find one style that suited me.

Still, Catholic voters turned out in large numbers for Romney, whose Mormon faith is viewed by their church as blasphemous, polytheistic and not genuinely Christian.

Perhaps in his polytheistic mindset, he assumed that his gods, which had seen fit to give him yet another glorious victory, were more powerful than this backwater Jewish god.

Titled Nedjemankh and His Gilded Coffin, the show outlined how the polytheistic ancient Egyptian religion survived three centuries of foreign rule before fusing its formal traditions with the aesthetics of Coptic Christianity.

The last Goddess temples in Rome and Byzantium were closed by the Christian emperors, and the so-called polytheistic "pagan" religions were driven out of worship, taking the female deities with them.

Think about it — the earliest Jews lived among polytheistic tribes with idols for everything; worshiping only one god, a god too powerful to have a face, was certainly one way to set themselves apart.

As an extension of the Byzantine reign, many Roman and Greek traditions were upheld by the citizenry, although the primary religion went from the polytheistic pantheon of Roman gods to the singular Christian god.

Attracting museumgoers with its glittering title item, Nedjemankh and His Gilded Coffin outlines how the polytheistic ancient Egyptian religion survived three centuries of foreign rule before fusing its formal traditions with the aesthetics of Coptic Christianity.

Before he sings a note, Mr. Costanzo already seems to be nursing a radical agenda, which involves, as we soon learn, transforming Egypt from a polytheistic society to one embracing a single god, Aten, whose energy fills the sun.

India is a polytheistic society, so many parents want charms like those of baby Krishna and other religious symbols like the Om crafted in various metals and precious stones, mostly 23-karat gold, the unequivocal symbol of prosperity in India.

The disintegrating lower legs of "Reclining Male Nude" (circa 1520–1530) are particularly suggestive of the flickering forces of instability, while the prancing "Male Nude in Profile Leaping to the Right" (circa 1504–08) suggests ecstatic Dionysian merriment in ancient polytheistic Greece.

Christians ignorant of their own history, for instance, will be surprised to learn that their earliest ancestors in the faith were themselves ridiculed as "atheists" because they refused to participate in polytheistic worship: in Greek, atheos means "without gods," not anti-God.

As we moved from small, polytheistic, matriarchal societies to large, monotheistic, patriarchal societies, female plant medicine providers became frequent targets of witch hunts and other coordinated campaigns of eradication, as they represented a serious threat to both "religion" and "medicine," both male-dominated fields.

The afterlife is clearly polytheistic — the Bad Place and Good Place operate separately from each other and the Bad Place seems capable of breaking into and manipulating the Good Place — but insofar as there's a top dog, a Zeus-style first among equals, it's her horny, Chidi-thirsty Judgeship.

The vandalism happened in the summer of 2012; that was a time when two ultra-militant Muslim groups, al-Qaeda and Ansar Dine, temporarily took control of the north of the country and imposed their zealous version of Islam which considers such shrines to be a polytheistic distraction from the worship of the one God.

Consider those equally essential.) Various Artists, Hey Drag City (1994) Gastr Del Sol, Crookt, Crackt, or Fly (1994) Flying Saucer Attack, Further (1995) Silver Jews, American Water (1998) Loren Mazzacane-Connors and Alan Licht, Hoffman Estates (1998) Edith Frost, Telescopic (1998) U.S. Maple, Acre Thrills (2001) Sir Richard Bishop, Polytheistic Fragments (2007) Scout Niblett, The Calcination of Scout Niblett (2010) Bill Callahan, Apocalypse (2011) Ty Segall and White Fence, Hair (2012) Bitchin Bajas, Bajas Fresh

There are few instances of the word agape in polytheistic Greek literature. Bauer's Lexicon mentions a sepulchral inscription, most likely to honor a polytheistic army officer held in "high esteem" by his country.

Bulgars were polytheistic, but chiefly worshiped the supreme deity Tangra.

Illustration of various deities associated with polytheistic pantheons from William Cooke's The Pantheon - or, fabulous history of the heathen gods, goddesses, heroes, &c.; A pantheon is the particular set of all gods of any individual polytheistic religion, mythology, or tradition.

Most of the works of B. Kutavičius are inspired by ancient Lithuanian polytheistic belief and music.

Most of the works of Bronius Kutavičius are inspired by ancient Lithuanian polytheistic belief and music.

The word, pantheon derives from Greek πάνθεον pantheon, literally "(a temple) of all gods", "of or common to all gods" from πᾶν pan- "all" and θεός theos "god". A pantheon of gods is a common element of polytheistic societies, and the nature of a society's pantheon can be considered a reflection of that society: Some well-known historical polytheistic pantheons include the Sumerian gods and the Egyptian gods, and the classical-attested pantheon which includes the ancient Greek religion and Roman religion. Post-classical polytheistic religions include Norse Æsir and Vanir, the Yoruba Orisha, the Aztec gods, and many others. Today, most historical polytheistic religions are referred to as "mythology".

84 (2006) Other neopagan movements include Germanic Neopaganism, Celtic Reconstructionist Paganism, Hellenic Polytheistic Reconstructionism, and Semitic neopaganism.

Tacitus notes that the Germanic peoples were polytheistic and mentions some of their deities through perceived Roman equivalents.

Most are polytheistic realists, believing that the deities are real entities, while others view them as Jungian archetypes.

Polytheistic or Monotheistic origin of the Koranic ar-Raḥmān?], ‘Analecta Cracoviensia’ 43(2011) pp. 313-328, [accessed: 22.07.2016].

Analysis of a polytheistic structure." ClPhil 85 (1990) 67-71, Abb. # "Fratres Arvales. Storia di un collegio sacerdotale romano.

Mars, the Roman god of war Sarutahiko. A war god in mythology associated with war, combat, or bloodshed. They occur commonly in both monotheistic and polytheistic religions. Unlike most gods and goddesses in polytheistic religions, monotheistic deities have traditionally been portrayed in their mythologies as commanding war in order to spread their religion.

A dawn goddess is a deity in a polytheistic religious tradition who is in some sense associated with the dawn.

Before the late 17th century, the Lahu religion was polytheistic. Buddhism was introduced in the late 17th century and became widespread.

Jordan Paper: The Deities are Many. A Polytheistic Theology. Albany: State University of New York Press, 2005, pp. 112 and 133.

Kanakanavu practiced a polytheistic nature religion involving offerings, fertility rituals, and shamanism. Headhunting was a common practice until Christianization took over.

The ancient Orphic religion had a polytheistic theology. The deities were each distinct individuals that were not equated with one another.

Jainism is sometimes regarded as a transtheistic religion, though it can be atheistic or polytheistic based on the way one defines "God".

Regional variants of the word Allah occur in both pagan and Christian pre-Islamic inscriptions. Different theories have been proposed regarding the role of Allah in pre-Islamic polytheistic cults. Some authors have suggested that polytheistic Arabs used the name as a reference to a creator god or a supreme deity of their pantheon.Zeki Saritopak, Allah, The Qu'ran: An Encyclopedia, ed.

Several nations—including Albion, Éire, Scotia, and Lithuania—remain devoted to the Old Ways, the polytheistic faiths and traditions of witchcraft indigenous to each nation.

Dundzila and Strmiska (2005), p. 247.Ignatow (2007), p. 104. Romuva is a polytheistic pagan faith which asserts the sanctity of nature and ancestor worship.

Worship practices in Hinduism are as diverse as its traditions, and a Hindu can choose to be polytheistic, pantheistic, monotheistic, monistic, agnostic, atheistic, or humanist.

The following is a list of sky deities in various polytheistic traditions arranged mostly by language family, which is typically a better indicator of relatedness than geography.

Lithuanian mythology () is the mythology of Lithuanian polytheism, the religion of pre-Christian Lithuanians. Like other Indo-Europeans, ancient Lithuanians maintained a polytheistic mythology and religious structure. In pre-Christian Lithuania, mythology was a part of polytheistic religion; after Christianisation mythology survived mostly in folklore, customs and festive rituals. Lithuanian mythology is very close to the mythology of other Baltic nations – Prussians, Latvians, and is considered a part of Baltic mythology.

Humans and other beings could also be reborn as a deva in their next rebirth, if they accumulate enough positive karma; however, it is not recommended. Buddhism flourished in different countries, and some of those countries have polytheistic folk religions. Buddhism syncretizes easily with other religions. Thus, Buddhism has mixed with the folk religions and emerged in polytheistic variants (such as Vajrayana) as well as non-theistic variants.

Karhun kansa is part of Suomenusko ("Finnish Faith"), the contemporary revival of pre-Christian polytheistic ethnic religion of the Finns."Karhun kansa" , Kirkko ja kaupunki, 19 August 2013.

A few nodal points were controlled by Iranian Parthian and Sassanian colonists. Pre-Islamic religion in Arabia included indigenous polytheistic beliefs, various forms of Christianity, Judaism, Manichaeism, and Zoroastrianism.

The polytheistic Roman empire saw the traditional Roman religion as one fundamentals of the Roman republic. They saw Roman virtues as an important link in their multi-ethnic empire. Being polytheistic, Romans did not mind if conquered nations went on worshiping their traditional gods, as long as they also presented token offerings to the Roman gods. In many cases this compromise was easily reached by identifying the traditional gods with similar Roman gods.

Several polytheistic religions were practised in Sussex before Christianity was firmly established in Sussex in the 7th century, including Celtic polytheism and Roman religion. Christianity was practised during part of the Romano-British period, but was replaced in the 5th century by the polytheistic religion of the South Saxons. According to Bede, it was the last area of what was to become England to be converted.Armstrong. A History of Sussex. pp. 38-40Bede.

Time and fate deities are personifications of time, often in the sense of human lifetime and human fate, in polytheistic religions. In monotheism, Time can still be personified, like Father Time.

Thomas Moore says of James Hillman's teaching that he "portrays the psyche as inherently multiple". In Hillman's archetypal/polytheistic view, the psyche or soul has many directions and sources of meaning – and this can feel like an ongoing state of conflict – a struggle with one's daimones. According to Hillman, "polytheistic psychology can give sacred differentiation to our psychic turmoil.…" Hillman states that :The power of myth, its reality, resides precisely in its power to seize and influence psychic life.

Mithraic temples sought to reproduce a cave-like environment. The symbolism, rites and tenets of the cult are obscure.Goldsworthy (2003) 112-3 From Dura Europos, on the Euphrates, Syria Roman religion was polytheistic and therefore readily accepted and absorbed many deities of the empire's subjects, the vast majority of whose cultures were also polytheistic. But there were limits: the Romans forbade cults whose beliefs or practices were considered incompatible with the basic tenets of Roman religion.

The mountains remained a stronghold of polytheistic faiths until the 19th century. Pre-Islamic populations of the Hindu Kush included Shins, Yeshkun,Biddulph, p.38 Chiliss, NeemchasBiddulph, p.7 Koli,Biddulph, p.

During the 8th century BCE, the worship of Yahweh in Israel was in competition with many other cults, described by the Yahwist faction collectively as Baals. The oldest books of the Hebrew Bible reflect this competition, as in the books of Hosea and Nahum, 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.1 Kings 18, Jeremiah 2; 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)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) Ancient Israelite religion was originally polytheistic; the Israelites worshipped many deities, including El, Baal, Asherah, and Astarte. Yahweh was originally the national god of the Kingdom of Israel and the Kingdom of Judah.

Polytheist religions, including Polytheistic reconstructionists, honour multiple goddesses and gods, and usually view them as discrete, separate beings. These deities may be part of a pantheon, or different regions may have tutelary deities.

Dundzila and Strmiska (2005), p. 247.Ignatow (2007), p. 104. Romuva is a polytheistic pagan faith, which asserts the sanctity of nature and has elements of ancestor worship.Dundzila and Strmiska (2005), p. 244.

This mountain is considered as sacred by the local people because of the Polytheistic religion. All features of Kurdish peculiar religious belief are visible in the region. Locals are members of Milan family.

Antiochus ordered the burning of Torah copies. Jews were required to eat pork. The worst oppression came in the desecration of the Temple. A polytheistic cult was formed, and worship of YHWH abolished.

The native religions of Europe were polytheistic but not homogenous – however, they were similar insofar as they were predominantly Indo-European in origin. Roman religion was similar to but not the same as Hellenic religion – likewise for indigenous Germanic polytheism, Celtic polytheism and Slavic polytheism. Before this time many Europeans from the north, especially Scandinavians, remained polytheistic, though southern Europe was predominantly Christian from the 5th century onwards. Western culture is most strongly influenced by the Judeo-Christian and Greco-Roman cultures.

Judaism uses the term shituf 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).

The Suba religion has an ancient polytheistic history that includes writings of diverse, ancestral spirits. A recent revival of the Suba language and its culture has influenced the increasing number of native speakers each year.

Pagan religions, historically the most common forms of worship, were typically polytheistic and compatible with each other. Eastern religions are also less apt to be considered mutually exclusive, as for example in China's three teachings.

Lan, Feng (2005). Ezra Pound and Confucianism: remaking humanism in the face of modernity. University of Toronto Press. p. 190. . In the case of Hinduism, pantheistic views exist alongside panentheistic, polytheistic, monotheistic, and atheistic ones.

This is a list of notable converts to Christianity from pagan religions. Paganism is a term which, from a Western perspective, has come to connote a broad set of spiritual or cultic practices or beliefs of any folk religion, and of historical and contemporary polytheistic religions in particular. While the term has historically been used to denote adherents of any non-Abrahamic faith, for the purposes of this list, only adherents of non-major polytheistic, shamanistic, pantheistic, or animistic religions will be listed in this section.

After the departure of the Roman army, the Saxons arrived in Sussex in the fifth century and brought with them their polytheistic religion. The Saxon pagan culture probably caused a reversal of the spread of Christianity.

Many of these relatives may not be considered as gods or greater spirits themselves but may instead be as lesser spirits. The translations of their names represent abstract concepts and aspects of nature, not unlike polytheistic deities.

Soldiers, mostly drawn from polytheistic societies, enjoyed wide freedom of worship in the polytheistic Roman system. They revered their own native deities, Roman deities and the local deities of the provinces in which they served. Only a few religions were banned by the Roman authorities, as being incompatible with the official Roman religion and/or politically subversive, notably Druidism and Christianity. The later Principate saw the rise in popularity among the military of Eastern mystery cults, generally centred on one deity, and involving secret rituals divulged only to initiates.

The Inrithi religion was founded on the revelation of the Latter Prophet, Inri Sejenus. Analogous to Christianity (INRI is an acronym found on many crucifixes, while "Sejenus" is an anagram of n e Jesus, phonetically Any Jesus), this religion is a mixture of polytheistic and monotheistic elements. The polytheistic portion is derived from the ancient Cults, which are devoted each to a different god. The central text of Inrithism is the Tusk, an enormous carved tusk covered in the writings of the early prophets before the five tribes of men entered into Earwa.

In it, he claimed blasphemy as an appropriate response to human suffering, using the book of Job and the Holocaust as a models. Critics suggested that Penchansky’s approach ignored the larger context of biblical passages, portraying the Bible as a mass of conflicting theological positions. His subsequent publications have considered the negative sides of God, and the polytheistic underpinnings of ancient Israelite religion. His book Twilight of the Gods: Polytheism in the Hebrew Bible claims to show how certain biblical texts portray a complex interplay of monotheistic and polytheistic ideas.

Pagans feel that this understanding of the gods reflected the dynamics of life on Earth, allowing for the expression of humour. One view in the Pagan community is that these polytheistic deities are not viewed as literal entities, but as Jungian archetypes or other psychological constructs that exist in the human psyche. Others adopt the belief that the deities have both a psychological and external existence. Many Pagans believe adoption of a polytheistic world-view would be beneficial for western society – replacing the dominant monotheism they see as innately repressive.

He is the author of several books about Ancient Egypt and he supports the idea that the Ancient Egyptian religion was not polytheistic, but instead worshiped a single god whose various attributes were known to Egyptians as neteru.

They speak a form of Mundari language, and some can also speak Odia. Each Tandia is headed by a religious head man called Dehury. The Dehury has an assistant called Naya. The Mankidia people's religious beliefs are polytheistic.

Still, the treatise certainly originated from his school, and in its systematic attempt to give a speculative justification of the polytheistic cult practices of the day, it marks a turning-point in the history of thought where Iamblichus stood.

A shaman doctor of Kyzyl. Pre-Islamic Turkic mythology was dominated by Shamanism, Animism and Tengrism. The Turkic animistic traditions were mostly focused on ancestor worship, polytheistic-animism and shamanism. Later this animistic tradition would form the more organized Tengrism.

The Hindu wind god, Vayu. A wind god is a god who controls the wind(s). Air deities may also be considered here as wind is nothing more than moving air. Many polytheistic religions have one or more wind gods.

Doyle White suggests that the early Wiccans adopted the term wicca as the basis for the name of their burgeoning faith because theirs was a new religious movement that took "iconography and inspiration" from the polytheistic cults of pre- Christian Britain.

The roots of this tradition can be traced back to ancient times when the Berbers believed in polytheistic religions. Herodotus mentioned the tradition too, when he has spoke of the Nasamones bringing animal sacrifices to the tombs of holy men.

The town is polytheistic. The Bukusu tribe first inhabited the area, followed by the Nandi community. The town and its surrounding area currently exists peacefully, sharing their cultural diversity, and thus let to a rich social life among the inhabitants.

A detail from alt=A stone with various engravings upon it The historian of religion Mattias Gardell noted that there is "no unanimously accepted theology" within the Heathen movement. Several early Heathens like Guido von List found the polytheistic nature of pre-Christian religion embarrassing, and argued that in reality it had been monotheistic. Since the 1970s, such negative attitudes towards polytheism have changed. Today Heathenry is usually characterised as being polytheistic, exhibiting a theological structure which includes a pantheon of gods and goddesses, with adherents offering their allegiance and worship to some or all of them.

Kelly, J.N.D. Early Christian Doctrines A&C; Black (1965) pp. 87,88 Jordan Paper, a Western scholar and self-described polytheist, considers polytheism to be the normal state in human culture. He argues that "Even the Catholic Church shows polytheistic aspects with the 'worshipping' of the saints." On the other hand, he complains, monotheistic missionaries and scholars were eager to see a proto-monotheism or at least henotheism in polytheistic religions, for example, when taking from the Chinese pair of Sky and Earth only one part and calling it the King of Heaven, as Matteo Ricci did.

The henotheism, or worship of a single god within a polytheistic system, practiced in the sacral chiefdoms along Upper and Lower Egypt, became the polytheistic Ancient Egyptian religion. Bureaucracies became more centralized under the pharaohs, run by viziers, governors, tax collectors, generals, artists, and technicians. They engaged in tax collecting, organizing of labor for major public works, and building irrigation systems, pyramids, temples, and canals. During the Fourth Dynasty (2,620–2,480 BC), long distance trade was developed, with the Levant for timber, with Nubia for gold and skins, with Punt for frankincense, and also with the western Libyan territories.

14 The organization's name was the result of a day-long passionate debate.Strmiska, 2005 p. 276 The words "pagan" and "heathen" were rejected because of their perceived cultural associations with immorality, violence and backwardness. The word "polytheistic" was also rejected as an oversimplification.

History of Arabia – Kindah . Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved 11 February 2012. The Kindites were polytheistic until the 6th century CE, with evidence of rituals dedicated to the idols Athtar and Kāhil found in their ancient capital in south-central Arabia (present day Saudi Arabia).

Jupiter, the sky father of Roman religion and mythology. The sky often has important religious significance. Many religions, both polytheistic and monotheistic, have deities associated with the sky. The day lit sky deities are typically distinct from the night time sky deities.

The traditional religion of Savu is called Jingi Tiu. Each of the domains of Savu was led by a Jingi Tiu Council of Priests. Jingi Tiu is a polytheistic religion, with gods of earth, sea and sky, as well as many more minor spirits.

A statue of Asclepius, the Greek god of healing A health deity is a god or goddess in mythology or religion associated with health, healing and wellbeing. They may also be related to childbirth or Mother Goddesses. They are a common feature of polytheistic religions.

The latter remains one of the most poorly understood periods of Ethiopia's recorded history. What is known is that the early Zagwe kings were polytheistic, eventually converted to Christianity, and ruled over the northern Highlands of Ethiopia, while Islamic sultanates inhabited the coastal Ethiopian Lowlands.

In addition to constructing forts and fortified defences such as Hadrian's Wall, they built roads, bridges, ports, public buildings and entire new cities (colonia), and cleared forests and drained marshes to expand a province's available arable land. Soldiers, mostly drawn from polytheistic societies, enjoyed wide freedom of worship in the polytheistic Roman system. Only a few cults were banned by the Roman authorities, as being incompatible with the official Roman religion or being politically subversive, notably Druidism and Christianity. The later Principate saw the rise in popularity among the military of Eastern mystery cults, generally centred on one deity, and involving secret rituals divulged only to initiates.

Nova Roma sacrifice to Concordia at Aquincum (Budapest), Floralia 2008 Polytheistic reconstructionism (or simply Reconstructionism) is an approach to modern paganism first emerging in the late 1960s to early 1970s, which gathered momentum starting in the 1990s. Reconstructionism attempts to re- establish genuine polytheistic religions in the modern world through a rediscovery of the rituals, practices and contextual worldviews of pre- Christian Pagan religions. This method stands in contrast with other neopagan syncretic movements like Wicca, and ecstatic/esoteric movements like Germanic mysticism or Theosophy. While the emphasis on historical accuracy may imply historical reenactment, the difference between these two movements can be summarized as one of intent.

Native American theology may be monotheistic, polytheistic, henotheistic, animistic, or some combination thereof. Cherokee for example are monotheist as well as pantheist. The Great Spirit, called Wakan Tanka among the Sioux,Ostler, Jeffry. The Plains Sioux and U.S. Colonialism from Lewis and Clark to Wounded Knee.

Shaian presented his vision of a "pan-Aryan renaissance" in a paper at an Indologist seminar in Lviv in 1937.Ivakhiv 2005a p. 11 Shaian's theology was polytheistic and viewed God as a manifold essence that manifests itself through the various deities of Slavic mythology.Lesiv 2013 p.

The Wild Hunt of Odin (1872) by Peter Nicolai Arbo, depicting the Wild Hunt of European folklore A hunting deity is a god or goddess in mythology associated with the hunting of animals and the skills and equipment involved. They are a common feature of polytheistic religions.

Barlaam viewed this doctrine of "uncreated light" to be polytheistic because as it postulated two eternal substances, a visible and an invisible God. Barlaam accuses the use of the Jesus Prayer as being a practice of Bogomilism. The second triad quotes some of Barlaam's writings directly.

Medieval inscription on the mosque in Kochan.The population of the village is almost exclusively Muslim. There is a small minority of Romani people most of which converted to Evangelism in the beginning of the 21st century. In historic times the population confessed the Thracian Polytheistic religion.

Christianity is the predominant religion in Honduras, representing 76% of the total population according to a 2017 estimate. The pre-Hispanic peoples that lived in actual Honduras were primarily polytheistic Maya and other native groups. In the 16th century, Roman Catholicism was introduced by the Spanish Empire.

Some Moli people still believe in Jomboloko. In the pre-Christian age, it was common practice for a group of people believe in more than one deity. In that sense, some Madi people were polytheistic in their belief. However today, belief in those creatures diminished considerably.

85, "Bayoguin" The pre-Christian Philippines had a polytheistic religion, which included the hermaphroditic gods Bathala and Malyari, whose names means "Man and Woman in One" and "Powerful One" respectively; these gods are worshipped by the Bayagoin.Conner & Sparks (1998), p. 84, "Bathala"Conner & Sparks (1998), p.

Hawulti stele in Matara Before the coming of Christianity, most Tigrayans followed a pagan religion with a number of deities, including the sun god Utu, and the moon god Almaqah. Some tribes however practiced Judaism. The most prominent polytheistic kingdoms were the Kingdoms of D’mt and early Aksum.

Most of what is told about Terah is recorded in . Terah's father was Nahor, son of Serug, descendants of Shem.Berman, Ari. "The Role of Terah in the Foundational Stories of the Patriarchal Family", Jewish Bible Quarterly, 44:4 October - December 2016 They and many of their ancestors were polytheistic.

Diagram of the inscriptions on the Liver of Piacenza - Uni is representative of the fourth "house".In a practice that has been argued by scholars as having originated in EtruriaGinge, B. (1991). The Bronze Liver of Piacenza. Analysis of a Polytheistic Structure by L. B. van der Meer.

In 610 Muhammad started preaching the message of Islam. However, like many others in Mecca, Omar opposed Islam and even threatened to kill Muhammad. He resolved to defend the traditional polytheistic religion of Arabia. He was adamant and cruel in opposing Muhammad, and very prominent in persecuting Muslims.

Aksum's currency served as a vessel of propaganda demonstrating the kingdom's wealth and promoting the national religion (first polytheistic and later Oriental Christianity). It also facilitated the Red Sea trade on which it thrived.Stuart Munro-Hay, Aksum: An African Civilization of Late Antiquity. Edinburgh: University Press, 1991, p. 155.

Unlike Wiccans, Hellenists are usually strictly polytheistic or pantheistic. Hellenists venerate Aphrodite primarily as the goddess of romantic love, but also as a goddess of sexuality, the sea, and war. Her many epithets include "Sea Born", "Killer of Men", "She upon the Graves", "Fair Sailing", and "Ally in War".

The remainder of the book, Parts II and III, discuss later developments and the larger context in which Islam originated: the Late Antique Near East, and relate it to theoretical themes of cultural history. This contrasts with the usual setting, focusing almost exclusively on Arabian indigenous polytheistic beliefs (jahiliyya).

An elderly Lahu woman at a refugee camp in Thailand The traditional Lahu religion is polytheistic. Buddhism was introduced in the late 17th century and became widespread. Many Lahu people in China are Buddhists. Christianity became established in Burma in the 19th century and has been spreading since.

BYU Professor Roger R. Keller rejected descriptions of the LDS Church as polytheistic by countering, as summarized by a reviewer, "Mormons are fundamentally monotheistic because they deal with only one god out of the many which exist."Sillman, H. Jeffrey. "A One-Sided Dialogue", Sunstone, June 1989, pp.

Some currents of Neopaganism, in particular Wicca, have a ditheistic concept of a single goddess and a single god, who in hieros gamos represent a united whole. Polytheistic reconstructionists focus on reconstructing polytheistic religions, including the various goddesses and figures associated with indigenous cultures. The term thealogy is sometimes used in the context of the Neopagan Goddess movement, a pun on theology and thea θεά "goddess" intended to suggest a feminist approach to theism. The Goddess movement is a loose grouping of social and religious phenomena that grew out of second-wave feminism, predominantly in North America, Western Europe, Australia, and New Zealand in the 1970s, and the metaphysical community as well.

The Mesoamerican empires of the Mayas, Aztecs as well as the South American Incas (Tahuatinsuyu) have typically been characterized as polytheistic, with strong male and female deities. According to Charles C. Mann's history book 1491: New Revelations of the Americas Before Columbus, only the lower classes of Aztec society were polytheistic. Philosopher James Maffie has argued that Aztec metaphysics was pantheistic rather than panentheistic, since Teotl was considered by Aztec philosophers to be the ultimate all-encompassing yet all-transcending force defined by its inherit duality. Native American beliefs in North America have been characterized as panentheistic in that there is an emphasis on a single, unified divine spirit that is manifest in each individual entity.

With this mindset, a Wiccan may regard the Germanic Ēostre, Hindu Kali, and Catholic Virgin Mary each as manifestations of one supreme Goddess and likewise, the Celtic Cernunnos, the ancient Greek Dionysus and the Judeo-Christian Yahweh as aspects of a single, archetypal god. A more strictly polytheistic approach holds the various goddesses and gods to be separate and distinct entities in their own right. The Wiccan writers Janet Farrar and Gavin Bone have postulated that Wicca is becoming more polytheistic as it matures, tending to embrace a more traditionally pagan worldview. Some Wiccans conceive of deities not as literal personalities but as metaphorical archetypes or thoughtforms, thereby technically allowing them to be atheists.

Another point of contention is the appearance of the word "god" in wisdom literature, where the term does not refer to a specific deity or group of deities. In the early 20th century, for instance, E. A. Wallis Budge believed that Egyptian commoners were polytheistic, but knowledge of the true monotheistic nature of the religion was reserved for the elite, who wrote the wisdom literature. His contemporary James Henry Breasted thought Egyptian religion was instead pantheistic, with the power of the sun god present in all other gods, while Hermann Junker argued that Egyptian civilization had been originally monotheistic and became polytheistic in the course of its history. In 1971, Erik Hornung published a study rebutting such views.

In Neopaganism there is a wide variety of ritual practice, running the gamut from a very eclectic Syncretism to strict Polytheistic reconstructionism. Many of these groups make use of altars. Some are constructed merely of rough-hewn or stacked stone, and some are made of fine wood or other finished material.

Though it is no longer practiced today, Tonga's ancient religion was practiced for over 2000 years. Missionaries arrived and persuaded King George Tupou I to convert to Christianity; he ordered and strictly enforced that all Tongans become Christian and no longer practice the ancient polytheistic religion with its supreme god Tangaloa.

By the end of the 19th century, Druidry was described as a "monotheistic philosophical tradition".Harvey 2007. p. 34. Druidry is now often described as polytheistic, although there is no set pantheon of deities to which all Druids adhere. Emphasis is however placed on the idea that these deities predate Christianity.

By the beginning of the 19th century, the Indians in most of eastern Brazil had been either assimilated or decimated. Some tribes resisted assimilation and either fled farther west, where they were able to maintain their diverse polytheistic beliefs, or were restricted to aldeamentos (reservations), where they eventually converted to Catholicism.

After the departure of the Roman army, the Saxons arrived in Sussex in the fifth century and brought with them their polytheistic religion.Jones. The end of Roman Britain. pp. 164–168Armstrong. A History of Sussex. pp. 38-40 The Saxon pagan culture probably caused a reversal of the spread of Christianity.

Akawaios have polytheistic beliefs. Mythological figures like Makunaima, Kanaima, Iwarrika and Sigu are an important part of their culture. The most important god is Makunaima because, in their opinion, he created the tribe. Furthermore, they associate some natural phenomena to some divinities like Iwarrika who is blamed for flooding the earth.

S. Mbiti, John (1991). Introduction to African religion. . include belief in an amount of higher and lower gods, sometimes including a supreme creator or force, belief in spirits, veneration of the dead, use of magic and traditional African medicine. Most religions can be described as animistic with various polytheistic and pantheistic aspects.

Hare Krishna bhakti school of Hindus is active in many parts of South Africa, such as in Durban area where South Africa's largest Hindu community lives. According to a research, more than 88% of Hindus affirmed a monotheistic understanding of God in Hinduism as opposed to only about 11% admitting to polytheistic notions.

The Kassites were members of a small military aristocracy but were efficient rulers and not locally unpopular. The horse, which the Kassites worshipped, first came into use in Babylonia at this time. The Kassites were polytheistic, and the name of some 30 gods are known. The Kassite language has not been classified.

The Norse night goddess Nótt riding her horse, in a 19th-century painting by Peter Nicolai Arbo A night deity is a goddess or god in mythology associated with night, the night sky, or darkness. They commonly feature in polytheistic religions. The following is a list of night deities in various mythologies.

The Mun religion is polytheistic and syncretic: it acknowledges several deities, including those of other religions, namely Buddhism and Christianity. The chief goddess of the Lepcha religion is Nozyongnyu. The mother-creator is a female earth deity, It Bunoo (also Itbu-moo). Two other female deities are the chief of the mun spirits.

In the Auvergne (province), chants are sung around bonfires remembering a Celtic god. There are also modern attempts to revive the polytheistic religion of the Gauls. Auvergne is also a hotpot for the Gaulish revival movement, being the location of numerous important Gaulish sites and the home of the legendary Gaulish warrior, Vercingetorix.

Also, a large number of polytheistic folk traditions are subsumed in contemporary Hinduism, although Hinduism is doctrinally dominated by monist or monotheist theology (Bhakti, Advaita). Historical Vedic polytheist ritualism survives as a minor current in Hinduism, known as Shrauta. More widespread is folk Hinduism, with rituals dedicated to various local or regional deities.

Motivating and organizing these activities were a socio-political and economic elite that achieved social consensus by means of an elaborate system of religious belief under the figure of a (semi)-divine ruler (usually male) from a succession of ruling dynasties and which related to the larger world by means of polytheistic beliefs.

This "pagan catechism" of Hielscher's were edited by Bahn (2009). The religious doctrine of Hielscher's UFK consists of a syncretism of monotheistic Christianity, panentheism as advocated by Goethe, and polytheistic reconstruction related to other currents of Germanic mysticism at the time (such as the groups led by Jakob Wilhelm Hauer and Ludwig Fahrenkrog).

Waralden Olmai, also known as Maylmen Olmai, Radien-attje, Jubmel or Vearalden Olmai, was a major Sami god. Sami people come from Sápmi, or modern day Finland, Sweden, Russia and Norway. These ancient people were polytheistic and "Waralden Olmai" was their "world-god". Waralden Olmai is also an epithet for the Germanic Freyr.

Before conversion to Christianity, the Aksumites followed a polytheistic religion that was similar to that of Southern Arabia. The lunar god Hawbas was worshiped in South Arabia and Aksum. The name of the god Astar, a sky-deity was related to that of 'Attar. The god Almaqah was worshiped at Hawulti-Melazo.

As Kym Lambert ní Dhoireann put it, "Gaelic Traditionalists" means "those living and raised in the living cultures and [who] are keeping their culture, language and music alive, not any of the American polytheistic groups that have been using it lately." The CR FAQ states that due to those in the Gaelic- speaking areas having a prior claim to the term, most Reconstructionists have been uncomfortable with the choice of other Reconstructionists to call themselves "Traditionalists", a sentiment which Bonewits echoes. According to the authors of The CR FAQ, while the disagreement over terminology has at times led to heated discussion, the polytheistic “traditionalists” and “reconstructionists” are taking the same approach to their religion, and there are generally good relations between the founders of both movements.

Today in almost no Hondurans who practice autochthonous polytheistic religions derived from Nahualism, which venerated different deities, however many of the Mayan, Lenca and other native religious customs were mixed with the Catholic tradition, thus creating a syncretism. The vestiges of these ancient religions can be seen in various archaeological sites in the country.

The church projects above the roof of the building, while the cemetery appears as projections off the nave. The philosophic term Pantheon comes from a different, polytheistic religion. Etymologically, it refers to a panoply of "all the gods." Christianity, however, is considered a monotheistic religion, despite the Trinitarian subdivision of divinity into three persons.

Like other European Iron Age tribal societies, the Celts practised a polytheistic religion. Many Celtic gods are known from texts and inscriptions from the Roman period. Rites and sacrifices were carried out by priests known as druids. The Celts did not see their gods as having human shapes until late in the Iron Age.

Harper, Douglas. 2020. "Mythology." Online Etymology Dictionary. From Lydgate until the 17th or 18th century, mythology was used to mean a moral, fable, allegory or a parable, or collection of traditional stories, understood to be false. It came eventually to be applied to similar bodies of traditional stories among other polytheistic cultures around the world.

Ancient Vedic religion lacked the belief in reincarnation and concepts such as Saṃsāra or Nirvana. Ancient Vedic religion was a complex animistic religion with polytheistic and pantheistic aspects. Ancestor worship was an important, maybe the central component, of the ancient Vedic religion. Elements of the ancestors cult are still common in modern Hinduism, see Śrāddha.

Maausk ("Native Religion") is an activist movement of nature worship, local gods worship, and hiis unrelated to the Taaraist movement. It stresses the claimedly non- Christian and non-European roots and tradition of Estonian culture. The Maausk movement emerged in the 1980s. It's mostly a polytheistic-pantheistic faith identifying the divine with nature itself.

Anglo-Saxon belt buckle uncovered in Finglesham, which is widely believed to depict the god Woden.Wilson 1992. p. 118. Anglo-Saxon paganism was polytheistic, believing in the existence of multiple deities. They also appeared to have revered a number of local deities and spirits in addition to holding nature and specific natural formations in high regard.

Robert Lebling (30 July 2010). Legends of the Fire Spirits: Jinn and Genies from Arabia to Zanzibar. I.B.Tauris. p. 87. Tobias Nünlist Dämonenglaube im Islam Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG, 2015 p. 3 (German) Satan and his hosts of demons (shayatin) generally appear in traditions associated with Jewish and Christian narratives, while jinn represent entities of polytheistic background.

Augustine of Hippo mentioned that the polytheistic Africans worshipped the rocks.. “The Berbers and rocks.” Apuleius stated as well that rocks were worshipped in the second century. The megalithic culture may have been part of a cult of the dead or of star-worship. The monument of Msoura is the best-known megalithic monument in northwest Africa.

