Monotheism
Judaism and Christianity had been accused both of spreading an unnatural idea of monotheism. It has also (even sometimes simultaneously) been accused of inventing the idea of the saints, angels, etc to maintain a sense of polytheism. The final accusation is that Judaism and Christianity acknowledges the existence of other deities, but pushes the idea of worshipping only one.
The later accusation is the most important to address, for it will relate to the others, but also because it attacks the core of Judeo-Christian beliefs.
Biblical Evidence of Monotheism
Monotheism as Unnatural
Angels and Saints as demi-gods?
Judaism and Christianity are monotheistic, not henotheistic (the idea of worshiping one god but acknowledging the existence of others). It has been a recurring topic through out the history of Judaism and Christianity, which started off as a sect of Judaism. There is much evidence of this way of thinking in both the Old and New Testaments. The biggest claim against Judeo-Christian monotheism is the first commandment prohibiting the worship of other gods. It has been interpreted literally in the English translation, as the admitting of Yahweh, to the existence of other deities. Particularly the remark "for I am a jealous God" that has been found in many translations. Again, this is a very literal translation, taken one way when it clearly means something else. It is possible to be made jealous of something that isn't there. Particularly when it diverts love and attention away. An example might be when a child reveres a "hero" of sorts, whether fictional or a real person whose story was embellished greatly. A parent might feel "jealous" of this attention. Like a child thanking Santa for gifts at Christmas, rather than his/her parents who actually provided the gifts. This shows there is more than one interpretation of the concept of jealousy.
There are many passages that discuss the idea of Yahweh being the one True God. The first should not come as any surprise. That is Genesis 1 and 2, when Yahweh made Adam and Eve who are believed to be the progenitors of the human race in Judeo-Christian belief. This would make Yahweh the God of the whole human race as He has referred to Himself as "The God of your fathers." There are many other passages that refer to Yahweh as being not only the True God of the human race, but the only God in existence.
Exodus 3:14 - God said to Moses: I AM WHO AM. He said: Thus shalt thou say to the children of Israel: HE WHO IS, hath sent me to you.
15 And God said again to Moses: Thus shalt thou say to the children of Israel: The Lord God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, hath sent me to you: This is my name for ever, and this is my memorial unto all generations.
In Exodus 14 "I am who am"... That is, I am being itself, eternal, self-existent, independent, infinite; without beginning, end, or change; and the source of all other beings.
Deuteronomy 4:35 That thou mightest know that the Lord he is God, and there is no other besides him.
36 From heaven he made thee to hear his voice, that he might teach thee. And upon earth he shewed thee his exceeding great fire, and thou didst hear his words out of the midst of the fire,
37 Because he loved thy fathers, and chose their seed after them. And he brought thee out of Egypt, going before thee with his great power,
38 To destroy at thy coming very great nations, and stronger than thou art, and to bring thee in, and give thee their land for a possession, as thou seest at this present day.
39 Know therefore this day, and think in thy heart that the Lord he is God in heaven above, and in the earth beneath, and there is no other.
Deuteronomy 6:4 - Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God is one Lord.
5 Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with thy whole heart, and with thy whole soul, and with thy whole strength.
[Note in Mark 12:28-34 how Jesus and a Jewish scribe he encountered understood this text.]
Deuteronomy 32:39 - See ye that I alone am, and there is no other God besides me: I will kill and I will make to live: I will strike, and I will heal, and there is none that can deliver out of my hand.
2 Samuel 7:22 - Therefore thou art magnified, O Lord God, because there is none like to thee, neither is there any God besides thee, in all the things that we have heard with our ears.
1 Kings 8:60 - That all the people of the earth may know, that the Lord he is God, and there is no other besides him.
2 Kings 5:15 - And returning to the man of God with all his train, be came, and stood before him, and said: In truth, I know there is no other God in all the earth, but only in Israel: I beseech thee therefore take a blessing of thy servant.
2 Kings 19:15 - And he prayed in his sight, saying: O Lord God of Israel, who sitteth upon the cherubims, thou alone art the God of all the kings of the earth: thou madest heaven and earth:
2 Esdras 9:6 - Thou thyself, O Lord alone, thou hast made heaven, and the heaven of heavens, and all the host thereof: the earth and all things that are in it: the seas and all that are therein: and thou givest life to all these things, and the host of heaven adoreth thee.
