A lot of time has passed since the appearance of man on our planet. But the questions that tormented him in hoary antiquity remained. Where did we come from? Why do we live? Is there a creator? What is a god? The answers to these questions will sound different depending on the person you ask. Even modern science is not yet able to provide such evidence for the generally accepted theories that they cannot be questioned. Each culture has its own view of religion, but they agree on one thing - a person cannot live without faith in something higher.
General concept of God
There is a mythological and religious concept of God. From the point of view of myths, God is not alone at all. Considering the many ancient civilizations (Greece, Egypt, Rome, etc.), we can conclude that people did not believe in one single god, but in many gods. They made up the pantheon. Scientists call this phenomenon polytheism. Speaking about what gods are, it is necessary to clarify which of the ancient peoples worshiped them. This depends on their purpose. Each of them had power over some of the parts of all things (earth, water, love, etc.). In religion, God is a supernatural entity that has power over alland everything that happens in our world. He is endowed with ideal features, often rewarded with the ability to create. It is almost impossible to answer what God is with one definition, because this is a diverse concept.
Philosophical understanding of God
Philosophers have been arguing for centuries about who God is. There are many theories about this. Each of the scientists tried to give his vision of this problem. Plato said that there is a pure mind that contemplates us from above. He is also the creator of all things. In the era of modern times, for example, Rene Descartes called God a being that has no flaws. B. Spinoza said that this is nature itself, which creates everything around, but does not perform miracles. In the 17th century, rationalism was born, whose representative was I. Kant. He argued that God lives in the human mind to satisfy his spiritual needs. G. Hegel was a representative of idealism. In his writings, he turned the Almighty into a kind of idea, which, in its development, gave rise to everything that we can see. The twentieth century has already pushed us to the understanding that God is one for both philosophers and ordinary believers. But the path that leads these individuals to the Almighty is different.
God in Judaism
Judaism is the national religion of the Jews, which became the basis for Christianity. This is one of the most striking examples of monotheism, that is, monotheism. Palestine is considered the birthplace of Judaism. The God of the Jews, or Yahweh, is considered the Creator of the world. He communicated with chosen people (Abraham, Moses, Isaac, etc.) andgave them the knowledge and laws that they had to fulfill. Judaism says that God is one for all, even for those who do not recognize him. The consistent principle of monotheism in this religion for the first time in history was proclaimed unchanged. The God of the Jews is eternal, the beginning and the end, the Creator of the universe. They recognize the Old Testament as a holy book, which was written by people under the guidance of God. Another dogma of Judaism is the coming of the Messiah, who must save the chosen people from eternal torment.
Christianity
Christianity is the most numerous of the world's religions. It arose in the middle of the 1st century. n. e. in Palestine. At first, only Jews were Christians, but in just a couple of decades, this religion embraced many nationalities. The central person and the root cause of its emergence was Jesus Christ. But historians argue that the difficult living conditions of people played a role, but they do not deny the existence of Jesus as a historical figure. The main book in Christianity is the Bible, which consists of the Old and New Testaments. The second part of this holy book was written by the disciples of Christ. It tells about the life and deeds of this Master. The only god of Christians is the Lord, who wants to save all people on earth from hellfire. He promises eternal life in Paradise if you believe in Him and serve Him. Everyone can believe, regardless of nationality, age and past. God has three persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Each of these three is omnipotent, eternal and all-good.
Jesus Christ –Lamb of God
As mentioned earlier, the Jews have long been waiting for the coming of the Messiah. For Christians, Jesus became such, although the Jews did not recognize him. The Bible tells us that Christ is the Son of God who was sent to save the world from destruction. It all started with the immaculate conception of the young virgin Mary, to whom an angel came and said that she had been chosen by the Almighty himself. At His birth, a new star lit up in the sky. Jesus' childhood passed much like that of His peers. It was not until he was thirty years old that he was baptized and began his activities. The main thing in His teaching was that he was the Christ, that is, the Messiah, and the Son of God. Jesus spoke about repentance and forgiveness, about the coming judgment and the second coming. He performed many miracles such as healing, resurrection, turning water into wine. But the main thing was that in the end Christ offered himself as a sacrifice for the sins of the people of the whole world. He was innocent and suffered for all people so that they could be saved through the blood of Jesus. His resurrection meant victory over evil and the devil. It was supposed to give hope to anyone who needs it.
The concept of God in Islam
Islam, or Islam, originated in the 7th century in the western part of the Arabian Peninsula. Its founder was Mohammed, who acts as a great prophet in this religion. He received a revelation from the angel Gabriel and had to tell people about it. The voice that revealed the truth to him also gave the content of the holy book, the Koran. The god of Muslims is called Allah. He created everythingsurrounds us, all beings, seven heavens, hell and paradise. He sits on his throne above the seventh heaven and controls everything that happens. God and Allah are essentially the same thing, because if we translate the word "Allah" from Arabic into Russian, we will see that its meaning is "God". But Muslims don't take it that way. He is something special for them. He is one, great, all-seeing and eternal. Allah sends his knowledge through the prophets. There were nine of them in total, and eight of them are similar to the apostles from Christianity, including Jesus (Isa). The ninth and holiest is the Prophet Muhammad. Only he was honored to receive the most complete knowledge in the form of the Koran.
Buddhism
Buddhism is considered the third world religion. It was founded in the VI century. BC e. in India. The man who gave rise to this religion had four names, but the most famous of them is Buddha, or the Enlightened One. But this is not just a name, but a state of mind of a person. The concept of God, as in Christianity or Islam, does not exist in Buddhism. The creation of the world is not a question that should bother a person. Therefore, the very existence of God as the Creator is denied. People should take care of their karma and achieve nirvana. The Buddha, on the other hand, is viewed differently in two different concepts. Representatives of the first of them speak of him as a person who has reached nirvana. In the second, the Buddha is considered the personification of Jarmakaya - the essence of the universe, which came to enlighten all people.
Paganism
To understand what God isin paganism, one must understand the essence of this belief. In Christianity, this term refers to non-Christian religions and those that were traditional in the pre-Christian period. They are mostly polytheistic. But scientists try not to use this name, as it has too vague meaning. It is replaced by the term "ethnic religion". The concept of "god" in each branch of paganism has its own meaning. There are many gods in polytheism, they are collected in a pantheon. In shamanism, the main conductor between the world of people and spirits is the shaman. He is chosen and does not do it of his own free will. But spirits are not gods, they are different entities. They coexist and can either help or harm people depending on their goals. In totemism, a totem is used as a god, which is worshiped by a certain group of people or one person. He is considered related to a tribe or clan. The totem can be an animal, a river, or another natural object. He is worshiped and can be sacrificed. In animism, every object or phenomenon of nature has a soul, that is, nature is spiritualized. Therefore, each of them deserves to be worshiped.
Thus, speaking about what God is, you need to mention many religions. Each of them understands this term in its own way or denies it altogether. But common to each of them is the supernatural nature of God and his ability to influence human life.
