We explain what a god is and how this divine entity is seen in each religion. In addition, we explain what its characteristics and agnosticism are.
What is a God?
When we refer to God, we talk about an omnipotent and omnipresent beingto whom we attribute the creation of the universe and the supervision of compliance with its laws.
A god is an imaginary entity whose presence or absence cannot be proven in any way, and that since time immemorial has accompanied human beings in their various manifestations.
In every culture, this entity has been able to give human beings a sense of destinyof purpose, of consolation in the face of death and, often, serving to configure a model of laws and moral or philosophical precepts.
Those who believe in one god or several, depending on what their specific religion dictates (there are many in the world), often think that theirs is the only valid and true god.
This occurs mainly in the major monotheistic religions (Judaism, Christianity and Islam)since their creeds prohibit the worship of other gods, considered by them to be false.
See also: Pantheism
Origin of the concept of God
The idea of the divine, the sacred or the existence of a higher being has accompanied human beings since the earliest culturesso there is no exact record of its origin.
It is likely that the first ideas of God arose as a way of explaining and make various natural phenomena understandable that were beyond their understanding, such as the rising and setting of the Sun, the cycles of rain, the climatic seasons, or the origin of the world.
What does it mean God?
There are many etymological explanations for the word “God” in Spanish.
The most common one states that Comes from latin deuswhich in turn comes from the Greek theos (“divine, luminous”) linked to the name of the main god of ancient Greek religion, Zeus, father of the Olympian gods.
According to some theories, this name would come from the Proto-Indo-European root *deiwos~diewoswhose translation would be “shine”, “glow”, from which the Sanskrit word also comes deva“celestial being” and whose semantic contents would survive in our “day”.
Everything seems to indicate that in the common primitive religions, The Sun and the firmament played the role of the creator father or fertilizer, and the earth or night that of the fertilized mother.
Attributes of a god
The attributes of the gods can vary greatly depending on the religious tradition, but some are usually common (although not “universal”):
- Ubiquity. A god is everywhere, like an invisible presence. That is why he can see everything or be in several places at once.
- Simplicity. The gods are primitive entities, which at most have divine progenitors as well, but who are simple in principle, since they respond to a set of assigned ideas, such as the god of the sun, the god of the sea, etc.
- Powers. Gods possess superhuman powers and generally shape reality to their liking, especially those segments of it with which they have an affinity. For example, the god of the sea is also responsible for waves, tidal waves, etc. In the case of the monotheistic god, he is simply omnipotent, capable of everything.
- Infinitude. Gods do not die, unless at the hands of other gods, and can often be revived, or they can endure in other forms or in other bodies. The monotheistic god knows no time or destiny, he is eternal and unfathomable, for he is not subject to the laws of the universe he created.
- Autonomy. The great gods, like the monotheistic one, do not come from anywhere, but made themselves, and therefore answer to no one but their own will. They are “the alpha and the omega” (the beginning and the end of the Greek alphabet).
God in Christianity
The god of Christianity is, in principle, the same as the Jewish Old Testament.
However, its image is reworked based on a new pact what he did with humanity after his son, the last prophet and messiah according to this religion, was crucified by the Romans.
This is what It is recounted in the books that make up the New Testament from the Bible. There are notable differences between the god of each part of the book, probably because they are due to cultures separated by thousands of years.
However, for the Christian creed, the version that prevails is the one that Jesus of Nazareth preached: that of a loving, forgiving, omnipresent and omnipotent god.
This god at the same time can be merciless with the infidels and is ready to exact eternal punishment on those he deems guilty when the Day of Final Judgment arrives. This day will occur when Jesus, who was resurrected on the third day, returns from the heavens.
This god is, furthermore, a holy Trinity: Father, Son and Holy Spirit in a single divine entitywho guards the kingdom of heaven where the righteous go to rest for eternity. This god has no name, but is comparable to Jesus Christ.
God according to Judaism
The god of Judaism is the one described in the Old Testament of the Bible and in the Semitic writings of the Tanakh.
For this religion Jesus of Nazareth was just another prophet in a long line of recipients of the divine word, which is why humanity still waits for the arrival of the savior messiah.
This monotheistic god is extremely severe.
Your code of life It is strictly observed by the most orthodox Jewswho have renounced the pig because it is a forbidden animal, as well as food that is not kosher or prepared according to divine commands.
This god has an unpronounceable name, but he is referred to as Yahweh.
God according to Islam
The third great monotheistic god is found in Islam, which means that these three religions are fundamentally closely related. His name is Allahand like the two previous versions, he is omnipresent, omnipotent and eternal, creator of the universe.
Those who worship Allah they call themselves Muslims. This god is, in essence, the same one that the prophet Abraham of the Bible worshiped, but this is not his sacred book, but the Koran or Alcoran.
This holy book contains the revelations of god to the prophet center of this religion, Muhammad (Muhammad), compiled by his 632 followers.
To the He is also a severe, warlike god.who warns his people to be prepared for a Holy War in his name. He also prohibits the consumption of pork and alcohol and subjects them to a very strict fasting regime called Ramadan (similar to the Jewish Yom Kippur).
The Gods of Hinduism
Hinduism as a religion is very dispersed, since it consists of a set of beliefs and practices more similar to a philosophy of life.
That’s why lacks a single godand has a huge and varied set of deities that can be worshiped, each associated with different aspects of existence.
The main gods are: Brahma, the creator of the universe; Shiva, the destroyer of the universe; and Vishnu, the maintainer of the universe.
The Greek Gods
The religion of Ancient Greece was based on the existence of a pantheon of Olympian gods.
He himself was headed by the father god Zeusgovernor of the heavens and lightning, who shared the world with Poseidon, lord of the seas and oceans, and with Hades, lord of the underworld, land of the dead.
Each of them also had a large offspring.
These gods They would have achieved their dominance after defeating their parentsthe Titans, who were in turn descendants of even more primitive gods (such as Chaos, Earth or Night).
This third generation of gods He received the adoration of humans and in return he conferred his favors on them.They were responsible for human ideas, feelings, passions or madness.
You may be interested in: Greek mythology
The Norse Gods
The Norse Gods They belong to the Scandinavian traditionthat is, to the Germanic peoples of northern Europe, and like the Greek gods, they are part of a rich and vast mythology.
This Nordic religion lacked a sacred book and It was transmitted orally through songs and poemsespecially during the Viking Age.
The Norse gods were divided into two classes. On the one hand The Aesir, followers of Odinaround which they assembled in the earthly paradise, the celestial land of Asgard.
These gods They had their own personalities and talents.associated with elements such as thunder (Thor), intelligence (Balder) or chaos (Loki).
And on the other hand there were The Vanir, more earthly gods who ruled the seathe waves, the fire, the wind and who lived in Vanaheim, from where they exercised full control of their domains.
While The Aesir were warrior gods, the Vanir were peaceful; but there had been a great war between the two groups, which culminated in peace agreements and marriages between them.
Agnosticism and Atheism
Just as there are religious people, there are those who believe in nothingor who do not believe in God, or who believe in their own very personal way.
Generally these They are referred to as atheists (who do not believe in the existence of a God or any divinity) or agnostics (who do not deny the possibility of a God, but consider it something impossible to elucidate).
More on: Atheism