Painted ceramic funerary urn depicting a seated figure. Zapotec culture (phase Monte Albán III), Early and Middle Classic Period (100-700 AD). Mexico. Like most Mesoamerican religious systems, the Zapotec religion was polytheistic. Some known deities were Cocijo, the rain god (similar to the Aztec god Tlaloc); Coquihani, the god of light; and Pitao Cozobi, the god of maize.

Parry (1999), p. 231 Barlaam viewed this doctrine of "uncreated light" to be polytheistic because as it postulated two eternal substances, a visible and an invisible God. Barlaam accuses the use of the Jesus Prayer as being a practice of Bogomilism.1\. His teaching about the light on Mt. Tabor, which he claimed was created. 2\.

They were more fond of polytheistic religions since they had been used to it for so many years. German settlers who ended up in the Appalachians had many folk beliefs about magic. At first they used stars to determine planting cycles and to predict weather. When medical treatment became scarce they turned to other forms of medicine.

The Itelmen subscribed to a polytheistic religion. The creative god was referred to as Kutka or Kutga. Though he is regarded as the creator of all things, Steller describes a complete lack of veneration for him. The Itelmen attribute the problems and difficulties of life to his stupidity, and are quick to scold or curse him.

Although the exact number of adherents are unknown (one old estimate was 150 total), primarily due to societal stigma and persecution, a growing number of young Israelis are secretly reviving the pre-Judaic polytheistic worship of ancient Canaanite gods known as Semitic neopaganism. Additionally, others worship in different neopagan traditions such as Celtic, Norse, and Wiccan.

Ghalib ibn Abd Allah al-Laythi () also known as Ghalib ibn Fadala al-Laythi (), was an early companion and commander of the Islamic prophet Muhammad. During the prophet's lifetime, he led several expeditions against the polytheistic Bedouin tribes. He later participated in the conquest of Iraq in 634–636 and briefly as a commander in Khurasan in 668–671.

The Slavs had their own polytheistic belief system while the Bulgar elite believed in Tangra, the Sky God, or God of Heaven. The arrival of Methodius and his followers introduced the Cyrillic alphabet, freeing the Bulgarians from dependence on Greek as a written and liturgical language. A Slavic Christian culture developed that helped unify the realm.

Judaism traditionally maintains a tradition of monotheism to the exclusion of the possibility of a Trinity. In Judaism, God is understood to be the absolute one, indivisible, and incomparable being who is the ultimate cause of all existence. The idea of God as a duality or trinity is heretical -- it is even considered by some to be polytheistic.

Shared traits in Mesoamerican mythology are characterized by their common basis as a religion that—though in many Mesoamerican groups developed into complex polytheistic religious systems—retained some shamanistic elements.Bernard R. Ortiz de Montellano Aztec Medicine, Health, and Nutrition New Brunswick; Rutgers University Press. 1990, pp. 67–71 xoloitzcuintle is one of the naguales of the god Quetzalcoatl.

Pre-conquest the natives followed a variety of monotheistic and polytheistic cults. Often, localized forms of Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam or Tantrism admixed with Animism. Bathala (Tagalog – Central Luzon) or Laon (Visayan) was the ultimate, creator deity above subordinate gods and goddesses. Natives also worshiped nature and venerated the spirits of their ancestors whom they propitiated with sacrifices.

Zoroastrianism was founded by Zoroaster (or Zarathushtra) in ancient Iran. The precise date of the founding of Zoroastrianism is uncertain and dates differ wildly from 2000 BCE to "200 years before Alexander". Zoroaster was born in either Northeast Iran or Southwest Afghanistan. He was born into a culture with a polytheistic religion, which included excessive animal sacrificeBoyce (1979), p.

Christianity had resumed missionary activity by the later 5th and the 6th centuries, also in Ireland, and the Celtic population was gradually Christianized supplanting the earlier religious traditions. However, polytheistic traditions left a legacy in many of the Celtic nations, influenced later mythology, and served as the basis for a new religious movement, Celtic Neopaganism, in the 20th century.

Orthodox church in North Ossetia-Alania Prior to their Christianisation, the Alans were Indo-Iranian polytheists, subscribing either to the poorly understood Scythian pantheon or to a polytheistic form of Zoroastrianism. Some traditions were directly inherited from the Scythians, like embodying their dominant god in elaborate rituals.Sulimirski, T. (1985). "The Scyths" in: Fisher, W. B. (Ed.) The Cambridge History of Iran, Vol.

Accessed: March 2017. In Islam, Azrael plays the role of the angel of death who carries the soul up to the heavens. The polytheistic concept of a specific deity of death is rejected by Judaistic monotheism because only God is regarded the master of death and of life . In many cultures, the shaman also fulfills the role of the psychopomp.

The polytheistic Quraysh opposed the monotheistic message preached by the Islamic prophet Muhammad, himself a Qurayshi from the Banu Hashim. The tribe harassed members of the nascent Muslim community, and attempted to harm Muhammad, but he was protected by his uncle Abu Talib.Peters 1994, pp. 51–52. To escape persecution, Muhammad and his companions, including the Qurayshi Abu Bakr, emigrated to Medina.

Houston resides in Los Angeles, with homes in Hawaii and Kyoto. She is married to Peter H. Jones of Manchester, England, with whom she has two children and two stepsons: Kiyoshi S. S. Houston, K. Leilani Houston, Evan W. Jones, and Jason K. Jones. Raised as a Buddhist and Shintoist, Houston attends an Episcopal parish, but practices a polytheistic faith.

Artapanus’ theology is an issue of extreme contention among the scholarly community. Some scholars take him to be a polytheistic Jew. John Barclay, for example, sees Artapanus’ acceptance of the Egyptian animal cults and his depiction of Moses as divine as signs of his polytheism. Others observe that his fascination with the miraculous powers of Moses are reminiscent of Hellenistic paganism.

Sered used this term in a way that would encompass polytheism, rather than exclude much of it, as she intended to capture both polytheistic systems and nontheistic systems that assert the influence of "spirits or ancestors". This use of the term, however, does not accord with the historical misuse of deism as a concept to describe an absent creator god.

Per Sozomen, this led the king's "large and warlike barbarian nation to confess Christ and renounce the religion of their fathers",Schaff, p. 263 as the polytheistic Georgians had long-established anthropomorphic idols, known as the "Gods of Kartli".Rapp (2016) location: 4308 The king would become the main sponsor, architect, initiator and an organizing power of all building processes.Plontke-Lüning, p.

The Ancient Celts. p. 183 The Celtic religion was polytheistic, and consisted of both gods and goddesses, some of which were venerated only in a small, local area, but others whose worship had a wider geographical distribution.Cunliffe. The Ancient Celts. pp. 186–187 Julius Caesar observed that some of the Celtic gods were similar to that of the Roman gods.

Like most Meccans at the time, his family was polytheistic and opposed Muhammad. His father died fighting against the latter at the Battle of Badr in 624. However, al-Walid converted to Islam after the Muslim conquest of Mecca in 630. He was charged by Muhammad with collecting the sadaqat (charitable tribute) from an Arab tribe known as the Banu Mustaliq.

A letter from the Elephantine Papyri, requesting the rebuilding of a Jewish temple at Elephantine. The Jews had their own temple to YahwehThe written form of the Tetragrammaton in Elephantine is YHW. which functioned alongside that of the Egyptian god Khnum. Along with Yahweh, other deities – ʿAnat Betel and Asham Bethel – seem to have been worshiped by these Jews, evincing polytheistic beliefs.

The site and other buildings are in a bad condition. Although it has been surveyed, the site has not been excavated yet. With the growth of Christianity, sites of local polytheistic religions of Anatolia and imported cults like emperors were systematically damaged in the 4th century. This is why even plan specifications of the buildings cannot be clearly seen in the present day.

The Jivaroan people have a polytheistic religion. The Jivaro god, Tsungi, is the god of shamanism, and the Jivaro goddess, Nungüi, refers to mother earth. Nungüi is described as being a short and heavy-set woman, dressed in a black dress. According to Jivaro belief; if Nungüi dances in a woman's garden, it will be productive during the harvest season.

In the polytheistic Germanic tradition, "if Odin failed, one absolutely could try it with Christ for once." The Christian sense of religious exclusivism was unknown to the pagans. As a result, pagans could be pragmatic and almost utilitarian in their religious decisions. A good example for this are several Thor's Hammers with engraved crosses, worn as amulets, that archaeologists have found in Scandinavia.

The Grand Duchy of Lithuania was a European state that lasted from the 13th century to 1795, when the territory was partitioned among the Russian Empire, the Kingdom of Prussia and Austria. The state was founded by the Lithuanians, a polytheistic Baltic tribe from Aukštaitija.Rowell S.C. Lithuania Ascending: A pagan empire within east-central Europe, 1295–1345. Cambridge, 1994. p.289-290Ch.

Complex of deities at an outdoors fountain-altar with incense burners at a pilgrimage area in Weihai, Shandong. At the centre stands Mazu surrounded by the four Dragon Gods () and various lesser deities. Distant behind Mazu stands the Sun Goddess (). Chinese traditional religion is polytheistic; many deities are worshipped in a pantheistic view where divinity is inherent in the world.

He is talking about an ordinary gesture of aversion when he asks a Christian incense-dealer (regarded as hypocritical because he sells incense for polytheistic altars), "with what mouth, I ask, will he spit and blow before the fuming altars for which he himself provided? with what constancy will he [thus] exorcise his foster children?"Tertullian, De idolatria XI.7, ed. and tr.

Astrolatry is the worship of stars and other heavenly bodies as deities, or the association of deities with heavenly bodies. The most common instances of this are sun gods and moon gods in polytheistic systems worldwide. Also notable is the association of the planets with deities in Babylonian, and hence in Greco-Roman religion, viz. Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn.

Like other Africans, Eruwa people were polytheistic in the past. They worshipped several gods and deities prominent among which were Oro, Sango, Egungun, Orisa oko, Osanyin, Yemoja and Ifa. The first corrugated iron sheet house in Eruwa was built in 1908. Following the massive destruction of Eruwa by fire in 1922, majority of the people started tooling up for the corrugated iron sheets.

His marriage will dramatize the breakdown in the relationship between God and His people Israel. Hosea's family life reflected the "adulterous" relationship which Israel had built with polytheistic gods. Similarly, his children's names represent God’s estrangement from Israel. They are prophetic of the fall of the ruling dynasty and the severed covenant with God - much like the prophet Isaiah a generation later.

While the polytheistic cultures of ancient Greece and Rome revolved around urban life, ancient Celtic society was predominantly rural. The close link with the natural world is reflected in what we know of the religious systems of Celtic Europe during the late 1st millennium BCE and early 1st millennium CE. As in many polytheistic systems, the local spirits honoured were those of both the wild and cultivated landscapes and their inhabitants. As Anne Ross observed: "... god-types, as opposed to individual universal Gaulish deities, are to be looked for as an important feature of the religion of the Gauls ... and the evidence of epigraphy strongly supports this conclusion." As what some may consider spirits are considered by other authors to be deities, the list of Celtic deities derived from local inscriptions can at times be rather long.

The relics of the old polytheistic religion were already interwoven with songs, tales and other mythic stories. Gradually Lithuanian polytheism customs and songs merged with the Christian tradition. In the beginning of the 20th century Michał Pius Römer noted - "Lithuanian folklore culture having its sources in heathenism is in complete concord with Christianity". It is not easy to reconstruct the Lithuanian mythology in its full form.

In tower on distant shore it dreams. The mother of all Nethicite, the source of its unending power. Deifacted nethicite contains a large amount of magic and is known to influence the history of Ivalice. In Final Fantasy XII, the Light of Kiltia, a polytheistic religion, is the dominant church in Ivalice, having influence in the political affairs of the region around the Galtean Peninsula.

Religious precincts in urban settings often serve a mixture of religious and non-religious purposes. In some cases, a religious precinct may take up a substantial part of a city: the sacred precinct in Tenochitlan encompassed 78 buildings. In polytheistic faiths, a religious precinct may encompass sites dedicated to multiple gods. The ancient Roman sacred precinct at Altbachtal encompassed more than 70 distinct temples.

Native American religions are the spiritual practices of the indigenous peoples of the Americas. Traditional Native American ceremonial ways can vary widely, and are based on the differing histories and beliefs of individual tribes, clans and bands. Early European explorers describe individual Native American tribes and even small bands as each having their own religious practices. Theology may be monotheistic, polytheistic, henotheistic, animistic, or some combination thereof.

This panel by Bartolomeo di Giovanni relates the second half of the Metamorphoses. In the upper left, Jupiter emerges from clouds to order Mercury to rescue Io.For more information on this panel, please see Zeri catalogue number 64, pp. 100–101 Interest in polytheistic mythology revived during the Renaissance, with early works of mythography appearing in the sixteenth century, among them the Theologia Mythologica (1532).

Temne originally practiced a traditional polytheistic religion which included belief in a Supreme Being. Following their migration from their ancestral home of Guinea, triggered by invasions from neighboring Fulani in the early 15th century, the Temne resettled in northern Sierra Leone. There the Temne came into renewed contact with Muslims as Islam's influence grew in West Africa. Estimates vary between when Tenme began converting to Islam.

There are three primary polytheistic pantheons worshiped by humans, all based on real-life mythology: the Northern Pantheon (Norse deities led by Odin), the Southern Pantheon (the Twelve Gods of the Chinese zodiac), and the Western Pantheon (Mesopotamian deities like Nergal and Tiamat). Dwarves worship the Northern Pantheon. Lizardfolk worship the Western Pantheon. Elves have their own gods which are also considered part of the Western Pantheon.

Old Norse religion was polytheistic, entailing a belief in various gods and goddesses. Norse mythology divided these deities into two groups, the Æsir and the Vanir, who engaged in an ancient war until realizing that they were equally powerful. Among the most widespread deities were the gods Odin and Thor. This world was inhabited also by various other mythological races, including giants, dwarfs, elves, and land-spirits.

This myth emerged in the mid-18th century philosophy of history and turned "histories" into the singular "history". Marquard calls it the second end of polymythical thinking; the first was the end of religious polytheism. Although the Christian Trinity may be polytheistic, the salvation story is monotheistic and ends in nominalistic "storylessness". The emancipation story, writes Marquard, emerged as a failed attempt to secularise the salvation story.

According to some "evolutionistic" theories of religion, especially that of Edward Burnett Tylor, cultures naturally progress from animism and polytheism to monotheism.Eliade, "The Quest for the 'Origins' of Religion", p.157, 161 According to this view, more advanced cultures should be more monotheistic, and more primitive cultures should be more polytheistic. However, many of the most "primitive", pre-agricultural societies believe in a supreme sky-god.

R. v. Sharpe, 1999 BCCA 416 at 79.R. v. Sharpe SCC 2001 The constitutional recognition of God has been criticized as conflicting in principle with the fundamental freedom of conscience and religion guaranteed in section 2, as it would disadvantage those who hold nontheistic or polytheistic beliefs, including atheism and Buddhism.Hogg, Peter W. Canada Act 1982 Annotated. Toronto, Canada: The Carswell Company Limited, 1982.

Zosimus ( ; also known by the Latin name Zosimus Historicus, i.e. "Zosimus the Historian"; fl. 490s–510s) was a Greek historian who lived in Constantinople during the reign of the eastern Roman Emperor Anastasius I (491–518). According to Photius, he was a comes, and held the office of "advocate" of the imperial treasury. Zosimus was also known for condemning Constantine’s rejection of the traditional polytheistic religion.

French Romano-Celtic figure, probably a deity, & perhaps Brigid "horned" (actually antlered) figure on the Gundestrup cauldron, interpreted by many archaeologists as being cognate to the god Cernunnos. Celtic religion was polytheistic, believing in many deities, both gods and goddesses, some of which were venerated only in a small, local area, but others whose worship had a wider geographical distribution.Cunliffe, Barry (1997). The Ancient Celts.

As ethical systems, polytheistic religions like those of the Maya are difficult to compare with the monotheistic world religions. However, the idea of 'covenants' Monaghan 2000: 38–39 between deities and human beings is common to both. Fulfilling the ritual requirements of the 'covenants' should ideally lead to a state of harmony. The archaic practice of human sacrifice should first of all be viewed within this framework.

Nabataean baetyl depicting a goddess, possibly al-Uzza. The pre- Islamic Arabian religions were polytheistic, with many of the deities' names known. Formal pantheons are more noticeable at the level of kingdoms, of variable sizes, ranging from simple city-states to collections of tribes.Robin, Christian Julien, "South Arabia, Religions in Pre-Islamic", in Tribes, towns, clans, lineages and families had their own cults too.

Temple of Apollo at Delphi, Greece. A number of oracles of Apollo from Didyma and Clarus, 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.Dictionary of Deities and Demons in the Bible, s.v. "Apollo". 4th century CE Cyprus had, besides Christianity, an apparently monotheistic cult of Dionysus.

The ancient Greeks revered both gods and goddesses. These continued to be revered through the early centuries of the common era, and many of the Greek deities inspired and were adopted as part of much larger pantheon of Roman deities. The Greek religion was polytheistic, but had no centralized church, nor any sacred texts. The deities were largely associated with myths and they represented natural phenomena or aspects of human behavior.

Sättler claimed that it was in this temple that he first learned about Adonism, and where he was given the name of Dr Mussalam.Hakl 2010. p. 16. Adonism is a polytheistic religion, believing in a number of different gods, of which there are five principal deities. Adonists believe that the first two of these were the primordial god Belus and his consort Biltis, and that they emerged from Chaos.

Like with other neopagan currents associated with the Eastern Bloc, the post-war Ukrainian diaspora in the West was important for the continuation of Shaian's teachings. Small communities of Shaian's followers were in particular active in Toronto and Hamilton in Canada.Lesiv 2013 p. 42 After the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the first organization in Ukraine to adher to Shaian's polytheistic paganism was Pravoslavia, founded in Kiev in 1993.

In an Utne Reader feature on Pagan publications, James Tedford wrote, In comparison to other Pagan publications of the time, Tedford continued, In addition to covering the more common traditions of Neopaganism, such as Wicca, Harvest also gave a forum to some of the emerging Polytheistic Reconstructionist movements.Lambert, Kym [K.L. ní Dhoireann] (1992) "Celtic God/Goddess Names", Harvest, Southboro, MA, Vol. 12, No. 4, Spring Equinox 1992, pp.

Nat Mahagiri. Burmese folk religion refers to the animistic and polytheistic religious worship of nats (deities of local and Hindu origin) and ancestors in Myanmar (Burma). Although the beliefs of nats differ across different regions and villages in Burma, there are a handful of beliefs that are universal in Burmese folk religion. A nat is a spirit or god who resembles a human in shape that often maintains or guards objects.

These religions are animistic and polytheistic and their practice involves classes of shamans and ancestor worship. Among the Lao, the Lao Loum and Lao LomYoshihisa Shirayama, Samlane Phompida, Chushi Kuroiwa, 2006. p. 622, quote: «[...] Approximately 60 to 65% of the population, most of whom are Lao Lum (people of the lowlands) follow Buddhism. About 30% of the population, on the other hand, hold an animist belief system called "Sadsana Phee" [...]».

For over four centuries this region had been the subject of Christian mission activities. Some Africans and their descendants, however, held onto elements of polytheistic religious traditions by merging them with Catholicism. This resulted in the creation of syncretic creeds such as Candomblé. Islam was also practiced among a small minority of African slaves, although it was harshly repressed and by the end of the 19th century had been completely extinguished.

7, p. 361. His family belonged to the Quraysh, which was the chief tribe of Mecca and a dominant force in western Arabia. To counter the effects of anarchy, they upheld the institution of "sacred months" when all violence was forbidden and travel was safe. The polytheistic Kaaba shrine in Mecca and the surrounding area was a popular pilgrimage destination, which had significant economic consequences for the city.

Early Christians appear to have been regarded as a sub-sect of Judaism and as such were sporadically tolerated.Potter, 36. Jewish sources on Emperors, polytheistic cult and the meaning of Empire are fraught with interpretive difficulties. In Caligula's reign, Jews resisted the placing of Caligula's statue in their Temple, and pleaded that their offerings and prayers to Yahweh on his behalf amounted to compliance with his request for worship.

Sabaean inscription listing the gods 'Athtar, Almaqah, Dhat-Himyam, Dhat-Badan and Wadd. Deities formed a part of the polytheistic religious beliefs in pre- Islamic Arabia, with many of the deities' names known. Up until about the fourth century AD, polytheism was the dominant form of religion in Arabia. Deities represented the forces of nature, love, death, and so on, and were interacted to by a variety of rituals.

Before Christianization, the Gaelic Irish were polytheistic or pagan. They had many gods and goddesses, which generally have parallels in the pantheons of other European nations. Two groups of supernatural beings who appear throughout Irish mythology—the Tuatha Dé Danann and Fomorians—are believed to represent the Gaelic pantheon. They were also animists, believing that all aspects of the natural world contained spirits, and that these spirits could be communicated with.

A letter from the Elephantine papyri, requesting the rebuilding of a Jewish temple at Elephantine. Some archaeological evidence has been interpreted as suggesting a late Persian or early Hellenistic era dating of the Pentateuch. The Elephantine papyri show clear evidence of the existence in c. 400 BCE of a polytheistic sect of Jews, who seem to have had no knowledge of a written Torah or the narratives described therein.

Typical Aksumite architecture – the monastery of Debre Damo. Before its conversion to Christianity, the Aksumites practiced a polytheistic religion related to the religion practiced in southern Arabia. This included the use of the crescent-and-disc symbol used in southern Arabia and the northern horn. In the UNESCO sponsored General History of Africa French archaeologist Francis Anfray, suggests that the pagan Aksumites worshipped Astar, his son, Mahrem, and Beher.

Some movements or sects within traditionally monotheistic or polytheistic religions recognize that it is possible to practice religious faith, spirituality and adherence to tenets without a belief in deities. People with what would be considered religious or spiritual belief in a supernatural controlling power are defined by some as adherents to a religion; the argument that atheism is a religion has been described as a contradiction in terms.

Archaeological excavation of sites dating back to the Dilmun civilisation of the Bronze Age in Bahrain have revealed the existence of a ritualistic polytheistic religion that was believed to contain elements of theatre. However, limited information is known about it. In the 7th century AD, Bahrain converted to Islam. Islam did not encourage human representation or drama; however, the events of Ashura inspired a form of dramatic expression called Ta'zieh ().

Maleku society was traditionally egalitarian, with little internal stratification, and featured gendered division of labor. Their religion is polytheistic and oriented toward nature. Many aspects of Maleku culture are still practiced today, as seen in the production of traditional art for economic subsistence. Their culture is also shared with visitors through the tours they offer, which include cultural information like history, diet, and the reforestation program and ideology.

This was followed by two more releases from Locust: Elektronika Demonika, a recording of electronics, containing no guitar at all; and While My Guitar Violently Bleeds, which is made up of three extended compositions for acoustic and electric guitar. Richard's 30-minute film God Damn Religion was released on DVD by Locust in 2006. 2007 saw the first Sir Richard release from the Drag City label, Polytheistic Fragments.

Akhenaten (pronounced ), also spelled Echnaton, Akhenaton, Ikhnaton, and Khuenaten (, meaning "Effective for the Aten"), was an ancient Egyptian pharaoh reigning c. 1353–1336 or 1351–1334 BC, the tenth ruler of the Eighteenth Dynasty. Before the fifth year of his reign, he was known as Amenhotep IV (, meaning "Amun is satisfied," Hellenized as Amenophis IV). Akhenaten is noted for abandoning Egypt's traditional polytheistic religion and introducing Atenism, worship centered on Aten.

Paganism has broadly connoted the "religion of the peasantry". During and after the Middle Ages, the term paganism was applied to any unfamiliar religion, and the term presumed a belief in false god(s). Most modern pagan religions existing today (Modern or Neopaganism) express a world view that is pantheistic, polytheistic or animistic; but some are monotheistic. The origin of the application of the term pagan to polytheism is debated.

In the Latin-speaking Western Roman Empire of the newly Christianizing Roman Empire, Koine Greek became associated with the traditional polytheistic religion of Ancient Greece, and regarded as a foreign language (lingua peregrina) in the west.Augustine, Confessions 1.14.23; Moatii, "Translation, Migration, and Communication," p. 112. By the latter half of the 4th century in the Greek-speaking Eastern Empire, pagans were—paradoxically—most commonly called Hellenes (, lit. 'Greeks').

Criticism of monotheism has occurred throughout history. Mark S. Smith, an American biblical scholar and ancient historian, currently teaching at the Princeton Theological Seminary, wrote that monotheism has been a "totalizing discourse", often co-opting all aspects of a social belief system, resulting in the exclusion of "others".Smith, Mark S."The Origins of Biblical Monotheism: Israel's Polytheistic Background and the Ugaritic Texts", (August 2001). p. 11. Oxford University Press.

Pizarro is well known in Peru as the leader of the Spanish conquest. After his invasion, Pizarro destroyed the Inca state and while ruling the area for almost a decade, initiated the decline of local cultures. The Incas' polytheistic religion was replaced by Christianity and much of the local population was reduced to serfdom under the Spanish elite. The cities of the Inca Empire were transformed into Spanish Catholic cities.

Roman cast terracotta of ram-horned Jupiter Ammon, a form of Zeus 1st century AD. Gods, could sometimes be transferred or adopted by many civilizations, and then adjusted for local conditions. The rise of civilization corresponded with the institutional sponsorship of belief in gods, supernatural forces and the afterlife. During the Bronze Age, many civilizations adopted their own form of Polytheism. Usually, polytheistic Gods manifested human personalities, strengths and failings.

The Anāl are traditionally polytheistic, believing in a supreme creator named Asapavan, as well as a secondary deity named Wangparel and numerous spirits. The largest Anāl rite is called Akam, which is divided into six stages (Judong, Bhuthawsing, Hni, Sapia, Akapidam, and Dathu) and takes six years to complete. During the Akam, the Anāl sacrifice mithun and pigs and offer a feast to the community. Some Anāl have converted to Christianity.

Aladdin flying away with two people, from the Arabian Nights, c. 1900 Arabic mythology comprises the ancient beliefs of the Arabs. Prior to Islam the Kaaba of Mecca was covered in symbols representing the myriad demons, djinn, demigods, or simply tribal gods and other assorted deities which represented the polytheistic culture of pre- Islamic. It has been inferred from this plurality an exceptionally broad context in which mythology could flourish.

In the later 20th century, Germanic neopagan movements oriented themselves more towards polytheistic reconstructionism, turning away from theosophic and occult elements, but elements of Ariosophical mysticism continue to play a role in some white supremacist organizations. Alleged mystical or shamanic aspects of historical pre-Christian Germanic culture, summarized as seidr are also practiced in Odinism (Freya Aswynn, Nigel Pennick, Karl Spiesberger, see also Germanic Runic Astrology, The Book of Blotar).

The original college was said to have been established by (or in honour of) the Roman Emperor Theodosius I, and was named after him. In 380, Theodosius declared Nicene Christianity the only legitimate Imperial religion, ending support for traditional polytheistic religions and customs. The College of Theodosius is believed to have been founded c. 395, making it the earliest school, former or extant, in all of Great Britain.

In taking a triplicate form, this creator deity displays similarities with the Christian idea of the Trinity. Santeria is a polytheistic religion. Its deities are referred to as oricha or orisha, or alternatively as the ocha, and also as the santos ("saints"). The oricha are not gods "in the Western sense", and thus the educational anthropologist Andrés I. Pérez y Mena thought they were best described as "Yoruban ancestor spirits".

Both he and his queen removed 'Aten' from their names, replacing it with Amun and moved the capital from Akhetaten to Thebes. He renounced the god Aten, relegating it to obscurity and returned Egyptian religion to its polytheistic form. His first act as a pharaoh was to remove his father's mummy from his tomb at Akhetaten and rebury it in the Valley of the Kings. This helped strengthen his reign.

Adorned Statue of the Punic Goddess Tanit, 5th-3rd centuries BC, from the necropolis of Puig des Molins, Ibiza (Spain), now housed in the Archaeology Museum of Catalonia (Barcelona) The religion of Carthage in North Africa was a direct continuation of the Phoenician variety of the polytheistic ancient Canaanite religion with significant local modifications. Whether the religion of Carthage included propitiatory child sacrifice has been subject of scholarly debate.

Recent study of the Ugaritic material has uncovered additional information about the religion,Smith, Mark S., The origins of biblical monotheism: Israel's polytheistic background and the Ugaritic texts, Oxford University Press, 2001. supplemented by inscriptions from the Levant and Tel Mardikh archiveJ. Pons, Review of G. Pettinato, A. Alberti, Catalogo dei testi cuneiformi di Tell Mardikh - Ebla, MEE I, Napoli, 1979, in Études théologiques et religieuses 56 (1981) 339—341.

In the reign of Akhenaten (c. 1353–1336 BC) in the mid-New Kingdom, a single solar deity, the Aten, became the sole focus of the state religion. Akhenaten ceased to fund the temples of other deities and erased gods' names and images on monuments, targeting Amun in particular. This new religious system, sometimes called Atenism, differed dramatically from the polytheistic worship of many gods in all other periods.

Torajans indigenous belief system is polytheistic animism, called aluk, or "the way" (sometimes translated as "the law"). In the Toraja myth, the ancestors of Torajan people came down from heaven using stairs, which were then used by the Torajans as a communication medium with Puang Matua, the Creator.This Toraja myth was directly translated from the history of Toraja at the official Tana Toraja website toraja.go.id, retrieved on 2007-05-18.

In ancient times Lanuvium was an important town in the nearby of Rome. The emperors Antoninus Pius and Commodus were born here, together with the condottiero Marcantonio Colonna. It decayed after the reign of Theodosius I (late 4th century AD), and was mostly abandoned due to the shutting down of its polytheistic sanctuaries. It is mentioned again in the 11th century, when it was a seat of a Benedictine monastery.

The early religion of the Heruli is vividly described by Procopius in his History of the Wars. He describes them as a polytheistic society known to practice human sacrifice., Book VI, XIV The Heruli appear to have been worshippers of Odin, and might have been responsible for the spread of such worship to Northern Europe. By the time of Justinian, Procopius reports that many Heruli had become Arian Christians.

In his 1978 book, A History of White Magic, recognised occult author Gareth Knight traces the origins of white magic to early adaptations of paleolithic religion and early religious history in general, including the polytheistic traditions of Ancient Egypt and the later monotheistic ideas of Judaism and early Christianity.A History of White Magic by Gareth Knight (Skylight Press, 2011 reprint) In particular, he traced many of the traditions of white magic to the early worship of local "gods and goddesses of fertility and vegetation who were usually worshipped at hill-top shrines" and were "attractive to a nomadic race settling down to an agricultural existence". He focuses in particular on the nomadic Hebrew- speaking tribes and suggests that early Jews saw the worship of such deities more in terms of atavism than evil. It was only when the polytheistic and pagan Roman Empire began to expand that Jewish leaders began to rally against those ideas.

Animism builds the core concept of traditional African religions, this includes the worship of tutelary deities, nature worship, ancestor worship and the belief in an afterlife. While some religions adopted a pantheistic worldview, most follow a polytheistic system with various gods, spirits and other supernatural beings. Traditional African religions also have elements of fetishism, shamanism and veneration of relics. Traditional African religions can be broken down into linguistic cultural groups, with common themes.

Modern revival movements of these religions include Heathenism, Rodnovery, Romuva, Druidry, Wicca, and others. Smaller religions include the Dharmic religions, Judaism, and some East Asian religions, which are found in their largest groups in Britain, France, and Kalmykia. Little is known about the prehistoric religion of Neolithic Europe. Bronze and Iron Age religion in Europe as elsewhere was predominantly polytheistic (Ancient Greek religion, Ancient Roman religion, Basque mythology, Finnish paganism, Celtic polytheism, Germanic paganism, etc.).

The dragon Mušḫuššu on a vase of Gudea, circa 2100 BCE. It is generally agreed that Sumerian civilization began at some point between c. 4500 and 4000 BC, but the earliest historical records only date to around 2900 BC. The Sumerians originally practiced a polytheistic religion, with anthropomorphic deities representing cosmic and terrestrial forces in their world. The earliest Sumerian literature of the third millennium BC identifies four primary deities: An, Enlil, Ninhursag, and Enki.

Terakh deceives Nimrod and furnishes the baby of his servant girl to take Abraham's place. Amaslei flees, and for the next several years she rears Avraham in hiding. Early on, Avraham displays high intelligence and he quickly arrives at the conclusion of a singular god. Emboldened by his discovery of God in a pervasively polytheistic land, he returns to Ur Kaśdim where he assumes a janitorial position at his father's idol shop.

Finally, one can also question premise eight: why does a personal explanation have to lead to monotheistic (as opposed to deistic or polytheistic) accounts of intention?Steven J. Conifer (2001). "The Argument from Consciousness Refuted". However, Moreland maintains that questioning these minor premises is of little consolation to the naturalist as they essentially constitute intramural theist debates, and that for most westerners theism is the only viable candidate to accommodate personal explanations.

In an article entitled The Corpus Areopagiticum as a Crypto-Pagan Project, Tuomo Lankila of the Universities of Helsinki and Jyväskylä argues that the Corpus Areopagiticum, an ostensibly Christian text attributed to Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite, was in fact written by Damascius, the last head of the pagan Neoplatonist school of Athens. The article suggests that the work was written "in order to resurrect more easily the polytheistic religion in better times".

God chose the prophet Ṣāliḥ to warn the polytheistic Thamūd that they should worship the One God. The tribe refused to heed him, saying that Ṣāliḥ was merely a mortal, and demanded a sign from God. God sent down a female camel as his sign, and Ṣāliḥ told his countrymen that they should not harm the camel and allow it to drink from their well. But the Thamūd cut its hamstring or otherwise wounded it.

A Torajan priest during a Toraja death feast. Toraja's indigenous belief system is polytheistic animism, called aluk, or "the way" (sometimes translated as "the law"). In the Toraja myth, the ancestors of Torajan people came down from heaven using stairs, which were then used by the Torajans as a communication medium with Puang Matua, the Creator.This Toraja myth was directly translated from the history of Toraja at the official Tana Toraja website toraja.go.

Many existing pagan shrines were converted to Christian use and few pagan sites still operated by the 5th century. The collapse of the Roman system in the late 5th century, however, brought about the end of formal Christian religion in the east of England, and the new Germanic immigrants arrived with their own polytheistic gods, including Woden, Thunor and Tiw, still reflected in various English place names.Whitelock, pp. 21–22; Fleming, p. 127.

The Slavs developed cults around natural objects, such as springs, trees or stones, out of respect for the spirit (or demon) within. Slavic pre- Christian religion was originally polytheistic, with no organised pantheon. Although the earliest Slavs seemed to have a weak concept of God, the concept evolved into a form of monotheism in which a "supreme god [ruled] in heaven over the others". There is no evidence of a belief in fate or predestination.

In the polytheistic Germanic tradition, it was possible to worship Jesus next to the native gods like Woden and Thor. Before a battle, a pagan military leader might pray to Jesus for victory, instead of Odin, if he expected more help from the Christian God. According to legend, Clovis had prayed thus before a battle against one of the kings of the Alemanni, and had consequently attributed his victory to Jesus.Padberg, Lutz v. (1998), p.

Nordic Paganism is the umbrella term for polytheistic followers of the Proto-Norse period religions involving the Nordic pantheon of gods. This pantheon includes gods such as the Æsir; Odin, Thor, Loki, Sif, Heimdallr, Baldr, and Týr, as well as goddesses that include Vanir; Freyja, Freyr, Njörðr, and Nerthus. The followers of Nordic Paganism include Odinists, Tyrists, Lokians, Asatru, and practitioners of Seiðr, among other varying followers. Nordic Pagans follow the teachings of the Hávamál.

He soon developed his own system, combining the doctrines of various masters. Ibn Tumart's main principle was a strict unitarianism (tawhid), which denied the independent existence of the attributes of God as being incompatible with His unity, and therefore a polytheistic idea. Ibn Tumart represented a revolt against what he perceived as anthropomorphism in Muslim orthodoxy. His followers would become known as the al-Muwaḥḥidūn ("Almohads"), meaning those who affirm the unity of God.

A central, main division in modern polytheistic practices is between soft polytheism and hard polytheism. "Hard" polytheism is the belief that gods are distinct, separate, real divine beings, rather than psychological archetypes or personifications of natural forces. Hard polytheists reject the idea that "all gods are one god." "Hard" polytheists do not necessarily consider the gods of all cultures as being equally real, a theological position formally known as integrational polytheism or omnism.

