Panendeism
Panendeism (from
Greek πάν (
'pan' ), meaning 'all';
-en meaning 'in' and
Latin deus meaning 'God') is simply
Deism together with the belief that the universe is a part of God, but not all of God. Some panendeists have established numerous additional beliefs, some of which are quite detailed, and use more specialized terminology to describe their beliefs. However, any deist who believes that the universe is a part (but not the whole) of God, can be considered a panendeist.
Traditionally,
monotheism refers to belief in a god that is a separate entity within the universe, whereas
pantheism (all is God) refers to the belief that God and the universe are identical. The German philosopher
Karl Christian Friedrich Krause (
1781-
1832) sought to reconcile the two beliefs and coined the term
panentheism (all in God) in 1828. This conception of God influenced New England
Transcendentalists such as
Ralph Waldo Emerson. The term is best known for its use by
Charles Hartshorne in his discussions of
Process Theology and has also been adopted by proponents of various
New Thought beliefs.
The term, "Panendeism" was purportedly first coined in late 2000 by Larry Copling in
Ft. Lauderdale,
Florida, althought some earlier uses have been spotted; while developing a more deistic interpretation of the panentheistic approach to understanding the Divine. The term was first officially published on Mr. Copling's website, http://www.panendeism.com in early 2001. A much more complete description of the concept was later made available via an article published on Mr. Copling's personal website (http://www.copling.com) in 2004. The original ideology known as "PanenDeism", as outlined by the writings of Larry Copling, continue in their present development.
Within a year or two of the publishing of PanenDeism.com, and through personal discussions via chatrooms, email and discussion boards on the internet, several other self-described Deists who shared this belief in God sought to distinguish themselves from their theist counterparts, and began using the term to describe themselves and the Deistic characteristics of their beliefs. These individuals have since expanded the familiarity of the term in online communities. Today, panendeism is acquiring increasing acceptance and respect in the Deist community.
Panendeism is monotheistic simply because it is not polytheistic. However, many panentheists consider panentheism as transcending the one vs. many dichotomy. They regard panentheism as wholly distinct from monotheism, pantheism, and
polytheism. Accordingly, the classical forms of Deism may be regarded as monodeistic to distinguish them from newer forms of
pandeism and panendeism, reserving the term Deism to describe all such belief systems that rely on reason and reject
revealed religion.
While this "watchmaker" conception of God was prevalent among many early Deists, it is not a requirement of modern Deism. (In fact, even early Deists disagreed on God's role in the universe; compare
English Deism with
French Deism.) In panendeism, there may even arise doubts that the universe was "created". Deism is a dynamic category of beliefs that can change with time. What is most important in Deism is the belief in God through reason and experience, and the rejection of revealed religion. Since Panendeists agree with these underlying principles, they are Deists, even if their conception of God differs with that of Classical Deists.
*
Agnosticism*
Atheism*
Cosmological argument*
Deism*
Freethought*
Infinitism*
Pandeism*
Panentheism*
Pantheism*
Process Theology*
Philosophical theism*
Transcendentalism*
PanenDeism.com*
Copling.com*
Dynamic Deism*
Positive Deism*
Modern Deism
