(November 13, 2014 at 9:08 am)Drich Wrote:(November 13, 2014 at 8:33 am)strawdawg Wrote: I was raised a Catholic and we were taught that the Father, Son and the Holy Spirit were three distinct individuals. Wouldn't that be polytheism?
No polytheism says there is more than one God.
Even Catholics say there is only one God. But at the same time we have been given three distinct deities identified as that one God. That simply means God is a title and not a name. As in God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.
That is how three indivisuals can be only one God.
Missing the point and proving my point.
No one is arguing the Catholic god as their fans interpret him as being polytheistic.
What we are arguing is the behavior of praying to multiple icons stems from polytheism. The reason is that back in that time early Christianity was literally competing with polytheism. That is why you have a three headed/entity that is one. On top of praying to Mary and Saints. Just like the Greeks and Romans, prayed to more than one god.
The trinity motif is actually NOT unique to Christianity or Catholics. The divine family of the Ancient Egyptians was three headed too. Rey or "Ra" the head god was the top deity, and under him was Osirus and Horus. And they also had that trinity in Judgement of the dead where all three sat in judgment of humans.
Even today in Mormonism you have Joseph Smith and Jesus sitting in final Judgment.
Catholics pray to Marry, and Jesus and Saints just like the Egyptians prayed to the Sun, to Osirus and Horus.
How about you consider that humans make up religions and the only reason that any religion exists is because humans compete to create new ones and get their ideas from prior and surrounding religions.
Yes the Catholic god as the followers view it IS monotheistic. But the act of praying to different icons within the religion stems from the reality at that time that they were competing with polytheism.
