183. God and Gods
See also 59. BUDDHISM ; 69. CATHOLICISM ; 79. CHRIST ; 80. CHRISTIANITY ; 135. EASTERN ORTHODOXY ; 151. FAITH ; 206. HINDUISM ; 227. ISLAM ; 231. JUDAISM ; 286. MYTHOLOGY ; 332. PROTESTANTISM ; 349. RELIGION ; 358. SACREDNESS ; 392. THEOLOGY .
- acosmism, akosmism
- a denial of, or disbelief in, the existence of an external world or of a world distinct from God. — acosmist, n. — acosmic, adj.
- adevism
- the denial of legendary gods. — adevist, n.
- agnosticism
- the tenet that neither the existence nor the nature of God is known or knowable. — agnostic, n., adj.
- allotheism
- the worship of strange or foreign gods.
- aniconism
- 1 . the worship of an object symbolizing, but not representing God.
- 2 . an opposition to icons or idols. — aniconic, adj.
- animism
- 1. the belief that natural objects and phenomena and the universe itself possess souls and consciousness.
- 2 . the belief in spiritual beings or agencies. — animist, n. — animistic, adj.
- anthropolatry
- the deification and worship of a human being.
- anthropomorphism
- the assignment of human shape and attributes to gods, animals, etc. — anthropomorphist, n. — anthropomorphic, anthropomorphical, anthropomorphistic, adj.
- anthropopathism, anthropopathy
- the assignment of human feelings to a god or inanimate object. — anthropopathite, n. — anthropopathic, adj.
- anthropophuism
- the assignment of human nature and emotions to God. — anthropophuistic, adj.
- anthropotheism
- the belief that the gods have human nature, or are only deified men.
- apotheosis
- deification; the elevation of a person to godhood. See also 210. HONORS and REGALIA .
- Atenism
- the monotheistic religious system of the Egyptian pharaoh Ikhnaton, emphasizing the worship of the sun god Aten (Aton).
- atheism
- the absolute denial of the existence of God or any other gods. — atheist, n. — atheistic, adj.
- Baalism
- the worship, in ancient Canaan or Phoenicia, of any of a variety of chief deities referred to as Baal, ’lord.’ — Baalite, n. — Baalistic, adj.
- bitheism
- a belief in two gods. — bitheist, n. — bitheistic, adj.
- chrematheism
- Obsolete, the worship of inanimate objects as usefully divine.
- deicide
- 1 . the killing of a god.
- 2 . the killer of a god. — deicidal , adj.
- deism
- the acknowledgment of the existence of a god upon the testimony of reason and of nature and its laws, and the rejection of the possibility of supernatural intervention in human affairs and of special revelation. — deist, n. — deistic, adj.
- demiurgism
- the belief, in Platonism and some Gnostic sects, that the material and sensible world was created by a subordinate god under the direction of the Supreme Being. — demiurge, n. — demiurgic, adj.
- ditheism
- 1 . the belief or doctrine that there are two gods of equal power.
- 2 . Zoroastrianism. the belief in two antagonistic deities, one a force for good, one for evil. — ditheist, n. — ditheistic, ditheistical adj.
- euhemerism
- the belief that the mythological gods were merely early kings and heroes deified. — euhemerist, n. — euhemeristic, adj.
- henotheism
- a belief in one suprème or specially venerated god who is not the only god. — henotheist, n.
- heroogony
- the birth of heroes as a result of a union between gods and mortal women.
- herotheism
- the worship of mortals who have been deified.
- hylotheism
- the identification of God with matter or the universe. — hylotheist, n.
- Isiac
- relating to the religious practices and objects involving the goddess Isis.
- Mammonism
- the pursuit of material wealth and possessions, especially a dedication to riches that is tantamount to devotion. — Mammonist, Mammonite, n.
- Mazdaism
- the worship of Ahura Mazda in Zoroastrianism as the source of all light and good. — Mazdaist, n.
- mechanomorphism
- the concept that God is a mechanical force and that the universe is governed by natural laws. Cf. deism. — mechanomorphic, adj.
- misotheism
- Rare. a hatred of gods or God.
- Mithraism
- an oriental mystery cult, admitting only men, whose deity was Mithras, the savior hero of Persian myth. — Mithraist, n. — Mithraic, adj.
- monolatry
- the worship of one god without excluding belief in others.
- monotheism
- the doctrine of or belief in only one God. — monotheist, n.
