Is God the (or a) Deity?

[ALotLessThumb]

Is God a Deity? Does Deity actually exist?

When we refer to God, is it really proper to think of Him as the
(or a) Deity of the universe; or would you say that it is more proper to think of Him as the (or a) Authority of the Universe? Can He be considered both? Why? What is Deity exactly?

This is not a thread to discuss/postulate the non-existence of God or god(s), though our agnostic and atheistic posters are more than welcome to this discussion.

I know lots of questions, I’ll throw my two cents in later, thank you in advance for replying.

 

[JimG]

You say this is not a thread to discuss the non-existence of God. Yet you ask, Does Deity actually exist? Which is the same as asking: Does God actually exist?

By definition, God is the Deity. Deity means the divine nature. If there is more than one divine nature, then what distinguises one from the other is what one has that the other lacks or vice-versa. This means that both would be limited beings, and thus, not deities at all, for the divine nature is coneived as infinite and unlimited.

 

[Starwynd]

God is both THe and a deity.

There have been other supernatural beings who have posed as Gods, but I believe that these beings were simply Satan in other guises trying to lead people away from God.

 

[ALotLessThumb]

You say this is not a thread to discuss the non-existence of God. Yet you ask, Does Deity actually exist? Which is the same as asking: Does God actually exist?

I definately understand where you are coming from. Deity is synonymous with God in our culture. Which is why I am asking if this is fitting. The concept of deity presupposes or evokes the Greek concepts of nature/metaphysics/etc that have come under question for centuries now. Deity is looked upon as a preternatural or supernatural being.

Where does God tell us he is a supernatural being? What we know of God, has either been revealed to us, and/or thought out correct? As Deuteronomy 6:4 says:

Hear, O Israel: The Eternal is our God, the Eternal is one. [Deuteronomy 6:4]

or how about the first commandment,

“You shall have no other gods but me?”

Is God talking about One Supernatural Being? Wouldn’t it make more sense if you replaced the word “God” with authority such as:

“Hear, O Israel: The Eternal is our authority, the Eternal is one.”

“You shall have no other authorities but me?”

Doesn’t Saint Thomas argue that we cannot know the true nature of God?

To refer to something’s nature is to say it is observable. I don’t find God to be very observable; but I definately can understand that God is the author of that which is observable.

 

[JimG]

Of course, one can define “deity” however one wants. It can be used to refer to Greek and Roman pagan deities as well as to the idea of one omnipotent being. But commonly, it’s used as a synonym for God.

My original NAB translates Deuteronomy 6:4 as follows: “Hear O Israel! The Lord is our God, the Lord Alone!” The JB translates it: “Listen Israel: Yahweh our God is the one Yahweh.”

It’s true that the Israelites lived among peoples for whom a multitude of (lower case) deities was assumed, and perhaps we could read the command “You shall have no other gods but me” as a command to the Israelites to remain faithful to Yahweh alone, rather than as an abstract statement of monotheism. And of course, such an understanding by the Israelites of their God as a “jealous” God obviously does not rule out the concept of monotheism either, since Israel was the lone monotheist nation of ancient history.