These include Chou Wang, Lan Caihe - one of the Eight Immortals, Shan Gu, and Yu the Great, and Gun. Religious Taoism is generally considered to be polytheistic. Its many deities, although unified by the idea and practice of Tao, are often pictured as part of a heavenly hierarchy that mirrors the bureaucracy of Imperial China. According to the beliefs of Religious Taoism, Chinese deities may be promoted or demoted for their actions.

The Burney Relief, First Babylonian dynasty, around 1800 BC Statuette of Standing Nude Goddess, 1st century B.C--1st Century A.D. Ancient Mesopotamian religion was the first recorded. Mesopotamians believed that the world was a flat disc, surrounded by a huge, holed space, and above that, heaven. They also believed that water was everywhere, the top, bottom and sides, and that the universe was born from this enormous sea. In addition, Mesopotamian religion was polytheistic.

Modern Animism: The Emergence of "Spirit Religion" in Laos. Local Traditions and World Religions: The Appropriation of “Religion” in Southeast Asia and Beyond. 2014. These religions are pantheistic and polytheistic, and involve classes of shamans. The category comprehends traditions of the Lao and other Tai-Kadai people, the Khmu and other Mon-Khmer people, as well as religions of the Hmong-Mien (Hmongism and Yao Taoism), Tibeto-Burman, and other ethnic groups of Laos.

The concept has been used frequently in popular culture and is a part of several religious traditions in the world. Trickster gods found in polytheistic belief systems often have a dystheistic nature. One example is Eshu, a trickster god from Yoruba mythology who deliberately fostered violence between groups of people for his own amusement, saying that "causing strife is my greatest joy." Another example is the Norse Loki, though Odin has these qualities as well.

Initiated by Pharaoh Akhenaten and Queen Nefertiti around 1330 BCE, during the New Kingdom period in ancient Egyptian history. They built an entirely new capital city (Akhetaten) for themselves and worshippers of their sole creator god on a wilderness. His father used to worship Aten alongside other gods of their polytheistic religion. Aten, for a long time before his father's time, was revered as a god among the many gods and goddesses in Egypt.

The Kam people are traditionally polytheistic with many elements of animism. Totems include turtles, snakes, and dragons, and worshiped ancestors include the mythical figures of Song Sang, Song En, Zhang Liang, and Zhang Mei. However, the Kam have been influenced by Buddhism, Taoism, and Confucianism through historical contacts with the Han. This influence is mainly seen in regards to ancestor worship, funeral rites, and certain festivals like the Spring and Dragon Boat Festivals.

They maintained their own temple (also see House of Yahweh), in which sacrifices were offered, evincing polytheistic beliefs, which functioned alongside that of Khnum.A. van Hoonacker, Une Communauté Judéo-Araméenne à Éléphantine, en Egypte, aux vi et v siècles avant J.-C, London 1915 cited, Arnold Toynbee, A Study of History, vol.5, (1939) 1964 p125 n.1 The temple was destroyed in 410 BC at the instigation of the priests of Khnum.

The land of Canaan, which comprises the modern regions of Israel, Palestine, Lebanon, Jordan and Syria. At the time when Canaanite religion was practiced, Canaan was divided into various city-states. Canaanite religion refers to the group of ancient Semitic religions practiced by the Canaanites living in the ancient Levant from at least the early Bronze Age through the first centuries of the Common Era. Canaanite religion was polytheistic, and in some cases monolatristic.

Tomb of Cyrus the Great at Pasargadae, Iran. The roots of Zoroastrianism are thought to have emerged from a common prehistoric Indo-Iranian religious system dating back to the early 2nd millennium BCE.Foltz 2013, pp. 10–18 The prophet Zoroaster himself, though traditionally dated to the 6th century BCE, is thought by many modern historians to have been a reformer of the polytheistic Iranian religion who lived in the 10th century BCE.

The early usage of the term rḥmnn in South Arabia is found in polytheistic inscriptions. It is found in inscriptions that are written in the late Sabaic language. Later, the epithet Raḥmānān was adopted by Jews and Christians in southern Arabia and these religions tried to replace the traditional pagan religions. The earliest known usage of the epithet term is found in an inscription written in Akkadian and Aramaic and was dedicated to Hadad.

Reghini was an important influence on Evola during the years 1924 to 1930. He introduced Evola to the major texts on alchemy, which became the basis for Evola's book The Hermetic Tradition (1931). It was also through Reghini that Evola met René Guénon, whose Traditionalism would have a profound impact on his thinking. Reghini's journals and the works of the Ur group has influenced the development of Italic-Roman neopaganism and Roman Polytheistic Reconstructionism.

London & Ware: UCL & Wordsworth Editions Ltd. . pp. 12–13. as other "pagan" peoples such as the Greeks, Romans, and Egyptians did. Whether or not this is true, as the classical peoples grew in influence over the Celtic cultures, it encouraged the depiction of deities in human forms, and they appear to move from a more animistic-based faith to a more Romanised polytheistic view. Several of these deities, including Lugus and Matrones, were triple deities.

The Origin, History and Meaning of the New Testament Borrowings in the Hadiths], Kraków: UNUM 2001 link accessed: 12.12.2016) the interaction between the Qur’an and pre-Islamic Polytheistic and Christian beliefs,See: Jewish and Christian religious influences on pre-Islamic Arabia on the example of the term RHMNN (‘the Merciful’) in: Orientalia Christiana Cracoviensia 3(2011), pp. 67-74 [accessed: 12.07.2016]; Tytuł Boga RḤMNN – “Miłosierny” z żydowskich i chrześcijańskich inskrypcji przedmuzułmańskiej Arabii.

Politeistyczna czy monoteistyczna geneza koranicznego ar-Raḥmān? [The title of God RḤMNN – ‘Merciful’ from the Jewish and Christian pre-Muslim inscriptions of Arabia. Polytheistic or Monotheistic origin of the Koranic ar-Raḥmān?] in: ‘Analecta Cracoviensia’ 43(2011) pp. 313-328, [accessed: 24.07.2016]. the Old and New Testament elements in the Qur’an,See: Wpływ Biblii na Koran [The influence of the Bible on Koran], in: Biblia w kontekście kultur, ‘Studia Nauk Teologicznych PAN’2009, vol.

During its existence, the population of Syria Palaestina in the north consisted of a mixed Polytheistic population of Phoenicians, Arameans and Jews which formed the majority, as well as what remained of Greek colonists, Arab societies of Itureans, and later also the Ghassanids. In the East, Arameans and Assyrians made up the majority. In the South, Samaritans, Nabateans and Greco-Romans made up the majority near the end of the 2nd century.

The reverence for Shiva is one of the pan-Hindu traditions found widely across India, Sri Lanka and Nepal.Keay, p.xxvii. While Shiva is revered broadly, Hinduism itself is a complex religion and a way of life, with a diversity of ideas on spirituality and traditions. It has no ecclesiastical order, no unquestionable religious authorities, no governing body, no prophet(s) nor any binding holy book; Hindus can choose to be polytheistic, pantheistic, monotheistic, monistic, agnostic, atheistic, or humanist.

In 2003, the British religious studies scholar Michael York published Pagan Theology: Paganism as a World Religion, in which he argued that contemporary Paganism could be seen as a part of a much wider global "paganism" which encompassed a large variety of animistic and polytheistic religious traditions, including Indigenous religions.York 2003. In 2005, ABC-CLIO published an anthology entitled Modern Paganism in World Cultures, which was edited by the American religious studies scholar Michael F. Strmiska.

Kama (left) with Rati on a temple wall of Chennakesava Temple, Belur, India Eos by Evelyn De Morgan (1895) depicts Eos, a reflex of the goddess Hausos, the original love goddess of the Proto-Indo-Europeans A love deity is a deity in mythology associated with romance, sex, lust, or sexuality. Love deities are common in mythology and may be found in many polytheistic religions. Female sex goddesses are often associated with beauty and other traditionally feminine attributes.

Engraving showing the local Saxon king, Cædwalla, granting land to Wilfrid to build his monastery in Selsey. After the departure of the Roman army, the Saxons arrived and founded the Kingdom of Sussex in the 5th century, bringing with them their polytheistic religion.Jones. The end of Roman Britain. pp. 164–168Armstrong. A History of Sussex. pp. 38-40 The Saxon pagan culture probably caused a reversal of the spread of Christianity.Higham The English Conquest. p. 79.

Himyar then endured until it finally fell to invaders from the Kingdom of Aksum in 525 CE. The Himyarites originally worshiped most of the South-Arabian pantheon, including Wadd, ʿAthtar, 'Amm and Almaqah. Since at least the reign of Abikarib Asʿad (c. 384 to 433 CE), Judaism was adopted as the de-facto state religion. The religion may have been adopted to some extent as much as two centuries earlier, but inscriptions to polytheistic deities ceased after this date.

In Gustave Flaubert's historical novel Salammbô (1862), the title character is a priestess of Tanit. Mâtho, the chief male protagonist, a Libyan mercenary rebel at war with Carthage, breaks into the goddess's temple and steals her veil. In Kate Elliott's Spiritwalker trilogy, a romanticised version of Tanit is one of many deities commonly worshiped in a polytheistic Europa. The narrator, Catherine, frequently appeals to "Blessed Tanit, Protector of Women", and the goddess occasionally appears to her.

Alvi 46 Scholars, poets, and mystics from Central Asia and Iran became integrated within India. By 1204, the Ghurids established rule in the following cities: Benaras (Varanasi), Kanaug, Rajasthan, and Bihar, which introduced Muslim rule into the Bengal region. An emphasis on translation of Arabic and Persian texts (Qu'ran, Hadith corpus, Sufi literature) into vernacular languages helped the momentum of Islamization in India.Alvi 10 Particularly in rural areas, Sufis helped Islam spread generously into prior polytheistic populations.

G. W. Elderkin, "The Bee of Artemis", The American Journal of Philology, 60:2 (1939), 213. 200px Frankish mythology comprises the mythology of the Germanic tribal confederation of the Franks, from its roots in polytheistic Germanic paganism through the inclusion of Greco-Roman components in the Early Middle Ages. This mythology flourished among the Franks until the conversion of the Merovingian king Clovis I to Nicene Christianity (c. 500), though there were many Frankish Christians before that.

Mun or Munism (also called Bongthingism) is the traditional polytheistic, animist, shamanistic or Bon, and syncretic religion of the Lepcha people. It predates the seventh century Lepcha conversion to Lamaistic Buddhism, and since that time, the Lepcha have practiced it together with Buddhism. Since the arrival of Christian missionaries in the nineteenth century, Mun traditions have been followed alongside that religion as well. The traditional religion permits incorporation of Buddha and Jesus Christ as deities, depending on household beliefs.

The most dramatic of such constructions was the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem.Griffith (2010) p. 200. The inscriptions on the Dome of the Rock are taken from the Quran and “proclaim the arrival of a powerful empire that was founded on pure monotheist belief.” This, as Ballard and Griffith both note, was in response to Christians believing in the trinity, and their supposed worship of the Virgin Mary and the Saints something that Muslims saw as polytheistic.

The Tursaansydän, a Finnish Pagan symbol. The Finnish native religion (: "Finnish Faith"), or Finnish Neopaganism, is the contemporary Neopagan revival of Finnish paganism, the pre-Christian polytheistic ethnic religion of the Finns. A precursor movement was the Ukkousko ("Ukko Faith", revolving around the god Ukko) of the early 20th century. The main problem in the revival of Finnish paganism is the nature of pre-Christian Finnish culture, which relied on oral tradition and very little is left.

Following Akhenaten's death, Egypt gradually returned to its traditional polytheistic religion, partly because of how closely associated the Aten became with Akhenaten. Atenism likely stayed dominant through the reigns of Akhenaten's immediate successors, Smenkhkare and Neferneferuaten, as well as early in the reign of Tutankhaten. For a period of time the worship of Aten and a resurgent worship of Amun coexisted. Over time, however, Akhenaten's successors, starting with Tutankhaten, took steps to distance themselves from Atenism.

Based on the teachings of the Prophet Fane, Fanimry is solely monotheistic and rejects the polytheistic elements of Inrithism, as well as the holiness of the Tusk. This puts it in direct conflict with the Thousand Temples. The only nation of the Three Seas that accepts Fanimry is Kian, in the southwest of the region. Additionally, Fanimry disagrees on the acceptance of magic and sorcerers—in this case the Psûkhe, the magic cast by the Cishaurim.

231 Barlaam viewed this doctrine of "uncreated light" to be polytheistic because as it postulated two eternal substances, a visible and an invisible God. Barlaam accuses the use of the Jesus Prayer as being a practice of Bogomilism.1\. His teaching about the light on Mt. Tabor, which he claimed was created. 2\. His criticisms of the Jesus Prayer, which he accused of being a practise of the Bogomils; also charged it with not proclaiming Christ as God.

Nearby rose the Pagan Empire in modern-day Burma, using elephants as military might. The construction of the Buddhist Shwezigon Pagoda and its tolerance for believers of older polytheistic gods helped Theravada Buddhism become supreme in the region. In Indonesia, Srivijaya from the 7th through 14th century was a Thalassocracy that focused on maritime city states and trade. Controlling the vital choke points of the Sunda and Malacca straits it became rich from trade ranging from Japan through Arabia.

1153) and the Sunni Muslim scholar al-Bayhaqi (d. 1066), the Khath'am, along with the South Arabian tribes of Akk and Ash'ar, formed the majority of troops in the ranks of Abraha, the Aksumite ruler of Yemen, in the mid-6th century. These same accounts hold that once Abraha reached Mecca to destroy the Kaaba, then the principal sanctuary for the polytheistic Arabs, the Khath'am and the Ash'ar refused to participate. The historian Ibn Habib (d.

Within the wide range of ethical traditions, religious traditions co-exist with secular value frameworks such as humanism, utilitarianism, and others. There are many types of religious values. Modern monotheistic religions, such as Islam, Judaism, Christianity (and to a certain degree others such as Sikhism) define right and wrong by the laws and rules set forth by their respective gods and as interpreted by religious leaders within the respective faith. Polytheistic religious traditions tend to be less absolute.

This led to a suppression of Christianity that was more severe than any seen before and which took place on an empire-wide scale. On 24 February, AD 303, Diocletian issued the first of a series of edicts that rescinded Christians' legal rights and demanded compliance with traditional polytheistic religious practices. Christianity had existed for over 250 years; both the Church and the empire had changed in that time. The Church was no longer composed of tiny scattered groups.

The traditional interpretation of the Biblical text is that the Israelites imported pagan elements such as the Asherah poles from the surrounding Canaanites. In light of archeological finds, however, some modern scholars now theorize that the Israelite folk religion was Canaanite in its inception and always polytheistic; this theory holds that the innovators were the prophets and priests who denounced the Asherah poles.William G. Dever, Did God have a Wife?: Archaeology and Folk Religion in Ancient Israel, 2005, esp.

The Jesuits followed a policy of adaptation of Catholicism to traditional Chinese religious practices, especially ancestor worship. However, such practices were eventually condemned as polytheistic idolatry by the popes Clement XI, Clement XII and Benedict XIV. Roman Catholic missions struggled in obscurity for decades afterwards. Christianity began to take root in a significant way in the late imperial period, during the Qing dynasty, and although it has remained a minority religion in China, it influenced late imperial history.

Ebla was a polytheistic state. During the first kingdom, Eblaites worshiped their dead kings. The pantheon of the first Ebla included pairs of deities and they can be separated into three genres; in the first and most common one, there were the couples, such as the deity and his female consort. The second type of pairs was the divine twosomes, such as the deities that cooperate to create the cosmos, like in the Egyptian and Mesopotamian pantheons.

As a result, she is a member of every polytheistic pantheon of 'gods' worshiped by humans. Besides mythological gods, many deities made up by Marvel writers exist as well, such as the Dark Gods, enemies of the Asgardians. The Dark Gods are a race of 'gods' that have been worshiped by extraterrestrial races. Well-known alien races like the Shi'ar and Skrulls also have beings they worship as 'gods', though little has been revealed about them.

Gehenna, a term that also appears in the New Testament and translated as hell) as well as a Heaven (Gan Eden), but the religion does not intend it as a focus. Judaism views the worship of Jesus as inherently polytheistic, and rejects the Christian attempts to explain the Trinity as a complex monotheism. Christian festivals have no religious significance in Judaism and are not celebrated, but some secular Jews in the West treat Christmas as a secular holiday.

The most popular beasts and demons of Arabian mythology are Bahamut, Dandan, Falak, Ghoul, Hinn, Jinn, Karkadann, Marid, Nasnas, Qareen, Roc, Shadhavar, Werehyena and other assorted creatures which represented the profoundly polytheistic environment of pre-Islamic. The most obvious symbol of Arabian mythology is the Jinn or genie. Jinns are supernatural beings of varying degrees of power. They possess free will (that is, they can choose to be good or evil) and come in two flavors.

Ancient Egyptian religion was a complex system of polytheistic beliefs and rituals that formed an integral part of ancient Egyptian society. It centered on the Egyptians' interactions with many deities believed to be present in, and in control of the world. Rituals such as prayer and offerings were provided to the gods to gain their favor. Formal religious practice centered on the pharaohs, the rulers of Egypt, believed to possess divine powers by virtue of their positions.

Ancient Greece was a polytheistic society in which the gods were not omnipotent and required sacrifice and ritual. The earliest beginnings of religious skepticism can be traced back to Xenophanes. He critiqued popular religion of his time, particularly false conceptions of the divine that are a byproduct of the human propensity to anthropomorphize deities. He took the scripture of his time to task for painting the gods in a negative light and promoted a more rational view of religion.

Adherents rely on pre- Christian, folkloric, and ethnographic sources to a variety of degrees; many follow a spirituality that they accept as entirely modern, while others claim prehistoric beliefs, or else attempt to revive indigenous, ethnic religions as accurately as possible.Adler 2006. pp. 3–4. Academic research has placed the Pagan movement along a spectrum, with eclecticism on one end and polytheistic reconstructionism on the other. Polytheism, animism, and pantheism are common features of Pagan theology.

The characters appearing in the cycle are essentially gods from the pre-Christian pagan past in Ireland. Commentators exercising caution, however, qualify them as representing only "godlike" beings, and not gods. This is because the Christian scribes who composed the writings were generally (though not always) careful not to refer to the Tuatha Dé Danann and other beings explicitly as deities. The disguises are thinly veiled nonetheless, and these writings contain discernible vestiges of early Irish polytheistic cosmology .

Oliver Leaman (ed.), The Qur'an, an Encyclopedia, 2006; p. 477 Those observations did not fit to the Islamic narratives on Islam's beginnings, which depicted Islam as coming into being within a polytheistic society. Wansbrough also found that early Muslim legal arguments did not refer to the Quran, along with other indication that there was not "a stable scriptural text" in Rashidun and Umayyad eras, suggesting the Quran as a source of law had been backdated.Wansbrough, 'Quranic Studies, 1978: p.

Church of St. Johns in Vilnius. Example of Vilnius Baroque style St. Anne's Church and the church of the Bernardine Monastery in Vilnius After the baptism in 1252 and coronation of King Mindaugas in 1253, Lithuania was recognized as a Christian state until 1260, when Mindaugas supported an uprising in Courland and (according to the German order) renounced Christianity. Up until 1387, Lithuanian nobles professed their own religion, which was polytheistic. Ethnic Lithuanians were very dedicated to their faith.

The Tursaansydän symbol. Finnish Neopaganism, or the Finnish native faith (: "Finnish Religion") is the contemporary revival of Finnish paganism, the pre- Christian polytheistic ethnic religion of the Finns. A precursor movement was the Ukonusko ("Ukko's Faith", revolving around the god Ukko) of the early 20th century. The main problem in the revival of Finnish paganism is the nature of pre-Christian Finnish culture, which relied on oral tradition which may be subject to change over time.

Ereal's opposites in Midlight are the moons Aera, Invex, Lucifal and Ravan. It is said that at one time the moons were worshiped as gods and rumours exist that there are still small groups of people who still practice polytheistic beliefs. Only recently has Ravan appeared in the night sky and acts as Ereal's primary antagonist. The groups of people who follow Ravan and the other moons are discreet and meet entirely underground to avoid persecution.

Indra, the Indian/ Hindu god of thunder. Polytheistic peoples of many cultures have postulated a thunder god, the personification or source of the forces of thunder and lightning; a lightning god does not have a typical depiction, and will vary based on the culture. In Indo-European cultures, the thunder god is frequently known as the chief or King of the Gods, e.g. Indra in Hinduism, Zeus in Greek mythology, and Perun in ancient Slavic religion.

The Kindites were polytheistic until the 6th century CE, with evidence of rituals dedicated to the deities Athtar and Kāhil found in their ancient capital in south-central Arabia (present day Saudi Arabia). There is a strong archaeological evidence that they were among the tribes in Dhū Nuwās' forces during the Jewish king's attempt to suppress Christianity in South Arabia.Le Muséon, 3-4, 1953, P.296, Bulletin Of The School Of Oriental And African Studies, University Of London, Vol.

Based on Quranic verses and Islamic traditions, classical Sharia distinguishes between Muslims, followers of other Abrahamic monotheistic religions, and pagans or people belonging to other polytheistic religions. As monotheists, Jews and Christians have traditionally been considered "People of The Book," and afforded a special status known as dhimmi derived from a theoretical contract - "dhimma" or "residence in return for taxes". There are parallels for this in Roman and Jewish law.Glenn, H. Patrick (2007) pp. 217–219.

Similarly for Shaivism and many Hindus, it is synonymous with Shiva or Maheshwara. In traditional Bhakti movements, Ishvara is one or more deities of an individual's preference from Hinduism's polytheistic canon of deities. In modern sectarian movements such as Arya Samaj and Brahmoism, Ishvara takes the form of a monotheistic God.RK Pruthi (2004), Arya Samaj and Indian Civilization, , pages 5–6, 48–49 In the Yoga school of Hinduism, it is any "personal deity" or "spiritual inspiration".

While many were reluctant to convert to a foreign faith, those faiths provided intellectual and spiritual reference points, and the old pagan vocabulary of Arabic began to be replaced by Jewish and Christian loanwords from Aramaic everywhere, including Mecca. The distribution of pagan temples supports Gerald Hawting's argument that Arabian polytheism was marginalized in the region and already dying in Mecca on the eve of Islam.Robin, Christian Julien, "Arabia and Ethiopia", in The practice of polytheistic cults was increasingly limited to the steppe and the desert, and in Yathrib (later known as Medina), which included two tribes with polytheistic majorities, the absence of a public pagan temple in the town or its immediate neighborhood indicates that polytheism was confined to the private sphere. Looking at the text of the Quran itself, Hawting has also argued that the criticism of idolaters and polytheists contained in Quran is in fact a hyperbolic reference to other monotheists, in particular the Arab Jews and Arab Christians, whose religious beliefs were considered imperfect.

A deity or god is a supernatural being considered divine or sacred. The Oxford Dictionary of English defines deity as "a god or goddess (in a polytheistic religion)", or anything revered as divine. C. Scott Littleton defines a deity as "a being with powers greater than those of ordinary humans, but who interacts with humans, positively or negatively, in ways that carry humans to new levels of consciousness, beyond the grounded preoccupations of ordinary life". A goddess is a female deity.

There is very little data, but it is assumed that, like for other Mediterranean peoples, it was a polytheistic religion. It is believed that Tartessians worshiped the goddess Astarte or Potnia and the masculine divinity Baal or Melkart, as a result of the Phoenician acculturation. Sanctuaries inspired by the Phoenician architecture have been found in the deposit of Castulo (Linares, Jaén) and in the vicinity of Carmona. Several images of Phoenician gods have been found in Cádiz, Huelva and Sevilla.

In modern times, followers of Hellenic Polytheistic Reconstructionism still celebrate the festival of Aphrodisia over a three-day period on the 4th of Hekatombaion of the Attic Calendar, which falls somewhere between the months of July and August on the Gregorian calendar. Additionally, the fourth day of each month is considered a sacred day for both Aphrodite and her son Eros. These modern day followers of Ancient Greek religion recreate Aphrodisia and other ancient festivals in groups and in solitary worship.

Panentheism (from Greek (pân) "all"; (en) "in"; and (theós) "God"; "all-in-God") is a belief system that posits that the divine (be it a monotheistic God, polytheistic gods, or an eternal cosmic animating force) interpenetrates every part of nature, but is not one with nature. Panentheism differentiates itself from pantheism, which holds that the divine is synonymous with the universe. In panentheism, there are two types of substance, "pan" the universe and God. The universe and the divine are not ontologically equivalent.

Tim Whitmarsh argues atheism existed in the ancient world, though it remains difficult to assess its extent given that atheists are referenced (usually disparagingly) rather than having surviving writings. Given monotheism at the time was a minority view, atheism generally attacked polytheistic beliefs and associated practices in references found. The word "atheos" (godless) also was used for religious dissent generally (including the monotheists) which complicates study further. Despite these difficulties, Whitmarsh believes that otherwise atheism then was much the same.

The Cult of Kosmos is a secretive cabal operating throughout and controlling Ancient Greece and the surrounding regions. The Cult also operates in branches compromising several Adepts, with each brand led by an individual dubbed as the Sage. Much like their Egyptian counterparts, the Order of the Ancients, and their future incarnations, the Templar Order, the Cult of Kosmos were not at all polytheistic and had a deistic belief system. They manipulated the Greek world to maintain their power and wealth.

The term "pagan" (Latin paganus), used by Christians to define those who maintained polytheistic religions, originally meant "rural person, countryfolk, civilian", as a dweller of a pagus (rural district). The more identitary and reconstructionist Pagan movements are the majority and are represented by Celtic Druidry and Germanic Heathenry, while Wicca is an example of a non-identitary Pagan movement. Polytheism, nature worship, animism and pantheism are common features in Pagan theology. Rituals take place in both public and in private domestic settings.

Rofé has contributed to three fields of study in the Hebrew Bible: textual criticism, history of literature, and history of the Israelite religion. In his research he strives to integrate these fields, because each one of them is advanced by perceptions obtained in the other two. 1\. His first book, The Israelite Belief in Angels (Ph.D. dissertation, 1969, Hebrew, published 1979 ) hypothesizes that the Hebrew belief in angels was an attempt at fitting ancient polytheistic traditions into the frame of a monotheistic faith.

Castellania, Valletta Deo optimo maximo, often abbreviated D.O.M. or Deo Opt. Max., is a Latin phrase which means "to the greatest and best god", or "to God, most good, most great". It was originally used as a pagan formula addressed to Jupiter. D. O. M. abbreviation followed by an inscription, on the Fawwara Gate, Gżira Its usage while the Roman Empire was a polytheistic state referred to Jupiter, the chief god of the Roman pantheon polytheists: Iovi Optimo Maximo (I.O.M.).

Synthesizing monotheistic and polytheistic elements, Inrithism is the dominant faith of the Three Seas, founded upon the revelations of Inri Sejenus (c.2159-2202), the Latter Prophet. The central tenets of Inrithism deal with the immanence of the God in historical events, the unity of the individual deities of the Cults as Aspects of the God as revealed by the Latter Prophet, and the infallibility of the Tusk as scripture. The Thousand Temples - The Institution that provides the ecclesiastical framework of Inrithism.

Thane's wife was later murdered by mercenaries who were pursuing her husband. This event caused him to abandon their young son Kolyat, a decision that still haunts him. Instead of adopting the hanar worship of the Protheans like some of his brethren, Thane is a devotee of the old polytheistic religion of his species, and spends much of his time in prayer and meditation, even within his work. Thane prays before each mission and asks for forgiveness from his gods after each kill.

The Nabataean religion has encompassed both Christendom and an earlier form of Arab polytheism practiced in Nabataea, an ancient Arab nation which was well settled by the third century BCE and lasted until the Roman annexation in 106 CE.Patrich, Joseph. The Formation of Nabataean Art: Prohibition of a Graven Image Among the Nabateans. Jerusalem: Magnes, 1990. Print. The Nabateans were polytheistic and worshipped a wide variety of local gods as well as Baalshamin, Isis, and Greco-Roman gods such as Tyche and Dionysus.

Polytheistic religions, however, almost always attribute gender to their gods, though a few notable divinities are associated with various forms of epicene characteristics—gods that manifest alternatingly as male and female, gods with one male and one female "face", and gods whose most distinctive characteristic is their unknown gender. "We are yet more strongly reminded by the two-fold nature of Phanes of the epicene god-heads, who occur frequently in the Babylonian pantheon." Banerjee, Gauranga Nath. 2007. Hellenism in Ancient India.

Dikshitar is considered to have composed on the widest range of deities for any composer. Each of his compositions is unique and brilliantly crafted. The compositions are known for the depth and soulfulness of the melody — his visions of some of the ragas are still the final word on their structure. His Sanskrit lyrics are in praise of the temple deity, but Muthuswami introduces the Advaita thought seamlessly into his songs, resolving the inherent relationship between Advaita philosophy and polytheistic worship.

It would only be in the later centuries that the national identities would develop amongst the Scandinavians, dividing them into such national groups as the Danes, Swedes and Norwegians.Richards 1991. p. 11. The Late Iron Age peoples of Scandinavia had not yet been converted to Christianity as the peoples of Britain and Ireland had been, and instead followed Norse paganism, a polytheistic set of beliefs that revered such deities as Odin, Thor, Frey and Freyja.Graham- Campbell and Batey 1998. p. 32.

Opera I Lituani (The Lithuanians) - poster from the opera's 19th century production Drawing of the Palace of the Grand Dukes of Lithuania in XVIIIc. Music of Lithuania refers to all forms of music associated with Lithuania, which has a long history of the folk, popular and classical musical development. Music was an important part of polytheistic, pre-Christian Lithuania – rituals were accompanied by music instruments and singing, deeds of the heroes and those who didn't return from the war were celebrated in songs.

Religions can be categorized by how many deities they worship. Monotheistic religions accept only one deity (predominantly referred to as God), polytheistic religions accept multiple deities. Henotheistic religions accept one supreme deity without denying other deities, considering them as equivalent aspects of the same divine principle; and nontheistic religions deny any supreme eternal creator deity but accept a pantheon of deities which live, die, and are reborn just like any other being. Various cultures have conceptualized a deity differently than a monotheistic God.

Odin riding on his horse Sleipnir Old Norse religion was polytheistic, with many anthropomorphic gods and goddesses, who express human emotions and in some cases are married and have children. One god, Baldr, is said in the myths to have died. Archaeological evidence on worship of particular gods is sparse, although placenames may also indicate locations where they were venerated. For some gods, particularly Loki, there is no evidence of worship; however, this may be changed by new archaeological discoveries.

Sámi drum in the Arctikum museum, in Rovaniemi, Finland Traditional Sámi spiritual practices and beliefs are based on a type of animism, polytheism, and what anthropologists may consider shamanism. The religious traditions can vary considerably from region to region within Sápmi. Traditional Sámi religion is generally considered to be Animism. The Sámi belief that all significant natural objects (such as animals, plants, rocks, etc.) possess a soul, and from a polytheistic perspective, traditional Sámi beliefs include a multitude of spirits.

The rain god, Chaac at the museum of Copan. Most of the religions of the natives belonging to what today comprises the Honduran territory were polytheistic in nature. Many of the deities that various peoples worshiped were hierarchical. In the Mayan area of the country, religion was not far from that of the rest of the indigenous people of this culture, since the same rites were practiced and the same deities were worshiped as in all the area that this culture understood.

The use of the term was later extended to Zoroastrians, Samaritans, Mandeans, Sikhs and even polytheistic Indians. Islamic scholars differ on whether Hindus are People of the Book. The Islamic conquest of India necessitated the definition be revised, as most India's inhabitants were followers of the Indian religions. Many of the Muslim clergy of India considered Hindus as people of the book, and from Muhammad bin Qasim to Aurangzeb, Muslim rulers were willing to consider Hindus as people of the book.

Julian used the term to describe traditional Graeco-Roman religion. Additionally, subgroups within Hellenism have used a variety of names to distinguish branches focusing on specific schools of thought, or various different modern traditions. Hellenic religion and Hellenic polytheism are often used interchangeably to refer to the religion. The phrase Hellenic Polytheistic Reconstructionism refers specifically to the methodology used by some practitioners to recreate the religion based on academic sources, rather than the religion itself, and not all Hellenic Polytheists are reconstructionists.

YSEE website. With branches also in the United States, Canada, Australia, and Germany, their level of real world public activity, and actual membership levels, the Supreme Council of Ethnikoi Hellenes can be argued to be the defining lead organization for the public revival movement. YSEE is also a member of the European Union's action program to combat discrimination. The organization primarily refers to the religion as the "Ethnic Polytheistic" or "genuine Hellenism" and its practitioners as Ethnikoi Hellenes, "Ethnic [National] Hellenes".

Judging by its shape, it seems to be a mosque. It seems there were Muslims among the people that were ruled by the Tangut. Due to the polytheistic belief of the local people, the Muslims built their mosques outside. Traders from India and the further west would have prayed in the mosque and found relief after their arduous journey along the Silk Road Culture, Travel Documentary narrated by Graham Webster and published by NHK in 1990 – Episode The Dark Castle .

Navajo men dressed as Tó Neinilii, Tobadzischini, Nayenezgani (1904) Medicine Wheel, Wyoming Doctor's Headdress, Pomo Native American religions are the spiritual practices of the indigenous peoples of North America. Ceremonial ways can vary widely and are based on the differing histories and beliefs of individual tribes, clans, and bands. Early European explorers describe individual Native American tribes and even small bands as each having their own religious practices. Theology may be monotheistic, polytheistic, henotheistic, animistic, shamanistic, pantheistic or any combination thereof, among others.

The word myth has several meanings. # A traditional story of ostensibly historical events that serves to unfold part of the world view of a people or explain a practice, belief, or natural phenomenon; # A person or thing having only an imaginary or unverifiable existence; or # A metaphor for the spiritual potentiality in the human being.Joseph Campbell, The Power of Myth, p. 22 Ancient polytheistic religions, such as those of Greece, Rome, and Scandinavia, are usually categorized under the heading of mythology.

The Aztec religion originated from the indigenous Aztecs of central Mexico. Like other Mesoamerican religions, it also has practices such as human sacrifice in connection with many religious festivals which are in the Aztec calendar. This polytheistic religion has many gods and goddesses; the Aztecs would often incorporate deities that were borrowed from other geographic regions and peoples into their own religious practices. The cosmology of Aztec religion divides the world into thirteen heavens and nine earthly layers or netherworlds.

The origin of the myth is somewhat obscure, as it is possible that the existence of this god is an invention by a satirist. No ancient polytheistic source appears for this deity. The earliest mention of a god of flatulence is as an Egyptian, not a Roman deity. This comes from the hostile pen of the author of the Recognitions dubiously attributed to Pope Clement I, in which it is reported that: :alii ... crepitus ventris pro numinibus habendos esse docuerunt.

Hurrian incense container The Hurrian religion was the polytheistic religion of the Hurrians, a Bronze Age people of the Near East. These people settled over a wide area, so there were differences between them, especially between the eastern Hurrians around Nuzi and Arrapha and the western Hurrians in Syria and Anatolia. From the 14th century BC, the Hurrian religion had a powerful influence on the Hittite religion and the Hurrian pantheon is depicted in the 13th century rock reliefs at the important Hittite sanctuary at Yazılıkaya.

Rimbaud focuses on such pagan deities as Cybele (the Earth), Venus (Beauty), Eros (Love), and the Sun. By assigning overtly sexual overtones to them, he also suggests the fertility that they embody. In the eyes of the young Rimbaud, the various deities exists in a complementary relationship to each other (the male Sun and female Earth). In addition, Pan with his company of fauns and satyrs, are ever present; they serve to cast the polytheistic world in the wild light of the Dionysian orgy.

Antipater argues that marriage is the foundation of the state, and considers it to be based on divine (polytheistic) decree. He uses misogunia to describe the sort of writing the tragedian Euripides eschews, stating that he "reject[s] the hatred of women in his writing" (ἀποθέμενος τὴν ἐν τῷ γράφειν μισογυνίαν). He then offers an example of this, quoting from a lost play of Euripides in which the merits of a dutiful wife are praised.38-43, fr. 63, in von Arnim, J. (ed.).

Lionel Wendt Art Centre Dramas in Sri Lanka began first with ritualist performances of early polytheistic religions. Originating as masked dances intersnouring gods and ridding demons, these gradually became free of religion and organised forms of entertainment. These early dramas w With the arrival of Europeans and urbanisation, the Sinhalese began to view theatre as a serious and secular art. At first, urban dramas were derivative borrowing heavily from English drama, or from Parsi theatre musicals (nurti) and Bombay and South Indian operatic plays (nadagam).

