Polytheism

Polytheism is the belief in or worship of more than one deity, a type of theism; it contrasts with monotheism, the belief in only one deity that is, in most cases, transcendent. The term was coined by Jewish writer Philo of Alexandria as a compound of the Greek words πολύ (lit: "many") and θεός (lit: "god") to argue with the Greeks, though was in modern times re-popularised by Jean Bodin in the 16th century and then by Samuel Purchas in 1614. Oftentimes, polytheistic religions reflect belief in a pantheon of deities that may themselves have religious sects and rituals dedicated to them. These deities can also be representations of natural forces or ancestral principles; they can be viewed either as autonomous, or as emanations of a greater deity or transcendental absolute being (such as in monistic theology), in either case manifesting immanently in nature (such as in panentheistic and pantheistic theology). Polytheists do not exclusively worship all deities equally. Another position, identified as monolatry, kathenotheism, or henotheism (though the last one is controversial), recognises the existence of multiple deities while focusing worship to one deity or a specific group of deities, perhaps at certain times or in specific contexts. Moreover, according to Oxford Reference, "it is not easy to count gods, and so not always obvious whether an apparently polytheistic religion is really so, or whether the apparent different objects of worship are to be thought of as manifestations [of a singular divinity]." Polytheism was common in the time and place of the Abrahamic religions, namely Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. The Quran, central to Islam, quite explicitly denounces polytheism, though there is certainly evidence to suggest that the Hebrew Bible, which Judaism and Christianity are established upon, may have originally been polytheistic to some extent. Otherwise, there are still some...