- myriotheism
- the worship of an unlimited number of gods.
- Neptunianism
- the state of relating to the god or planet Neptune or to the ocean. — Neptunian, adj.
- noumenalism
- the doctrine of the existence of noumena, whose existence is understood only by intellectual intuition, without the aid of the senses. — noumenalist, n.
- panentheism
- the belief that the world is part, though not all of God. — panentheist, n.
- pantheism
- the identification of God with the universe as His manifestation. — pantheist, n.
- Parsiism, Parseeism
- the Zoroastrianism of southwest India, with religious literature in the Parsi dialect. — Parsi, n.
- phallicism
- the worship of the phallus as symbolic of the generative power of nature. — phallicist, phallist, n.
- philotheism
- a love for God. — philotheist, n. — philotheistic, adj.
- physitheism
- 1 . the assignment to God of a physical shape.
- 2 . deification of the powers or phenomena of nature.
- polytheism
- a belief in, or worship of, many gods. — polytheist, n.
- pseudolatry
- devotion to false gods.
- psychotheism
- the doctrine that God is pure spirit.
- Sethite, Sethian
- a member of a Gnostic sect that regarded Seth, son of Adam, as the father of a pure race and considered the serpent as its deity.
- supernaturalism
- 1 . the condition or quality of existing outside the known experience of man or caused by forces beyond those of nature.
- 2 . belief in supernatural events or forces. Also supranaturalism . — supernaturalist, n., adj. — supernatural, supernaturalistic, adj.
- supranaturalism
- supernaturalism. — supranaturalist, n., adj. — supranatural, supranaturalistic, adj.
- theanthropism
- 1 . the attributing of human characteristics to God; anthropomorphism.
- 2 . a belief in the divinity of a human being.
- 3 . a belief in God’s becoming man. Also called theanthroposophy. — theanthropist , n.
- theism
- 1 . a belief in the existence of God or gods.
- 2 . a belief in one god as creator and ruler of the universe, without rejection of special revelation. Cf. deism. — theism, n.
- theocentrism, theocentricity
- the belief that God is the center of all truth in the universe. — theocentric, adj.
- theocrasy, theocrasia
- 1 . a mingling of the attributes of several deities into one.
- 2 . a union of an individual soul with God, especially through contemplation.
- theodicy
- the vindication of the goodness of God in the face of the existence of evil. — theodicean , adj.
- theogony
- 1 . the origin of the gods.
- 2 . a genealogical account of the origin of the gods. — theogonist, n.
- theolepsy
- Archaic. a seizure or possession by a deity. — theoleptic, n.
- theology
- the study of God and His relationship to the universe. — theologist, n. — theological, adj.
- theomachist
- a person or a god who resists the divine will of God or the gods. — theomachy, n.
- theomancy
- a form of divination involving divinely inspired oracles or others inspired by God.
- theomania
- a religious madness in which a person believes he is God or is inspired by God.
- theopathy
- religious emotion or excitement caused by contemplation of God. — theopathetic , — theopathic, adj.
- theophagy
- the act of eating one’s god, either literally or symbolically. — theophagite, n. — theophagous, adj.
- theophobia
- an abnormal fear of God.
- theurgy
- 1 . the working of some divine or supernatural agency in human affairs.
- 2 . the art of invoking deities or spirits for aid or information or knowledge unachievable through human reason.
- 3 . a divine act; miracle.
- 4 . a system of supernatural knowledge or powers believed bequeathed to the Egyptian Platonists by beneficent deities. — theurgist, n. — theurgic, theurgical, adj.
- titanism
- the condition of having qualities distinctive of the Titans, a family of giants in Greek mythology. — titanic, adj.
- trieteric
- 1 . a festival that occurs every third year, especially one honoring Bacchus.
- 2 . occurring every third year, particularly in reference to festivals for divinities. — trieterical, adj.
- tripersonality
- the quality of existing in three persons, as God in the Trinity. — tripersonal, adj.
- tritheism
- 1 . a belief in three gods.
- 2 . a Christian heresy holding that the Trinity consists of three distinct gods. — tritheist, n.
- ubiquitary
- a person or entity existing everywhere. — ubiquitary, adj.
- Zemiism
- the religion of the Taino tribes of the West Indies, involving the invocation of Zemis, spirits or supernatural beings often dwelling in objects.
- zoomorphism
- the attribution of animal form or nature to a deity.
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