The sending of a messenger to Zalmoxis and the fact that Getae shot arrows towards the sky have prompted some authors to believe Zalmoxis was a sky god, but his journey into a cavern has led others to suggest that he was a chthonic divinity. A third group of scholars believe that the Getae, like other Indo-European peoples, were polytheistic. They draw on ancient authors such as Diodorus Siculus, who states that the Getae worshipped Hestia as well as Zalmoxis.Diodorus Siculus, Book 1, c.

While the Goths or the Vandals had been at least partly converted to Christianity since the mid-4th century, polytheistic beliefs are thought to have flourished among the Salian Franks until the conversion of Clovis to Catholicism shortly before or after 500, after which paganism diminished gradually.K. Fischer Drew, The laws of the Salian Franks. Translated and with an Introduction by Katherine Fischer Drew (1991), 6 On the other hand it is possible many Salians in Gaul were already Arian Christians, like contemporary Germanic kingdoms.

Heathenry does not have a unified theology but is typically polytheistic, centering on a pantheon of deities from pre-Christian Germanic Europe. It adopts cosmological views from these past societies, including an animistic view of the cosmos in which the natural world is imbued with spirits. The religion's deities and spirits are honored in sacrificial rites known as blóts in which food and libations are offered to them. These are often accompanied by symbel, the act of ceremonially toasting the gods with an alcoholic beverage.

In some religions with a single powerful deity as the object of worship, the death deity is an antagonistic deity against which the primary deity struggles. In polytheistic religions or mythologies, it is common to have a deity who is assigned the function of presiding over death. The inclusion of such a "departmental" deity of death in a religion's pantheon is not necessarily the same as the glorification of death. The latter is commonly condemned by the use of the term "death-worship" in modern political rhetoric.

Sometimes error is also used to cover both full heresies and minor errors. Doctrine or practices not regarded as essential to faith, with which Christians can legitimately disagree, are known as adiaphora. The concept of orthodoxy is prevalent in many forms of organized monotheism. However, orthodox belief is not usually overly emphasized in polytheistic or animist religions, in which there is often little or no concept of dogma, and varied interpretations of doctrine and theology are tolerated and sometimes even encouraged within certain contexts.

Tasawwuf is a part of Islam and the Sufis are those who practice Tasawuf. During the last few centuries it has come under attack from the Wahhabism which consider it polytheistic (which is a claim heavily refuted and disproven). The Data Darbar shrine is the burial place of the Sufi saint Syed Ali Hajwairi. Deadly blasts hit Lahore shrine, Al Jazeera, 1 July 2010 2010 His book 'Kashif-ul-Mahjub' (which literally means 'unveiling of the veiled') is the first treatise in Sufi literature known as 'Malfujat'.

Although preserved in Christian writers, most scholars believe that it is "of Jewish authorship." Over time, a number of Christian and Jewish authors reworked Greek traditions about Orpheus and used them to support their monotheistic views and to assert the religious supremacy of Moses and monotheism over Greek polytheistic views. The rhetorical device of using legendary non-monotheistic figures to endorse Judaism is likewise found in the Sibylline Oracles. "Pseudo-Orpheus" is also sometimes applied to the unknown writer of other works falsely attributed to Orpheus.

The switch from the traditional Zoroastrianism to Christianity was not an easy one. Tiridates often used force to impose this new faith upon the people and many armed conflicts ensued, due to Zoroastrianism being deeply rooted in the Armenian people. An actual battle took place between the king's forces and the Zoroastrian camp, resulting in the weakening of polytheistic military strength. Tiridates thus spent the rest of his life trying to eliminate all ancient beliefs and in doing so destroyed countless statues, temples and written documents.

Wotanism, contrary to a self-denying Christianity, is seen by Wotansvolkers as a "natural religion", preaching "war, plunder and sex". Lane's followers, who regard him as a folk hero, see the 14 Words and the 88 Precepts as holy scriptures. They primarily consider the gods through a "soft polytheistic" lens as Jungian archetypes, although Lane said one could be a deist, a pantheist, or an atheist and still be Wotansvolk.see: Gambanreidi Statement; Wotanism by Professor Carl Gustav Jung Compiled by the late, Jost Turner .

One of the most obvious differences is that, in The Bacchae, Dionysus has come to advocate a philosophy of wine and hedonism; whereas Jesus in the Gospel of John has come to offer his followers salvation from sin. Euripides portrays Dionysus as aggressive and violent; whereas the Gospel of John shows Jesus as peaceful and full of mercy. Furthermore, The Bacchae is set within an explicitly polytheistic world, but the Gospel of John admits the existence of only two gods: Jesus himself and his Father in Heaven.

The religions of the ancient Near East were mostly polytheistic, with some examples of monolatry (for example, Yahwism and Atenism). Some scholars believe that the similarities between these religions indicate that the religions are related, a belief known as patternism. Many religions of the ancient near East and their offshoots can be traced to Proto-Semitic religion. Other religions in the ancient Near East include the ancient Egyptian religion, the Luwian and Hittite religions of Asia Minor and the Sumerian religion of ancient Mesopotamia.

Religious worship among the Qedar, as was the case for most of the inhabitants of Arabia until the 7th century CE, was polytheistic. Its practices and beliefs included an emphasis on female idols and worshippers. Divine images of the gods and goddesses worshipped by Qedarite Arabs, as noted in Assyrian inscriptions, included representations of Atarsamain, Nuha, Ruda, Daa, Abirillu, and Atarquruma. The female guardian of these idols, usually the reigning queen, served as a priestess (apkallatu, in Assyrian texts) who communed with the other world.

Marduk, god of Babylon, destroying Tiamat, the dragon of primeval chaos Comparative mythology provides historical and cross-cultural perspectives for Jewish mythology. Both sources behind the Genesis creation narrative borrowed themes from Mesopotamian mythology, but adapted them to their belief in one God, establishing a monotheistic creation in opposition to the polytheistic creation myth of ancient Israel's neighbors. as a whole is imbued with Mesopotamian myths. Genesis 1 bears both striking differences from and striking similarities to Babylon's national creation myth, the Enuma Elish.

After the departure of the Roman army, the Saxons arrived in Sussex in the 5th century and brought with them their polytheistic religion.Jones. The end of Roman Britain. pp. 164–168 The Saxon pagan culture probably caused a reversal of the spread of Christianity.Higham The English Conquest. p. 79. Wilfrid's biographer records that in the year 666 Wilfrid's ship ran aground on the Sussex coast near Selsey where it was attacked and a pagan priest sought to cast magic spells from a high mound.

Germans settled south of it (Germani Cisrhenani), and many place names and archaeological finds indicate the presence of Celts north of the Rhine. Between these "Celtic - Germanic peoples" and later the Roman conquerors (romanization) a cultural exchange took place. An adaptation of polytheistic religions and other myths occurred among the various tribes, absorbing influences from Germanic, Celtic and later Roman mythology. Gods such as Nehalennia, Hludana and Sandraudiga are of indigenous (Celtic) origin; the Germanic people had such gods as Wodan, Donar and Frigg/Freya from Scandinavia.

Aphrodite is a major deity in Wicca, a contemporary nature-based syncretic Neopagan religion. Wiccans regard Aphrodite as one aspect of the Goddess and she is frequently invoked by name during enchantments dealing with love and romance. Wiccans regard Aphrodite as the ruler of human emotions, erotic spirituality, creativity, and art. As one of the twelve Olympians, Aphrodite is a major deity within Hellenismos (Hellenic Polytheistic Reconstructionism), a Neopagan religion which seeks to authentically revive and recreate the religion of ancient Greece in the modern world.

The period of Anglo-Saxon England lasted from circa 410 through to 1066 AD, during which individuals considered to be "Anglo-Saxon" in culture and language dominated the country's demographics and politics. The early Anglo-Saxons had been adherents of religious beliefs now collectively known as Anglo-Saxon paganism. This was a polytheistic faith, accepting the existence of a variety of different deities, including Woden, Thunor, Tiw and Frige. Worship revolved largely around sacrificial veneration of such deities, propitiating them with votive offerings and animal sacrifice.

A deity ( or ) is a supernatural being considered divine or sacred. The Oxford Dictionary of English defines deity as "a god or goddess (in a polytheistic religion)", or anything revered as divine. C. Scott Littleton defines a deity as "a being with powers greater than those of ordinary humans, but who interacts with humans, positively or negatively, in ways that carry humans to new levels of consciousness, beyond the grounded preoccupations of ordinary life." A male deity is a god, while a female deity is a goddess.

An investigation is launched and Baltar is informed that the attackers are known as "The Sons of Ares" – a religious sect opposed to Baltar's monotheistic teachings. "Head Six" appears to him and says that it seems "the old gods are fighting back." She encourages Baltar to coordinate a counter-attack and he makes a speech in which he calls upon his followers to cast aside their fear and retaliate. Later, Baltar and his followers break into a polytheistic religious ceremony to denounce the old gods.

The Egyptians believed that the phenomena of nature were divine forces in and of themselves. These deified forces included the elements, animal characteristics, or abstract forces. The Egyptians believed in a pantheon of gods, which were involved in all aspects of nature and human society. Their religious practices were efforts to sustain and placate these phenomena and turn them to human advantage.. This polytheistic system was very complex, as some deities were believed to exist in many different manifestations, and some had multiple mythological roles.

The community of the Union of Slavic Native Belief Communities celebrating Mokosh. In contrast to the eclectic traditions, Polytheistic Reconstructionists practice culturally specific ethnic traditions based on folklore, songs and prayers, as well as reconstructions from the historical record. Hellenic, Roman, Kemetic, Celtic, Germanic, Guanche, Baltic and Slavic Reconstructionists aim to preserve and revive the practices and beliefs of Ancient Greece, Ancient Rome, Ancient Egypt, the Celts, the Germanic peoples, the Guanche people, the Balts and the Slavs, respectively.Davy, Barbara Jane (2007) "Introduction to pagan studies".

All these African cultures had musical traditions, which survive erratically to the present day, not always in detail, but in general style. The best preserved are the African polytheistic religions, where, in Cuba at least, the instruments, the language, the chants, the dances and their interpretations are quite well preserved. In what other American countries are the religious ceremonies conducted in the old language(s) of Africa? They certainly are in Lucumí ceremonies, though of course, back in Africa the language has moved on.

According to the producers, the documentary series "The Secret of Armageddon 4: The Ghost Project" is based on domestic and foreign documents which shows the role of hidden Zionist centers in using the media (including press, radio, TV, Internet, cinema and computer games) in the soft war against Islam, Iran and the Islamic Revolution. The series also depicts the emergence of "new quasi-mystical and polytheistic sects" to destroy the minds of the younger generation and turn them away from monotheistic and Abrahamic religions.

In many polytheistic early religions, deities had a strong element of personification, suggested by descriptions such as "god of". In ancient Greek religion, and the related Ancient Roman religion, this was perhaps especially strong, in particular among the minor deities.Paxson, 6–7 Many such deities, such as the tyches or tutelary deities for major cities, survived the arrival of Christianity, now as symbolic personifications stripped of religious significance. An exception was the winged goddess of Victory, Victoria/Nike, who developed into the visualization of the Christian angel.

Parthian votive relief from Khūzestān Province, Iran, 2nd century AD The Parthian Empire, being culturally and politically heterogeneous, had a variety of religious systems and beliefs, the most widespread being those dedicated to Greek and Iranian cults. Aside from a minority of Jews and early Christians, most Parthians were polytheistic. Greek and Iranian deities were often blended together as one. For example, Zeus was often equated with Ahura Mazda, Hades with Angra Mainyu, Aphrodite and Hera with Anahita, Apollo with Mithra, and Hermes with Shamash.

Gallo-Roman temple dedicated to Lenus, rebuilt in Pommern, Rhineland-Palatinate. Ancient Germanic paganism was a polytheistic religion practised in prehistoric Germany and Scandinavia, as well as Roman territories of Germania by the 1st century AD. It had a pantheon of deities that included Donar/Thunar, Wuotan/Wodan, Frouwa/Frua, Balder/Phol/Baldag, and others shared with northern Germanic paganism. Celtic paganism and later Gallo-Roman syntheses were instead practised in western and southern parts of modern Germany, while Slavic paganism was practised in the east.

Bishop J. Peter Sartain, former bishop of Joliet, was appointed by Pope Benedict XVI as Archbishop of Seattle and Auxiliary Bishop Joseph M. Siegel was appointed by Pope Francis as Archbishop of Evansville. Joliet holds a very large Catholic population, and many Catholic institutions, including Joliet Catholic Academy. Joliet is also home to the House of Netjer and their physical building. The House is of the Kemetic Orthodoxy, a nationwide ancient Egyptian religious organization dedicated to the reconstruction of the traditional Egyptian (Kemetic) Polytheistic religion.

Heimir Geirsson and Margaret Holmgren argue against the view that different religions can lead to the same God because some religions are incompatible with each other (monotheistic and polytheistic religions have contrasting views of divinity, for example, and some Greek or Norse gods magnified human weaknesses). They argue that determining which god should be listened to remains a problem and that, even within a religion, contrasting views of God exist – the commands of God in the Old and New Testaments could seem to contradict each other.

Scholars have described their motivations as "religious fanaticism", and have suggested that the depiction of the "single-mindedness" of the Alds is a subtle critique of monotheism and imperialism. The beliefs of the Alds are also contrasted with those of the citizens of Ansul, whose religion is polytheistic and emphasizes the veneration of ancestors. Little shrines and temples are commonplace, and the citizens frequently engage in worship, or asking for blessing. The religion has both major deities and spirits that inhabit houses or even rooms.

Shrine of Panglima Hijau, a Datuk or (in Malaysian Chinese) Na Tuk Kong, a god of the place on Pangkor Island. Malaysian folk religion refers to the animistic and polytheistic beliefs and practices that are still held by many in the Islamic-majority country of Malaysia. Malaysian folk faith is practiced either openly or covertly depending on the type of rituals performed. Some forms of belief are not recognised by the government as a religion for statistical purposes although such practices are not outlawed.

From the 16th through the 19th centuries, many of the polytheistic religious deities and texts of pre-colonial Americas, Oceania, and Africa were destroyed by Christian missionaries and their converts, such as during the Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire and the Spanish conquest of the Inca Empire. Many of the moai of Easter Island were toppled during the 18th century in the iconoclasm of civil wars before any European encounter.Fischer, Steven Roger. 2005. Island at the end of the World – The Turbulent History of Easter Island.

Some scholars postulate that in pre-Islamic Arabia, including in Mecca, Allah was considered to be a deity, possibly a creator deity or a supreme deity in a polytheistic pantheon. The word Allah (from the Arabic al-ilah meaning "the god") may have been used as a title rather than a name. The concept of Allah may have been vague in the Meccan religion. According to Islamic sources, Meccans and their neighbors believed that the goddesses Al-lāt, Al-‘Uzzá, and Manāt were the daughters of Allah.

Zothique is a polytheistic society, where many gods and goddesses are worshipped. Some of this worship is open, with temples and priesthoods; other deities or even demons are worshipped secretly, service to them being either forbidden or at least not spoken of. Some deities are known throughout Zothique; others have their worship confined to a small area or even a single city. Vergama, or "Destiny", is an ancient deity whose attributes are much disputed, though he is often believed to be almost omnipotent, ruling both the heavens and the earth.

Catholics are the largest Christian group, accounting for 48% of the EU citizens, while Protestants make up 12%, Eastern Orthodox make up 8% and other Christians make up 4%. Non-believers/Agnostics account for 16%, atheists account for 7%, and Muslims account for 2%. Throughout the Western world there are increasing numbers of people who seek to revive the indigenous religions of their European ancestors; such groups include Germanic, Roman, Hellenic, Celtic, Slavic, and polytheistic reconstructionist movements. Likewise, Wicca, New Age spirituality and other neo-pagan belief systems enjoy notable minority support in Western states.

Pre-Christian Lithuanian mythology is known mainly through attested bits recorded by chroniclers and folks songs; the existence of some mythological elements, known from later sources, has been confirmed by archaeological findings. The system of polytheistic beliefs is reflected in Lithuanian tales, such as Jūratė and Kastytis, Eglė the Queen of Serpents and the Myth of Sovijus. The next period of Lithuanian mythology started in the 15th century, and lasted till approximately the middle of the 17th century. The myths of this period are mostly heroic, concerning the founding of the state of Lithuania.

Sanamahism (Meitei religion) is a polytheistic religion with thousands of deities, gods and goddesses of varying power, quality, features, and character. Symbol of Sanamahism The religion originated in the Kingdom of Manipur, and is still practiced in modern Manipur, India, distinct from both the Indosphere and the Sinosphere. The following is a list of deities, gods, goddesses, demigods, mortals, immortals and a few mythical creatures. This does not include the full list of mythical creatures of ancient Meitei folklore, for which see List of creatures in Meitei folklore.

Kök Tengri is the first of primordial deities in the religion of the early Turkic people. He was known as yüce or yaratıcı tengri (Creator God). After the Turks started to migrate and leave middle Asia and see monotheistic religions, Tengrism was changed from its pagan/polytheistic origins. The religion was more like Zoroastrianism after its change, with only two of the original gods remaining, Tengri, representing the good god and Uçmag (a place like heaven or valhalla), while Erlik took the position of the bad god and hell.

As in the basilica, the middle part was built taller than the external ones. The ruins of a tiny building adjacent to it were discovered in the north-eastern part of the temple that this building could be considered as the primary variant of the narthex, which later became one of the integral elements of the Christian temples. This temple also draws attention to the decorative stones which confirm the architectural and artistic character of the building. The stone reliefs of this temple are very close to the ornament of polytheistic temples.

Archetypal psychology is a polytheistic psychology, in that it attempts to recognize the myriad fantasies and myths that shape and are shaped by our psychological lives. The ego is but one psychological fantasy within an assemblage of fantasies. To illustrate the multiple personifications of psyche Hillman made reference to gods, goddesses, demigods and other imaginal figures which he referred to as sounding boards "for echoing life today or as bass chords giving resonance to the little melodies of daily life"Hillman, J. 'Who Was Zwingli?', SPRING Journal 56, p.

Finnish Neopaganism, or the Finnish native faith (Finnish: Suomenusko: "Finnish Faith") is the contemporary Neopagan revival of Finnish paganism, the pre- Christian polytheistic ethnic religion of the Finns. A precursor movement was the Ukonusko ("Ukko's Faith", revolving around the god Ukko) of the early 20th century. The main problem in the revival of Finnish paganism is the nature of pre-Christian Finnish culture, which relied on oral tradition and of which very little is left. The primary sources concerning Finnish native culture are written by latter-era Christians.

After the collapse of the Kindah kingdom, the Mudar of central Arabia came under the control of the Lakhmid kings of al- Hira during the reign of al-Mundhir III. The Mudar dominated Mecca after driving out the Jurhum, and held some of the religious offices connected with the Ka'aba sanctuary. Unlike the Rabi'a, who converted to Christianity in large numbers, the Mudar remained attached to the traditional polytheistic religion. The idol of al-Uzza at Nakhla, "revered by all the Mudar" according to al-Tabari, was destroyed by Khalid ibn al-Walid in 630.

Priests directed and performed religious rites, defined the times of planting and harvesting, and wore unique styles of clothing and ornaments such as earplugs, necklaces and headdresses. The other classes were the military, merchants, architects, sculptors, craftsmen and finally the common people. This last class worked the fields, built and maintained infrastructure and supported the priests. Their religion was polytheistic and idolatrous, worshiping the sun, considered the creator of the race, land, food and life, the moon, goddess of the night, the god of fire and the god of rain or water.

The Quran mentions the Thamūd as an example of an ancient polytheistic people who were destroyed by God for their sins. According to the Quran and the Islamic exegetical tradition, the Thamūd were an early Arab tribe who rejected the message of the prophet Ṣāliḥ. When they cut the hamstring of a female camel that God had sent down for them, despite the prophet's warnings, they were annihilated except for Ṣāliḥ and the few righteous tribesmen. Islamic historiography identifies the Thamūd with the ruins of Hegra in what is now the northern Hejaz.

The rise of the Bolsheviks in the first quarter of the twentieth century also led to the brutal repression of all religions which included the faiths in the Altai region. For the next few decades, most religions basically vanished with only shamanistic and ancient polytheistic beliefs surviving the chaos. This was believed to have occurred because ancient religious beliefs could be easily orally transmitted from generation to another. It's also likely that no Burkhanist texts survived the repression and main sources for the beliefs of the religion come from Russian missionaries, travellers, and scholars.

Zaikoski's Arr-Kelaan grew into a full-scale Dungeons & Dragons campaign setting, compatible with 2nd edition rules and available online. In contrast to many RPG-derived works, Rowles' Arr-Kelaan is scantly recognizable. The geography and the basic D&D; elements of a vaguely medieval society and polytheistic/henotheistic pantheons are the same, but whereas the game focuses on adventurers in a world stably ruled by Travellers-turned-gods for millennia, Gods portrays the effects of the Travellers on the world and each other when they first arrive and establish themselves.

The UK also maintains seats in the House of Lords for 26 senior clergymen of the Church of England, known as the Lords Spiritual. In Canada the Charter of Rights and Freedoms affords secular freedoms of conscience and religion, thought, belief, opinion and expression, including communication, assembly and association yet the Charter's preamble maintains the concept of "the supremacy of God" which would appear to disadvantage those who hold nontheistic or polytheistic beliefs, including atheism and Buddhism.Hogg, Peter W. Canada Act 1982 Annotated. Toronto, Canada: The Carswell Company Limited, 1982.

Bhagavad-Gita 3:13Bhagavad-Gita 9:27 One way that prasādam is commonly prepared is to place the food in offering before an image or deity of the spiritual figure to be honored, sometimes on a plate or serving vessel reserved only for spiritual purposes; and only then, after some time is allowed to pass, does the food become holy prasādam for further distribution. In Sikhism, parshad is served to the congregation after prayer without worship of a polytheistic deity. Parshad represents the same values as langar in that it is served indiscriminatorily.

Religion plays a large part in the Forgotten Realms, with deities and their followers being an integral part of the world. They do not have a passive role, but in fact interact directly in mortal affairs, answer prayers, and have their own personal agendas. All deities must have worshipers to survive, and all mortals must worship a patron deity to secure a good afterlife. A huge number of diverse deities exist within several polytheistic pantheons; a large number of supplements have documented many of them, some in more detail than others.

This did not, however, negate his disapproval of many aspects of their (and technically his) culture, including their language (which he used to speak), their religion, and their communalist practices. Through his letters, particularly the one dated 1767, we get a thorough sense of the difficulty of Quaque's job as a missionary and how it conflicted with the traditionally polytheistic society he was living in. Also very telling through his letters is the influence of the endeavors of European nations to gain control, or at least an advantage, along the coast.

In The Book of Lost Tales (the earliest form of Tolkien's legendarium), the Valar are frequently referred to as "Gods," indicating a polytheistic system in Tolkien's original cosmology. However, Ilúvatar is present as the supreme Creator God who brings the Valar into existence and is shown to be a being of a higher order. It is thus unclear whether the Valar are truly gods or simply thought of as such by the people of Arda. In any case, Tolkien eventually abandoned this description of the Valar, defining them simply as "Powers" in his later works.

The language of the Honduran lencas, known as or also called "lenca", is considered an extinct language. Because it is already in danger of extinction, it has a population of 300 to 594 inhabitants. Its geographical location is between the western departments of Honduras, as they are: Lempira, Intibucá, La Paz, also they are in smaller quantity in the central departments of Santa Barbara, Comayagua, Francisco Morazán and Valley. The native lencas religion was a polytheistic religion that saw reality from an animist point of view, believed in nahualism and the gods were organized hierarchically.

The poem was sung or recited during the mass political rallies of the late 1980s and early '90s. Sigitas Geda (1943–2008) was a productive poet and playwright. His poems connect ancient Lithuanian polytheistic religion and mythology with Greek and Sumerian myths, intertwining the old and new worlds with the ode to life and vitality. His most important works are Strazdas (1967), 26 rudens ir vasaros giesmės (26 autumn and summer songs, 1972), Žalio gintaro vėriniai (Green Amber Necklaces, 1988) and the libretto Strazdas - žalias paukštis (Strazdas - green bird, 1984).

He is also mentioned in Jeremiah 15:4, where the prophet Jeremiah predicts "four forms of destruction" for the people of Judah because of the evil done by Manasseh in Judah. Manasseh was the first king of Judah who was not contemporary with the northern kingdom of Israel, which had been destroyed by the Assyrians in c. 720 BC, with much of its population deported. He re- instituted polytheistic worship and reversed the religious changes made by his father Hezekiah, for which he is condemned by several biblical texts.

The Banu Ghifar () was an Arab tribe that belonged to the Banu Damra ibn Bakr, a branch of the large Banu Kinanah tribe in the Hejaz region of Arabia. They were sometimes derided as brigands and robbers by other Arabs in the region. The formerly-polytheistic tribe converted to Islam in the time of Muhammad, with Abu Dhar al-Ghifari being among the first of the Banu Ghifar to convert. The Banu Ghifar had at least two sub-clans, the Banu al-Nar and Banu Huraq, who lived near the city of Medina.

In the 20th century, it came to be applied as a self-descriptor by practitioners of Modern Paganism, Neopagan movements and Polytheistic reconstructionists. Modern pagan traditions often incorporate beliefs or practices, such as nature worship, that are different from those in the largest world religions.Paganism, Oxford Dictionary (2014)Paganism, The Encyclopedia of Religion and Nature, Bron Taylor (2010), Oxford University Press, Contemporary knowledge of old pagan religions comes from several sources, including anthropological field research records, the evidence of archaeological artifacts, and the historical accounts of ancient writers regarding cultures known to Classical antiquity.

The animistic nature of folk beliefs is an anthropological cultural universal. The belief in ghosts and spirits animating the natural world and the practice of ancestor worship is universally present in the world's cultures and re-emerges in monotheistic or materialistic societies as "superstition", belief in demons, tutelary saints, fairies or extraterrestrials. The presence of a full polytheistic religion, complete with a ritual cult conducted by a priestly caste, requires a higher level of organization and is not present in every culture. In Eurasia, the Kalash are one of very few instances of surviving polytheism.

Moon goddess Chía preliminary sketch by Alonso Neira Martinez Monument to Bachué by Luís Horacio Betancur, Medellín (Colombia) Cuítiva (Boyacá) The terms Muisca religion and mythology refer to the pre-Columbian beliefs of the Muisca indigenous people of the Cordillera Oriental highlands of the Andes in the vicinity of Bogotá, Colombia. The tradition includes a selection of received myths concerning the origin and organization of the universe. Their belief system may be described as a polytheistic religion containing a very strong element of spirituality based on an epistemology of mysticism.

The Amarna Period was an era of Egyptian history during the later half of the Eighteenth Dynasty when the royal residence of the pharaoh and his queen was shifted to Akhetaten ('Horizon of the Aten') in what is now Amarna. It was marked by the reign of Amenhotep IV, who changed his name to Akhenaten (1353–1336 BC) in order to reflect the dramatic change of Egypt's polytheistic religion into one where the sun disc Aten was worshipped over all other gods. The Egyptian pantheon was restored under Akhenaten's successor, Tutankhamun.

A fragment of Lithuanian psalm Gyvenimą tas turės by Martynas Mažvydas, 1570 Music was very important part of ancient Lithuanian polytheistic belief. It is known that, at the start of the 2nd millennium, Baltic tribes had special funeral traditions in which the deeds of the dead were narrated using recitation, and ritual songs about war campaigns, heroes and rulers also existed. First professional music was introduced to Lithuania with travelling monks in the 11th century. After the christianization of Lithuania in 1387, religious music started to spread, Gregorian chant was introduced.

Barlaam also took exception to the doctrine held by the Hesychasts as to the uncreated nature of the light, the experience of which was said to be the goal of Hesychast practice, regarding it as heretical and blasphemous. It was maintained by the Hesychasts to be of divine origin and to be identical to the light which had been manifested to Jesus' disciples on Mount Tabor at the Transfiguration.Parry (1999), p. 231 Barlaam viewed this doctrine of "uncreated light" to be polytheistic because as it postulated two eternal substances, a visible and an invisible God.

Polytheistic and non-theistic religions do not have such an apparent contradiction, but many seek to explain or identify the source of evil or suffering. These include concepts of evil as a necessary balancing or enabling force, a consequence of past deeds (karma in Indian religions), or as an illusion, possibly produced by ignorance or failure to achieve enlightenment. Non-religious atheism generally accepts evil acts as a feature of human actions arising from intelligent brains shaped by evolution, and suffering from nature as a result of complex natural systems simply following physical laws.

A minority Jewish view, which appears in some codes of Jewish law, is that while Christian worship is polytheistic (due to the multiplicity of the Trinity), it is permissible for them to swear in God's name, since they are referring to the one God. This theology is referred to in Hebrew as Shituf (literally "partnership" or "association"). Although worship of a trinity is considered to be not different from any other form of idolatry for Jews, it may be an acceptable belief for non-Jews (according to the ruling of some Rabbinic authorities).

Abimelech was most prominently the name of a polytheistic king of Gerar who is mentioned in two of the three wife-sister narratives in Genesis, in connection with both Abraham (chap. 20) and Isaac (chap. 26). King Abimelech of Gerar also appears in an extra-biblical tradition recounted in texts such as the Kitab al-Magall, the Cave of Treasures and the Conflict of Adam and Eve with Satan, as one of 12 regional kings in Abraham's time said to have built the city of Jerusalem for Melchizedek.

Until about the fourth century, almost all Arabs practised polytheistic religions. Although significant Jewish and Christian minorities developed, polytheism remained the dominant belief system in pre-Islamic Arabia. The religious beliefs and practices of the nomadic bedouin were distinct from those of the settled tribes of towns such as Mecca. Nomadic religious belief systems and practices are believed to have included fetishism, totemism and veneration of the dead but were connected principally with immediate concerns and problems and did not consider larger philosophical questions such as the afterlife.

A Heathen altar for household worship in Gothenburg, Sweden Heathenism, also known as Germanic Neopaganism, refers to a series of contemporary Pagan traditions based on the historical religions, culture and literature of Germanic-speaking Europe. Heathenry is spread out across northwestern Europe, North America and Australasia, where the descendants of historic Germanic-speaking people now live. Many Heathen groups adopt variants of Norse mythology as a basis for their beliefs, conceiving of the Earth as on the great world tree Yggdrasil. Heathens believe in multiple polytheistic deities adopted from historical Germanic mythologies.

Lewis, the Sneaky Pagan ChristianityToday, 1 June 2004 Lewis disliked modernity, which he regarded as mechanized and sterile and cut off from natural ties to the world. By comparison, he had hardly any reservations about pre-Christian pagan culture. As Christian critics have pointed out, Lewis disdained the non- religious agnostic character of modernity, but not the polytheistic character of pagan religion.See essay "Is Theism Important?" in God in the Dock by C.S.Lewis edited by Walter Hooper Calormen is the only openly pagan society within the fictional Narnian world.

In Ukraine, there has been a debate as to whether the religion should be monotheistic or polytheistic. In keeping with the pre-Christian belief systems of the region, the groups who inherit Volodymyr Shaian's tradition, among others, espouse polytheism. Conversely, Lev Sylenko's Native Ukrainian National Faith (RUNVira for short, called "Sylenkoism" in some academic scholarship) regards itself as monotheistic and focuses its worship upon a single God whom they identify by the name Dazhbog. For members of this group, Dazhbog is regarded as the life-giving energy of the cosmos.

In the Hebrew texts this word is interpreted as being semantically singular for "god" by biblical commentators.For example: However the documentary hypothesis developed originally in the 1870s, identifies these that different authors – the Jahwist, Elohist, Deuteronomist, and the Priestly source – were responsible for editing stories from a polytheistic religion into those of a monotheistic religion. Inconsistencies that arise between monotheism and polytheism in the texts are reflective of this hypothesis. The stem ʾl is found prominently in the earliest strata of east Semitic, northwest Semitic, and south Semitic groups.

Episodes 25 and 26 of this series were rebroadcast several times on IRIB in February 2011. It says that Elia Ramallah (founder of El-Yasin community) claims to be a god and he has misled the Iranian youth. Paolo Coelho has anti-divine, polytheistic, and corrupt ideas and, of course, is dependent on Israel and his works are toward stabilization of Israel, and he is moral corruption, Satanist, Zionist and addict. The episode also deals with Shimon Peres (former Prime Minister of Israel and one of the founders of New Zionism) and the Aknkar movement.

Ancient tradition holds that it was in this circus that Saint Peter was crucified upside-down. Opposite the circus was a cemetery separated by the Via Cornelia. Funeral monuments and mausoleums, and small tombs, as well as altars to pagan gods of all kinds of polytheistic religions, were constructed lasting until before the construction of the Constantinian Basilica of St. Peter in the first half of the 4th century. A shrine dedicated to the Phrygian goddess Cybele and her consort Attis remained active long after the ancient Basilica of St. Peter was built nearby.

The traditional Hawaiian religion is a polytheistic animistic religion. Hawaiians believe that there are spirits in many objects such as the waves and the sky. The Hawaiian religion believes in four gods; Kāne, Kanaloa, Kū, and Lono. Kāne is the God of creation, Kanaloa is the God of the ocean, Ku is the God of war and male pursuits, and Lono is the God of peace, rain, and fertility. They also believe in forty male gods (ka hā), four hundred gods and goddesses (ke kanahā), the spirits (na ‘unihipili), and the guardians (na ‘aumākua).

Pandora's Tower is set on the fictional continent of Imperia: once divided into ten kingdoms, the now-nomadic Vestra tribe were stripped of their kingdom. The dominant religion of Imperia is Aios, a polytheistic system worshiping nature as personified by twelve deities. Though once united through the ancient War of Unification which began the Unified Era, Imperia has seen recent conflicts as three kingdoms sought to break free from the powerful kingdom of Elyria. During the game's present, the war has ended but tensions are still high on both sides.

The modern use of Heathen arises from the Old English hæðen which meant non-Christian and was employed in the same manner as gentile. It is also possible that the term arose from the Gothic haiþi meaning one who dwelt on the heath. In modern times among Germanic Neo-Pagans it has come to mean one who practices a polytheistic religion and worldview rooted in pre- Christian Germanic paganism. For many Heathens to be labeled a Pagan is seen as improper due to the eclectic perception of Neo-Pagans in the greater mainstream public.

Such a view was purported by the High Priestess Vivianne Crowley, herself a psychologist, who considered the Wiccan deities to be Jungian archetypes that existed within the subconscious that could be evoked in ritual. It was for this reason that she said that "The Goddess and God manifest to us in dream and vision." Wiccans often believe that the gods are not perfect and can be argued with. Many Wiccans also adopt a more explicitly polytheistic or animistic world-view of the universe as being replete with spirit-beings.

They are regarded with significance and host to major communal festivals. These eight festivals are the most common times for community celebrations. While the "major" festivals are usually the quarter and cross-quarter days, other festivals are also celebrated throughout the year, especially among the non-Wiccan traditions such as those of polytheistic reconstructionism and other ethnic traditions. In Wiccan and Wicca-influenced traditions, the festivals, being tied to solar movements, have generally been steeped in solar mythology and symbolism, centered on the life cycles of the sun.

Most of the followers also worship Hindu deities such as Kali, Hanuman and other folk deities in spite of the anti-polytheistic ideas based on Ayyavazhi scripture.Vaikundar Seva Sangham's,Ayya Vaikundar 170th Avathar-Special Edition, The activities of Nizhal Thangals, pp. 2–4. Some followers of Ayyavazhi include Vaikundar as part of the ten Avatars of Vishnu as Kalki, while some denominations strongly advocate moksha, the personal liberation, though it is not stated directly in Akilam. Some even reject the Trinity conception in Ayyavazhi and believe Narayana to be the supreme universal power.

Halloran lectured and discussed his theology on a national level. The Village Voice reported on Halloran's two years in office in the paper's November 30 – December 6, 2011 edition in a report entitled "America's Top Heathen". The report pointed out that when Halloran was elected in an off- year campaign, he was the "'First Atheling' or prince, of his own Theodish tribe, called New Normandy. He had 'thralls' who swore their allegiance to him... he led his flock, about 100 people at its height, in their polytheistic celebration of the gods".

A depiction of a royal heiau (Hawaiian temple) at Kealakekua Bay, c. 1816 Hawaiian religion encompasses the indigenous religious beliefs and practices of Native Hawaiians. It is polytheistic and animistic, with a belief in many deities and spirits, including the belief that spirits are found in non-human beings and objects such as other animals, the waves, and the sky. Hawaiian religion originated among the Tahitians and other Pacific islanders who landed in Hawaii between 500 and 1300 AD. Today, Hawaiian religious practices are protected by the American Indian Religious Freedom Act.

