My Belief

[EmberWolf]

I thought I'd post this here just to really clear this up for myself, I feel like I need to put it in words to better understand it, so any and all feedback is of course greatly appreciated so basically, I believe in three deities, the God, Goddess, and The All. The All is the universe personified, and I'm not entirely clear on how it operates, but to my understanding it is the origin of all energy and fate, and it created the God and the Goddess so as to have beings to better control its power. As of the God and Goddess themselves, I believe the classic pagan hierarchy, in which the God contains all of the power, but the Goddess is the one that is able to control and shape the power, so they depend heavily on each other. So during rituals and things, I pray to the Goddess. I don't remember where I first read about this deity set-up, but it stuck with me, and I hope this can clear up any confusion with those struggling to find a deity to believe in

[Lord_of_Nightmares]

I just want you to know I am not trying to confront or bash your beliefs. I just want to see where you stand on your own beliefs and maybe this will help you. <i always found philosophy discussions interesting anyway.>

Where do you stand on multiple gods? Do you believe they're all manifestations of the all or do you believe the god and goddess stand for all gods and goddesses respectively?

Do you have a personal image non-cultural specific with the god or goddess, or do you see them more as a lord and lady? Almost like a place holder for different gods.

Where do you stand on the question of evil with the all?

[EmberWolf]

Don't worry haha, I understand! I believe the God and Goddess, and all other gods and goddesses, are manifestations of the All. I believe it uses the image of gods and goddesses, giving them different appearances and things to each different person, to better suit their understanding of the world. Does that make sense? So my personal image of the God and Goddess is representative of some importance in my life, so how I view them is different to how another may view them- but they're all the same entity, I believe. On the topic of evil, I don't believe the All is either good or evil, but a neutral force between the two. Good things happen in the universe, and bad things are there to balance it out. As well, what is good to one can be evil to another, and vice versa- so perhaps the All does something we perceive as evil, when in fact it serves a higher purpose in the overall outcome of good?

[Siona]

Basically what you're describing is soft polytheism, sometimes called inclusive monotheism. Similar ideas are fairly popular in some pagan traditions (both old and new), as well as some (all?) schools of Hinduism. Or some pantheism with the idea that the universe is deity, if I understand right? Not sure if those terms help you, or maybe they don't really fit, but I don't think you're alone in this sort of belief.

[Oakheart]

Many people, including myself, believe this way. It is a form of henotheism or monism. Everything spiritual and physical emanates outward from a single divine source. This singular source gives rise to the Lord & Lady who in turn give rise to the elements and planets. Gerald Gardner called this source the Prime Mover. Neoplatonists called it the One. And Kabbalists know it as Ain Soph Aur (Eternal Light). This primary source, along with the Lord & Lady, form a sort of triad or trinity.

[SpiritTalker]

My best friend says God had an out of body experience.