THEISM III  Page 1

4A. Supernaturalism

1B. Perspective

There are two realms of reality, a natural realm and a supernatural realm, both of which are equally real and dependent for their existence upon the creative activity of one or more Supreme Beings.

2B. Possible Variations: Philosophical Outlooks in Supernaturalism

1C. Pantheism

1D. Definition of Pantheism

1E.     Concept

     "Pantheism ... is absolute monism, maintaining that

     the entire phenomenal universe is the ever-changing

     existence‑form of the one single universal substance,

     which is God. Thus God is all, and all is God. God

     is ... absolute being, of which every finite thing is

     a differentiated and transient form." A. A. Hodge,

     Out. Theo., pp. 50‑51

2E.     Confusion

     "As the term implies, pantheism is the belief that

     God is everything and that everything is God, thus

     confounding God with nature, matter with spirit, and

     the Creator with the things He has created." Chafer,

     Sys. Theo., 1:173

2D.    Distinction in Pantheism

        1E. Idealistic Pantheism

                 2E.Supernaturalist Pantheism

3D.     Description of Pantheism

     "It is obvious that pantheism in all its forms must either

     deny the moral personality of God, or that of man, or

     both. Logically it renders both impossible. God comes to

     self‑consciousness only in man; the consciousness of free

     personal self‑determination in man is a delusion; moral

     responsibility is a prejudice; the supernatural is

     impossible and religion is superstition. Yet such is the

     flexibility of the system, that in one form it puts on a

     mystical guise, representing God as the all‑person

     absorbing the world into himself, and in the opposite form

     it puts on a purely naturalistic guise, representing the

     world as absorbing God, and the human race in its ever­

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culminating development the only object of reverence or devotion. A. A. Hodge, Out. Theo., p. 51

4D. Delineation of Pantheism

Atman is Brahman: that is, the soul of man ... is the Soul of the cosmos.*

"God is the one, infinite‑impersonal, ultimate reality. That is, God is the cosmos. God is all that exists; nothing exists that is not God. If anything that is not God appears to exist, it is maya, illusion, and does not truly exist." Sire, Univ. Next Dr., p. 132

2E. "To realize one's oneness with the cosmos is to pass personality.

1F. Position of the Theist

"In theism personality is the chief thing about

God and the chief thing about man. It means

individual man has complexity at the essence of

his being. Personality demands self­

consciousness and self‑determinacy, and these

involve duality‑‑a thinker and a thing thought."

2F. Perspective of the Pantheist

In pantheism the chief thing about God is his

Oneness, his sheer abstract, undifferentiated,

non‑dual unity. This puts God beyond

personality.* Ibid., p. 138

3E. "To realize oneness with the cosmos is to pass  beyond

The principle of non‑contradiction does not apply where ultimate reality is concerned. Ibid.,, p. 139

"In every truth the opposite is equally true. For example, a truth can only be expressed and enveloped in words if it is one‑sided. Everything that is thought and expressed in words is one‑sided, only half the‑truth; it lacks totality, completeness, unity." Hesse, Siddharta, p. 115.

POINT:

4E. "To realize one 's oneness with the cosmos is to pass beyond good and evil. Sire, Univer. Next Dr., p. 141

"...Therefore, it seems to me that everything that exists is good‑death as well as life, sin as well as holiness, wisdom as well as folly." Hesse, Siddharta, p. 116

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SD. Denial of Pantheism

1E. "They are Necessitarian'… All freedom of second

causes is denied; everything exists and acts of

necessity.

. . Against this we affirm  that we have the consciousness that we are free agents and that we are accountable for our conduct ‑ It is because of this conviction that we institute government and punish criminals for their misdeeds."

2E.    "They Destroy the Foundation of Morals.

    we ‑ have no standard by which to distinguish between

    right and wrong. if we do all things of necessity,

    then how can we tell when we do wrong and when right?

    . . . Then God Himself is sinful, for if all things

    are necessitated by Him then He must be ignorant or

    evil, at heart. if ignorant, then how can He be

    unclouded light and perfect truth?"

3E.    "They Make All Rational Religion‑Impossible.