Barlaam also took exception to the doctrine held by the Hesychasts as to the uncreated nature of the light, the experience of which was said to be the goal of Hesychast practice, regarding it as heretical and blasphemous. It was maintained by the Hesychasts to be of divine origin and to be identical to the light which had been manifested to Jesus' disciples on Mount Tabor at the Transfiguration.Parry (1999), p. 231 Barlaam viewed this doctrine of "uncreated light" to be polytheistic because it postulated two eternal substances, a visible and an invisible God.

Because of these premises, adherents believe that moral obligation is obedience to God's commands; what is morally right is what God desires. Divine command theory features in the ethics of many modern religions, including Judaism, Islam, the Baháʼí Faith, and Christianity, as well as being a part of numerous older polytheistic religions. In ancient Athens, it was commonly held that moral truth was tied directly to divine commands, and religious piety was almost equivalent to morality. Although Christianity does not entail divine command theory, it is commonly associated with it.

231 This Barlaam held to be polytheistic, inasmuch as it postulated two eternal substances, a visible and an invisible God. On the hesychast side, the controversy was taken up by St Gregory Palamas, afterwards Archbishop of Thessalonica, who was asked by his fellow monks on Mt Athos to defend hesychasm from the attacks of Barlaam. St Gregory himself was well-educated in Greek philosophy. St Gregory defended hesychasm in the 1340s at three different synods in Constantinople, and he also wrote a number of works in its defense.

The Safaitic tribes in particular prominently worshipped the goddess al-Lat as a bringer of prosperity. The Syrian god Baalshamin was also worshipped by Safaitic tribes and is mentioned in Safaitic inscriptions. Religious worship amongst the Qedarites, an ancient tribal confederation that was probably subsumed into Nabataea around the 2nd century AD, was centered around a polytheistic system in which women rose to prominence. Divine images of the gods and goddesses worshipped by Qedarite Arabs, as noted in Assyrian inscriptions, included representations of Atarsamain, Nuha, Ruda, Dai, Abirillu and Atarquruma.

Until about the fourth century, almost all inhabitants of Arabia practiced polytheistic religions. Although significant Jewish and Christian minorities developed, polytheism remained the dominant belief system in pre- Islamic Arabia. The contemporary sources of information regarding the pre- Islamic Arabian religion and pantheon include a small number of inscriptions and carvings, pre-Islamic poetry, external sources such as Jewish and Greek accounts, as well as the Muslim tradition, such as the Qur'an and Islamic writings. Nevertheless, information is limited. One early attestation of Arabian polytheism was in Esarhaddon’s Annals, mentioning Atarsamain, Nukhay, Ruldaiu, and Atarquruma.

South Arabian inscriptions from the fourth century AD refer to a god called Rahman ("The Merciful One") who had a monotheistic cult and was referred to as the "Lord of heaven and Earth". Aaron W. Hughes states that scholars are unsure whether he developed from the earlier polytheistic systems or developed due to the increasing significance of the Christian and Jewish communities, and that it is difficult to establish whether Allah was linked to Rahmanan. Maxime Rodinson, however, considers one of Allah's names, "Ar-Rahman", to have been used in the form of Rahmanan earlier.

In courtrooms nowadays, the value of telling the truth after swearing an oath is primarily based on fear of being charged for perjury, as opposed to fear of religious punishment. Legal punishment for perjury was not required historically because gods in both monotheistic and polytheistic religions were believed to punish those who lied under oath. For example, in Ancient Greece and Rome, individuals killed by lightning strikes were prohibited from receiving a proper burial, since that was thought to be Zeus’ punishment for perjury. A Statute was first created outlawing perjury in 1563.

The earliest of these was Xenophanes, who chastised the human vices of the gods as well as their anthropomorphic depiction. Plato wrote that there was one supreme god, whom he called the "Form of the Good", and which he believed was the emanation of perfection in the universe. Plato's disciple, Aristotle, also disagreed that polytheistic deities existed, because he could not find enough empirical evidence for it. He believed in a Prime Mover, which had set creation going, but was not connected to or interested in the universe.

Assyria of the Early Period was polytheistic. The King of the Gods was Ashur. The symbols of Ashur included: a winged disc with horns, enclosing four circles revolving round a middle circle and rippling rays falling down from either side of the disc; a circle or wheel, suspended from wings, and enclosing a warrior drawing his bow to discharge an arrow; or the same circle with the warrior's bow carried in his left hand, while the right hand is uplifted as if to bless his worshippers. The Assyrian standard (representing the world pillar) had a disc mounted on a horned bull's head.

Janet Farrar and Gavin Bone have observed that Wicca is becoming more polytheistic as it matures, and embracing a more traditional pagan worldview.Farrar, Janet and Bone, Gavin Progressive Witchcraft Many groups and individuals are drawn to particular deities from a variety of pantheons (often Celtic, Greek, or from elsewhere in Europe), whom they honour specifically. Some examples are Cernunnos and Brigit from Celtic mythology, Hecate, Lugh, and Diana. Still others do not believe in the gods as real personalities, yet attempt to have a relationship with them as personifications of universal principles or as Jungian archetypes.

Umayyad clan and dynasty. Marwan and the line of caliphs descended from him are highlighted in blue, the Sufyanid caliphs in yellow and Caliph Uthman in green Marwan was born in 2 or 4 AH (623 or 626 CE/AD). His father was al-Hakam ibn Abi al-As of the Banu Umayya (Umayyads), the strongest clan of the Quraysh, a polytheistic tribe which dominated the town of Mecca in the Hejaz. The Quraysh converted to Islam en masse in circa 630 following the conquest of Mecca by the Islamic prophet Muhammad, himself a member of the Quraysh.

The iconography of the Virgin is fully Catholic: Miguel Sánchez, the author of the 1648 tract Imagen de la Virgen María, described her as the Woman of the Apocalypse from the New Testament's Revelation 12:1, "clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars." She is described as a representation of the Immaculate Conception. Virgil Elizondo says the image also had layers of meaning for the indigenous people of Mexico who associated her image with their polytheistic deities, which further contributed to her popularity.Elizondo, Virgil.

Many polytheistic traditions portray their gods as feeling a wide range of emotions. For example, Zeus is famous for his lustfulness, Susano-o for his intemperance, and Balder for his joyousness and calm. Impassibility in the Western tradition traces back to ancient Greek philosophers like Aristotle and Plato, who first proposed the idea of God as a perfect, omniscient, timeless, and unchanging being not subject to human emotion (which represents change and imperfection). The concept of impassibility was developed by medieval theologians like Anselm and continues to be in tension with more emotional concepts of God.

Mount Olympus, home of the Twelve Olympians Religion was a central part of ancient Greek life. Though the Greeks of different cities and tribes worshipped similar gods, religious practices were not uniform and the gods were thought of differently in different places. The Greeks were polytheistic, worshipping many gods, but as early as the sixth century BC a pantheon of twelve Olympians began to develop. Greek religion was influenced by the practices of the Greeks' near eastern neighbours at least as early as the archaic period, and by the Hellenistic period this influence was seen in both directions.

134: [On CRs] "Using Celtic symbols such as triskeles and spirals" Celtic Reconstructionist Paganism (also Celtic Reconstructionism or CR) is a polytheistic reconstructionist approach to Celtic neopaganism, emphasising historical accuracy over eclecticism such as is found in many forms of Neo-druidism. It is an effort to reconstruct and revive, in a modern Celtic cultural context, pre-Christian Celtic religions. Celtic Reconstructionist Paganism originated in discussions among amateur scholars and Neopagans in the mid-1980s, and evolved into an independent tradition by the early 1990s. Currently, "Celtic Reconstructionist Paganism" (CR) is an umbrella term, with a number of recognized sub-traditions or denominations.

Pharaoh Akhenaten and his family adoring the Aten. Akhenaten later prohibited even imagery of Aten. Atenism, the Aten religion, the Amarna religion, or the "Amarna heresy" refers to a religion and the religious changes associated with the ancient Egyptian Eighteenth Dynasty pharaoh Akhenaten. The religion centered on the cult of the god Aten, the disc of the Sun and originally an aspect of the traditional solar deity Ra. In the 14th century BC, Atenism was Egypt's state religion for about 20 years, before subsequent rulers returned to the traditional polytheistic religion and the pharaohs associated with Atenism were erased from Egyptian records.

Smith 2001 The Aztecs left rulers of conquered cities in power so long as they agreed to pay semi-annual tribute to the Alliance, as well as supply military forces when needed for the Aztec war efforts. In return, the imperial authority offered protection and political stability, and facilitated an integrated economic network of diverse lands and peoples who had significant local autonomy. The state religion of the empire was polytheistic, worshiping a diverse pantheon that included dozens of deities. Many had officially recognized cults large enough so that the deity was represented in the central temple precinct of the capital .

Landscape of Afghanistan with a T-62 in the foreground. In early 19th century, the Sikh Empire expanded under Ranjit Singh in the northwest as far as the Hindu Kush range. The last polytheistic stronghold remained in the region until 1896, called "Kafiristan" whose people practised a form of polytheism (or were possibly nondenominational Muslims) until invasion and conversion at the hands of Afghans under Amir Abdur Rahman Khan. The Hindu Kush served as a geographical barrier to the British empire, leading to paucity of information and scarce direct interaction between the British colonial officials and Central Asian peoples.

Encyclopedia Talmudit (Hebrew edition, Israel, 5741/1981, entry Ben Noah, introduction) states that after the giving of the Torah, the Jewish people were no longer in the category of the sons of Noah; however, Maimonides (Mishneh Torah, Hilkhot M'lakhim 9:1) indicates that the seven laws are also part of the Torah, and the Talmud (Bavli, Sanhedrin 59a, see also Tosafot ad. loc.) states that Jews are obligated in all things that Gentiles are obligated in, albeit with some differences in the details.Compare . The vast majority of religions in history have been polytheistic, worshiping many diverse deities.

These deities are usually regarded as being immanent rather than transcendent. Some practitioners express the view that the real existence of these deities is less important to them than the impact that said belief has on their lives. With the increase in polytheistic Druidry, and the widespread acceptance of Goddess worship, "The Druid's Prayer", which had been originally written in the 18th century by Druid Iolo Morganwg and emphasises the unity of the supreme Deity, had the word "God" replaced with "Goddess" in common usage. Some Druids regard it as possible to communicate with various spirits during ritual.

Evidence from the Amorites and pre-Islamic Arabs, however, indicates that the primitive Semitic family was in fact patriarchal and patrilineal. However, not all scholars agree. Anthropologist and Biblical scholar Raphael Patai writes in The Hebrew Goddess that the Jewish religion, far from being pure monotheism, contained from earliest times strong polytheistic elements, chief of which was the cult of Asherah, the mother goddess. A story in the Biblical Book of Judges places the worship of Asherah in the 12th century BC. Originally a Canaanite goddess, her worship was adopted by Hebrews who intermarried with Canaanites.

In December 1832, Newman accompanied Archdeacon Robert Froude and his son Hurrell on a tour in southern Europe on account of the latter's health. On board the mail steamship Hermes they visited Gibraltar, Malta, the Ionian Islands and, subsequently, Sicily, Naples and Rome, where Newman made the acquaintance of Nicholas Wiseman. In a letter home he described Rome as "the most wonderful place on Earth", but the Roman Catholic Church as "polytheistic, degrading and idolatrous". During the course of this tour, Newman wrote most of the short poems which a year later were printed in the Lyra Apostolica.

Others adopt concepts from the world's surviving ethnic religions as well as modern polytheistic traditions such as Hinduism and Afro-American religions, believing that doing so helps to construct spiritual world-views akin to those that existed in Europe prior to Christianization. Some practitioners who emphasize an approach that relies exclusively on historical and archaeological sources criticize such attitudes, denigrating those who practice them using the pejorative term "Neo-Heathen". A 2009 rite performed on the Icelandic hill of alt=Eight people, all white, stand on heathland. Some of them are dressed in historical clothing akin to that worn in the medieval period.

This musk can be detected by other Predators and canids, though it is imperceptible to humans. Predators in the Perry novels are not monogamous, and it is common for veteran warriors to sire hundreds of offspring (known as sucklings) with multiple mates. It is also revealed that their blood has the capacity of partially neutralizing the acidity of Alien blood. Their religion is partially explored in the series, showing that they are polytheistic, and that their equivalent of the Grim Reaper is the so-called "Black Warrior," who is seen as an eternal adversary who eventually wins all battles.

Western culture, throughout most of its history, has been nearly equivalent to Christian culture, and a large portion of the population of the Western Hemisphere can be described as practicing or nominal Christians. The notion of "Europe" and the "Western World" has been intimately connected with the concept of "Christianity and Christendom". Many even attribute Christianity for being the link that created a unified European identity. Though Western culture contained several polytheistic religions during its early years under the Greek and Roman empires, as the centralized Roman power waned, the dominance of the Catholic Church was the only consistent force in Western Europe.

''''' (; also transliterated as ' or '; literally "association") is a term used in Jewish sources for the worship of God in a manner which Judaism does not deem to be purely monotheistic. The term connotes a theology that is not outright polytheistic, but also should not be seen as purely monotheistic. The term is primarily used in reference to the Christian Trinity by Jewish legal authorities who wish to distinguish Christianity from full-blown polytheism. Though a Jew would be forbidden from maintaining a shituf theology, non-Jews would, in some form, be permitted such a theology without being regarded as idolaters by Jews.

In 1993, Lozko founded the Kiev-based Slavic Native Faith group Pravoslavia. This was Ukraine's first post-Soviet neopagan organization in the polytheistic tradition that first had been established in the interwar period by Volodymyr Shaian (1908 – 1974). During the Cold War, Ukrainian Native Faith had mainly been carried on by the Ukrainian diaspora in the West, and Lozko was initiated by Myroslav Sytnyk in Hamilton, Canada. She has also launched projects such as the Svitovyd Center for the Rebirth of Ukrainian Culture, the School of the Native Faith, the Museum of the Book of Veles (1996–1998) and the journal Svaroh.

It takes place on a polytheistic, fictional continent during a pseudo-medieval time period, with a social structure similar to that found in high fantasy role-playing games. In this world, where gods are real and constantly striving for power, various religions have formed to worship the most powerful deities. The oldest and most respected of these religions is the Church of the God of Light, based in the Kingdom of Forgotten Sound. The Church of the God of Light was founded and led by the renowned Twelve Holy Knights, each of whom had a distinctive personality.

Hinduism brought in Indianized traditions to the Philippines, including indigenous epics such as Ibalong, Siday, and Hinilawod, folk stories, and a variety of superstitions which gradually established more complex indigenous polytheistic religions. Additionally, the concept of good and bad demons, which is prevalent in Indian societies, became widespread in the archipelago. These demons were viewed as both evil and good, unlike Western demons which are only evil. Unlike other areas in Southeast Asia which were heavily converted to Hinduism, indigenous religions in the Philippines were not replaced by Hinduism, rather, those religions absorbed traditions and beliefs present in Hinduism.

Ancient belief system of the Sangirese people are polytheistic in nature, which include the belief in many spirits of nature and ancestral, the ritual worship of inanimate objects and magic. Among Sangirese people are class of distinguished shamans or priests that acted as mediators between the world humans and spirits, to protect patients and children, and to perform miracles. Despite the spread of Islam and Christianity, many ancient rituals are still being practiced today. Islam began to spread in the 15th to 16th century from the Maluku Islands and North Sulawesi; but before the arrival of Europeans, they had a very limited impact.

In many polytheistic religions, such as those of ancient Greece and Rome, a deity's epithets generally reflected a particular aspect of that god's essence and role, for which their influence may be obtained for a specific occasion: Apollo Musagetes is "Apollo, [as] leader of the Muses" and therefore patron of the arts and sciencesHence the word mouseion = museum while Phoibos Apollo is the same deity, but as shining sun-god. "Athena protects the city as polias, oversees handicrafts as ergane, joins battle as promachos and grants victory as nike."Burkert, Walter. Greek Religion (Harvard University Press, 1985) III.4.4.

The gender of God may be viewed as either a literal or an allegorical aspect of a deity who, in classical western philosophy, transcends bodily form. Polytheistic religions commonly attribute to each of the gods a gender, allowing each to interact with any of the others, and perhaps with humans, sexually. In most monotheistic religions, God has no counterpart with which to relate sexually. Thus, in classical western philosophy the gender of this one-and-only deity is most likely to be an analogical statement of how humans and God address, and relate to, each other.

The gender of God can be viewed as a literal or as an allegorical aspect of a deity. In polytheistic religions, gods are more likely to have literal sexes which would enable them to sexually interact with each other, and even with humans. In most monotheistic religions, one cannot apply a gender to God in the usual sense, as God's attributes cannot be compared to those of any other being. Thus, the idea of a "divine gender" is ultimately considered an analogy, used by humans in order to better relate to the concept of God, with no sexual connotation.

As early as 1730 at the slave-trading post of Gorée, the term Bambara referred simply to slaves who were already in the service of the local elites or French. Growing from farming communities in Ouassoulou, between Sikasso and Ivory Coast, Bamana-age co-fraternities (called Tons) began to develop a state structure which became the Bambara Empire and later Mali Empire. In stark contrast to their Muslim neighbors, the Bamana state practised and formalised traditional polytheistic religion, though Muslim communities remained locally powerful, if excluded from the central state at Ségou. The Bamana became the dominant cultural community in western Mali.

The Syntopicon consists of 102 chapters on the 102 Great Ideas. Each chapter is broken down into five distinct sections: the introduction, an outline of topics, references, cross-references, and additional readings. Adler penned all 102 introductions himself, giving a brief essay on the idea and its connection with the western canon. The outline of topics broke each idea down further, into as many as 15 sub-ideas. For instance, the first idea “Angel” is broken down into “Inferior deities or demi-gods in polytheistic religion,” “the philosophical consideration of pure intelligences, spiritual substances, supra-human persons” and seven other subtopics.

In the fourth year of his reign, Amenhotep IV decided to move the capital to Akhetaten (modern Amarna). In his fifth year, Amenhotep IV officially changed his name to Akhenaten, and Nefertiti was henceforth known as Neferneferuaten-Nefertiti. The name change was a sign of the ever-increasing importance of the cult of the Aten. It changed Egypt's religion from a polytheistic religion to a religion which may have been better described as a monolatry (the depiction of a single god as an object for worship) or henotheism (one god, who is not the only god).

By the time this occurred, Yahweh had already been absorbing or superseding the positive characteristics of the other gods and goddesses of the pantheon, a process of appropriation that was an essential step in the subsequent emergence of one of Judaism's most notable features, its uncompromising monotheism. The people of ancient Israel and Judah, however, were not followers of Judaism: they were practitioners of a polytheistic culture worshiping multiple gods, concerned with fertility and local shrines and legends, and not with a written Torah, elaborate laws governing ritual purity, or an exclusive covenant and national god.

One of the clans who remained in the Sarat was the Qasr. In Muhammad's last years, a Qasri chieftain, Jarir ibn Abd Allah al-Bajali, led a delegation of 150 of his tribesmen and converted to Islam in the prophet's presence. They were subsequently dispatched to demolish the Dhul Khalasa sanctuary, which the polytheistic Bajila and Khath'am tribes had worshiped until then. Many Bajila clans, namely those inhabiting southern Arabia, reverted to polytheism following Muhammad’s death in 632, but returned to Muslim authority after the punitive campaigns of their kinsmen Jarir, who remained loyal to the Muslims.

Furthermore, its doctrine of Eternal Progression asserts that God was once a man,See The King Follet Sermon: Parallel texts and that humans may become gods themselves.Doctrine & Covenants 132:20. All of this is emphatically rejected by Islam, which views these doctrines as polytheistic, sinful, and idolatrous, totally the opposite to the revelation of the Quran and the teachings of Muhammad, the final prophet of Islam. Both Islam and Latter-day Saints believe that the Christian religion as originally established by Jesus was a true religion, but that Christianity subsequently became deformed to the point that it was beyond simple reformation.

People in various religious traditions, such as Christianity, may derive ideas of right and wrong from the rules and laws set forth in their respective authoritative guides and by their religious leaders. Equating morality to adherence to authoritative commands in a holy book is the Divine Command Theory. Polytheistic religions such as Buddhism and Hinduism generally draw from some of the broadest canons of religious works.Bodhippriya Subhadra Siriwardena, 'The Buddhist perspective of lay morality', 1996 There has been interest in the relationship between religion and crime and other behavior that does not adhere to contemporary laws and social norms in various countries.

Zhuang folk religion, sometimes called Moism ( Mójiào) or Shigongism ( Shīgōngjiào, "religion of the [Zhuang] ancestral father"), after two of its forms, is practised by most of the Zhuang people, the largest ethnic minority of China, who inhabit the province of Guangxi. It is a polytheistic-monistic and shamanic religion centered on the creator god usually expressed as Buluotuo, the mythical primordial ancestor of the Zhuang. Its beliefs are codified into a mythology and a sacred scripture, the "Buluotuo Epic". A very similar religion, also called by the same name, is that of the Buyei people, who are kindred to the Zhuang.

Also abundant in the Marvel Universe are legendary creatures such as gods, demons and vampires. The 'gods' of most polytheistic pantheons are powerful, immortal human-like races residing in other dimensions who visited Earth in ancient times, and became the basis of many legends. However, all of these 'gods' share a common ancestry and connection to Earth due to Gaea, the primeval Elder Goddess that infused her life essence into all living things on Earth. Gaea is known by various names and appearances in other cultures and among the various pantheons, but she is the same being.

Tattooing, body modification, pork, dog meat, and alcohol are haram (forbidden) in Islam. The supreme god of the religion of the Visayans, when explicitly recorded by contemporary historians, was identified as "Abba" by Pigafetta and "Kan-Laon" (also spelled "Laon") by the Jesuit historian Pedro Chirino in 1604, comparable to the Tagalog "Bathala". There is no mention of Islam. This is in contrast to the other locations visited by the Magellan expedition where Pigafetta readily identifies the Muslims whom they encountered; he would call them Moros after the Muslim Moors of medieval Spain and northern Africa, to distinguish them from the polytheistic "heathens".

Visayans (Visayan: Mga Bisaya; ), or Visayan people, are a Philippine ethnolinguistic group native to the whole Visayas, the southernmost islands of Luzon and many parts of Mindanao. They are the largest ethnic group in the geographical division of the country when taken as a single group, numbering some 33.5 million. The Visayas broadly share a maritime culture with strong Roman Catholic traditions merged with cultural elements through centuries of interaction and inter-migrations mainly across the seas of Visayas, Sibuyan, Camotes, Bohol, and Sulu; and in some secluded areas merged with ancient animistic-polytheistic influences (i.e. Folk Catholicism).

The Pancha Ishwarams (five abodes of Shiva) () are five coastal ancient kovils built in dedication to the Hindu supreme being Ishwara in the form of the god Shiva, located along the circumference of Sri Lanka. The most sacred pilgrimage complexes for Sri Lankan Tamil devotees of the Hindu faith, they are polytheistic in nature with a central shrine for Shiva. Initial construction was by royal architects of the Naga kingdom (Nayanar). The Shiva lingams in each kovil are recorded as being Ravana's installations, while one of his descendants, the ancient Yaksha queen Kuveni was a devotee of Ishwara.

Movie theaters were closed and music was banned. Hundreds of cultural artifacts that were deemed polytheistic were also destroyed including a major museum and countless private art collections.Wright, Looming Towers (2006), p.231 A sample Taliban edict issued after their capture of Kabul is one decreed in December 1996 by the "General Presidency of Amr Bil Maruf and Nahi Anil Munkar" (or Religious Police) banning a variety of things and activities: music, shaving of beards, keeping of pigeons, flying kites, displaying of pictures or portraits, western hairstyles, music and dancing at weddings, gambling, "sorcery," and not praying at prayer times.

A group of Santería practitioners performing the Cajón de Muertos ceremony in Havana in 2011 Santería, also known as Regla de Ocha, Regla Lucumí, or Lucumí, is an African diasporic religion that developed in Cuba between the 16th and 19th centuries. It arose through a process of syncretism between the traditional Yoruba religion of West Africa and the Roman Catholic form of Christianity. There is no central authority in control of the movement, which comprises adherents known as creyente and initiates known as santeros (males) and santeras (females). Santería is polytheistic, involving the veneration of deities known as oricha.

Basilica of Saint Servatius (built 570) in Maastricht is the oldest church in the Netherlands. Dutch religion in 1849 Between the Celtic and Germanic peoples and later the Roman conquerors a cultural exchange took place. An adaptation of polytheistic religions and each other's myths took place among the various tribes, coming from the Germanic, Celtic and later Roman mythology. From the 4th to the 6th century AD The Great Migration took place, in which the small Celtic-Germanic-Roman tribes in the Low Countries were gradually supplanted by three major Germanic tribes: the Franks, the Frisians and the Saxons.

The presence of Islam in Africa can be traced to the 7th century CE, when in Rajab 8 BH, or May 614 CE, Muhammad advised a number of his early disciples, who were facing persecution by the polytheistic inhabitants of the Mecca, to seek refuge across the Red Sea in Axum. In the Muslim tradition, this event is known as the first hijrah, or migration. Twenty-three Muslims migrated to Abyssinia where they were protected by its king, Armah An-Najāshī (), who later accepted Islam. They were followed by 101 Muslims later in the same year.

For Vodou practitioners, the Bondyé is regarded as a remote and transcendent figure, one which does not involve itself in everyday human affairs, and thus there is little point in approaching it directly. Haitians will frequently use the phrase si Bondye vie ("if Bondye is willing"), suggesting a broader belief that all things occur in accordance with this creator deity's will. Although influenced by Roman Catholicism, Vodou does not incorporate belief in a powerful antagonist that opposes the supreme being akin to the Christian notion of Satan. Vodou has also been characterised as a polytheistic religion.

The latter intention would be more indicative of a Traditionalist or a Historical Reenactment approach, and not specifically a Reconstructionist Neopagan. The goal of these methods is to create a set of rituals, rites and practices which facilitate a harmonious relationship between the Gods (and other good spirits like Landwights or others) and the belief-community. Reconstructionist Neopagans hope that this harmony both within the belief-community itself and between the Gods and the community brings "Peace and Plenty" (Ars Ok Friden). The use of the terms "Pagan" and "Neopagan" to refer to polytheistic reconstructionists is controversial.

Chinese religions are polytheistic, meaning that many deities are worshipped as part of what has been defined as yǔzhòu shénlùn (), translated as "cosmotheism", a worldview in which divinity is inherent to the world itself. The gods (shen ; "growth", "beings that give birth"Lu, Gong. 2014. p. 63) are interwoven energies or principles that generate phenomena which reveal or reproduce the way of Heaven, that is to say the order (li) of the Greatnine(Tian). In Chinese tradition, there is not a clear distinction between the gods and their physical body or bodies (from stars to trees and animals);Yao, 2010. p.

It was maintained by the Hesychasts to be of divine origin and to be identical to that light which had been manifested to Jesus' disciples on Mount Tabor at the Transfiguration. This Barlaam held to be polytheistic, inasmuch as it postulated two eternal substances, a visible and an invisible God. ;Gregory Palamas On the Hesychast side, the controversy was taken up by St Gregory Palamas, afterwards Archbishop of Thessalonica, who was asked by his fellow monks on Mt Athos to defend Hesychasm from the attacks of Barlaam. St Gregory himself, was well-educated in Greek philosophy.

She lives in the house of the Waylord Sulter Galva, who teaches her to read after finding she can enter the house's hidden library. When Memer is seventeen the city is visited by Gry and Orrec, the protagonists of Gifts; Orrec is now a famous poet, invited to perform by the Alds. Their arrival catalyzes an uprising against the Alds, while Memer tries to come to terms with her ability to interpret the Oracle that resides in her house. Voices examines the cultural and religious strife between the monotheistic beliefs of the Alds and the polytheistic practices of the citizens of Ansul.

The 19th century saw a dramatic increase in knowledge about a wide variety of cultures and religions, and also the establishment of economic and social histories of progress. The "history of religions" school sought to account for this religious diversity by connecting it with the social and economic situation of a particular group. Typically, religions were divided into stages of progression from simple to complex societies, especially from polytheistic to monotheistic and from extempore to organized. One can also classify religions as circumcising and non-circumcising, proselytizing (attempting to convert people of other religion) and non-proselytizing.

The religion of the Israelites of Iron Age I, like the Ancient Canaanite religion from which it evolved and other religions of the ancient Near East, was based on a cult of ancestors and worship of family gods (the "gods of the fathers").Tubbs, Jonathan (2006) "The Canaanites" (BBC Books)Van der Toorn 1996, p. 4. With the emergence of the monarchy at the beginning of Iron Age II the kings promoted their family god, Yahweh, as the god of the kingdom, but beyond the royal court, religion continued to be both polytheistic and family-centered.Van der Toorn 1996, pp. 181–82.

Following the invasion of the Maghreb in 698 c.e., the Muslim states controlling territories that roughly correspond to present day Morocco had relatively tolerant attitudes toward their Christian and Jewish subjects, who were considered "people of the book", although they were required to pay a special religious tax known as jizya. Berbers who did not profess Abrahamic religions, however, were forced to convert to Islam. Following the Berber Revolt, the Moroccan region was divided into several Berber states, some of which maintained Islam as a state religion, while others founded syncretic religions which mixed elements of Islamic, polytheistic, and Jewish religious practice.

The Himyarite kings radically opposed polytheism in favor of Judaism, beginning officially in 380.Robin, Christian Julien, "Arabia and Ethiopia", in The last trace of polytheism in south Arabia, an inscription commemorating a construction project with a polytheistic invocation, and another, mentioning the temple of Ta’lab, all date from just after 380 (the former dating to the rule of the king Dhara’amar Ayman, and the latter dating to the year 401–402). The rejection of polytheism from the public sphere did not mean the extinction of it altogether, as polytheism likely continued in the private sphere.

Ancient Greek theology was polytheistic, based on the assumption that there were many gods and goddesses, as well as a range of lesser supernatural beings of various types. There was a hierarchy of deities, with Zeus, the king of the gods, having a level of control over all the others, although he was not almighty. Some deities had dominion over certain aspects of nature. For instance, Zeus was the sky-god, sending thunder and lightning, Poseidon ruled over the sea and earthquakes, Hades projected his remarkable power throughout the realms of death and the Underworld, and Helios controlled the sun.

Christ Pantocrator mosaic in Hagia Sophia, Istanbul Most Greeks are Christians, belonging to the Greek Orthodox Church. During the first centuries after Jesus Christ, the New Testament was originally written in Koine Greek, which remains the liturgical language of the Greek Orthodox Church, and most of the early Christians and Church Fathers were Greek-speaking. There are small groups of ethnic Greeks adhering to other Christian denominations like Greek Catholics, Greek Evangelicals, Pentecostals, and groups adhering to other religions including Romaniot and Sephardic Jews and Greek Muslims. About 2,000 Greeks are members of Hellenic Polytheistic Reconstructionism congregations.

Religions can be categorized by how many deities they worship. Monotheistic religions accept only one deity (predominantly referred to as God), polytheistic religions accept multiple deities. Henotheistic religions accept one supreme deity without denying other deities, considering them as aspects of the same divine principle; and nontheistic religions deny any supreme eternal creator deity but may accept a pantheon of deities which live, die and may be reborn like any other being. Although most monotheistic religions traditionally envision their God as omnipotent, omnipresent, omniscient, omnibenevolent, and eternal, none of these qualities are essential to the definition of a "deity" and various cultures conceptualized their deities differently.

The other use for throne refers to a belief among many of the world's monotheistic and polytheistic religions that the deity or deities that they worship are seated on a throne. Such beliefs go back to ancient times, and can be seen in surviving artwork and texts which discuss the idea of ancient gods (such as the Twelve Olympians) seated on thrones. In the major Abrahamic religions of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, the Throne of God is attested to in religious scriptures and teachings, although the origin, nature, and idea of the Throne of God in these religions differs according to the given religious ideology practiced.

Manchu ethnoreligious symbol. Manchu folk religion is the ethnic religion practiced by most of the Manchu people, the major-Tungusic group, in China. It can also be called Manchu shamanism by virtue of the word "shaman" being originally from Tungusic šamán ("man of knowledge"), later applied by Western scholars to similar religious practices in other cultures. It is an animistic and polytheistic religion, believing in several gods and spirits, led by a universal sky god called Abka Enduri ("God of Heaven"), also referred to as Abka Han ("Khan of Heaven") and Abka Ama ("Sky Father"), originally Abka Hehe ("Sky Woman") who is the source of all life and creation.

Although European fortune seekers headed elsewhere in South America, the Jesuits descended on Paraguay and, over a period of generations, transformed the lives of the Indians. By the beginning of the 17th century, about 100,000 of the once polytheistic, semi-nomadic Indians had converted to Christianity and settled the land surrounding the missions. This theocratic society endured until 1767, when Spanish authorities expelled the Jesuits from Paraguay, fearing that the massive wealth and land accumulated by the Jesuits had made the mission communes (reducciones) an "empire within an empire." In the vacuum left by the Jesuit ouster, the Indians experienced for the first time direct contact with Spanish officials.

The twenty-one Jewish local communities are affiliated with the Union of Italian Jewish Communities, which counts 25,000 members. According to CESNUR, in 2017 in Italy there were about 3,200 adherents to pre-Christian, neo-pagan or neo-shamanic indigenous religions. Modern forms of native polytheism is represented by Roman Polytheistic Reconstructionism, which includes organizations such as Nova Roma, the Associazione Tradizionale Pietas, Communitas Populi Romani, the Movimento Tradizionale Romano, and the Societas Hesperiana pro Culto Deorum. There are also pagans belonging to other European religions, such as Heathenism, to which the Comunità Odinista and the Tempio del Lupo belong; Druidism, Hellenism and Wicca.

A false god is, in some monotheistic religious denominations, the deities of pagan religions – as well as other competing entities or objects to which particular importance is attributed. Conversely, polytheistic pagans may regard the gods of various monotheistic religions as "false gods" because they do not believe that any real deity possesses the properties ascribed by monotheists to their sole deity. Atheists, who do not believe in any deities, do not usually use the term "false god" even though that would encompass all deities from the atheist viewpoint. Usage of this term is generally limited to theists, who believe in some deity or deities, but not in others.

The main activity was grazing, although the population were also engaged in agriculture, as well as fishing and the collection of shellfish from the shore or using fishing craft.La población prehispánica: los guaches \- Gran Enciclopedia Virtual de Canarias As for beliefs, the Guanche religion was polytheistic although the astral cult was widespread. Beside him there was an animistic religiosity that sacralized certain places, mainly rocks and mountains. Among the main Guanche gods could be highlighted; Achamán (god of the sky and supreme creator), Chaxiraxi (mother goddess identified later with the Virgin of Candelaria), Magec (god of the sun) and Guayota (the demon) among many other gods and ancestral spirits.

In 1988 the Odinic Rite became the first polytheistic religious organisation to be granted "Registered Charity" status in the United Kingdom. Various independent Anglo-Saxon faith's kindreds exist such as the Wuffacynn of Suffolk and Northern Essex, the England-wide "English Esetroth" community organization, the Fealu Hlæw Þeod based in Hathersage and Peak District and the Þunorrad Þeod covering the Kingdom of Mercia. Folkish Anglo- Saxon kindreds have been primarily organising through "English Esetroth" since 2014 in a series of private gatherings. All the listed groups operate private moots, blots and sumbels, Anglo-Saxon kindred networking spiked in its frequency and web prominence during 2014 due to English News.

The Median Empire, was the first Iranian dynasty corresponding to the northeastern section of present-day Iran, Northern- Khvarvarana and Asuristan, and South and Eastern Anatolia. The inhabitants, who were known as Medes, and their neighbors, the Persians, spoke Median languages that were closely related to Aryan (Old Persian). Historians know very little about the Iranian culture under the Median dynasty, except that Zoroastrianism as well as a polytheistic religion was practiced, and a priestly caste called the Magi existed. Traditionally, the creator of the Median kingdom was one Deioces, who, according to Herodotus, reigned from 728 to 675 BC and founded the Median capital Ecbatana(Hâgmatâna or modern Hamadan).

Interpretatio graeca may also describe non-Greeks' interpretation of their own belief systems by comparison or assimilation with Greek models, as when Romans adapt Greek myths and iconography under the names of their own gods. Interpretatio romana is comparative discourse in reference to ancient Roman religion and myth, as in the formation of a distinctive Gallo-Roman religion. Both the Romans and the Gauls reinterpreted Gallic religious traditions in relation to Roman models, particularly Imperial cult. Jan Assmann considers the polytheistic approach to internationalizing gods as a form of "intercultural translation": > The great achievement of polytheism is the articulation of a common semantic > universe.

