God is often conceived as the supreme being and principal object of faith. In theism, God is the creator and sustainer of the universe. In deism, God is the creator (but not the sustainer) of the universe. In pantheism, God is the universe itself. Theologians have ascribed a variety of attributes to the many different conceptions of God. Common among these are omniscience (infinite knowledge), omnipotence (unlimited power), omnipresence (present everywhere), omnibenevolence (perfect goodness), divine simplicity, and eternal and necessary existence. Monotheism is the belief in the existence of one God or in the oneness of God. God has also been conceived as being incorporeal (immaterial), a personal being, the source of all moral obligation, and the "greatest conceivable existent". Many notable medieval philosophers and modern philosophers have developed arguments for and against the existence of God.
There are many names for God,
and different names are attached to different cultural ideas about who God is
and what attributes he possesses. In the Hebrew Bible "I Am that I
Am", and the "Tetragrammaton" YHVH are used as names of God,
while Yahweh, and Jehovah are sometimes used in Christianity as vocalizations
of YHVH. In Arabic, the name Allah ("the God") is used, and because
of the predominance of Islam among Arab speakers, the name "Allah"
has connotations with Islamic faith and culture. Muslims regard a multitude of
titular names for God, while in Judaism it is common to refer to God by the
titular names Elohim or Adonai. In Hinduism, Brahman is often considered a
monistic deity. Other religions have names for God, for instance, Baha in the
Bahá'í Faith, Waheguru in Sikhism, and Ahura Mazda in Zoroastrianism.
The many different conceptions
of God, and competing claims as to God's characteristics, aims, and actions,
has led to the development of ideas of Omnitheism, Pandeism, or a Perennial
philosophy, wherein it is supposed that there is one underlying theological
truth, of which all religions express a partial understanding, and as to which
"the devout in the various great world religions are in fact worshipping
that one God, but through different, overlapping concepts or mental images of
him.
Theism generally holds that God
exists realistically, objectively, and independently of human thought; that God
created and sustains everything; that God is omnipotent and eternal; personal
and interacting with the universe through for example religious experience and
the prayers of humans. It holds that God is both transcendent and immanent;
thus, God is simultaneously infinite and in some way present in the affairs of
the world. Not all theists subscribe to all the above propositions, but usually
a fair number of them, c.f., family resemblance. Catholic theology holds that
God is infinitely simple and is not involuntarily subject to time. Most theists
hold that God is omnipotent, omniscient, and benevolent, although this belief
raises questions about God's responsibility for evil and suffering in the
world. Some theists ascribe to God a self-conscious or purposeful limiting of
omnipotence, omniscience, or benevolence. Open Theism, by contrast, asserts
that, due to the nature of time, God's omniscience does not mean the deity can
predict the future. "Theism" is sometimes used to refer in general to
any belief in a god or gods, i.e., monotheism or polytheism.
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