    In stressing the metaphysical union of the human with

    the divine, pantheistic views tend to destroy human

    individuality.

But true religion is possible only between persons who retain their distinct individualities;  for true religion is the worship and service offered by a human being to the divine being. when these distinctions disappear or to the extent that they disappear, true religion becomes impossible." Lec. Sys. Theo., p. 70

4E.     "They Deny Personal Immortality. Thus there is no conscious existence for man after death. The only kind of immortality individualities; pantheists hope for is survival in the memory of others and absorption into the great ultimate reality. But we are conscious of the fact that we stand in the relation of personal responsibility to God and that we shall be asked to give an account of the deeds done in the body, whether they be good or bad. we know that after death as in this life, there will be a difference between the good and the bad; that is, that our identity and individuality will be preserved."

5E.     "They Deify Man by Making Him a Part of God. individualities;  Pantheism flatters man and encourages human pride. If everything that exists is but a manifestation of God, and if God does not come to consciousness except in man, then man is the highest manifestation of God in the world. Indeed, we may measure the religious greatness of a man by the extent to which he realizes his identity with God. individualities; Pantheists claim that Jesus

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Christ was the first who came to a perfect realization of this great truth, when He said: 11 and the Father are one.'

But we have no right to say to ourselves what Jesus could say of Himself, for we are but sinful creatures while He is the eternal Son of God. Christianity gives to man the highest position under God, but does not make him a part of God." Ibid., p. 71

6E.    They Deny The Law of Classic Logic.

    "The promoters of these notions of necessity

    contradict in their daily lives the very speculations

    they propound. They cannot state a theorem, or even

    commence to do so, without departing from their major

    idea. Every effort to build this theory assumes the

    principle that destroys it." Chafer, Sys. Theo.,  I:

    175

6D.   Danger of Pantheism

   "Whether we contemplate the system theoretically or

   practically, it is the most outrageous monstrosity which

   the human mind has ever yet fabricated or can fabricate.

   It is the ultimatum of absurdity and immorality. It was

   generated by conceit, fostered by pride,‑ and matured Theo.,

   the most consummate depravity. Viewed by the eye of

   philosophy, it is arrant nonsense; by the eye of morality,

   it is disgustingly obscene;‑ and, by the eye of religion

   it is horrid blasphemy‑ it is repugnant to our reason,,

   and revolting to our moral. sense; it is a foul disgrace to

   the intellect and character of man, which it is both

   humiliating and loathsome to contemplate: and the

   disgrace is deepened‑when we think The Prince of Darkness

   himself . could not desire a more complete abasement of

   the human intellect, a more entire wreck of the human

   character and happiness, a more perfect subversion of the

   authority and designs of Almighty God‑"   Cooke, The Deity,

   1862, pp. 187‑88.

2C. Polytheism

1D.   Definition

   "Polytheism ... distributes the perfections, and functions of

   infinite God among many Limited gods.." Hodge, out. Theo.,

   p. 47

2D.   Development

   "The first departure from monotheism seem to have been in

   the direction of nature worship. Sun, moon,  and stars,

   the great representatives of nature, and fire, air, and

   water, the great representatives of earth, became objects

   of popular worship. In the Vedas we find hymns addressed

   to these natural elements. At first they were merely

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personified; then men came to believe that personal beings presided over them.

In India the endless polytheism of the Hindus developed from pantheism." Thiessen, Lec. Sys. Theo., p. 72

3D. Description

1E.     In Egypt

     "Egypt also had many gods, and was anxious respecting

     the future. Ra or Re, the sun‑god Was the chief

     deity. The Pharaohs claimed descent from him. other

     Egyptian gods were Osiris and Seth. The latter was

     made the Satan of later Egyptian mythology."

2E.            In Greece

     "The Greeks had at the head of their elaborate

     Pantheon a council of twelve members, six gods and

     six goddesses. Among these Zeus, Athene, and Appolo

     formed a kind of triad."

3E.            In Rome

    "Jupiter stood at the head of the Roman Pantheon,

    identical in all essentials with the Greek Zeus. He

    was the special protector of the Roman people.

. 0 . Mars was the god of war. Jupiter, Juno, and Minerva constituted a kind of Roman triad." Ibid.