Franz de Ville (1956) writes: > One of our people who received the first Revelation was Sara the Kali. She > was of noble birth and was chief of her tribe on the banks of the Rhône. She > knew the secrets that had been transmitted to her... The Rom at that period > practiced a polytheistic religion, and once a year they took out on their > shoulders the statue of Ishtari (Astarte) and went into the sea to receive > benediction there. One day Sara had visions which informed her that the > Saints who had been present at the death of Jesus would come, and that she > must help them.

Some of the inhabitants were receptive to these myths, but most of which were against it as the Spanish wanted to conquer the lands and override their leaders, instead of simple tradition exchanges. When the Spanish laid its foundations in the archipelago, a three-century purge against indigenous religions began, which resulted in much of the ethnic people's indigenous cultures and traditions being brutalized and mocked. The phase also replaced much of the polytheistic beliefs of the people into monotheism. Existing myths and folklores were retrofitted to the tastes of the Spanish, but many indigenous belief systems were hard to replace, and thus, were retained despite Spanish threats and killings.

The Flag of the Isle of Man (1932) shows a heraldic design of a triskeles of three armoured legs. The triple spiral, or the "horned triskelion", is used by some polytheistic reconstructionist or neopagan groups. As a "Celtic symbol", it is used primarily by groups with a Celtic cultural orientation and, less frequently, can also be found in use by various eclectic or syncretic traditions such as Neopaganism. The spiral triskele is one of the primary symbols of Celtic Reconstructionist Paganism, used to represent a variety of triplicities in cosmology and theology; it is also a favored symbol due to its association with the god Manannán mac Lir.

Ikrima's father was Amr ibn Hisham ibn al-Mughira, a leader of the polytheistic Quraysh tribe's Banu Makhzum clan who was called "Abu Jahl" (father of ignorance) by the Muslims for his stringent opposition to the Islamic prophet Muhammad. Ikrima's father was slain fighting the Muslims at the Battle of Badr in 624. At the Battle of Uhud, where the Quraysh defeated the Muslims, Ikrima commanded the tribe's left wing; his cousin Khalid ibn al-Walid commanded the right wing. The Makhzum's losses at Badr had diminished their influence and gave way to the Banu Abd Shams under Abu Sufyan to take the helm against Muhammad.

The Zanaki were one of the smallest of the 120 tribes in the British colony and were then sub-divided among eight chiefdoms; they would only be united under the kingship of Chief Wanzagi Nyerere, Burito's half-brother, in the 1960s. Nyerere's clan were the Abhakibhweege. At birth, Nyerere was given the personal name "Mugendi" ("Walker" in Zanaki) but this was soon changed to "Kambarage", the name of a female rain spirit, at the advice of a omugabhu diviner. Nyerere was raised into the polytheistic belief system of the Zanaki, and lived at his mother's house, assisting in the farming of the millet, maize and cassava.

In the area north of the Forth and Clyde rivers, which constitutes a large portion of modern-day Scotland, dwelled the Picts who spoke the Pictish language. Due to the scarcity of writing in Pictish, all of which can be found in Ogham, views are conflicted as to whether Pictish was a Celtic language like those spoken further south, or perhaps even a non-Indo-European language like Basque. However, most inscriptions and place names hint towards the Picts being Celtic in language and culture. Most peoples of Britain and Ireland had already predominantly converted to Christianity from their older, pre- Christian polytheistic religions.

All the African cultures which were brought to Cuba had traditions, which survive erratically to the present day, not always in detail, but in general style. The best preserved are the African polytheistic religions, where, in Cuba at least, the instruments, the language, the chants, the dances and their interpretations are quite well preserved. Not until after the Second World War do we find detailed printed descriptions or recordings of African sacred ceremonies in Cuba. Inside the cults, music, song, dance and ceremony were (and still are) learnt by heart by means of demonstration, including such ceremonial procedures as are conducted in an African language.

Early in the 5th century CE, when Britannia, broadly comprising what is now England and Wales, ceased to be a province of the Roman Empire, the production of coinage effectively came to an end and a non-monetary economy developed. During the 5th century, Anglo- Saxon tribal groups from continental Europe migrated to central and southern Britain, introducing their own language, polytheistic religion and culture. Although gold coins from continental Europe were traded into Anglo-Saxon England at Kent, they were initially used for decorative purposes, only beginning to be used as money in the early part of the 7th century.Blackburn 1999. p. 113.

Philosopher Paul Russell (2005) contends that Hume wrote "on almost every central question in the philosophy of religion," and that these writings "are among the most important and influential contributions on this topic." Touching on the philosophy, psychology, history, and anthropology of religious thought, Hume's 1757 dissertation, "The Natural History of Religion", argues that the monotheistic religions of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam all derive from earlier polytheistic religions. He went on to suggest that all religious belief "traces, in the end, to dread of the unknown." Hume had also written on religious subjects in the first Enquiry, as well as later in the Dialogues Concerning Natural Religion.

Philotheus was an advocate of Hesychasm, and aided the cause of the Hesychasts in 1368 by supporting the canonization of Gregory Palamas at a local synod. One notable example of the campaign to enforce the orthodoxy of the Palamist doctrine was the action taken by patriarch Philotheos to crack down on Demetrios and Prochorus Cydones. With the support of his younger brother Prochoros, Demetrios Kydones opposed as polytheistic or pantheistic the Palamites and their system of Hesychasm. Applying Aristotelian logic to the Neoplatonic character of Hesychasm, the Kydones brothers accused Palamas of Pantheism or Polytheism, only to be condemned themselves by three successive Palamite synods that also canonized Palamas and Hesychasm.

Some Pagans has claimed that Christian authorities have never apologized for the religious displacement of Europe's pre-Christian belief systems, particularly following the Roman Catholic Church's apology for past anti-semitism in its A Reflection on the Shoah. They also express disapproval of Christianity's continued missionary efforts around the globe at the expense of indigenous and other polytheistic faiths. Some Christian authors have published books criticizing modern Paganism, while other Christian critics have equated Paganism with Satanism, which is often portrayed as such in mainstream entertainment industry. In areas such as the U.S. Bible Belt, where conservative Christian dominance is strong, Pagans have faced continued religious persecution.

The polytheistic religion of Albania was centered on the worship of three divinities, designated by Interpretatio Romana as Sol, Zeus, and Luna. Christianity started to enter Caucasian Albania at an early date, according to Movses Kaghankatvatsi, as early as during the 1st century. The first Christian church in the region was built by St. Eliseus, a disciple of Thaddeus of Edessa, at a place called Gis. Shortly after Armenia adopted Christianity as its state religion (301 AD), the Caucasian Albanian king Urnayr went to the See of the Armenian Apostolic Church to receive baptism from St. Gregory the Illuminator, the first Patriarch of Armenia.

The Hawaiian religion is polytheistic and animistic, with a belief in many deities and spirits, including the belief that spirits are found in non-human beings and objects such as animals, the waves, and the sky. The cuisine of Hawaii is a fusion of many foods brought by immigrants to the Hawaiian Islands, including the earliest Polynesians and Native Hawaiian cuisine, and American, Chinese, Filipino, Japanese, Korean, Polynesian and Portuguese origins. Native Hawaiian musician and Hawaiian sovereignty activist Israel Kamakawiwoʻole, famous for his medley of "Somewhere Over the Rainbow/What a Wonderful World", was named "The Voice of Hawaii" by NPR in 2010 in its 50 great voices series.

One question often asked is whether Goddess adherents believe in one Goddess or many goddesses: Is Goddess spirituality monotheistic or polytheistic? This is not an issue for many of those in the Goddess movement, whose conceptualization of divinity is more all-encompassing. The terms "the Goddess", or "Great Goddess" may appear monotheistic because the singular noun is used. However, these terms are most commonly used as code or shorthand for one or all of the following: to refer to certain types of prehistoric goddesses; to encompass all goddesses (a form of henotheism); to refer to a modern metaphoric concept of female deity; to describe a form of energy, or a process.

When Christianity was first introduced to China, three major religious systems, Buddhism, Confucianism, and Taoism, were already popular there, woven into the ancient traditions and customs of the people. The average Chinese did not regard himself as an exclusive adherent of any one of the three but rather as a follower of a general Chinese religion made up of both animistic and polytheistic elements which represented a syncretistic conglomeration of ideas. Thus the Christian church with its divisive and exclusionist policies had some difficulties. Only in the periods of the Tang (618-906) and Yuan (1206–1368) dynasties did the gospel enterprise have any considerable degree of success.

In fact, so successful were the missionary efforts that it appeared that Christianity might become the dominant faith in the whole region between the Caspian Sea and Xinjiang in northwest China. The largely animistic and polytheistic religions there offered little or no effective resistance to the higher faith. Moreover, Islam at first made little headway in that area, and the dualistic faith of Manichaeism also had scant appeal. Christian Turks visiting Ctesiphon in connection with the election of a new metropolitan about this time were described as people of clean habits and orthodox beliefs and as readers of the Scriptures in both Syriac and their own language.

It was maintained by the Hesychasts to be of divine origin and to be identical to that light which had been manifested to Jesus' disciples on Mount Tabor at the Transfiguration. This Barlaam held to be polytheistic, inasmuch as it postulated two eternal substances, a visible (immanent) and an invisible God (transcendent). On the Hesychast side, the controversy was taken up by St Gregory Palamas, afterwards Archbishop of Thessalonica, who was asked by his fellow monks on Mt Athos to defend Hesychasm from the Barlaam's attacks. St Gregory was well-educated in Greek philosophy (dialectical method) and thus able to defend Hesychasm using Western precepts.

Cornell University Press. 169 Philip Irving Mitchell of the Dallas Baptist University notes that some philosophers have cast the pursuit of theodicy as a modern one, as earlier scholars used the problem of evil to support the existence of one particular god over another, explain wisdom, or explain a conversion, rather than to justify God's goodness. Sarah Iles Johnston argues that ancient civilizations, such as the ancient Mesopotamians, Greeks, Romans, and Egyptians held polytheistic beliefs that may have enabled them to deal with the concept of theodicy differently. These religions taught the existence of many gods and goddesses who controlled various aspects of daily life.

The Illyrians, as most ancient civilizations, were polytheistic and worshipped many gods and deities developed of the powers of nature. The most numerous traces—still insufficiently studied—of religious practices of the pre-Roman era are those relating to religious symbolism. Symbols are depicted in every variety of ornament and reveal that the chief object of the prehistoric cult of the Illyrians was the Sun, worshipped in a widespread and complex religious system. The solar deity was depicted as a geometrical figure such as the spiral, the concentric circle and the swastika, or as an animal figure the likes of the birds, serpents and horses.

Judah during the 9th and 8th centuries BCE was basically polytheistic, with Yahweh operating as a national god in the same way that surrounding nations each had their own national gods.Lester L. Grabbe, A History of the Jews and Judaism in the Second Temple Period, vol.1 (T&T; Clark International, 2004), pp.240-244 The Exile allowed the worship of "Yahweh-alone" to emerge as the dominant theology of Yehud,Christopher B. Hayes, "Religio-historical Approaches: Monotheism, Morality and Method", in David L. Petersen, Joel M. LeMon, Kent Harold Richards (eds), Method Matters: Essays on the Interpretation of the Hebrew Bible in Honor of David L. Petersen, pp.

The relationship between the Himyarite Kings and the polytheistic Arab tribes strengthened when, under the royal permission of Tubba' Abu Karib As'ad, Qusai ibn Kilab (400–480 CE) reconstructed the Ka'aba from a state of decay, and had the Arab al-Kahinan (Cohanim) build their houses around it.The History of al- Tabari Vol. 5, The Sasanids, the Byzantines, the Lakhmids, and Yemen, C. E. Bosworth—Translator, SUNY series in Near Eastern Studies Qusai ibn Kilab was the great-great- grandfather of Shaiba ibn Hashim (Abdul-Mutallib). Shaiba ibn Hashim was fifth in the line of descent to Muhammad, and attained supreme power at Mecca.

Starting in the year 2000, a rise in historical accuracy has been seen among Heathen practitioners. Influenced by such authors as Bil Linzie, Swain Wodening and the works of Garman Lord (Theodism) modern heathens have taken a more reconstructionist approach to the development of their religiosity. Polytheistic reconstructionism includes the relying upon primary source texts, archaeological finds and academic secondary sources in order to as closely as possible follow the world-view and practices of Germanic paleo-Pagans. Those who do not rely strictly upon academic sources may implement their own personal thoughts, beliefs and experiences concerning the Gods or customs as part of their heathen development.

Some scholars have argued, based in part on Egyptian writings, that the Egyptians came to recognize a single divine power that lay behind all things and was present in all the other deities. Yet they never abandoned their original polytheistic view of the world, except possibly during the era of Atenism in the 14th century BC, when official religion focused exclusively on an abstract solar deity, the Aten. Gods were assumed to be present throughout the world, capable of influencing natural events and the course of human lives. People interacted with them in temples and unofficial shrines, for personal reasons as well as for larger goals of state rites.

It was maintained by the Hesychasts to be of divine origin and to be identical to that light which had been manifested to Jesus' disciples on Mount Tabor at the Transfiguration. Barlaam held this concept to be polytheistic, inasmuch as it postulated two eternal substances, a visible (immanent) and an invisible God (transcendent). On the Hesychast side, the controversy was taken up by Antonite St Gregory Palamas, afterwards Archbishop of Thessalonica, who was asked by his fellow monks on Mt Athos to defend Hesychasm from the Barlaam's attacks. St Gregory was well-educated in Greek philosophy (dialectical method) and thus able to defend Hesychasm using Western precepts.

Several more minor festivals were dedicated to Isis, including the Pelusia in late March that may have celebrated the birth of Harpocrates, and the Lychnapsia, or lamp-lit festival, that celebrated Isis's own birth on August 12. Festivals of Isis and other polytheistic deities were celebrated throughout the fourth century CE, despite the growth of Christianity in that era and the persecution of pagans that intensified toward the end of the century. The Isia was celebrated at least as late as 417 CE, and the Navigium Isidis lasted well into the sixth century. Increasingly, the religious meaning of all Roman festivals was forgotten or ignored even as the customs continued.

The book consists of an author's Introduction and three major sections. Its argument is that the ancient Israelites did not practice a religion recognisable as Judaism: the earliest religion of the Israelites, as depicted in the Yahwist and Elohist sources, was polytheistic and family-based. The middle layer, the Deuteronomist, shows a clear impulse to the centralisation of worship under the control of a dominant priesthood with royal support. Only in the final, post-Exilic, layer, the Priestly source, when the royal authority has vanished and the priesthood has assumed sole authority over the community, is there evidence of the religion that the world knows as Judaism.

Though many of the temples and shrines have been destroyed, the residents of Ansul hold on to their beliefs. The depiction of a polytheistic religion and a critique of monotheism is a recurring feature of Le Guin's work: in contrast to an omniscient and ever-present God, the deities of Ansul are closely linked to the material world and the daily lives of people. Memer comments that "the sea, the earth, the stones of Ansul are sacred, are alive with divinity". The beliefs of Ansul have been described as a "polytheist and animist version of panentheism", while the presence of ancestor worship has been likened to practices in Confucianism and Buddhism.

A heterosexuality symbol Heterosexual symbolism dates back to the earliest artifacts of humanity, with gender symbols, ritual fertility carvings, and primitive art. This was later expressed in the symbolism of fertility rites and polytheistic worship, which often included images of human reproductive organs, such as lingam in Hinduism. Modern symbols of heterosexuality in societies derived from European traditions still reference symbols used in these ancient beliefs. One such image is a combination of the symbol for Mars, the Roman god of war, as the definitive male symbol of masculinity, and Venus, the Roman goddess of love and beauty, as the definitive female symbol of femininity.

Using Canaanite religion as a base was natural due to the fact that the Canaanite culture inhabited the same region prior to the emergence of Israelite culture. Canaanite religion was a polytheistic religion in which many gods represented unique concepts. Many scholars agree that the Israelite god of Yahweh was adopted from the Canaanite god El. El was the creation god and as such it makes sense for the Israelite supreme god to have El's characteristics. Monotheism in the region of ancient Israel and Judah did not take hold over night and during the intermediate stages most people are believed to have been henotheistic.

Alabaster votive figurines from Yemen, now in the National Museum of Oriental Art, Rome Religion in pre-Islamic Arabia included indigenous animistic- polytheistic beliefs, as well as Christianity, Judaism, Mandaeism, and Iranian religions of Zoroastrianism, Mithraism, and Manichaeism. Arabian polytheism, the dominant form of religion in pre-Islamic Arabia, was based on veneration of deities and spirits. Worship was directed to various gods and goddesses, including Hubal and the goddesses al-Lāt, al-‘Uzzā, and Manāt, at local shrines and temples such as the Kaaba in Mecca. Deities were venerated and invoked through a variety of rituals, including pilgrimages and divination, as well as ritual sacrifice.

The notes of his successors, especially Proclus, as well as his five extant books and the sections of his great work on Pythagorean philosophy also reveal much of Iamblichus' system. Besides these, Proclus seems to have ascribed to him the authorship of the celebrated treatise Theurgia, or On the Egyptian Mysteries. However, the differences between this book and Iamblichus' other works in style and in some points of doctrine have led some to question whether Iamblichus was the actual author. Still, the treatise certainly originated from his school, and in its systematic attempt to give a speculative justification of the polytheistic cult practices of the day, it marks a turning-point in the history of thought where Iamblichus stood.

An individual Wiccan's personal devotion may be centered on the traditional Horned God and the Moon Goddess of Wicca, a large number of divine "aspects" of the Wiccan God and Goddess, a large pantheon of individual pagan Gods, one specific pagan God and one specific pagan Goddess, or any combination of those perspectives. Accordingly, the religion of Wicca can be understood as duotheistic, henotheistic, pantheistic, polytheistic, or panentheistic depending upon the personal faith, cosmological belief, and philosophy of the individual Wiccan. If persons choose to use different personal names for their God or Goddess, such as Hecate (Greek) or Trivia (Roman), it is merely a familiar name to use. Both names refer to the same fundamental Goddess.

In the Epic of Baal, Shapash plays an important part in the plot, as she interacts with all of the main characters, and in the end she is favourable to Baal's position as king.Smith, Mark S. The Origins of Biblical Monotheism: Israel's Polytheistic Background and Ugaritic Texts, Oxford University Press (2001), p. 127; She announces that El supports Yam.KTU. 1.2.III By delivering her verdict in the final struggle of Baal with Mot, she reveals her role as judge among the gods, and by her judgement against Mot, as saviour of humankind, two aspects, Brian B. Schmidt observes,Schmidt, Israel's Beneficent Dead: Ancestor Cult and Necromancy in Ancient Israelite Religion and Tradition (Eisebrauns) 1994, pp 85f.

Towards the end of the pre-Islamic era in the Arabian city of Mecca; an era otherwise known by the Muslims as جاهلية, or al-Jahiliyah, the pagan or pre-Islamic merchants of Mecca controlled the sacred Kaaba, thereby regulating control over it and, in turn, over the city itself. The local tribes of the Arabian peninsula came to this centre of commerce to place their idols in the Kaaba, in the process being charged tithes. Thus helping the Meccan merchants to incur substantial wealth, as well as insuring a fruitful atmosphere for trade and intertribal relations in relative peace. The number and nature of deities in the pre-Islamic mythology are parallel to that of other polytheistic cultures.

ISIL propaganda image showing the temple's destruction in 2015 In May 2015, Palmyra was captured by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), a terrorist group with a history of destroying ancient religious structures. Shortly after, ISIL reportedly claimed that it did not intend to demolish the buildings at Palmyra's World Heritage Site, but stated that it would destroy any artifact it deemed "polytheistic" or "pagan". On 23 August 2015 (or earlier in July, according to some reports), ISIL militants detonated a large quantity of explosives inside the Temple of Baalshamin, completely destroying the building. The temple's destruction was announced by the head of the Syrian Directorate-General of Antiquities and Museums, Maamoun Abdulkarim.

The Abrahamic religion of Christianity was present in Roman Britain from at least the third century until the end of the Roman imperial administration in the early fifth century. Religion in Roman Britain was generally polytheistic, involving multiple gods and goddesses; in being monotheistic, or believing in only one deity, Christianity was different. Christianity was one of several religions introduced to Britain from the eastern part of the empire, others being those dedicated to certain deities, such as Cybele, Isis, and Mithras. After the collapse of Roman imperial administration, much of southern and eastern Britain was affected by the Anglo-Saxon migrations and a transition to Anglo-Saxon paganism as the primary religion.

The scholar Victor Shnirelman describes Ynglist theology as esoteric, and, by the words of volkhv Aleksandr Khinevich himself, as "neither monotheistic nor polytheistic" as were the beliefs of the "early ancestors"—the earliest Indo-Europeans, whom Khinevich identifies as the Slavic Aryans. According to Shnirelman, Ynglist theology owes much to Slavic, Germanic, Iranian and Indian sources, but integrates gods and concepts from other cultures as well. The idea of reincarnation matching that of Hinduism, and the idea of a struggle between good and evil forces matching that of Zoroastrianism, are both incorporated within Ynglism. The scholar Robert A. Saunders describes Ynglism as influenced by late nineteenth and early twentieth-century German Ariosophy.

In Heathen ritual practices, the deities are typically represented as godpoles, wooden shafts with anthropomorphic faces carved into them, although in other instances resin statues of the divinities are sometimes used. Many practitioners combine their polytheistic world-view with a pantheistic conception of the natural world as being sacred and imbued with a divine energy force permeating all life. Heathenry is animistic, with practitioners believing in nonhuman spirit persons commonly known as "wights" (vættir) that inhabit the world, each of whom is believed to have its own personality. Some of these are known as "land spirits" (landvættir) and inhabit different aspects of the landscape, living alongside humans, whom they can both help and hinder.

Academic research has placed the Pagan movement along a spectrum, with eclecticism on one end and polytheistic reconstructionism on the other. All Pagan movements place great emphasis on the divinity of nature as a primary source of divine will, and on humanity's membership of the natural world, bound in kinship to all life and the Earth itself. The animistic aspects of Pagan theology assert that all things have a soul - not just humans or organic life - so this bond is held with mountains and rivers as well as trees and wild animals. As a result, Pagans believe the essence of their spirituality is both ancient and timeless, regardless of the age of specific religious movements.

According to the historian W. Montgomery Watt, the traditional account about the Jadhima incident "is hardly more than a circumstantial denigration of Khālid, and yields little solid historical fact". Later in 630, while Muhammad was at Tabuk, he dispatched Khalid to capture the oasis market town of Dumat al-Jandal. Khalid gained its surrender and imposed a heavy penalty on the inhabitants of the town, one of whose chiefs, the Kindite Ukaydir ibn Abd al-Malik al-Sakuni, was ordered by Khalid to sign the capitulation treaty with Muhammad in Medina. In June 631 Khalid was sent by Muhammad at the head of 480 men to invite the mixed Christian and polytheistic Balharith tribe of Najran to embrace Islam.

According to Mexican religious tradition she is the mother of God and humanity. It is through her interaction with Juan Diego that Catholicism began in Mexico, providing a new era of religious belief whose roots lay in the Aztec polytheistic culture and belief in the Aztec mother goddess Tonantzin. It was in the sixteenth century that the growth of the cult of Our Lady of Guadalupe began, and the creation of poems and sermons honouring her, and the first artistic interpretations of her image were created expressing a new cultural idiom for Mexico. Her feast day lies on the 12th of December and is a commemoration of the date in 1531 that she first appeared to Juan Diego.

Cochrane’s Craft, which is also known as Cochranianism, is a tradition of traditional witchcraft founded in 1951 by the English Witch Robert Cochrane, who himself claimed to have been taught it by some of his elderly family members, a claim that is disputed by some historians such as Ronald Hutton and Leo Ruickbie. Cochranianism revolved around the veneration of the Horned God and the Mother Goddess, alongside seven polytheistic deities which are viewed as children of the God and Goddess. Cochranian Witchcraft has several features that separate it from other traditions such as Gardnerian Wicca, such as its emphasis on mysticism and philosophy, and Cochrane's attitude that it was not pagan, but only based upon paganism. Chapter One.

At its centre is the episode of the so-called satanic verses, in which the prophet first proclaims a revelation in favour of the old polytheistic deities, but later renounces this as an error induced by the Devil. There are also two opponents of the "Messenger": a demonic priestess, Hind bint Utbah, and an irreverent skeptic and satirical poet, Baal. When the prophet returns to Mecca in triumph, Baal goes into hiding in an underground brothel, where the prostitutes assume the identities of the prophet's wives. Also, one of the prophet's companions claims that he, doubting the authenticity of the "Messenger," has subtly altered portions of the Quran as they were dictated to him.

In polytheistic religions which have a complex system of deities governing various natural phenomena and aspects of human life, it is common to have a deity who is assigned the function of presiding over death. This deity may actually take the life of humans or, more commonly, simply rule over the afterlife in that particular belief system (a single religion may have separate deities performing both tasks). The deity in question may be good, evil, or neutral and simply doing their job, in sharp contrast to a lot of modern portrayals of death deities as all being inherently evil just because death is feared. Hades from Greek mythology is an especially common target.

It can also be asserted that this whole legal system was ideologically founded on the indigenous postulate which adhered to the shamanistic religio-political belief in polytheistic gods and which was called kamiTranslation of "kami" = gods in Shintoism, not only enshrined in Jinja (enshrinement of Shinto gods, worshiped by any group of small local fraternities, local communities or associated believers from different localities) but also deified as governing human affairs and natural occurrences, as cited by Masaji Chiba, "Japan" Poh-Ling Tan, (ed), Asian Legal Systems, Butterworths, London, 1997 at 118. and later developed into Shintoism.Masaji Chiba, "Japan" Poh-Ling Tan, (ed), Asian Legal Systems, Butterworths, London, 1997 at 91. Two qualifications can be added to these assertions.

In his inscription, Xerxes records that "by the favour of Ahura Mazda I destroyed that establishment of the daivas and I proclaimed, 'The daivas thou shalt not worship!'". This statement has been interpreted either one of two ways. Either the statement is an ideological one and daivas were gods that were to be rejected, or the statement was politically motivated and daivas were gods that were followed by (potential) enemies of the state.. Ahura Mazda received state patronage as the chief deity and the emperors became his representatives. The post Achamenid religion was polytheistic and the chief god of their pantheon was Ahura Mazda, who was recognized as the creator of the world.

In part because of its wide use in monotheistic Western society, atheism is usually described as "disbelief in God", rather than more generally as "disbelief in deities". A clear distinction is rarely drawn in modern writings between these two definitions, but some archaic uses of atheism encompassed only disbelief in the singular God, not in polytheistic deities. It is on this basis that the obsolete term adevism was coined in the late 19th century to describe an absence of belief in plural deities. In the 20th century, globalization contributed to the expansion of the term to refer to disbelief in all deities, though it remains common in Western society to describe atheism as simply "disbelief in God".

Third gender, or gender variant, spiritual intermediaries are found in many Pacific island cultures, including the bajasa of the Toradja Bare'e people of Celebes, the bantut of the Taosug people of the south Philippines, and the bayoguin of the pre-Christian Philippines. These shamans are typically biologically male but display feminine behaviours and appearance. The pre-Christian Philippines had a polytheistic religion, which included the transgender or hermaphroditic gods Bathala and Malyari, whose names means "Man and Woman in One" and "Powerful One" respectively; these gods are worshipped by the Bayagoin. The Big Nambas of Vanuatu have the concept of divinely approved-of homoerotic relationships between men, with the older partner called the "dubut".

The Odinic Rite (OR) was founded in 1980 by John Yeowell, known as "Stubba".Minute Book of Odinic Rite On 24 February 1988 the Odinic Rite became the first polytheistic religious organisation to be granted Registered Charity status in England.Michael York (1997), Paganism and the British Charity Commission, paper given at the Society for the Scientific Study of Religion 1997 Annual Meeting - San Diego This led to allegations by the journalist Polly Toynbee that the Odinic Rite had presented Odinism as a monotheistic religion in order to gain acceptance by the Charity Commission,Polly Toynbee (1996). "A being that works in mysterious ways," The Independent, 15 July 1996 an allegation strongly refuted by the Odinic Rite at the time.

The noun kohen is used in the Torah to refer to priests, whether Jewish or pagan, such as the kohanim ("priests") of Baal (2 Kings 10:19) or Dagon, though Christian priests are referred to in Hebrew by the term komer (). Kohanim can also refer to the Jewish nation as a whole, as in Exodus 19:6, part of the Parshath Yithro, where the whole of Israel is addressed as "a kingdom of priests and a holy nation". The word kohen originally derives from a Semitic root common at least to the Central Semitic languages; In the ancient polytheistic religion of Phoenicia, the word for “priest“ was khn (). The cognate Arabic word kāhin means “priest“, or "soothsayer, augur".

The history of the Fon people is linked to the Dahomey kingdom, a well-organized kingdom by the 17th century but one that shared more ancient roots with the Aja people. The Fon people traditionally were a culture of an oral tradition and had a well-developed polytheistic religious system. They were noted by early 19th-century European traders for their N'Nonmiton practice or Dahomey Amazons – which empowered their women to serve in the military, who decades later fought the French colonial forces in 1890.Robin Law (1993), The 'Amazons' of Dahomey, Paideuma: Mitteilungen zur Kulturkunde, Bd. 39 (1993), pages 245-260 Most Fon today live in villages and small towns in mud houses with corrugated iron gable roofs.

Like other Iron Age Europeans, the early Celts maintained a polytheistic mythology and religious structure. For Celts in close contact with Ancient Rome, such as the Gauls and Celtiberians, their mythology did not survive the Roman Empire, their subsequent conversion to Christianity and the loss of their Celtic languages. It is mostly through contemporary Roman and Christian sources that their mythology has been preserved. The Celtic peoples who maintained either political or linguistic identities (such as the Gaels in Ireland and Scotland, the Welsh in Wales, and the Celtic Britons of southern Great Britain and Brittany) left vestigial remnants of their ancestral mythologies that were put into written form during the Middle Ages.

The village name of Karyes has carried from ancient times as there has been an abundance of walnut trees since then. Various objects and fragments which were found during digging, have provided physical evidence for the ancient settlement in Karyes and the caryatid monument is said to be currently positioned in the place of the ancient acropolis of Karyes. During the years before Christ, the people of the Peloponnese were polytheistic and worshipped many Gods, Goddesses and various nymphs, which explains the worship of goddess Artemis in this area. The Peloponnese consisted of a lot of different municipalities, Tegea, Arcadia, Messinia, Laconia (including the city of Sparta) and they all had their own heads of state.

In the Hebrew Bible, adoni means “my lord,” and is a term of respect that may refer to GodPsalm 16:2 or to a human superior,1 Kings 1:31 or occasionally an angel, whereas adonai (literally "my lords") is reserved for God alone. In Jewish tradition, the pluralization can be used to distinguish God from earthly lords and to increase his majesty. However, many modern critical scholars see the use of a plural as a remnant of a polytheistic past, with the word only later coming to refer to Yahweh, the single god of Judaism. It is thought that at least some biblical authors used the word originally in a polytheist sense.

The Iyad were a branch of the northern Arabian tribal grouping of Ma'add. According to the traditional Arab genealogists, the Iyad's eponymous progenitor was a son of Nizar ibn Ma'add ibn Adnan and a brother of the latter's sons Mudar, Rabi'a and Anmar, all of whom were also progenitors of large Arab tribes. The original dwelling places of the Iyad were in the Tihama coastal area of western Arabia down to the environs of Najran. The tribe in alliance with the Mudar forced out the Jurhum from the western Arabian town of Mecca and consequently became the masters of Mecca's Ka'aba, a major idol sanctuary for the polytheistic Arabs in the pre-Islamic period (pre-630s).

The Elephantine papyri pre-date all extant manuscripts of the Hebrew Bible, and thus give scholars a very important glimpse at how Judaism was practiced in the fifth century BCE. They show clear evidence of the existence in c. 400 BCE of a polytheistic sect of Jews, who seem to have had no knowledge of a written Torah or the narratives described therein: Also important is the fact that the papyri document the existence of a small Jewish temple at Elephantine, which possessed altars for incense offerings and animal sacrifices, as late as 411 BCE. Such a temple would be in clear violation of Deuteronomic law, which stipulates that no Jewish temple may be constructed outside of Jerusalem.

Down in the brig, Colonel Tigh pays a visit to Caprica Six and asks how she can cope with her guilt in the deaths of billions of human beings. He then hallucinates, seeing his dead wife Ellen Tigh in her place and he fearfully leaves. On Colonial One, the Quorum meets where Lee Adama challenges President Roslin's latest emergency decree, in response to the religious attacks, which restricts assemblies to twelve people or fewer. Roslin assures him that the decree is aimed squarely at Gaius Baltar and his monotheistic sect, but the other Quorum members argue that the decree could be applied to many polytheistic believers as well, whose beliefs approximate parts of Baltar's religion.

The Foundations of Justice for Legal Guardians, Governors, Princes, Meritorious Rulers, and Kings (Usman dan Fodio) Many of the Fulani led by Usman dan Fodio were unhappy that the rulers of the Hausa states were mingling Islam with aspects of the traditional regional religion. Usman created a theocratic state with a stricter interpretation of Islam. In Tanbih al-ikhwan 'ala ahwal al- Sudan, he wrote: "As for the sultans, they are undoubtedly unbelievers, even though they may profess the religion of Islam, because they practice polytheistic rituals and turn people away from the path of God and raise the flag of a worldly kingdom above the banner of Islam. All this is unbelief according to the consensus of opinions".

Hanegraaff suggested that whereas various forms of contemporary Paganism were not part of the New Age movement – particularly those that pre- dated the movement – other Pagan religions and practices could be identified as New Age. Partridge portrayed both Paganism and the New Age as different streams of occulture (occult culture) that merge at points. Various differences between the two movements have been highlighted; the New Age movement focuses on an improved future, whereas the focus of Paganism is on the pre-Christian past. Similarly, the New Age movement typically propounds a universalist message that sees all religions as fundamentally the same, whereas Paganism stresses the difference between monotheistic religions and those embracing a polytheistic or animistic theology.

People with exclusivist beliefs typically explain other beliefs either as in error, or as corruptions or counterfeits of the true faith. This approach is a fairly consistent feature among smaller new religious movements that often rely on doctrine that claims a unique revelation by the founders or leaders, and considers it a matter of faith that the "correct" religion has a monopoly on truth. All three major Abrahamic monotheistic religions have passages in their holy scriptures that attest to the primacy of the scriptural testimony, and indeed monotheism itself is often vouched as an innovation characterized specifically by its explicit rejection of earlier polytheistic faiths. Some exclusivist faiths incorporate a specific element of proselytization.

It is to be understood that deva is an imprecise term referring to any being living in a longer-lived and generally more blissful state than humans. Most of them are not "gods" in the common sense of the term, having little or no concern with the human world and rarely if ever interacting with it; only the lowest deities of the Kāmadhātu correspond to the gods described in many polytheistic religions. The term "brahmā; Devanagari: ब्रह्मा" is used both as a name and as a generic term for one of the higher devas. In its broadest sense, it can refer to any of the inhabitants of the Ārūpyadhātu and the Rūpadhātu.

Sakhr ibn Harb ibn Umayya ibn Abd Shams (; — ), better known by his kunya Abu Sufyan (), was a leader and merchant from the Quraysh tribe of Mecca. During his early career, he often led trade caravans to Syria. He had been among the main leaders of Meccan opposition to Muhammad, the prophet of Islam and member of the Quraysh, commanding the Meccans at the battles of Uhud and the Trench in 625 and 627. However, when Muhammad entered Mecca in 630, Abu Sufyan was among the first to submit and was given a stake in the nascent Muslim state, playing a role at the Battle of Hunayn and the subsequent destruction of the polytheistic sanctuary of al-Lat in Ta'if.

There is evidence that the Israelites before the Babylonian captivity in the 6th century BCE did not adhere to monotheism. Much of this evidence comes from the Bible itself, which records that many Israelites chose to worship foreign gods and idols rather than Yahweh. During the 8th century BCE, the monotheistic worship of Yahweh in Israel was in competition with many other cults, described by the Yahwist faction collectively as Baals. The oldest books of the Hebrew Bible reflect this competition, as in the books of Hosea and Nahum, whose authors lament the "apostasy" of the people of Israel and threaten them with the wrath of God if they do not give up their polytheistic cults.

1 Kings 18, Jeremiah 2.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) On the other hand, medieval Jewish scholars often interpreted ancient texts to argue that the ancient Israelites were monotheistic. The Shema Yisrael is often cited as proof that the Israelites practiced monotheism. It was recognized by Rashi in his 11th century commentary to that the declaration of the Shema accepts belief in one god as being only a part of Jewish faith at the time of Moses but would eventually be accepted by all humanity.