PSALM 18:31 - For who is God save the LORD? or who is a rock save our God?
PSALM 86:10 - For thou art great, and doest wondrous things: thou art God alone.
Isaiah 37:16 - O Lord of hosts, God of Israel, who sittest upon the cherubims, thou alone art the God of all the kingdoms of the earth, thou hast made heaven and earth.
17 Incline, O Lord, thy ear, and hear: open, O Lord, thy eyes, and see, and hear all the words of Sennacherib, which he hath sent to blaspheme the living God.
18 For of a truth, O Lord, the kings of the Assyrians have laid waste lands, and their countries.
19 And they have cast their gods into the fire, for they were not gods, but the works of men's hands, of wood and stone: and they broke them in pieces.
20 And now, O Lord our God, save us out of his hand: and let all the kingdoms of the earth know, that thou only art the Lord.
Isaiah 43:10 - You are my witnesses, saith the Lord, and my servant whom I have chosen: that you may know, and believe me, and understand that I myself am. Before me there was no God formed, and after me there shall be none.
11 I am, I am the Lord: and there is no saviour besides me.
Isaiah 44:6 - Thus saith the Lord the king of Israel, and his redeemer the Lord of hosts: I am the brat, and I am the last, and besides me there is no God.
7 Who is like to me? let him call and declare: and let him set before me the order, since I appointed the ancient people: and the things to come, and that shall be hereafter, let them shew unto them.
8 Fear ye not, neither be ye troubled, from that time I have made thee to hear, and have declared: you are my witnesses. Is there a God besides me, a maker, whom I have not known?
Isaiah 45:21 - Tell ye, and come, and consult together: who hath declared this from the beginning, who hath foretold this from that time? Have not I the Lord, and there is no God else besides me? A just God and a saviour, there is none besides me.
Isaiah 46:9 - Remember the former age, for I am God, and there is no God beside, neither is there the like to me:
Osee 13:4 - But I am the Lord thy God from the land of Egypt: and thou shalt know no God but me, and there is no saviour beside me.
Joel 2:27 - And you shall know that I am in the midst of Israel: and I am the Lord your God, and there is none besides: and my people shall not be confounded for ever.
Zechariah 14:9 - And the Lord shall be king over all the earth: in that day there shall be one Lord, and his name shall be one.
We can see (counting Genesis 1 and 2 as the same) 20 passages in the Old Testament mentioned the idea of worshipping only Yahweh but also that He is alone as the only God. There is also The New Testament. This is also important because Trinitarianism has been likened to polytheism. Before proceeding, we should remember that Trinitarianism deals with the idea that God is Three Persons, but one in being. Thus, one God. St.Patrick used the shamrock to illustrate the idea of three in one, hence the significance of the plant in Ireland, and Christianity in general. Passages that discuss the concept of The Holy Trinity are John 14, 15 and 17, to name a few.
Mark 12:29 - And Jesus answered him: The first commandment of all is, Hear, O Israel: the Lord thy God is one God.
30 And thou shalt love the Lord thy God, with thy whole heart, and with thy whole soul, and with thy whole mind, and with thy whole strength. This is the first commandment.
31 And the second is like to it: Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is no other commandment greater than these.
32 And the scribe said to him: Well, Master, thou hast said in truth, that there is one God, and there is no other besides him.
33 And that he should be loved with the whole heart, and with the whole understanding, and with the whole soul, and with the whole strength; and to loveone's neighbour as one's self, is a greater thing than all holocausts and sacrifices.
34 And Jesus seeing that he had answered wisely, said to him: Thou art not far from the kingdom of God. And no man after that durst ask him any question.
John 17:3 - Now this is eternal life: That they may know thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.
Romans 3:29 - Is he the God of the Jews only? Is he not also of the Gentiles? Yes, of the Gentiles also.
30 For it is one God, that justifieth circumcision by faith, and uncircumcision through faith.
1 Corinthians 8:4 - But as for the meats that are sacrificed to idols, we know that an idol is nothing in the world, and that there is no God but one.
5 For although there be that are called gods, either in heaven or on earth (for there be gods many, and lords many).
6 Yet to us there is but one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we unto him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we by Him.
Galatians 3:20 - Now a mediator is not of one: but God is one.