4E.     In America

4D.     Denunciation

     "The belief and teaching that there is more than one God

     is distinguished as polytheism, and, by so much, is a

     great disregard of the first commandment of the Decalogue.

     It has been the claim of infidels and modern evolutionists

     that, in their earlier developments from crude animal

     existence, men have believed in many gods. on the

     contrary, the intra‑Biblical and extra‑Biblical evidence

     demonstrates that men began with a belief in one God and

     from that belief they departed, being unwilling to "retain

     God in their knowledge‑" No better or more accurate

     history of this drift could be written than is recorded by

     inspiration in Romans 1:18‑32." Chafer, Sys. Theo., I:

     172

3C.  Finite Godism (New Age, New Consciousness)

1D.     Evidence

     "For Some reason, today many people are having experiences

     that they interpret as paranormal. I suspect this, in

     turn, is the result of increased interest in altered

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states of consciousness. More and more people are having experiences with meditation, hypnosis, and psychedelic drugs. More and more people are paying attention to sleep and dreams. All these experiences provide very fertile grounds for paranormal events. Parapsychology is simply an idea whose time has come." Krippner, Psych. Tod. (Oct. '73):105 NOTE:

2D.     Expectation

     "to play upon the vast spectrum of consciousness...., we

     would have access to a humanity of such depth and richness

     as the world has not yet known, so that our great‑great

     grandchildren may look back upon us as Neanderthals, so

     different will they be." Jean Houston "Varieties of

     Postpsychedelic Exper. "Intellectual Digest (March '73):

     16

3D.     Eclectic Nature

1E.  Stated

     "The new consciousness world view is highly

     syncretistic and eclectic. It borrows from every

     major worldview. Though its weirder ramifications

     and its stranger dimensions come from Eastern

     pantheism and ancient animism, its connection with

     naturalism gives it a better chance to win converts

     than purer Eastern mysticism." Sire, Univer. Next

     Dr., p. 158

2E.     Supported

1F.     Relation to Naturalism

     "Like naturalism the new consciousness denies

     the existence of a transcendent god. There is

     no Lord of the Universe unless it be man.‑ There

     is only the closed universe. True, it is

     'peopled' by beings of incredible 'personal'

     intelligence and power, and 'human consciousness

     is not contained by the skull.' But these

     beings and even the consciousness of the cosmos

     are in no way transcendent in the sense required

     by theism." Ibid., p. 159

2F.     Relation to Pantheism

     Like Eastern pantheistic monism the new

     consciousness centers on a mystical experience

     in which time, space and morality are

     transcended. one could define new consciousness

     as a western version of Eastern mysticism in

     which the metaphysical emphasis of the East (its

     assertion that Atman is Brahman) is replaced by

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an emphasis on epistemology (seeing, experiencing or perceiving the unity of reality is what life is all about), moreover, like the East, the new consciousness rejects reason (what Andrew Weil calls "straight thinking") as a guide to reality. The world is really irrational or super‑rational, and demands new modes of apprehension." Ibid.

4D. Explanation

1E. "Whatever the nature of being (idea or matter, energy or particle) the self is the kingpin‑the prime reality. As mankind grows in his awareness and grasp of this fact, he is on the verge of a radical change' in human nature; even now we see harbingers  of the new man and prototypes of the new age." Ibid., p. 161

2E. "The cosmos, while unified in the self, is manifested

in two more dimensions: ions: the visible universe,

accessible through ordinary consciousness, and the

invisible universe (or Mind at Large), accessible

through altered states of consciousness. Ibid.,

p. 165

"The function of the brain and nervous system and sense organs is in the main eliminative and not productive. Each person is at each moment capable of remembering all that has ever happened to him and of perceiving everything that is happening everywhere in the universe. According to such a theory, each one of us is potentially Mind at Large." Huxley, quoted in Sire, p. 165

3E. "The core of the new consciousness is the experience

of cosmic consciousness, in which ordinary categories

of space, time and morality tend to disappear."

Ibid., p. 169

IF. Significance

"The prime characteristic of cosmic

consciousness is a consciousness of the cosmos,

that is, of the life and order of the universe.