The Divine Legation of Moses, a treatise by the Anglican theologian William Warburton published from 1738 to 1741, included an analysis of ancient mystery rites that drew upon Sethos for much of its evidence. Assuming that all mystery rites derived from Egypt, Warburton argued that the public face of Egyptian religion was polytheistic, but the Egyptian mysteries were designed to reveal a deeper, monotheistic truth to elite initiates. One of them, Moses, learned this truth during his Egyptian upbringing and developed Judaism to reveal it to the entire Israelite nation. Freemasons, members of a European fraternal organization that attained its modern form in the early eighteenth century, developed many pseudohistorical origin myths that traced Freemasonry back to ancient times.

Statue of Kosmenk, one of the Soorts, in Tolhuin, Tierra del Fuego The religion of the Selk'nam people tends to be described as polytheistic, mainly because of the existence of various characters which are usually considered deities. However, it is necessary to clarify that according to the beliefs of the Selk'nam people, only Temáukel is recognized as a god, while other characters are identified rather as mythological ancestors than gods. On the other hand, it also necessary to indicate that the characteristics attributed to these mythological ancestors are typical of those beings whom we might call gods. Because of this, it is possible to consider that the religion of the Selk'nam people was, rather, henotheistic.

The savanna was an ancient lake, that existed until the latest Pleistocene and formed a highly fertile soil for their agriculture. The Muisca were a deeply religious civilisation with a polytheistic society and an advanced astronomical knowledge, which was represented in their complex lunisolar calendar. Men and women had specific and different tasks in their relatively egalitarian society; while the women took care of the sowing, preparation of food, the extraction of salt, and the elaboration of mantles and pottery, the men were assigned to harvesting, warfare, and hunting. The guecha warriors were tasked with the defence of the Muisca territories, mainly against their western neighbours; the Muzo ("Emerald People") and the bellicose Panche.

A mudang performing a gut in Seoul, South Korea. Gardens of the Samseonggung, a shrine for the worship of Hwanin, Hwanung and Dangun. Korean shamanism or Korean folk religion, also known as Shinism or Sinism (, Hanja 神敎; Shingyo or Shinkyo, "religion of the spirits/gods") or Shindo (; Hanja: 神道, "way of the spirits/gods"), is the polytheistic and animistic ethnic religion of Korea which dates back to prehistory and consists in the worship of gods (신 shin) and ancestors (조상 josang) as well as nature spirits. When referring specifically to the shamanic practice (, Hanja: 巫俗; musog or musok), the term Muism (Hangul:무교, Hanja: 巫敎; Mugyo or Mukyo, "religion of the mu (shamans)") is used.

Similar acts of resistance were seen in the metropolitan sees that were governed by the Latins as well as in some autonomous ecclesiastical regions, such as the Church of Cyprus. One notable example of the campaign to enforce the orthodoxy of the Palamist doctrine was the action taken by patriarch Philotheos I to crack down on the brothers Demetrios Kydones and Prochoros Kydones. With the support of his younger brother Prochoros, Demetrios Kydones opposed as polytheistic or pantheistic the Palamites and their system of Hesychasm. Applying Aristotelian logic to the Neoplatonic character of Hesychasm, the Kydones brothers accused Palamas of Pantheism or Polytheism, only to be condemned themselves by three successive Palamite synods that also canonized Palamas and Hesychasm.

Before the second wave of insurrections by GAM in the late-1980s, it was observed that some individuals had forced Acehnese school children to sing the Hikayat Prang Sabi instead of Indonesia's national anthem, Indonesia Raya. GAM political publicity material also painted the official state ideology of Pancasila as a "polytheistic teaching". Notwithstanding the above, it was observed that in the aftermath of the fall of Suharto in 1998, religion as a factor for Aceh separatism began to subside even if there had been a proliferation of Muslim student unions and other groups in Aceh. It was noted that these newly-emerged groups rarely called for the implementation of syariah in Aceh.

Clearchus provided for the release of the philosopher and restored a large part of his properties, which he had lost. Maximus began teaching philosophy again, and even dared to return to Constantinople. Around 370, Emperor Valens was informed that a group of individuals had consulted an oracle to find out who the next emperor would be and were told the next emperor's name would begin with the letters Theod and that the emperor Valens would "die a strange death, and would not be given burial or the honour of a tomb". As a result, Valens resorted to a massacre of individuals with those letters at the beginning of their names, the persecution falling heavily on polytheistic philosophers.

There is a general consensus among biblical scholars that ancient Judah during the 9th and 8th centuries BCE was basically polytheistic, with Yahweh as a national god in the same way that surrounding nations each had their own national gods.Lester L. Grabbe, "A history of the Jews and Judaism in the Second Temple Period", vol.1 (T&T; Clark International, 2004), pp.240-244 Monotheistic themes arose as early as the 8th century, in opposition to Assyrian royal propaganda, which depicted the Assyrian king as "Lord of the Four Quarters" (the world), but the Exile broke the competing fertility, ancestor and other cults and allowed it to emerge as the dominant theology of Yehud.

The Great Goddess hypothesis theorizes that, in Palaeolithic, Mesolithic and/or Neolithic Europe and Western Asia and North Africa, a singular, monotheistic female deity was worshiped prior to the development of the polytheistic pagan religions of the Bronze Age and Iron Age. Having first been proposed as an idea relating to ancient Greek religion in 1849, it subsequently achieved some support amongst classicists. In the early 20th century, various historians began to postulate about the theory applying across Europe, and it was widely propagated by the archaeologist Marija Gimbutas in the 1980s. It has since been adopted by various feminist religious groups such as Dianic Wicca as a part of the mythology of their faith.

Kurt Noll states that "the Bible preserves a tradition that Yahweh used to 'live' in the south, in the land of Edom" and that the original god of Israel was El Shaddai.K. L. Noll Canaan and Israel in Antiquity: An Introduction, Continuum, 2002, p.123 Several Biblical stories allude to the belief that the Canaanite gods all existed and were thought to possess the most power in the lands by the people who worshiped them and their sacred objects; their power was believed to be real and could be invoked by the people who patronized them. There are numerous accounts of surrounding nations of Israel showing fear or reverence for the Israelite God despite their continued polytheistic practices.

Some researchers, including historical ethnolinguist Christopher Ehret, suggest that certain monotheistic concepts, such as the belief in a creator god or force (next to other gods, deities and spirits) are ancient and indigenous among peoples of the Niger-Congo ethnolinguistic family (of much of West Africa and Central Africa) and date to the beginning of their history, in a form substantially different from the monotheism found in Abrahamic religions. Traditional Niger-Congo religion also included polytheistic and animistic elements.The Civilizations of Africa: A History to 1800, by Christopher Ehret, James Currey, 2002 Traditional African medicine is also directly linked to traditional African religions. According to Clemmont E. Vontress, the various religious traditions of Africa are united by a basic Animism.

Temple of Bel in Palmyra, which was blown up by ISIL in August 2015 Following the capture of Palmyra in Syria, ISIL was reported as not intending to demolish the city's World Heritage Site (while still intending to destroy any statues deemed 'polytheistic'). On 27 May 2015, ISIL released an 87-second video showing parts of the apparently undamaged ancient colonnades, the Temple of Bel and the Roman theatre. On 27 June 2015, however, ISIL demolished the ancient Lion of Al-lāt statue in Palmyra. (It has since been restored, and is in storage in a Damascus museum until it can be determined that the statue can be safely returned to Palmyra.) Several other statues from Palmyra reportedly confiscated from a smuggler were also destroyed by ISIL.

Prior to the Middle Ages, Germanic peoples followed what is now referred to as Germanic paganism: "a system of interlocking and closely interrelated religious worldviews and practices rather than as one indivisible religion" and as such consisted of "individual worshippers, family traditions and regional cults within a broadly consistent framework". The gilded side of the Trundholm Sun Chariot, Nordic Bronze Age Germanic religion was polytheistic in nature, with some underlying similarities to other Indo- European religions. Despite the unique practices of some tribes, there was a degree of cultural uniformity among the Germanic peoples concerning religion. From its earliest descriptions by Roman authors in antiquity to the Icelandic accounts written in the Middle Ages, Germanic religion appears to have changed considerably.

Julius J. Lipner (2009), Hindus: Their Religious Beliefs and Practices, 2nd Edition, Routledge, , page 8; Quote: "(...) one need not be religious in the minimal sense described to be accepted as a Hindu by Hindus, or describe oneself perfectly validly as Hindu. One may be polytheistic or monotheistic, monistic or pantheistic, even an agnostic, humanist or atheist, and still be considered a Hindu."Lester Kurtz (Ed.), Encyclopedia of Violence, Peace and Conflict, , Academic Press, 2008MK Gandhi, The Essence of Hinduism , Editor: VB Kher, Navajivan Publishing, see page 3; According to Gandhi, "a man may not believe in God and still call himself a Hindu." Shaivism is a major tradition within Hinduism with a theology that is predominantly related to the Hindu god Shiva.

St Mark's Basilica in Venice, a mixture of Italian and Byzantine featuresWestern culture, throughout most of its history, has been nearly equivalent to Christian culture, and many of the population of the Western hemisphere could broadly be described as cultural Christians. The notion of "Europe" and the "Western World" has been intimately connected with the concept of "Christianity and Christendom" many even attribute Christianity for being the link that created a unified European identity. Though Western culture contained several polytheistic religions during its early years under the Greek and Roman empires, as the centralized Roman power waned, the dominance of the Catholic Church was the only consistent force in Europe. Until the Age of Enlightenment, Christian culture guided the course of philosophy, literature, art, music and science.

The reforming churches believe that human weakness is naturally drawn to a form of false religion that is worldly, pompous, ritualistic, anthropomorphic, polytheistic, and infected with magical thinking and legalism, and that values human accomplishment more highly or more practically than the work of God (divine grace) is valued. Given the chance, people will substitute the sort of religion they naturally prefer, over the Gospel (see also Cafeteria Christianity). The Hebrew Bible contains multiple episodes of backsliding by the very people who first received God's revelation; to the Protestant mind, this shows that teaching the Gospel is a strait and narrow path, one that requires that natural religion be held in check and that God's grace, holiness, and otherness be rigorously proclaimed.

The cults of various eastern deities had also been introduced to Roman Britain, among them those of the deities Isis, Mithras, and Cybele; Christianity was just one of these eastern cults. The archaeologist Martin Henig suggested that to "sense something of the spiritual environment of Christianity at this time", it would be useful to imagine India, where Hinduism, "a major polytheistic system", remains dominant, and "where churches containing images of Christ and the Virgin are in a tiny minority against the many temples of gods and goddesses". Christianity was an offshoot from Judaism, although by the mid-second century the two religions were generally recognised as distinct. There is no direct evidence for Judaism having been practiced in Roman Britain.

The notion of "Europe" and the "Western World" has been intimately connected with the concept of "Christianity and Christendom" many even attribute Christianity for being the link that created a unified European identity. Historian Paul Legutko of Stanford University said the Catholic Church is "at the center of the development of the values, ideas, science, laws, and institutions which constitute what we call Western civilization." The Eastern Orthodox Church has played a prominent role in the history and culture of Eastern and Southeastern Europe, the Caucasus, and the Near East. Though Western culture contained several polytheistic religions during its early years under the Greek and Roman Empires, as the centralized Roman power waned, the dominance of the Catholic Church was the only consistent force in Western Europe.

Most practitioners are polytheistic realists, referring to themselves as "hard" or "true polytheists" and believing in the literal existence of the deities as individual entities. Others express a psychological interpretation of the divinities, viewing them for instance as symbols, Jungian archetypes or racial archetypes, with some who adopt this position deeming themselves to be atheists. Heathenry's deities are adopted from the pre-Christian belief systems found in the various societies of Germanic Europe; they include divinities like Týr, Odin, Thor, Frigg and Freyja from Scandinavian sources, Wōden, Thunor and Ēostre from Anglo-Saxon sources, and figures such as Nehalennia from continental sources. Some practitioners adopt the belief, taken from Norse mythology, that there are two sets of deities, the Æsir and the Vanir.

He suggests that the Hebrew term "the destroying angel" actually refers to the Canaanite god Reshep, and that the site of Bethel (which is Hebrew for "house of God") actually deals with a pagan god, who he claims is present in extra- biblical sources. This was one of the aspects of the ancient biblical angelology in pre-exilic times. He suggests that the Septuagint, in Gen 32: 2-3 and Deut 32: 8-9, 43, provides evidence of this possible change in Hebrew paradigms. If true, he claims that such a polytheistic origin of the belief in angels could explain why passages of Scripture attributed to D and P (two proposed partial content sources for the Pentateuch) silence all mentions of angels.

The recruitment of robber gangs and other scofflaws was likely no surprise to the polytheistic heathens that opposed Olaf's attempts to forcibly convert them by murdering and torturing regional Jarls and Kings to terrorize them into accepting Christianity. In fact, why Olaf chose to travel through the politically hostile Trøndelag, rather than to try to rally his relatives and political allies of Eastern Norway, is to this day an unsolved mystery. Perhaps he was making a last-ditch attempt for Nidaros, hoping to win acceptance for his claim to the throne amongst the peasants of Trøndelag. On the other hand, the opposition, basically lower nobles and grand farmers under the influence of King Cnut, could not have had much time to assemble a large force.

When Pope Leo III crowned Charlemagne as "Roman Emperor" in 800, he both severed ties with the outraged Eastern Empire and established the precedent that no man in Western Europe would be emperor without a papal coronation. Although the power the Pope wielded changed significantly throughout the subsequent periods, the office itself has remained as the head of the Catholic Church and the head of state of the Vatican City. The Pope has consistently held the title of "Pontifex Maximus" since before the fall of the Western Roman Empire and retains it to this day; this title formerly used by the high priest of the Roman polytheistic religion, one of whom was Julius Caesar. The Roman Senate survived the initial collapse of the Western Roman Empire.

Anglo-Saxon reliquary cross, with English-carved walrus ivory Christ and German gold and cedar cross, c. 1000 Christianity had been the official imperial religion of the Roman Empire, and the first churches were built in England in the second half of the fourth century, overseen by a hierarchy of bishops and priests. Many existing pagan shrines were converted to Christian use and few pagan sites still operated by the fifth century. The collapse of the Roman system in the late fifth century, however, brought about the end of formal Christian religion in the east of England, and the new Germanic immigrants arrived with their own polytheistic gods, including Woden, Thunor and Tiw, still reflected in various English place names.

Italy, Spain, and Portugal are traditionally Roman Catholic and according to the 2005 Eurobarometer Poll retain an above-average belief in God. France is traditionally Roman Catholic as well and has an above-average fraction of atheists. Romania and Moldova are Eastern Orthodox countries and both are very religious. The Neopagan movements found in Latin Europe can be divided into New Age spirituality inspired by Celtic, Norse or Megalithic templates on one hand (Neodruidism, Neoshamanism), polytheistic reconstructionism, either focusing on the ancient Roman religion or other native religions of Latin Europe (such as those of pre-Roman Iberia, Italy, and Romania), and political Neopaganism as part of Alain de Benoist's far-right ideology of the Nouvelle Droite on the other.

Historically, master morality was defeated, as the slave morality of Christianity spread throughout the Roman Empire. After the destruction of the Second Temple in Jerusalem in 70 AD Judea completely lost its independence to Rome, and after defeat of Bar-Kokhba revolt in 136 AD it ceased to exist as a national state of Jewish people. At that time started the essential struggle between polytheistic culture of the Rome (master, strong) and newly developed Christian monotheism in former Judea and surrounding territories in the Middle East (slave, weak), which lasted continuously until 323 AD when Christianity became official religion of the Roman Empire. Nietzsche condemns the triumph of slave morality in the West, saying that the democratic movement is the "collective degeneration of man".

Cosmas Indicopleustes, a 6th-century Eastern Roman monk and former merchant who wrote the Christian Topography (describing the Indian Ocean trade leading all the way to China), visited the Aksumite port city of Adulis and included eyewitness accounts of it in his book. He copied a Greek inscription detailing the reign of an early 3rd- century polytheistic ruler of Aksum who sent a naval fleet across the Red Sea to conquer the Sabaeans in what is now Yemen, along with other parts of western Arabia. Ancient Sabaean texts from Yemen confirm that this was the Aksumite ruler Gadara, who made alliances with Sabaean kings, leading to eventual Axumite control over western Yemen that would last until the Himyarite ruler Shammar Yahri'sh (r. c. 265 – c.

Additionally, it is also possible that Upper Paleolithic religions, like contemporary and historical animistic and polytheistic religions, believed in the existence of a single creator deity in addition to other supernatural beings such as animistic spirits. Religion was possibly apotropaic; specifically, it may have involved sympathetic magic. The Venus figurines, which are abundant in the Upper Paleolithic archaeological record, provide an example of possible Paleolithic sympathetic magic, as they may have been used for ensuring success in hunting and to bring about fertility of the land and women. The Upper Paleolithic Venus figurines have sometimes been explained as depictions of an earth goddess similar to Gaia, or as representations of a goddess who is the ruler or mother of the animals.

3–16Peter Kivy, Melville's Billy and the Secular Problem of Evil: the Worm in the Bud, in The Monist (1980), 63 and evolutionary ethics.Timothy Anders, The Evolution of Evil (2000) But as usually understood, the "problem of evil" is posed in a theological context. The problem of evil acutely applies to monotheistic religions such as Christianity, Islam, and Judaism that believe in a monotheistic God who is omnipotent, omniscient and omnibenevolent;Problem of Evil, Paul Brians, Washington State University, Quote: "As Max Weber notes, however, it is in monotheistic religions that this problem becomes acute." but the question of "why does evil exist?" has also been studied in religions that are non-theistic or polytheistic, such as Buddhism, Hinduism, and Jainism.

All these African cultures had musical traditions, which survive erratically to the present day, not always in detail, but in general style. The best preserved are the African polytheistic religions, where, in Cuba at least, the instruments, the language, the chants, the dances and their interpretations are quite well preserved. In few or no other American countries are the religious ceremonies conducted in the old language(s) of Africa, as they are at least in Lucumí ceremonies, though of course, back in Africa the language has moved on. What unifies all genuine forms of African music is the unity of polyrhythmic percussion, voice (call- and-response) and dance in well-defined social settings, and the absence of melodic instruments of an Arabic or European kind.

The Finnish native religion is polytheistic, with a pantheon of many deities worshipped: Ukko the sky god, and chief deity in the Finnish pantheon, Akka the goddess of fertility, and wife of Ukko, Ahti, Tapio, Pekko, Nyyrikki, Mielikki, Ilmarinen (the god of sky and weather, whom some consider to be the same as Ukko), Louhi, Turisas, Haltijas (genius loci), Lemminkäinen (mythical hero), Väinämöinen (mythical hero, creator god, and god of poetry, music and magic), Hiisi (spirit of the holy place, genius loci), Jumi (fertility god or statue that gives fertility). The religion also includes an element of ancestor worship. For Finnish native religion adherents, the afterlife is a place called Tuonela, and it is a place where several different deities live, including Tuoni.

Ancient Semitic religion encompasses the polytheistic religions of the Semitic peoples from the ancient Near East and Northeast Africa. Since the term Semitic itself represents a rough category when referring to cultures, as opposed to languages, the definitive bounds of the term "ancient Semitic religion" are only approximate. Semitic traditions and their pantheons fall into regional categories: Canaanite religions of the Levant, the Sumerian tradition–inspired Assyro-Babylonian religion of Mesopotamia, the ancient Hebrew religion of the Israelites, and Arabian polytheism. Semitic polytheism possibly transitioned into Abrahamic monotheism by way of the god El, whose name "El", or elah אלה is a word for "god" in Hebrew, cognate to Arabic ʼilāh إله, and its definitive pronoun form الله Allāh, "(The) God".

When Muhammad reported that he had received a divine revelation, Ali, then only about nine years old, believed him and professed to Islam... Ali became the first male to embrace Islam.. Shia doctrine asserts that in keeping with Ali's divine mission, he accepted Islam before he took part in any old Meccan traditional religious rites, regarded by Muslims as polytheistic (see shirk) or paganistic. Hence the Shia say of Ali that his face is honoured, as it was never sullied by prostrations before idols. The Sunnis also use the honorific Karam Allahu Wajhahu, which means "God's Favour upon his Face." The reason his acceptance is often not called a conversion is because he was never an idol worshipper like the people of Mecca.

Al-Irshad movement is based on the following five principles: # To hold the doctrine of God's Unity by purifying devotions and prayers from their contamination by polytheistic elements # To realize equality among Muslims and to seek the legal judgements found in the Qur'an and Sunnah, and to follow the way of salaf in solution to all disputed religious matters # To combat the so-called taqlid a'ma (blind acceptance) which conflicts with both aql (reason) and naql (the Qur'an and Hadith) # To spread Islamic sciences and Arab culture as approved by God # To attempt to create mutual understanding between Indonesian Muslims and the Arabs Some of the efforts of the Organization are to establish of schools, orphanages, nursinng homes and hospitals.

The Muisca, different from the other three great civilisations of the Americas; the Maya, Aztec and Inca, did not build grand stone architecture, yet their settlements were relatively small and consisted of bohíos; circular houses of wood and clay, organised around a central market square with the house of the cacique in the centre. Roads were present to connect the settlements with each other and with the surrounding indigenous groups, of which the Guane and Lache to the north, the Panche and Muzo to the west and Guayupe, Achagua and Tegua to the east were the most important. The Muisca were polytheistic and their religion and mythology was closely connected with the natural area they were inhabiting. They had a thorough understanding of astronomical parameters and developed a complex luni-solar calendar; the Muisca calendar.

Either way, the Anglo-Saxon populace of England adopted many cultural traits that differed from those in the preceding Iron Age and Romano-British periods. They adopted Old English, a Germanic language that differed markedly from the Celtic and Latin languages previously spoken, whilst they apparently abandoned Christianity, a monotheistic religion devoted to the worship of one God, and instead began following Anglo-Saxon paganism, a polytheistic faith revolving around the veneration of several deities. Differences to people's daily material culture also became apparent, as those living in England ceased living in roundhouses and instead began constructing rectangular timber homes that were like those found in Denmark and northern Germany. Art forms also changed as jewellery began exhibiting the increasing influence of Migration Period Art from continental Europe.

Archetypal psychology was initiated as a distinct movement in the early 1970s by James Hillman, a psychologist who trained in analytical psychology and became the first Director of the Jung Institute in Zurich. Hillman reports that archetypal psychology emerged partly from the Jungian tradition whilst drawing also from other traditions and authorities such as Henry Corbin, Vico and Plotinus. Archetypal psychology relativizes and deliteralizes the notion of ego and focuses on what it calls the psyche, or soul, and the deepest patterns of psychic functioning, "the fundamental fantasies that animate all life" (Moore, in Hillman, 1991). Archetypal psychology likens itself to a polytheistic mythology in that it attempts to recognize the myriad fantasies and myths – gods, goddesses, demigods, mortals and animals – that shape and are shaped by our psychological lives.

"Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image" () is an abbreviated form of one of the Ten Commandments which, according to the Book of Deuteronomy, were spoken by God to the Israelites and then written on stone tablets by the Finger of God.Deuteronomy 4:13 Although no single biblical passage contains a complete definition of idolatry, the subject is addressed in numerous passages, so that idolatry may be summarized as the worship of idols or images; the worship of polytheistic gods by use of idols or images; the worship of created things (trees, rocks, animals, astronomical bodies, or another human being); and the use of idols in the worship of God (YHWH Elohim, the God of Israel).The New Unger’s Bible Dictionary, Harrison, R.K., ed., 2005, Chicago: Moody Publishers, , p.

Cleopatra on a coin of 40 drachms from 51–30 BC, minted at Alexandria; on the obverse is a portrait of Cleopatra wearing a diadem, and on the reverse an inscription reading "" with an eagle standing on a thunderbolt. Following the tradition of Macedonian rulers, Cleopatra ruled Egypt and other territories such as Cyprus as an absolute monarch, serving as the sole lawgiver of her kingdom. She was the chief religious authority in her realm, presiding over religious ceremonies dedicated to the deities of both the Egyptian and Greek polytheistic faiths. She oversaw the construction of various temples to Egyptian and Greek gods, a synagogue for the Jews in Egypt, and even built the Caesareum of Alexandria, dedicated to the cult worship of her patron and lover Julius Caesar.

Indra, the Hindu king of gods As polytheistic systems evolve, there is a tendency for one deity, usually male, to achieve preeminence as king of the gods. This tendency can parallel the growth of hierarchical systems of political power in which a monarch eventually comes to assume ultimate authority for human affairs. Other gods come to serve in a Divine Council or pantheon – such subsidiary courtier-deities are usually linked by family ties from the union of a single husband or wife, or else from an androgynous divinity who is responsible for the creation. Historically, subsequent social events, such as invasions or shifts in power structures, can cause the previous king of the gods to be displaced by a new divinity, who assumes the displaced god's attributes and functions.

Saint Peter, an apostle of Jesus, was executed by the Romans Early Christianity also came into conflict with the Roman Empire, and it may have been more threatening to the established polytheistic order than Judaism had been, because of the importance of evangelism in Christianity. Under Nero, the Jewish exemption from the requirement to participate in public cults was lifted and Rome began to actively persecute monotheists. This persecution ended in 313 AD with the Edict of Milan, and Christianity was made the official religion of the empire in 380 AD. By the eighth century Christianity had attained a clear ascendancy across Europe and neighboring regions, and a period of consolidation began which was marked by the pursuit of heretics, heathens, Jews, Muslims, and various other religious groups.

One of their prominent features was a terrifying brightness (melammu) which surrounded them, producing an immediate reaction of awe and reverence among men.Ringgren (1974: 50) In many cases, the various deities were family relations of one another, a trait found in many other polytheistic religions.Bottéro (2001:50) The historian J. Bottéro was of the opinion that the gods were not viewed mystically, but were instead seen as high-up masters who had to be obeyed and feared, as opposed to loved and adored.Bottéro (2001:37) Nonetheless, many Mesopotamians, of all classes, often had names that were devoted to a certain deity; this practice appeared to have begun in the third millennium BC among the Sumerians, but also was later adopted by the Akkadians, Assyrians and Babylonians as well.

Al–Qalis Church cathedral built by Abraha in Sana'a between 527 and 560 The Empire of Aksum is notable for a number of achievements, such as its own alphabet, the Ge'ez script, which was eventually modified to include vowels, becoming an abugida. Furthermore, in the early times of the empire, around 1700 years ago, giant obelisks to mark emperors' (and nobles') tombs (underground grave chambers) were constructed, the most famous of which is the Obelisk of Aksum. Under Emperor Ezana, Aksum adopted Christianity in place of its former polytheistic and Judaic religions around 325. This gave rise to the present day Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church (only granted autonomy from the Coptic Church in 1959), and Eritrean Orthodox Tewahdo Church (granted autonomy from the Ethiopian Orthodox church in 1993).

Even though among archaeologists and academics there are different perceptions regarding the time span and Neolithic dating, it can be argued that the time frame 6500-3500 BC should be regarded as the relative real extent of the Neolithic period in the Balkans. The cave and rock art is proved in our country confirming the usage of caves as temporary shelters for defense, but also as the prehistoric cult places, for the worship of gods of the polytheistic pagan world. The main cult was attributed to the mother goddess. This is an undisputed proof that mother (woman) figure takes an important place since she runs the house, takes care of the family, is involved in the process of cultural and economic development as well as social organization of the family.

In the beliefs represented by most Mormon denominations (including The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints), God means Elohim (the Father), whereas Godhead means a council of three distinct gods; Elohim, Jehovah (the Son, or Jesus), and the Holy Spirit in a polytheistic fashion. The Father and Son have perfected, material bodies, while the Holy Spirit is a spirit and does not have a body. This conception differs from the traditional Christian Trinity; in Mormonism, the three persons are considered to be physically separate beings, or personages, but united in will and purpose.The term with its distinctive Mormon usage first appeared in Lectures on Faith (published 1834), Lecture 5 ("We shall in this lecture speak of the Godhead; we mean the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.").

In the third century CE both Christianity and neo-Platonism reject and turn against Gnosticism, with neo-Platonists as Plotinus, Porphyry and Amelius attacking the Sethians. John D. Turner believes that this double attack led to Sethianism fragmentation into numerous smaller groups (Audians, Borborites, Archontics and perhaps Phibionites, Stratiotici, and Secundians). Plotinus' objections seem applicable to some of the Nag Hammadi texts, although others such as the Valentinians, or the Tripartite Tractate, appear to insist on the goodness of the world and the Demiurge. In particular, Plotinus seems to direct his attacks at a very specific sect of Gnostics, most notably a sect that held anti-polytheistic views, anti-daemon views, expressed anti-Greek sentiments, believed magic was a cure for diseases, and preached salvation was possible without struggle.

The population of Babylonia became restive and increasingly disaffected under Nabonidus. He excited a strong feeling against himself by attempting to centralize the polytheistic religion of Babylonia in the temple of Marduk at Babylon, and while he had thus alienated the local priesthoods, the military party also despised him on account of his antiquarian tastes. He seemed to have left the defense of his kingdom to his son Belshazzar (a capable soldier but poor diplomat who alienated the political elite), occupying himself with the more congenial work of excavating the foundation records of the temples and determining the dates of their builders. He also spent time outside Babylonia, rebuilding temples in the Assyrian city of Harran, and also among his Arab subjects in the deserts to the south of Mesopotamia.

Scene 1 – The Great Courtyard of the Royal Palace of Amenhotep III in the City of No Amon (Thebes): A delegation of Syrians arrive at the palace bringing the shrine of the goddess Ishtar of Nineveh with them in hope that it cures Pharaoh Amenhotep of his illness. The audience is introduced to the High Priest of Amon, Meriptah, and a young soldier Horemheb. Meriptah is loyal to himself, his polytheistic religion of Amon, his country and his Pharaoh, somewhat in that order, whereas Horemheb is a simpler though more honourable man for having equal loyalty to his country and his Pharaoh and through him his religion. Queen Tiye (called Tyi in the play) greets the delegation together with her son, Akhnaton, who is described as a “fragile- looking boy with intelligent eyes”.

Chicago, IL: Encyclopædia Britannica, 1952. p. 9. After this is the references section (for instance, “inferior deities or demi-gods in polytheistic religion” can be found in Homer, Sophocles, Shakespeare, Milton, Bacon, Locke, Hegel, Goethe and more). Cross-references follow, where similar ideas are listed. Last is the additional readings, in which one could seek out more on the subject of “Angel.” The list of 102 ideas is broken between the two volumes, as follows: Volume I: Angel, Animal, Aristocracy, Art, Astronomy, Beauty, Being, Cause, Chance, Change, Citizen, Constitution, Courage, Custom and Convention, Definition, Democracy, Desire, Dialectic, Duty, Education, Element, Emotion, Eternity, Evolution, Experience, Family, Fate, Form, God, Good and Evil, Government, Habit, Happiness, History, Honor, Hypothesis, Idea, Immortality, Induction, Infinity, Judgment, Justice, Knowledge, Labor, Language, Law, Liberty, Life and Death, Logic, and Love.

Smith's contribution to Old Testament studies was contained in his Palestinian Parties and Politics That Shaped the Old Testament (1971). Using form criticism to reconstruct the social background to the Old Testament, Smith advanced the proposal that two parties had vied for supremacy in ancient Israel, the first composed of those which worshipped many gods of which Yahweh was chief, while the other, the "Yahweh-alone" faction, was largely the party of the priests of Jerusalem, who wished to establish a monopoly for Yahweh. In monarchic Judah the Yahweh-alone party were a permanent minority; although sometimes able to win over a king like Josiah to their cause. Meanwhile, the population at large, including most of the kings, remained stubbornly polytheistic, worshipping the same gods as their neighbours in Moab, Ammon etc.

The poet denies that his love is a form of idolatry and that the youth himself is an idol. He insists that he has been constantly devoted to the values of fairness, kindness and truth. Being three themes united in the figure of the youth, there is great scope for verse, since they have never been united in one person before. The language used is similar in some respects to the language in the Book of Common Prayer used to describe the Holy Trinity, and Shakespeare's triple repetition of the three attributes of the Fair Youth - "Three themes in one" - makes plain his deliberate comparison of the youth to a form of deity or idol, even as he purports not to engage in idolatry (in the sense of polytheistic worship of idols).

In contrast to the rest of the isles though, much of southern Britain was considered to be part of Anglo-Saxon England, where Anglo-Saxon migrants from continental Europe had settled during the 5th century CE, bringing with them their own Germanic language (known as Old English), a polytheistic religion (Anglo-Saxon paganism) and their own distinct cultural practices. By the time of the Viking incursions though, Anglo-Saxon England too had become mostly Christian. The Isle of Man had supported its own agrarian population, but it is widely believed that it was Brythonic-speaking before Old Irish (later to become Manx) spread there. Gaelicisation could have taken place before the Viking age or perhaps during it, when the area was settled by Norse-Gaels who practised their own culture.

Germanic Heathenism in Britain is primarily present in two forms: Odinism, an international Germanic movement and Anglo-Saxon Heathenry, Esetroth or Fyrnsidu (Old English: "Ancient Custom"), a movement represented by independent kindreds characterised by a focus on local folklore as the source for the reconstruction of the ethnic religion of the English people. Both Odinism and Esetroth draw inspiration from the Anglo-Saxon identity and culture of England, with almost no difference between them, other than in terminology and organisation, with Esetroth movements having experienced a recent prominence and motivation. The Odinic Rite (OR) was founded in 1973 under the influence of Else Christensen's Odinist Study Group (Odinist Fellowship). In 1988 the Odinic Rite became the first polytheistic religious organisation to be granted "Registered Charity" status in the United Kingdom.

One Freemason in the 1780s, Karl Leonhard Reinhold, tried to reconcile Freemasonry's traditional origin story, which traces Freemasonry back to ancient Israel, with its enthusiasm for Egyptian themes. To do so, he interpreted the first statement on the statue at Sais, "I am all that has been and is and shall be," as a declaration of pantheism, in which nature and divinity are identical. Reinhold claimed the public face of Egyptian religion was polytheistic, but the Egyptian mysteries were designed to reveal the deeper, pantheistic truth to elite initiates. He also said the statement "I am that I am", spoken by the Jewish God in the Book of Exodus, meant the same as the Saite inscription and indicated that Judaism was a descendant of the ancient Egyptian belief system.

Germanic Heathenism in Britain is primarily present in two forms: Odinism, an international Germanic movement and Anglo- Saxon Heathenry, Esetroth or Fyrnsidu (Old English: "Ancient Custom"), a movement represented by independent kindreds characterised by a focus on local folklore as the source for the reconstruction of the ethnic religion of the English people. Both Odinism and Esetroth draw inspiration from the Anglo- Saxon identity and culture of England, with almost no difference between them, other than in terminology and organisation, with Esetroth movements having experienced a recent prominence and motivation. The Odinic Rite (OR) was founded in 1973 under the influence of Else Christensen's Odinist Study Group (Odinist Fellowship). In 1988 the Odinic Rite became the first polytheistic religious organisation to be granted "Registered Charity" status in the United Kingdom.

Other organizations, such as (), the (Societas Hellenica Antiquariorum), and the () use a combination of terms interchangeably, including (, 'Hellenic religion'), Hellenic polytheistic religion, and Hellenism. Other terms in common usage by Hellenic polytheists include "Greek reconstructionism" and "Hellenic Traditionalism", but the two are not synonymous. The American group Elaion uses the term "Dodekatheism" (, , 'twelve' + , , 'belief in the gods') to describe their approach to the Hellenic religion, stating that the term "has been used for some time within and outside Greece to refer to ancient Greek religion and we feel that it is important for those of us outside Greece share a common name and identity with our co-religiosts in the homeland of our spirituality", and that the term 'Hellenism' is linked too closely in current use to the modern Greek nation.

Various differences between the two movements have been highlighted; the New Age movement focuses on an improved future, whereas the focus of Paganism is on the pre-Christian past. Similarly, the New Age movement typically propounds a universalist message which sees all religions as fundamentally the same, whereas Paganism stresses the difference between monotheistic religions and those embracing a polytheistic or animistic theology. Further, the New Age movement shows little interest in magic and witchcraft, which are conversely core interests of many Pagan religions, such as Wicca. Many Pagans have sought to distance themselves from the New Age movement, even using "New Age" as an insult within their community, while conversely many involved in the New Age have expressed criticism of Paganism for emphasizing the material world over the spiritual.