Ephesians 4:6 - One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in us all.
1 Timothy 1:17 - Now to the king of ages, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honour and glory for ever and ever. Amen.
1 Timothy 2:5 - For there is one God, and one mediator of God and men, the man Christ Jesus:
6 Who gave himself a redemption for all, a testimony in due times.
James 2:19 - Thou believest that there is one God. Thou dost well: the devils also believe and tremble.
This brings the total of passage discussing the idea of monotheism and the fact that Judaism and Christianity profess that Yahweh is the One True God, to 29. This clears up the idea that Judeo-Christianity believed in (the existence of) and acknowledged other deities.
There is also the idea of monotheism being an "unnatural" even a "wrong" idea. Since it is a matter of faith, "wrong" shouldn't factor into the discussion, since there is no inherent immortality in simply believing in a deity. As for the idea of "unnatural" one could argue that the very concept of deities is unnatural since they can not be "found" on the surface of the Earth. Often the belief is that they dwell in another plane, above or below the Earth. These are ideas based in faith, which is a metaphysical thought.
As you move over into the realm of theism, monotheism can not be considered "unnatural" since most polytheist religions believe that there is a "god of gods" who is the source of all. Even all other gods, demi-gods, under creatures, etc. So one can not say that belief in only one deity is "unnatural" for the reason of other religions believing in a deity for all things.
It has been said that Judeo-Christian ideas force out polytheism in Europe, as monotheism was unheard of there. While it is true, that most European religions were polytheistic and true monotheism would have been new, it is important to remember that Judaism and Christianity cover more parts of the world than just Europe. They started in the Middle East. Monotheism was not an unheard of idea there. There were more than a few religions in that area. A few of them monotheistic. Zoroastrianism for example. Also consider that monotheism has been called "wrong" because it wasn't "European." It should not be discounted for that reason. Many ideas that weren't "European" are very common in Europe and are benefitial. Such as Arabic numbers. An idea shouldn't be discounted as "wrong" or "bad for us" simply because of the region in which it originated. This way of thinking can give rise to the idea of difference in humanity, even to promoting ignorance and perpetuating animosity.
The final accusation is that the angels and saints are looked upon as deities themselves, or demi-gods. This was to maintain a sense of polytheism with out saying it blatantly. It is important to remember that the saints are human (for the most part, as some are angels). They have no power. The word comes from the Latin word sanctus which means "holy" or "consecrated." This reflects the lives they lived. Judaism and Christianity also discuss the limits of angels (even fallen angels) and that all things, even themselves come from God. An example is that of Job, when Satan had been given permission to torment Job. Even that had it limits for permission was needed. This was undone when God restored health and good fortune to Job. Again the limited power of fallen angels can been seen in Matthew 8 when Jesus commanded demons to leave two possessed men. The demons asked to be allowed to possess some near by swine. Then they proceeded to kill themselves. We can see that the demons, even Satan who was once the highest angel and called the prince of darkness, has limits. So they can not be considered "dark gods" or "demi-gods." They are creations with powers far inferior to that of God.
Angels have also been given powers, but are also limited as creations of God. They also remain subordinate to God.
The saints are also limited. Most of the saints (with the exception of St.Michael, St.Gabriel and a few others who are arch-angels) are human with no powers at all. Only a few faiths believe in saints and even then they acknowledge this limitation. There may be a patron saint, but that is just a saint who is considered to have an affinity with a group or cause. Such as St.Michael who is considered the patron saint of soldiers but not a god of war. Also, one does not pray to a saint. One asks a saint to pray for them. The saints themselves have no powers. They can only pray for you. The prayers are always to God. The saints are believed to be in fellowship of God, and in heaven, so one might ask them to pray for you. While this person would continue to pray to God, they might ask this saint to pray as well. Just as one might ask a (living) family member or friend to pray. The dead do not cease to exist, and the faithful dead are "closer to Christ." One perspective says "life after life." An example of a person asking for the intercession of faithful departed, in the fellowship of God is in Luke 16. Other citations include Rom 8:34; Heb 7:25; John 11:25; Rom 8:38-39; Heb 2:11, 10:10; 1 Tim 2:1-5; Tobit 12:12,15, Revelation 5:8, or Revelation 8:3-4.
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