OK, there's monotheism and polytheism, but what about bitheism?

Question

A lot of pagans seem to have a sort of bifurcated monotheism: one god and one goddess, perhaps seeing them in different aspects in different gods and goddesses, rather than being literally different. Sort of like what Christians do with the Trinity. So do we need a word like bitheism to describe this belief? (If so, I may call myself a bitheist instead of a pantheist. I'm still thinking about it.)

Wow! There really is such a word. I thought I made it up. Makes sense, though. Thanks, Cut & Paste.

Sorry; that's Copy & Paste.

Answer 1

Actually there is already a term for that, dualism, dualtheism or duothesim is normally the term I have seen used. The term for the particularly Wiccan belief that all Gods are aspects of the God and/or all Goddesses are aspects of the Goddess is called syncretic. Thus a belief system like Wicca with one God and one Goddess, but with any different aspects each, would be called a syncretic dualtheism or a dualistic syncretism.

BB,
Lord AmonRaHa

Answer 2

Bitheism and Ditheism have both been proposed at different times. Another alternative is Monotheism with Duality, such as some Taoist and others believe.

Why is a label even needed? Will you ever find a single word that will convey your beliefs in Divinity? Will not just Theist do?

Bithesists (or Ditheists) base their dualism upon so many different factors: Sex Male/Female), Good/Evil, Light/Dark, Giving/Selfishness and more. A single word can cover a multitude of concepts.

Most Christians are usually confused with their own "3 in 1" Trinity in Divinity.

Among the pagans you used as an example, many devote themselves to the concept of Goddess and give only lip service to the masculine "seed donor". Others seem to give nearly equal time to both aspects.

Marcionism was dualistic and wiped out as heresy. There are many examples of this.

Answer 3

There would be a tendency to think I am being sarcastic here and I am not, but the term Bi-Theism might carry other connotations since it would inevitably be linked with the word Bi-Sexual. I have always found that word unnecessarily limiting since it fails to acknowledge that modern science has discovered at least six separate sexualities. We completely leave out at least four aspects of the very condition we are attempting to celebrate and I am afraid we might be doing the same thing with the attempt to commune with our spiritual mentor or mentors. I would be more open to accepting the divine in whatever aspect the divine chose to present itself. Sexuality might be a convenient label we use, but which has little meaning, no meaning, or an entirely different meaning on another plane of existence.

When I discuss sexuality in earnest, my first question is inevitably, "What is GOD's plan for Hermaphrodites? When I discuss religion in earnest, my first question is inevitably, "If you arrived in heaven and it was full of people you did not approve of, but that GOD accepted, would you still feel welcome?" We put too many limitations on what is acceptable to us:

In our sexuality

In our lives

In our reality

And in our GOD

What if GOD was evolving with us? What if acceptance was one of the spiritual traits we were supposed to be learning rather than judgment? What if our purpose is to explore the boundaries of what we define as reality and we are just playing it safe? What is each and every one of us were just a neuron in the mind of GOD? What if the purpose of existence is to become pure enough for GOD to reside in us? What about Inner-Theism? These are just questions, but the word question contains the word "Quest!" what if we have a quest, a journey, and we haven't even started on our path yet?

Answer 4

YES - It is Dualism - Dualism is the view that two fundamental concepts exist, such as good and evil, light and dark, or male and female. Often, they oppose each other. The word's origin is the Latin dualis, meaning "two" (as an adjective).

Moral dualism is the belief of the coexistence (in eastern and naturalistic religions) or conflict (in western religions) between the "benevolent" and the "malignant". Most religious systems have some form of moral dualism - in western religions, for instance, a conflict between good and evil.

Like ditheism/bitheism, moral dualism does not imply the absence of monist or monotheistic principles. Moral dualism simply implies that there are two moral opposites at work, independent of any interpretation of what might be "moral" and - unlike ditheism/bitheism - independent of how these may be represented.

Ditheism/Bitheism

In theology, 'dualism' may also refer to 'bitheism', 'duotheism' or 'ditheism'. Although ditheism/bitheism imply moral dualism, they are not equivalent: ditheism/bitheism implies (at least) two gods, while moral dualism does not imply any -theism (theos = god) whatsoever.

Both 'bitheism' and 'ditheism' imply a belief in two equally powerful gods with complementary properties. However, while bitheism implies harmony, ditheism implies rivality and opposition, such as between Good and Evil. For example, a ditheistic system would be one in which one god is creative, the other is destructive (cf. theodicy). In a bitheistic system, one god could be male and the other female (cf. duotheism). However, bitheistic and ditheistic principles are not always so easily contrastable, for instance in a system where one god is the representative of summer and drought and the other of winter and rain/fertility. The 'di-'/'bi-' ('two') prefix in 'ditheism' and 'bitheism' does not imply that such a religious system cannot also be monist.-

Answer 5

It makes sense to me. . What you call it doesnt change your internal beliefs. I think that Christianity is tri thristic even though they are all on the same page, unlike the polytheistic gods in other religions. Islam and Judaeism are truly monotheistic.

Answer 6

I can buy into that! Whatever floats your boat...if one religion has 3 facets of the same God, why not just have 2? Hindu's have many facets of the same God....it's all relative.

Peace, Love, and Blessings
Greenwood

Answer 7

There is only but one God, one faith and one baptism, what gets people mixed up is there so many different religions and cults most teaching a different way to serve God and different sets of rules to be saved, some have made it so difficult to serve god and many have now turned away.

Answer 8

I like it. If the Christians would go for it and incorporate the Divine Feminine into their dogma, it would only be an improvement.

Answer 9

bitheists will come 2gether when Jehallah burst out from the Christ and the Mohammed at End Time.

All will be one and in heaven xcept 4 the bad ppl atheitz I feel sorrow 4 them but it is written in the Bibran Jehallahs chosen we must rejoice ppl!!!

Answer 10

Polytheism: belief in or worship of more than one god. So the belief in two gods would fit as two *is* more than one.