Along with the consciousness of the cosmos there

occurs an intellectual enlightenment which alone

would place the individual on a new plane of

existence ‑ would make him a member of a new

species .... With these come what may be called a

sense of immortality, a consciousness of eternal

life, not a conviction that he shall have this

but the consciousness that he has it already."

Ibid., p. 171

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2F.    Stages

    "Central to cosmic consciousness is the unitary

    experience: first, the experience of perceiving

    the wholeness of the cosmos; second, the

    experience of becoming one with the whole

    cosmos; and finally, the experience of going

    beyond even that oneness with the cosmos to

    recognize that self is the generator of all

    reality and in that sense both is the cosmos and

    the cosmos‑maker." Ibid.

3F.    Summation

    "Philosophically, the new consciousness offers a

    radical and simple answer to the problem of

    distinguishing between appearance and reality.

    It flatly claims there is no distinction.

    Appearance is reality. There is no illusion."

    Ibid., p. 169

5D. Evaluation

1E.    "The certainty of self‑deception ‑‑ is the great weakness of the new consciousness at this point. So long as self alone is king, so long as imagination is presupposed to be reality, so long as seeing is being, the imagining, seeing self remains securely locked in his private universe‑the only one there is." Ibid., p. 164

2E.

4C. Deism

1D. Course of Deism

1E.  In England, Late 17th ‑ Early 18th Century

  1F. Lord Herbert of Cherbury

  2F. Thomas Hobbes

  3F. Lord Shaftesbury

2E.  In France, Mid‑Late 18th Century

3E.  In Germany Mid‑Late 18th Century

     1F. Lessing

     2F. Reimarus

     3F. Frederick the Great

4E.  In America, Late 18th ‑ Early 19th Century

2D.  Concept of Deism

1E.  What Is Affirmed

     "For deism God is present in creation only by His

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            power, not in His very being and nature. He has endowed creation with invariable laws over which He exercises a mere general oversight; He has imparted to His creatures certain properties, placed them under His invariable laws, and left them to work out their destiny by their own powers." Theissen, Lec. Sys. Theo., p. 74

2E.   What Is Denied

   "Deism denies a special revelation, miracles, and

   providence. It‑claims that all truths about God are

   discoverable by reason, and that the Bible is merely

   a book on the principles of natural religion, which

   are ascertainable by the light of nature." Ibid., pp.

   74‑75

3D.     Contrast with Pantheism

     "As pantheism holds to the immanence of God to the

     exclusion of His transcendence, so deism holds to the

     transcendence to the exclusion of His immanence.‑ Ibid.,

     p. 74

4D.     Characteristics of Deism

1E.  "A transcendent God, as a First Cause, created the universe but then left it to run on its own. God is thus not immanent, not fully personal, not sovereign over the affairs of men, not providential.* Sire, Univer. Next Dr., p. 49

"An absentee God, sitting idle ever since the first Sabbath at the outside of the universe, and seeing it go" Carlyle, cited in Chafer, Sys. Theo., 1:176

2E.     "The cosmos God created is determined     because it is

     created as a uniformity of cause and effect in a

     closed system; no miracle is possible. Sire, Univer.

     Next Dr., p. 49

     IF.     "First, it is closed to God's reordering, for he

          is not 'interested' in it. He merely brought it

          to be. Therefore, no miracles or events which

          reveal any special interests of God are

          possible."

2F.   "Second, the universe is closed to man's reordering because it is locked up in a clocklike fashion. Man, to be able to reorder the system, would have to be able to transcend it, get out of the chain of cause and effect. But this he cannot do." Ibid., pp. 49‑50

3E. "Man, though personal, is part of the clockwork of the universe." Ibid., p. 50

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"The God who was discovered by the deists was an architect, but not a lover or a judge or anything personal. He was not one who acted in history. He simply had left man alone. But man, while in one sense the maker of his own destiny, was yet locked into the closed system. His freedom from God was not a freedom to anything; in fact, it was not a freedom at all." Ibid., p. 52

4E.      "The cosmos, this world, is understood to be in its normal state; it is not fallen or abnormal. man can know the universe, and he can determine what God is like by studying it." Ibid., p. 51

5E.      "Ethics is limited to general revelation; because the universe is normal, it reveals what is right." Ibid., p. 53

5D.    Consequence for Deism Ethically

    "Somewhere every man distinguishes between good and bad,

    right and wrong. Deistic ethics do not fit man in his

    actual human dimensions. At this point deism becomes an

    impracticable world view, for no one can live by it."

