Pantheism updated

Pseudo monotheism

Authentic monotheism proposes (one) GOD.

Hence: “I (or we) believe in (one) GOD!”

Pseudo monotheism (i.e. henotheism) proposes one selected God.

Hence: “I (or we) believe in my (or our) one God!”

© 2020 by Victor Langheld

Analysis Authentic^1,2 monotheism proposes^3 (one) GOD.^4,5,6 Hence: “I (or we) believe in (one) God!” Pseudo^7 monotheism^8 (i.e. henotheism)^9 proposes one selected^10 God.^11,12 Hence: “I (or we) believe in my (or our) one God!” © 2020 by Victor Langheld

1. Meaning: primary, principle, i.e. basic, initial, thus ‘One without a Second’; genuine; or, relatively speaking ‘one-down’; elsewhere conceived of as ‘substantive’. The emergent from an absolute or relative primary procedure, the cognizable because differentiated ‘stance’ (or super-stance), is secondary " n. Hence a (or THE) ‘one-down’ primary procedure is called ‘substance’. ‘Stance’ (elsewhere named ‘naturata’) cannot cognise’ ‘substance’ (elsewhere named ‘naturans’). Or, God (i.e. ‘one-up’) cannot cognise GOD (‘one down’). Jewish Kabbalists called the ’one down’ GOD (i.e. the primary or basic (thus unknowable because lacking attributes/differences) creation procedure) En Sof and the (emerged, thus knowable, because self-differentiating with attributes) ‘one up’ God the Sefirot. In the Upanishads the unknowable primary procedure is called the nirguna Brahman (to wit: the principle or primary procedure of ‘growth’) and the knowable secondary procedure the saguna Brahman ( to wit, the ‘grown’, i.e. emerged). 2. i.e. true (i.e.in the sense of: common to all, i.e. universal) but (politically) useless because same for all. Same (i.e. non-difference) for all does not provide identity since identity derives from difference (that makes a difference). 3. All theisms emerge as thought experiments, i.e. as propositions (thus fictions) to be actualised (as facts). The propositions are designed to upgrade an individual’s or a community’s survival capacity by superimposing more efficient/convenient constraints/rules. By so doing it divides (i.e. distinguishes, thus providing identity) and rules. 4. For GOD (elsewhere simply referred to as THAT) read: primary or basic procedure (as protocol or as operating system serving as platform) that recursively emerges all secondary (" n) procedures (as platforms). As primary procedure GOD reacts unintentionally, automatically and blindly. 5. THAT GOD serves as platform procedure common to all differential iterations (i.e. as recursive copies) emerging from or on it as secondary procedures. Because common (or basic) to all, Consequently THAT GOD has no political function (since politics happens between emergents deriving from, i.e. born from a given common platform). Because THAT operates as basic procedure common to all (secondary procedures) it is usefully, because consumer friendly, named PAN. 6. Authentic (i.e. unselected) monotheism - when equated with monism = pantheism - offers no focus for worship or devotion, hence no opportunity for catharsis, indeed for personal or group stress relief, hence is strenuously resisted by pseudo- (meaning selective) monotheists. Socrates was (and many more after him were) executed because of his perceived refusal to worship the city’s gods. Monist mono-theists, the greatest threats to local identity and realness, were regularly murdered (or banished) because they threatened the local (and thus personal) rules patrons, i.e. the Gods (as convenient local rulers/controllers). 7. i.e. inauthentic (fundamentally false because secondary (" n), albeit politically useful because divisive because differentiating, hence offering identity and increase cohesion) because emerged, i.e. born. To the ‘One up’ observer ‘one-up’ appears pseudo (false) in relation to ‘one down.’ This applies to all ‘one up’ to ‘one down’ (i.e. emergent) relationships. Since every emergent (hence theophany) operates (as identical but differentiated copy of) the basic procedure of its platform, it in turn operates as platform. 8. Countless (i.e. an indefinite number of) pseudo (i.e. false but useful, because selective) monotheisms have been invented (as thought experiments). Many selective, hence pseudo-monotheisms as have been actualised as (political, i.e. having behavioural leverage) facts, such as (the three-in-one) God of Christianity, Islam, Sivaism, Vaishnavism and so on. 9. Henotheism is the name given to the belief in a selected (albeit secondary or ‘one up’, i.e. locally emerged) God serving a selected, hence identifiable individual, community, group or nation. It follows that pseudo monotheisms (or their adherents) when threatened with disclosure of their selectiveness, thus falseness = incompleteness, react and defend themselves with ruthless fanaticism and sheer violence. For they fear loss of identity (and thus self-realness) and the power (+ wealth + privilege) derived from their selected superimposed rules. Such threats to social and personal stability and the resulting violence are avoided by declaring religious freedom as a universal ‘human right’, i.e. the right to believe in and behave according to the most abstruse set of rules and its patron/tutelar. 10. The (i.e. a, any) selection of (i.e. the tweaking with) added constraints/rules (i.e. as superimposed template of commandments complete with rewards and punishments + a figure head = God), such as the Traffic code + the cops, is designed to increase individual and group (i.e. popular) survival capacity/freedom. 11. The pseudo monotheist’s named (i.e. personal) or unnamed (i.e. impersonal) God emerges and serves as local rules/constraints patron/tutelary. He/she is defended as fanatically against dissolution (and corresponding loss of identity and realness) as the local football team. Considered as true and good, and all other local Gods (i.e. as personalised rules templates) and their devotees as untrue and bad, all manner of robbery, murder, rape and enslavement can be legitimately carried out in one’s selected God’s name. The former activities are not legitimate for the authentic monotheist. Authentic monotheists do not kill, rob, rape or enslave in the name of everyone’s GOD. 12. The local (because defined by his attributes, thus personalised) God (i.e. a local emergent or theophany) can be worshipped (i.e. as father or mother figure) and serve as source of imagined protection and focus for devotion, thus personal and group catharsis.