Monotheism, a belief system where there is one God, is monotheism. Monotheists practice the Christian faith, but consider the deity one. They believe God visited the human race in three different forms, including as a father and Lord Jesus Christ as well as as the Holy Spirit. Monotheists believe one cannot enjoy God's protection if they don't practice monotheism.
Religions that believe in a single deity
Monotheism claims that there is only a single god. It is the basis of many world religious systems. It differs from polytheism and atheism, which each attribute responsibility for reality to a separate god. Monotheistic religions are characterized by the idea that God is all-knowing and all-powerful. They are not often anthropomorphic.
Dualistic religions have two principles. This means that the universe can be divided into spirit and matter. This is a variant on monotheism, and can be found in some Gnostic systems. These religions are founded on esoteric wisdom and are sometimes deemed heretical for orthodox Christians. The demiurge may be called a demonic being.
Many of these religions have sacred texts that guide their lives. Most notable are the Christian Bible (Hebrew Scriptures), and the Islamic Qu'ran. Some religions believe that these texts were composed directly by a God, while others believe that they were written by human beings. For example, Oromo's single god Waaqeffanna is known as "the word" in Oromo.
Quasi-monotheistic religions
Although there are some similarities between quasi-monotheist religions and true monotheisms, there are also differences. True monotheism emphasizes that there is only one god, and that all the others are illusions. Quasimonotheism stresses the importance and value of the creator in all aspects.
The idea of monotheism, and its application to religion, has its roots in the early modern era. The term was coined by Henry Moore in 1660 to distinguish between Christian anthropomorphic conceptions of God and Deistic concepts. Later, the term monotheism was combined with the term polytheism (a concept that first appeared in the first century CE).
The ancient Greeks and Romans had monotheistic religions, and they believed in a supreme god. The worship of Zeus by the Romans signaled the shift from polytheism towards monotheism. Worship of Zeus also decreased respect for the lesser powers of lesser gods.
Religions that are monotheistic
Monotheistic religions believe that one god is the only god. However, polytheistic religions believe that there are many gods. Monotheism originated from the Old Testament Hebrew Bible. Other gods have been referred to "false idols". Later Christianity, Judaism and Islam emphasized the concept of a single God.
Monotheistic religions believe that there is only one God, and reject all other belief systems. They have often been aggressive and justified their actions in the past by claiming their religion is the only true one. In many instances, they have also used monotheism as a means to justify the behavior of other people, which is incompatible with the message of the religion.
Though ancient cultures were known to worship many gods in their religions, one god was quite common. In fact, ancient civilizations considered one god superior to all other gods.