1/2/2024 - word count 1,453 - 6.5 minutes reading time 

The choice to follow a given religion typically bears with it the responsibility to acknowledge the god(s) of that religion and gain an understanding of the rules, regulations, practices, and attitudes associated with maintaining the relationship between you, the mortal, and your god(s).

In the broadest of terms religions are either monotheistic or polytheistic, meaning they believe in one God or many gods. There is an entire world of scholarship that one can embark upon in understanding the various shades of monotheism and polytheism, but for our current purpose we will stick with the idea of one God versus multiple gods. However, we probably should briefly mention the idea of pluriform monotheism, in which there are multiple Gods recognized, but each are considered extensions of the same God.

We should also include the belief in Atheism, or the belief in no god. And while this may not necessarily be considered a “religion” by its adherents, it nevertheless, is a belief system because the absence of God is no more provable than the existence of God. This lack of proof for atheism leaves the follower in the same position as followers of other religions. They must rely on a mere belief that atheism is worth pursuing.

Plus, in all fairness, let’s not forget the Agnostics, who can’t decide whether there is or isn’t a God or gods.

Monotheism

There are basically 4 types of monotheism as explained in B.A. Robinson’s essay “Four main beliefs about the nature of God: Deism, Panentheism, Pantheism and Theism”:

1.  Theism – This ideology is followed by Christianity, Judaism, and Islam. These religions agree on the overarching understanding of monotheism that; “A single Deity created the universe and continues to actively participate in the world’s activities and in human history.” However, they disagree on the identity of Jesus.
2.  Deism – Belief that a; “Deity created the universe, started it functioning, but is no longer actively involved in it.
3. Panentheism – Belief that a “Deity is the inner spiritual essence of everything in the universe, but it exists beyond the universe as well.”
4. Pantheism – Belief that a; “Deity is the inner spiritual essence of everything in the universe.

Polytheism

Polytheism is the belief in a multiplicity of gods and is the belief system employed by most of the world’s religions except Christianity, Judaism, and Islam.

According to Study.com, the primary religions practicing polytheism include:

Hinduism, Buddhism, Wicca, Confucianism, Shintoism, various African tribal/folk religions, and various American tribal / folk religions.

Wikipedia tells us that the majority of world religions are divided in terms of population as follows:

Christianity – 31%

Islam – 24.9%

Unaffiliated – 15.6%

Hinduism – 15.2%

Buddhism – 6.6%

Folk religions – 5.6%

Sikhism –  .3%

Rather than getting too deep in the nuances of the various belief systems let’s stick to some basics that could prove more productive for the purpose and capacity of this blog, which is to provide you with fodder for thought. If you want to geek out a little more on a more comprehensive but still light overview of monotheism check out:

www.theosophical.org/files/events/MahatmaLetters/About_God.pdf

Ok, you hopefully now know a smidgeon more about belief systems than you did a couple of minutes ago. So, what do you do with this info? My hope is that it will somehow help inform your thinking on choosing or adhering to a belief system. But statistically it is likely to be less impactful than I hope. Judging by an article written by Mark Thomase in response to the Quora question:” How does a person determine what religion to follow and practice?”, the number one way a person chooses a belief system is through family tradition. If your family has a history of following a religion then you are likely to follow along. Although not addressed in Mr. Thomase’s article, I would include the influence of friends and acquaintances in this first way of choosing a belief system. The second most likely path is through a unique experience. This can be natural or supernatural, but something happened that caused you to consider or reconsider the path of your belief. It’s not until we get to the 3^rd most common reason for religion selection that we find study to be the impetus for examination of one’s faith.

Nevertheless, I intend to persevere in my blog because I contend that even though knowledge may not be the primary reason a person chooses their faith a better understanding of that faith, or others, may be key to decisions they make concerning sticking with the faith, or in moving to another faith.

Choosing a religious path may be as easy as following the doctrine of your family, but at some point in time many followers of most faiths are confronted with doubts as to the validity or efficacy of their path.

The path I have chosen, Christianity, encourages its followers to study, learn and gain greater understanding of the spiritual path upon which they travel. I believe that to be true in most religious systems since there are profuse sacred scriptures associated with all the religions to which I have been exposed.

In choosing a spiritual path the main question needs to be how the available paths impact the benefit of my spiritual being. Not just in the short term, but for a long time beyond the passing of our physical being. As we proceed on this journey I hope to impress upon you the importance of your spiritual condition as well as the importance of maintaining or improving it. The choice of a belief system is the entry point from which that process begins. The wrong choice at the beginning of that road can put you way, way off course by the end. That’s why the choice of your belief system is so important.

The basic use of a belief system is to move the spirit and soul into a better outcome once physical existence is over. I think the people who have chosen a belief system as the result of an experience, especially a spiritual experience, are fortunate because such experiences are typically impactful enough that they override the need to understand. That isn’t to say that they are necessarily the best way to choose. Emotions are tricky and deceptive sometimes. They can be so powerful that the mere strength of the experience blinds us to the underlying causes surrounding the experience.

Likewise, following family tradition is an easy way into a belief system. But for a belief system to be felt deeply and understood thoroughly requires study and curiosity. If you are just showing up at church because that’s what you’ve done since you were a kid, or because it is what is expected of you, then you may be following your family down the wrong path.

As humans we have certain core questions that cause us to turn to religions and belief systems to answer. How did I get here, what is my purpose, how do I find happiness, where did the universe come from? Determining if a belief system is capable of answering those questions is a tall order. However, one needs to gain a sense of whether or not the belief system they choose can begin to address those questions.

Another challenge to examining the character of a belief system is understanding how the human dynamic impacts the optics of the belief system. While it is necessary to include the impact the belief system has on the world at large in present times it is also important to realize that all belief systems are comprised of human beings, and human beings can screw things up. It’s easy to look to a belief system for relief from suffering, injustice, poverty, sickness and all the other maladies that befall us. These realities are an ongoing and intrinsic part of being human. Following the right belief system can help us avoid some of the problems that are self-induced and initiated by our own poor decision making or ignorance, but in the material world discomfort, suffering and death are part of the deal, just like joy, beauty and honor. A good belief system should help us avoid some of the suffering we bring upon ourselves and help us cope with the unavoidable suffering that is unavoidable.

For me it was when I started investigating the validity of the answers provided to these questions that I started moving in a positive direction toward Christianity. Because, as humans we have a foot in 2 worlds, the physical world and the spiritual world, I found it compelling to see physical proof of the teachings in the Bible on the origins of the universe and beginning of the species along with archaeological findings that provide evidence of Bible stories. That proof makes believing some of the other Bible scriptures that haven’t yet been proven easier to believe.