What is Theism? Who Are Theists? Believing in God and Gods

Some religious theists think it is appropriate to presume to inform atheists about why they really don't believe in any gods rather than simply listen to atheists in order to learn something. Perhaps atheists should instruct theists why they actually believe in gods. Theists offer all sorts of reasons for why they believe in a god but the only...

To put it simply, theism is a belief in the existence of at least one god - nothing more, nothing less. Theism does not depend upon how many gods one believes in. Theism does not depend upon how the term 'god' is defined. Theism does not depend upon how one arrives at their belief. Theism does not depend upon how one defends their belief.

Theism doesn't come in just one flavor - there are monotheists, polytheists, pantheists, and several others you may not have even heard of. Understanding the differences between these types of theism is necessary not only for understanding the religious systems in which they appear, but also for understanding the variety and diversity which...

To put it simply, theism is a belief in the existence of at least one god - nothing more, nothing less. Theism does not depend upon how many gods one believes in. Theism does not depend upon how the term 'god' is defined. Theism does not depend upon how one arrives at their belief. Theism does not depend upon how one defends their belief.

Are religion and theism effectively the same thing, such that every religion is theistic and every theist is also religious? Because of some common misconceptions, many people are inclined answer that question positively. It isn't uncommon even among atheists to simply assume that religion and theism are equivalent.

The concept of a "burden of proof" is important in debates - whoever has a burden of proof is obligated to "prove" their claims in some fashion. Sometimes atheists and theists argue more over who has the burden of proof than over the existence of God.

Theism doesn't inherently mean very much. Basically, theism isn't anything more than believing in the existence of at least one god. Why or how one has such a belief is no more relevant to the definition of theism than why or how one lacks belief in gods is relevant to the definition of atheism.This has important implications for the question of whether theism is rational or irrational.

Theism plays a central, defining role in many religions. In fact, the importance of theism to religion is so great it seems that many people have come to confuse theism with religion itself - they actually think that theism is a religion all by itself rather than an element of religion. This can be a serious error and an examination of the...

Monolatry is the worship of a single god while acknowledging the existence of other gods - and usually and appropriateness of other people worshipping those other gods. Monolatry must be distinguished from monotheism, which is the belief that only one god exists at all. Monolatry is thought to have been a stage of transition between polytheism...