Dystheism (from Greek δυσ- dys-, "bad" and θεός theos, "god") is the belief that a god is not wholly good and is possibly evil. Definitions of the term somewhat vary, with one author defining it as "where God decides to become malevolent". The broad theme of dystheism has existed for millennia, as shown by trickster gods found in polytheistic belief systems and by the view of other representations of supreme beings (such as those of the Abrahamic religions, particularly the Old Testament) through a nonreligious lens as angry, vengeful and smiting. The modern concept dates back many decades, with the Victorian era figure Algernon Charles Swinburne writing in his work Anactoria about the ancient Greek poet Sappho and her lover Anactoria in explicitly dystheistic imagery that includes cannibalism and sadomasochism.

Idolatry is prohibited by many verses in the Old Testament, but there is no one section that clearly defines idolatry. Rather there are a number of commandments on this subject spread through the books of the Hebrew Bible, some of which were written in different historical eras, in response to different issues. Idolatry in the Hebrew Bible is defined as the worship of idols (or images); the worship of polytheistic gods by use of idols (or images) and even the use of idols in the worship of Yahweh (God). The Israelites used various images in connection with their worship, including carved cherubim on the Ark of the Covenant () which God instructed Moses to make, and the embroidered figures of cherubim on the curtain which separated the Holy of Holies in the Tabernacle tent ().

These assertions were denied by the Jewish community and its scholars, who contended that Judaic thought made a sharp distinction between those classified as heathen or pagan, being polytheistic, and those who acknowledge one true God (such as the Christians) even while worshipping the true monotheistic God incorrectly. Thus, Jews viewed Christians as misguided and in error, but not among the "heathens" or "pagans" discussed in the Talmud. Both Pablo Christiani and Geronimo de Santa Fé, in addition to criticizing the Talmud, also regarded it as a source of authentic traditions, some of which could be used as arguments in favor of Christianity. Examples of such traditions were statements that the Messiah was born around the time of the destruction of the Temple and that the Messiah sat at the right hand of God.

He also contended that, as knowledge of God is required for morality by divine command theory, atheists and agnostics could not be moral; he saw this as a weakness of the theory. Others have challenged the theory on modal grounds by arguing that, even if God's command and morality correlate in this world, they may not do so in other possible worlds. In addition, the Euthyphro dilemma, first proposed by Plato (in the context of polytheistic Greek religion), presented a dilemma which threatened either to leave morality subject to the whims of God, or challenge his omnipotence. Divine command theory has also been criticised for its apparent incompatibility with the omnibenevolence of God, moral autonomy and religious pluralism, although some scholars have attempted to defend the theory from these challenges.

According to Gerson: Plotinus seems to direct his attacks at a very specific sect of Gnostics, most notably a sect of Christian Gnostics that held anti-polytheistic and anti- daemon views, and that preached salvation was possible without struggle. At one point, Plotinus makes clear that his major grudge is the way Gnostics 'misused' Plato's teachings, and not their own teachings themselves: The Neoplatonic movement (though Plotinus would have simply referred to himself as a philosopher of Plato) seems to be motivated by the desire of Plotinus to revive the pagan philosophical tradition. Plotinus was not claiming to innovate with the Enneads, but to clarify aspects of the works of Plato that he considered misrepresented or misunderstood. Plotinus does not claim to be an innovator, but rather a communicator of a tradition.

After 200 CE several schools of thought were formally codified in Indian philosophy, including Samkhya, Yoga, Nyaya, Vaisheshika, Mimāṃsā and Advaita Vedanta.. Hinduism, otherwise a highly polytheistic, pantheistic or monotheistic religion, also tolerated atheistic schools. The thoroughly materialistic and anti-religious philosophical Cārvāka school that originated around the 6th century BCE is the most explicitly atheistic school of Indian philosophy. Cārvāka is classified as a nāstika ("heterodox") system; it is not included among the six schools of Hinduism generally regarded as orthodox. It is noteworthy as evidence of a materialistic movement within Hinduism.. Our understanding of Cārvāka philosophy is fragmentary, based largely on criticism of the ideas by other schools, and it is no longer a living tradition.. Other Indian philosophies generally regarded as atheistic include Samkhya and Mimāṃsā.

Magic in Anglo-Saxon England () refers to the belief and practice of magic by the Anglo-Saxons between the fifth and eleventh centuries AD in Early Mediaeval England. In this period, magical practices were used for a variety of reasons, but from the available evidence it appears that they were predominantly used for healing ailments and creating amulets, although it is apparent that at times they were also used to curse. The Anglo-Saxon period was dominated by two separate religious traditions, the polytheistic Anglo- Saxon paganism and then the monotheistic Anglo-Saxon Christianity, both of which left their influences on the magical practices of the time. What we know of Anglo-Saxon magic comes primarily from the surviving medical manuscripts, such as Bald's Leechbook and the Lacnunga, all of which date from the Christian era.

Al-Mughira was the son of Abd Allah ibn Umar and a great-grandson of the eponymous progenitor of the Banu Makhzum clan of the Quraysh tribe of Mecca. He was likely active as a leader of his clan and tribe in the mid-6th century CE, a period in which Mecca, traditionally a pilgrimage center for the polytheistic Arabs during the pre-Islamic period, was becoming a political center as well. Al-Mughira was a contemporary of Abd al-Muttalib of the Quraysh's Banu Hashim clan and the grandfather of the Islamic prophet Muhammad. Anecdotes recorded by the 8th and 9th century historians Mus'ab al-Zubayri and al-Baladhuri mention that al-Mughira provoked a rebellion by the nomadic Banu Fazara tribe as a result of disbarring the Fazara's chieftain from making the pilgrimage to Mecca's religious sanctuary, the Ka'aba.

In the imperial period, it is evident from many Latin authors and from the historians that Rome swarmed with occultists and diviners, many of whom in spite of the Lex Cornelia almost openly traded in poisons, and not infrequently in assassination to boot. Paradoxical as it may appear, such emperors as Augustus, Tiberius, and Septimius Severus, while banishing from their realms all seers and necromancers, and putting them to death, in private entertained astrologers and wizards among their retinue, consulting their art upon each important occasion, and often even in the everyday and ordinary affairs of life. These prosecutions are significant, as they establish that and the prohibition under severest penalties, the sentence of death itself of witchcraft was demonstrably not a product of Christianity, but had long been employed among polytheistic societies. The ecclesiastical legislation followed a similar but milder course.

Canterbury Cathedral is the seat of the Primate of All England, the Archbishop of Canterbury, the most senior bishop of the Church of England (it was the property of the Roman Catholic Church before the English Reformation) The Lady Chapel of Wells Cathedral Christianity became the dominant religion in England in the 7th century. Polytheistic Indo-European religions, often referred to as paganism, were practised before Christianity took hold. The most notable of these religions were Celtic polytheism, Roman polytheism and Anglo-Saxon paganism, which was the religion of the early English people, or Anglo-Saxons, and which was in many ways very similar to the closely related Norse paganism practised by the Scandinavian peoples and that would later be introduced to England by the Danes. Christianity was first established in Britain by the Roman Empire.

Individuals also might choose to undergo initiation into mystery religions such as the rites of Mithras, as a matter of private devotion. These forms of religious observance were not considered mutually incompatible. But just as pharaoh Akhenaten's monotheistic cult of Aten collided with the polytheistic traditions of Egypt, the Judeo-Christian insistence on Yahweh being the only God, believing all other gods were false gods, could not be fitted into the system. The spread of Christians, first looked on merely as Jewish schismatics, over most provinces and Rome itself, and most of all their scruples in refraining from the loyalty oaths directed at the emperor's divinity and their refusal to pay the Jewish tax,Historians debate whether or not the Roman government distinguished between Christians and Jews prior to Nerva's modification of the Fiscus Judaicus in 96.

As previously noted, divinities are closely related to the transcendent force(s) or power(s) credited to them,note Augustine's argument that divinity is not a quality of God, but that "God is [...] Divinity itself" (Nature and Grace, part I, question 3, article 3) "Whether God is the Same as His Essence or Nature" so much so that in some cases the powers or forces may themselves be invoked independently. This leads to the second usage of the word divine (and a less common usage of divinity): to refer to the operation of transcendent power in the world. In its most direct form, the operation of transcendent power implies some form of divine intervention. For pan- and polytheistic faiths this usually implies the direct action of one god or another on the course of human events.

After Muhammad and the first converts to Islam were forced to leave Mecca, the community was welcomed in Medina by the Ansar, a group of Pagans who had converted to Islam. Despite Medina already being occupied by numerous Jewish and polytheistic tribes, the arrival of Muhammad and his followers provoked no opposition from Medina's residents. Upon arriving in Medina, Muhammad established the Constitution of Medina with the various tribal leaders in order to form the Meccan immigrants and the Medinan residents into a single community, the ummah. Rather than limiting members of the ummah to a single tribe or religious affiliation as had been the case when the ummah first developed in Mecca, the Constitution of Medina ensured that the ummah was composed of a variety of people and beliefs essentially making it to be supra-tribal.

With the support of his younger brother Prochoros, Demetrios opposed as polytheistic or pantheistic the Palamites' commitment to hesychasm (Greek, silence or stillness), at the time a controversial practice of mystical contemplation through uninterrupted prayer, taught by the Orthodox monks of Mount Athos and articulated by the 14th-century ascetic theologian Gregory Palamas. Applying Aristotelian logic to hesychasm (sometimes claimed by Latin critics to be rooted in Platonism),biblewiki.be/ the Kydones brothers accused Palamas of promoting pantheism or polytheism, only to be condemned themselves by three successive synods that concurred with Palamas' theology and affirmed hesychastic practice. He is the author of the moral philosophical essay De contemnenda morte ("On Despising Death"), an Apologia for his conversion to Catholicism, and a voluminous collection of 447 letters, valuable for the history of Byzantine relations with the West.

Barlaam held this concept to be polytheistic, inasmuch as it postulated two eternal beings, a visible (immanent) and an invisible (transcendent) God. Gregory Palamas, afterwards Archbishop of Thessalonica, was asked by his fellow monks on Mt Athos to defend Hesychasm from Barlaam's attacks. Well-educated in Greek philosophy (dialectical method) and thus able to defend Hesychasm with methods in use also in the West, Palamas defended Hesychasm in the 1340s at a series of synods in Constantinople, and wrote a number of works in its defense. In 1341 the dispute came before a synod held at Constantinople which, taking into account the regard in which the writings of the pseudo-Dionysius were held, condemned Barlaam, who recanted and almost immediately returned to Calabria, afterwards becoming bishop of a Byzantine-Rite diocese in communion with the Pope.

Idol of Tara, in alt= The original religion practiced by the native or aboriginal peoples of the archipelago (Guanches) was a belief of animistic and polytheistic type, with a strong presence of astral cult. This religiosity sacralized certain places, mainly rock and mountains, such as the volcano Teide in Tenerife, the Idafe Rock in La Palma, the Bentayga Rock in Gran Canaria or the mountain of Tindaya in Fuerteventura. They also held sacred the trees, among which the drago and the pine stand out. There was a pantheon of different gods and ancestral spirits; among the main gods for example of the island of Tenerife, we could highlight: Achamán (god of heaven and supreme creator), Chaxiraxi (mother goddess later identified with the Virgin of Candelaria), Magec (god of the sun) and Guayota (the demon) among many other gods and ancestral spirits.

Paleo-Hebrew (10th century BCE to 135 CE), old Aramaic (10th century BCE to 4th century CE), and square Hebrew (3rd century BCE to present) scripts. Judaism is traditionally considered one of the oldest monotheistic religions in the world, although it is also believed that the earliest Israelites (pre-7th century BCE) were polytheistic, evolved into henotheistic and later monolatristic,Monotheism, 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." rather than monotheistic.

The Rivan Codex also contains the holy writings of the various religions in the world and the economic diversities of the different countries. It starts off with a creation story where each god takes a people and then goes into their specific money, religion, economy method, trade relations, weights/measures, etc. One of the essays also lists the following formula for epic fantasy: # The Underlying Theology (Polytheistic/Monotheistic/Buddhist/Other) # The Quest (object of the hero's existence, reason for the group) # The Magic Talisman (Holy Grail/One Ring/Magic Sword/Jewel) # The Hero: Galahad the Pure, Gawain the Brave, Percival the Dumb (Naive), or Lancelot the Heavyweight Champion of the World. # The Resident Wizard (Gandalf, Merlin, Belgarath) # The Heroine (Ce'Nedra) # The Villain (usually with some diabolical agenda) # The Companions (generally a multicultural crew who can protect the hero until he defeats the villain) # The Romantic Interests for 8.

An artistic rendering of the hero Fionn mac Cumhaill The traditional, or "pagan", worldview of the pre-Christian Gaels of Ireland is typically described as animistic,. polytheistic, ancestor venerating and focused on the hero cult of archetypal Gaelic warriors such as Cú Chulainn and Fionn mac Cumhaill. The four seasonal festivals celebrated in the Gaelic calendar, still observed to this day, are Imbolc, Beltane, Lughnasadh and Samhain.. While the general worldview of the Gaelic tradition has been recovered, a major issue for academic scholars is that Gaelic culture was oral prior to the coming of Christianity and monks were the first to record the beliefs of this rival worldview as a "mythology". Unlike other religions, there is no overall "holy book" systematically setting out exact rules to follow, but various works, such as the Lebor Gabála Érenn, Dindsenchas, Táin Bó Cúailnge and Acallam na Senórach, represent the metaphysical orientation of Gaelachas.

King of the Jews is a book by Nick Tosches. On the surface it is a biography of Arnold Rothstein, the man who reputedly fixed the 1919 World Series, inspired the characters of Meyer Wolfsheim in The Great Gatsby and Nathan Detroit in Guys and Dolls, and created the modern system of organized crime. The book also contains numerous digressions away from its main subject, including: an extended linguistic discussion of transformation of the Hebrews from a polytheistic to monotheistic religion, early 20th-century European Jewish culture, acknowledging the lack of real information on the life of Rothstein, several instances of the author breaking from the various narratives to speak in the first person to the reader, and a repeating motif involving Jesus having sex with a woman. The book began as an article in Vanity Fair, for which Tosches was a contributing editor.

This include myths in which gods teach people about same-sex sexual practices by example, as in Aztec or Hawaiian mythology or myths that explain the cause for transgender identities or homosexuality, such as the story in which Prometheus accidentally creates some people with the wrong genitalia while drunk, or instances of reincarnation or possession by a spirit of the opposite gender in Voodoo. It is common in polytheistic mythologies to find characters that can change gender, or have aspects of both male and female genders at the same time. Sexual activity with both genders is also common within such pantheons, and is compared to modern bisexuality or pansexuality. The creation myths of many traditions involve sexual, bisexual or androgynous motifs, with the world being created by genderless or hermaphrodite beings or through sexual congress between beings of the opposite or same apparent gender.

Nathan Katz in Buddhist and Western Philosophy (1981, p. 446) points out that the term "transpolytheistic" would be more accurate, since it entails that the polytheistic gods are not denied or rejected even after the development of a notion of the Absolute that transcends them, but criticizes the classification as characterizing the mainstream by the periphery: "like categorizing Roman Catholicism as a good example of non-Nestorianism". The term is indeed informed by the fact that the corresponding development in the West, the development of monotheism, did not attempt to "transcend" polytheism, but to abolish it, while in the mainstream of the Indian religions, the notion of "gods" (deva) was never elevated to the status of "God" or Ishvara, or the impersonal Absolute Brahman, but adopted roles comparable to Western angels. "Transtheism", according to the criticism of Katz, is then an artifact of comparative religion.

Based on Quranic verses and Islamic traditions, classical sharia law distinguishes between Muslims, followers of other Abrahamic religions, and Pagans or people belonging to other polytheistic religions. As monotheists, Jews and Christians have traditionally been considered "People of the Book", and afforded a special status known as dhimmi derived from a theoretical contract—"dhimma" or "residence in return for taxes". In Yemenite Jewish sources, a treaty was drafted between Muhammad and his Jewish subjects, known as kitāb ḏimmat al-nabi, written in the 17th year of the Hijra (638 CE), which gave express liberty to the Jews living in Arabia to observe the Sabbath and to grow-out their side-locks, but required them to pay the jizya (poll-tax) annually for their protection.Shelomo Dov Goitein, The Yemenites – History, Communal Organization, Spiritual Life (Selected Studies), editor: Menahem Ben- Sasson, Jerusalem 1983, pp. 288–299.

The theological variations that characterize the Goddess movement can also be classified into two: the views that describe the Goddess as a metaphor and those that consider the Goddess as a deity. The former emerged from among Jewish and Christian adherents and maintains that the Goddess serves as the means of talking about, imagining, or relating to the divine and this is demonstrated in the push to recover the feminine face of God based on scriptural and historical sources. On the other hand, the theology that the Goddess is a deity, with importantly and unchangeably female persona, emerged out of the feminists who came from polytheistic faiths such as Hinduism, Buddhism, Native American, and traditional African religions. The goddesses in this theology are rarely understood as metaphors or images since they have distinct individual features and that worshippers can interact with their suprahuman personages or symbols.

Cantabrian stele, carved in sandstone (1.70 m in diameter and 0.32 m thick) Literary and epigraphic evidence confirms that, like their Gallaeci and Astures neighbors, the Cantabri were polytheistic, worshipping a vast and complex pantheon of male and female Indo-European deities in sacred oak or pine woods, mountains, water-courses and small rural sanctuaries. Druidism does not appear to have been practiced by the Cantabri, though there is enough evidence for the existence of an organized priestly class who performed elaborated rites, which included ritual steam baths, festive dances, oracles, divination, human and animal sacrifices. In this respect, StraboStrabo, Geographikon, III, 3, 7. mentions that the peoples of the north-west sacrificed horses to an unnamed God of War, and both HoraceHorace, Odes, III, 4, 35 and Silius ItalicusSilius Italicus, Hispania, III, 3, 161. added that the Concani had the custom of drinking the horse’s blood at the ceremony.

The second show to achieve the level of notoriety of Little Boy, Joe Bean, was suggested by his long-time collaborator, Bob McAllister, a Bainbridge Island High School English teacher who had hired Mark to write a spring musical based on the biblical story of Job. Nichols says he did everything possible to make "a depressing story" as much fun as he could, using a plethora of musical styles from Gilbert and Sullivan-inspired chorus to Grunge-era dirge rock to a sort of primal Dead Can Dance sound. "The twist," says Nichols, "was that I had no intention of making the characters of God and the Devil simple." What he did was expand them into a set of "New Age Gods" who torture the wonderfully adaptable Joe Bean in an effort to see how far a "polytheistic modern rich hippy" can be pushed.

The first use of grapheme-based writing originated in the area, probably among Canaanite peoples resident in Egypt. This evolved into the Phoenician alphabet from which all modern alphabetical writing systems are descended. The Paleo-Hebrew alphabet was one of the first to develop and evidence of its use exists from about 1000 BCE (see the Gezer calendar), the language spoken was probably Biblical Hebrew. Monotheism, the belief in a single all-powerful law-giving God is thought to have evolved among the Hebrew speakers gradually, over the next few centuries, from a number of separate cults,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) leading to the first versions of the religion now known as Judaism.

Weber was ambivalent towards rationalisation; while admitting it was responsible for many advances, in particular, freeing humans from traditional, restrictive and illogical social guidelines, he also criticised it for dehumanising individuals as "cogs in the machine" and curtailing their freedom, trapping them in the bureaucratic iron cage of rationality and bureaucracy. Related to rationalisation is the process of disenchantment, in which the world is becoming more explained and less mystical, moving from polytheistic religions to monotheistic ones and finally to the Godless science of modernity. However, another interpretation of Weber's theory of disenchantment, advanced by historian of religion Jason Josephson-Storm, claims that Weber does not envision a binary between rationisation and magical thinking, and that Weber actually referred to the sequestering and professionalisation of magic when he described disenchantment, not to the disappearances of magic. Regardless, for Weber the processes of rationalisation affect all of society, removing "sublime values…from public life" and making art less creative.

Hakl 2010. p. 07. Adonism is a polytheistic religion, revolving around a belief that there are five principal gods: Belus, Biltis, Adonis, Dido and Molchos. Adonis is the most prominent of these in the group's theology, being a benevolent figure that Sättler equated with the Christian figure of Satan. In contrast to Adonis, Molchos is believed by Adonists to be malevolent, and to be responsible for the enslavement of humanity through monotheistic religions such as Judaism, Christianity and Islam: the religion therefore has "a pronounced anti-Christian bias".Hakl 2010. p. 05, 16-17. Born into the Bohemian region of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, Franz Sättler proved himself to be a talented linguist, gaining a doctorate in the subject and publishing the world's first Persian-German dictionary. Subsequently travelling across much of Europe, he was imprisoned by the French during the First World War, where he first came across Theosophy and the occult, topics which greatly interested him.

As with most dead religions, many aspects of the common practices and intricacies of the doctrine have been lost and forgotten over time. However, much of the information and knowledge has survived, and great work has been done by historians and scientists, with the help of religious scholars and translators, to re-construct a working knowledge of the religious history, customs, and the role these beliefs played in everyday life in Sumer, Akkad, Assyria, Babylonia, Ebla and Chaldea during this time. Mesopotamian religion is thought to have been an influence on subsequent religions throughout the world, including Canaanite, Aramean, and ancient Greek. Mesopotamian religion was polytheistic, worshipping over 2,100 different deities,Bottéro (2001:45) many of which were associated with a specific state within Mesopotamia, such as Sumer, Akkad, Assyria or Babylonia, or a specific Mesopotamian city, such as; (Ashur), Nineveh, Ur, Nippur, Arbela, Harran, Uruk, Ebla, Kish, Eridu, Isin, Larsa, Sippar, Gasur, Ekallatum, Til Barsip, Mari, Adab, Eshnunna and Babylon.

Scottish anthropologist Andrew Lang concluded in 1898 that the idea of the Supreme Being, the "high God" or "All Father" existed among some of the simplest of contemporary tribes prior to Western contact, and that Urmonotheism (primitive monotheism or henotheism) that worshipped God, as opposed to a pantheon of polytheistic gods, was the original religion of mankind. Urmonotheism was then defended by Wilhelm Schmidt (1868–1954), in his Der Ursprung der Gottesidee appearing from 1912, opposing the "Revolutionary Monotheism" approach that traces the emergence of monotheistic thought as a gradual process spanning the Bronze and Iron Age Religions of the Ancient Near East and Classical Antiquity. Alleged traces of primitive monotheism were located in the Assyrian deities Ashur and Marduk, and Hebrew YHWH. Monotheism in Schmidt's view is the "natural" form of theism, which was later overlaid and "degraded" by polytheism after deceased ancestors' veneration became worship, and personified natural forces became worshipped as well as gods.

Manasseh's repentance; as in 2 Chronicles 33:1-13 (illustration from a Bible card published in 1904 by the Providence Lithograph Company) There are three aspects of Manasseh's religious policy which the writer of Kings considered deplorable: the religious reaction which followed hard upon his accession; its extension by the free adoption of foreign cults; and the bitter persecution of the prophetic party. According to Kings, Manasseh reversed the centralizing reforms of his father Hezekiah, and re-established local shrines, possibly for economic reasons. He restored polytheistic worship of Baal and Asherah () in the Temple, and sponsored the Assyrian astral cult throughout Judah.Malamat, Abraham and Ben-Sasson, Haim Hillel. A History of the Jewish People, Harvard University Press, 1976 So zealous was he in his worship of the foreign gods, he is said to have participated in the sacrificial cult of Moloch which consisted of sacrificing young children or passing them through fire (2 Kings 21:6)Stavrakopoulou, F. (2004).

Polydeism (from the Greek πολύ poly ("many") and Latin deus meaning god) is a portmanteau referencing a polytheistic form of deism, encompassing the belief that the universe was the collective creation of multiple gods, each of whom created a piece of the universe or multiverse and then ceased to intervene in its evolution. This concept addresses an apparent contradiction in deism, that a monotheistic God created the universe, but now expresses no apparent interest in it, by supposing that if the universe is the construct of many gods, none of them would have an interest in the universe as a whole. Creighton University Philosophy professor William O. Stephens,Article on "Bill" Stephens who has taught this concept, suggests that C. D. Broad projected this conceptarticle on C. D. Broad's concept projection in Broad's 1925 article, "The Validity of Belief in a Personal God".C. D. Broad, "The Validity of Belief in a Personal God", reprinted in C. D. Broad, Religion, Philosophy and Psychical Research, (1953), 159–174.

Ceremony of the Roman revivalist group Nova Roma to Concordia at Aquincum (Budapest), Floralia 2008 Roman Polytheistic Reconstructionism, known variously as Religio Romana (Roman religion) in Latin, the Roman Way to the gods in Italian and Spanish (via romana agli dei and camino romano a los dioses, respectively), and Cultus Deorum Romanorum (worship of the Roman gods), is a contemporary reconstructionist movement reviving traditional Roman religious cults consisting of loosely related organizations. Adherents can be found across Latin Europe, but also in the Americas, the latter exemplified by Nova Roma, the largest such reconstructionist organisation.George D. Chryssides, Historical Dictionary of New Religious Movements (2011, 2nd ed.) While an international organisation, it is legally based in the United States, with a majority of its membership hailing from the United States and Canada. Religious activity in Nova Roma, however, is also especially active in Central Europe, and countries such as Hungary, as well as Eastern Europe, particularly Ukraine and Russia.

The core of the book lies in chapters 5, "Archaeological Evidence for Folk Religions in Ancient Israel", 6 "The Goddess Asherah and Her Cult", and 7 "Asherah, Women's Cults, and 'Official Yahwism'". These chapters describe polytheistic religion in ancient Israel, which, Dever points out, was the reality in the religious lives of most people. The last two chapters (chapter 8: "From Polytheism to Monotheism" and chapter 9: "What Does the Goddess Do to Help") sum up the book, concluding that biblical monotheism is an artificial phenomenon, the product of the elite, nationalist parties who wrote and edited the Hebrew Bible during the Babylonian exile as a response to the trauma of the conquest, and subsequently enforced it in their homeland during the early Persian period. Dever also notes that folk religion and the role of the goddess did not disappear under official monotheistic Yahwism, but instead went underground, to find a home in the magic and mysticism of later Judaism.

The term is frequently used in the United States to differentiate between syncretic and eclectic Neopagan movements, and those based on the traditions, writings, history, and mythology of a specific ancient polytheistic culture. In contrast to revivalist traditions, Reconstructionists are culturally oriented and attempt to reconstruct historical forms of religion and spirituality, in a modern context. Therefore, Kemetic, Canaanite, Hellenic, Roman, Celtic, Germanic, Baltic and Slavic Reconstructionists aim for the revival of historical practices and beliefs of Ancient Egypt, Ancient Canaan and Phoenicia, Ancient Greece, Ancient Rome, the Celts, the Germanic peoples, the Balts and the Slavs, respectively. Most Hellenic polytheist groups unequivocally state that reconstructionism is not the only correct method of practicing the ancient Greek religion, but do identify a practice as Hellenic only when it embraces the humanistic values and ethical virtues of the ancient Greeks, demonstrates loyalty and reverence toward the Greek Gods, and uses a religious structure that would be recognizable to an ancient Greek.

Strmiska described Paganism as a movement "dedicated to reviving the polytheistic, nature-worshipping pagan religions of pre-Christian Europe and adapting them for the use of people in modern societies." The religious studies scholar Wouter Hanegraaff characterised Paganism as encompassing "all those modern movements which are, first, based on the conviction that what Christianity has traditionally denounced as idolatry and superstition actually represents/represented a profound and meaningful religious worldview and, secondly, that a religious practice based on this worldview can and should be revitalized in our modern world." Discussing the relationship between the different Pagan religions, religious studies scholars Kaarina Aitamurto and Scott Simpson wrote that they were "like siblings who have taken different paths in life but still retain many visible similarities". But there has been much "cross-fertilization" between these different faiths: many groups have influenced, and been influenced by, other Pagan religions, making clear-cut distinctions among them more difficult for scholars to make.

The reverence of the Amesha Spenta and the Yazatas has been frequently attacked by non- Zoroastrian sources for its polytheist nature, not only in modern times but also the Sassanid era. While the "worship of the elements" was a repeated accusation during the 4th and 5th centuries, Christian missionaries (such as John Wilson) in 19th-century India specifically targeted the immanence of the Amesha Spenta as indicative of (in their view) a Zoroastrian polytheistic tradition worthy of attack. pp. 182ff. A frequent target for criticism was the Zoroastrian credo in which the adherent declares, "I profess to be a worshiper of Mazda, follower of the teachings of Zoroaster,... one who praises and reveres the Amesha Spenta" (the Fravaraneh, Yasna 12.1). Some modern Zoroastrian theologians, especially those identifying with the Reformist school of thought, believe that ethereal spirit and physical manifestation are not separable in any sense and that a reverence of any of Ahura Mazda's creations is ultimately a worship of the Creator.

However, Abdullah Yavuz, argues the following: It was probably while in Baghdad that Ibn Tumart began to develop a system of his own by combining the teachings of his Ash'arite masters with parts of the doctrines of others, with a touch of Sufi mysticism imbibed from the great teacher al-Ghazali. Almohad hagiographers report that Ibn Tumart was in al-Ghazali's presence when news arrived that the Almoravids had proscribed and publicly burned his recent great work, Ihya' Ulum al-Din, upon which al-Ghazali is said to have turned to Ibn Tumart and charged him, as a native of those lands, with the mission of setting the Almoravids right. Ibn Tumart's main principle was a rigid unitarianism (tawhid) which denied the existence of the attributes of God as incompatible with his unity and therefore a polytheistic idea. Ibn Tumart represented a revolt against what he perceived as anthropomorphism in the Muslim orthodoxy, but he was a rigid predestinarian and a strict observer of the law.

Followers of both monotheistic and polytheistic religions in ancient and modern times have often accepted the importance of God's commands in establishing morality. Numerous variants of the theory have been presented: historically, figures including Saint Augustine, Duns Scotus, William of Ockham and Søren Kierkegaard have presented various versions of divine command theory; more recently, Robert Merrihew Adams has proposed a "modified divine command theory" based on the omnibenevolence of God in which morality is linked to human conceptions of right and wrong. Paul Copan has argued in favour of the theory from a Christian viewpoint, and Linda Trinkaus Zagzebski's divine motivation theory proposes that God's motivations, rather than commands, are the source of morality. Semantic challenges to divine command theory have been proposed; the philosopher William Wainwright argued that to be commanded by God and to be morally obligatory do not have an identical meaning, which he believed would make defining obligation difficult.

The goddess Ishtar, winged and wearing a version of the horned cap of divinity. Detail of the so- called "Ishtar vase", early 2nd millennium BC (Louvre AO 17000) Mesopotamian religion was polytheistic, thereby accepting the existence of many different deities, both male and female, though it was also henotheistic,Bottéro (2001:41) with certain gods being viewed as superior to others by their specific devotees. These devotees were often from a particular city or city- state that held that deity as its patron deity, for instance the god Enki was often associated with the city of Eridu in Sumer, the god Ashur with Assur and Assyria, Enlil with the Sumerian city of Nippur, Ishtar with the Assyrian city of Arbela, and the god Marduk was associated with Babylon.Bottéro (2001:53) Though the full number of gods and goddesses found in Mesopotamia is not known, K. Tallqvist, in his Akkadische Götterepitheta (1938) counted around two thousand four hundred that we now know about, most of which had Sumerian names.

Unlike Fitzpatrick's War, Judson provides little background to explain how the world evolved into the shape set forth in the novel. The story takes place in the late twenty-third century, in which much of the Northern Hemisphere, as well as extraplanetary colonies on Mars and Jupiter, are dominated by the Pan-Polarian Empire, which is implicitly descended from the United States of America (though this is never expressly stated, references are made to the "old capital" near Maryland.) Pan-Polarian society is based on that of Imperial Rome, including an imperial cult and a variety of polytheistic and monolatric religions that have largely replaced the major religions of our time, including the cults of "El Bis" and the goddess Marilyn. The Empire's primary rivals are Persia and China, but which also fights against a number of enemies in Africa and South America. A nano- engineered plague has been released by one of the warring parties which causes metal to corrode and become useless; as a result, advanced technology is beginning to fail and the world is quickly degenerating to pre-industrial technology.

Pre-exilic Israel, like its neighbours, was polytheistic, and Israelite monotheism was the result of unique historical circumstances. The original god of Israel was El, as the name demonstrates—its probable meaning is "may El rule" or some other sentence-form involving the name of El. In the early tribal period, each tribe would have had its own patron god; when kingship emerged, the state promoted Yahweh as the national god of Israel, supreme over the other gods, and gradually Yahweh absorbed all the positive traits of the other gods and goddesses. Yahweh and El merged at religious centres such as Shechem, Shiloh and Jerusalem, with El's name becoming a generic term for "god" and Yahweh, the national god, appropriating many of the older supreme god's titles such as El Shaddai (Almighty) and Elyon (Most High). Asherah, formerly the wife of El, was worshipped as Yahweh's consort or mother; potsherds discovered at Khirbet el-Kôm and Kuntillet Ajrûd make reference to "Yahweh and his Asherah", and various biblical passages indicate that her statues were kept in his temples in Jerusalem, Bethel, and Samaria.

As Hutton pointed out, "his influence made this the orthodoxy of Minoan archaeology, although there was always a few colleagues who pointed out that it placed a strain upon the evidence." In 1903, Sir Edmund Chambers, a respected amateur historian of the mediaeval period, published The Medieval Stage, in which he diverted from his main theme to state how he believed that in prehistory, humans had worshipped a Great Earth Mother as a twofold deity who was both the creator and the destroyer. That same year, the classicist Jane Ellen Harrison espoused a similar idea, but claimed that this prehistoric Great Goddess had been divided into three forms—she theorised this based upon the fact that in various recorded polytheistic European religions, there were a set of three goddesses, such as the Fates and the Graces. Harrison identified two of these as the Maiden, who ruled over the living, and the Mother, who ruled the underworld, and like Evans believed that a male god who was both her lover and son was also worshipped.

Many Wiccans also embrace the idea of the spiritual transcendence of divinity, and see this transcendence as compatible with the idea of immanence. In such a view, divinity and dimensions of spiritual existence (sometimes called "the astral planes") can exist outside the physical world, as well as extending into the material, and/or rising out of the material, intimately interwoven into the fabric of material existence in such a way that the spiritual affects the physical, and vice versa. (The conception of Nature as a vast, interconnected web of existence that is woven by the Goddess is very common within Wicca; an idea often connected with the Triple Goddess as personified by the Three Fates who weave the Web of Wyrd.) This combination of transcendence and immanence allows for the intermingling and the interaction of the unmanifest spiritual nature of the universe with the manifest physical universe; the physical reflects the spiritual, and vice versa. (An idea expressed in the occult maxim "As Above, So Below" which is also used within Wicca.) Given the usual interpretation of Wicca as a pantheistic and duotheistic/polytheistic religion, the monotheistic belief in a single "supreme deity" does not generally apply.

In Alevi thought there are three creative principles: the latent breath called Haqq or Allah; the prototypal human which is made up of active and passive principles called Yol, Sunnah or Muhammad (the Jem); and the divine light called Nur expressed as Ali. Comparisons between communion (ittihad) in Alevism and the Christian trinity, whose three principles are called the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit,The Kurds: a concise handbook, p. 143 notwithstanding, it is not comparable with the tritheistic conceptions of Hinduism, with Brahma, Shiva and Vishnu, and certainly not with polytheistic ancient Egypt in Osiris, Isis and Horus,The Mythological Trinity or Triad Osiris, Horus and Isis, Wikicommons[Manfred Lurker, Lexikon der Götter und Symbole der alten Ägypter, Scherz 1998, p. 214f one cannot accurately depict such examples as being representative of the Haqq–Muhammad–Ali communion (ittihad), since according to Alevi or Bektashi beliefs (Wahdat al-mawjud), only Allah is a real entity, Muhammad and Ali being simple manifestations of the way (Yol) and the light (Noor) of Allah (Haqq) and not of Allah himself, hence they are neither equal to it nor separate independent entities.

In 1883, William Watts McNair, a British surveyor on leave, explored the area disguised as a hakim. He reported on the journey later that year to the Royal Geographical Society. George Scott Robertson, medical officer during the Second Anglo- Afghan War and later British political officer in the princely state of Chitral, was given permission to explore the country of the Kafirs in 1890–91. He was the last outsider to visit the area and observe these people's polytheistic culture before their conversion to Islam. Robertson's 1896 account was entitled The Kafirs of the Hindu Kush. Though some sub-groups such as the Kom paid tribute to Chitral, the majority of Kafiristan was left on the Afghan side of the frontier in 1893, when large areas of tribal lands between Afghanistan and British India were divided into zones of control by the Durand Line. The territory between Afghanistan and British India was demarcated between 1894 and 1896. Part of the frontier lying between Nawa Kotal in the outskirts of Mohmand country and Bashgal Valley on the outskirts of Kafiristan was demarcated by 1895 in an agreement reached on 9 April 1895.