6D.     Christian Response to Deism

     "The Christian rejects deism because he believes that we

     have a special revelation of God in the Bible; that God is

     present in the universe in His being as well as in His

     power; that God exercises a constant providential control

     over all His creation; that He sometimes uses miracles in

     the accomplishment of His purposes; that God answers

     prayer;" Theissen, Lec. Sys. Theo., p. 75

5C.     Christian Theism

1D. Formation of Christian Theism

2D.     Features of Christian Theism

     1E. God is infinite and personal (Triune), transcendent

and immanent, omniscient, sovereign and good.”  Sire,

Univer. Next Dr., p. 24

1F.   God is infinite. This means that he is beyond scope, beyond measure, as far as man is concerned. No other being in the universe can challenge him in his nature. All else is secondary. He has no twin but is alone the   be-all and end‑all of existence. He is, in fact, the only self‑existent being. Ibid.

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2F. God is personal. This means God is not mere force or energy or existent "substance." God is He; that is, God has personality. Personality requires two basic characteristics: (1) self-reflection and (2) self‑determination. In other words, God is personal in that he knows himself to be (he is self‑conscious) and he possesses the characteristics of self‑determination." Ibid.

3F. God is good. This is the prime statement about God's character. From it flow all others. To be good means to be good. God is goodness. That is, what he is, is good. There is no sense in which goodness surpasses God or God surpasses goodness. As being is the essence of his nature, goodness is the essence of his character." Ibid., p. 26

2E.      "God created the cosmos ex nihilo, to operate with a uniformity of cause and effect in an open system.

1F. "God created the cosmos ex ex nihilo. God is He Who Is, and thus he is the source of all else. Still, it is important to understand that God is not the source of the cosmos in that he made it out of himself. Rather, God spoke it into existence. Ibid., pp. 26‑27

2F.      Uniformity of cause and effect in an open system

3E. "God can and does communicate with 1F. God can communicate "Even though God is infinite and man is finite, man can know something about God, for God created man in his own image and thus communication between God and man is possible." Ibid., p. 32

2F.     God has communicated

     "The main point for us is that theism declares

     that God can and has clearly communicated with

     man. Because of this man can know much about

     who God is and what he desires for man."

4E.  Ethics is transcendent and is based on the character of God as good (holy and loving)." Ibid., p. 38

"Theism. . . . teaches that not only is there a moral universe but there is an absolute standard by which all moral judgments are measured. God himself ‑ his

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character of goodness (holiness and love) ‑‑is the standard." Ibid., p. 39

5E. "History is linear, a meaningful sequence of events

leading to the fulfillment of God's purposes for

man.”

"History is not reversible, not repeatable, not cyclic; history is not meaningless. Rather, history Is teleological, going somewhere, directed toward a known end. The God who knows the end from the beginning is aware of and sovereign over the actions of mankind." Ibid., P. 40

3D.     Foundation of Christian Theism

     "Christian theism is primarily dependent on its concept of

     God, for theism holds that everything stems from him.

     Nothing is prior to God or equal to him. He is He Who Is.

     Thus theism has a basis for metaphysics. Since He Who Is

     also has a worthy character and is thus The Worthy One,

     theism has a basis for ethics. Since He Who Is also is He

     Who Knows, theism has a basis for epistemology. In other

     words, theism is a complete world view." Ibid., p. 42

4D.  Focus of Christian Theism

     "So the greatness of God is the central tenet of Christian

     theism. When a person recognizes this and consciously

     accepts and acts on it, this central conception is the

     rock, the transcendent reference point, that gives life

     meaning and makes the joys and sorrows of daily existence

     on planet earth significant moments in an unfolding drama

     in which one expects to participate forever, not always

     with sorrows but someday with joy alone. Even now,

     though, the world is. . . . 'charged with the grandeur of

     God. Ibid.