Classical pantheism: Difference between revisions

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'''Classical Pantheism''', as defined by [[Charles Hartshorne]] in 1953, is the theological [[deterministic]] philosophies of [[pantheists]] such as [[Baruch Spinoza]] and the [[Stoicism|Stoics]]. Hartshorne sought to distinguish [[panentheism]], which rejects determinism, from deterministic pantheism.

'''Classical pantheism''' equates [[existence]] with [[God]] without attempting to redefine or to minimize either term, and has an inclusive demeanor towards other world faiths. It is a classical concept that is represented by many religious traditions including [[Hinduism]] and by [[Kabbala|Kabbalistic]] [[Judaism]], amongst many other world religions and philosophies.

The term has also been used to mean Pantheism in the classical Greek and Roman era,<ref>Principles of Natural Theology, George Hayward Joyce, 2003, p. 482.</ref><ref>Anti-Theistic Theories: Being the Baird Lecture for 1877, Robert Flint, p. 536.</ref> or archetypal pantheism as variously defined by different authors.<ref>Pantheism: A Non-Theistic Concept of Deity, Michael Philip Levine, 1994, p. 163.</ref>

Due to some of the changes in usage of the word pantheism today, classical pantheism is distinct primarilly because of its simplicity, and compatibility with other religious traditions. In many ways, classical pantheism is similar to [[monism]], in that it views all things, from energy to matter to thought or time as being aspects of an all embracing personal God.

== Hartshorne's Classical Pantheism ==

==See also==

*[[pantheism]]

This usage of the term Classical Pantheism was first presented by [[Charles Hartshorne]] in 1953,<ref>Charles Hartshorne and William Reese, "Philosophers Speak of God," Humanity Books, 1953, ch. 4.</ref> and by others discussing his presentation.<ref>David Ray John B. Cobb, Clark H. Pinnock, "Searching for an Adequate God: A Dialogue Between Process and Free Will Theists", William B. Eerdmans Publishing, 2000, p. 177.</ref> In making his case for [[panentheism]], Hartshorne sought to distinguish panentheism, which rejects determinism, from deterministic pantheism.<ref>Park, Chan Ho, "Transcendence And Spatiality of the Triune Creator", European Academic Publishers, 2005, p. 4. </ref>

*[[cosmotheism]]

*[[naturalistic pantheism]]

The term "pantheism" is derived from Greek words pan (πᾶν, "all") and theos (θεός, "God"), together meaning "All-God" or "All is God." It is often associated with [[monism]], the view that reality is a single thing.

*[[panentheism]]

*[[cosmology]]

The ''Encyclopedia of Religion'' refers to this form of Pantheism as an "extreme [[monism]]," stating that in Classical Pantheism, "God decides or determines everything, including our supposed decisions."<ref>{{cite book|title=Encyclopedia of Religion: Volume 10|year=2005|publisher=MacMillan|___location=USA|isbn=0028657330|edition=2nd|editor=Lindsay Jones|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/encyclopediaofre0000unse_v8f2}}</ref> Other examples of deterministic-inclined pantheisms include the views of [[Ralph Waldo Emerson]], [[Ernst Haeckel]], and [[Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel]].

== Quotations ==

The following quotations illustrate Hartshorne's concept of Classical Pantheism:

*"For no particular thing, not even the smallest, can have happened otherwise than in accordance with the common nature and its reason." - [[Chrysippus]]<ref>Bobzien, Susanne, "Determinism and Freedom in Stoic Philosophy", Oxford University Press, 1998, p. 28.</ref>

*"In the mind there is no absolute or free will; but the mind is determined to wish this or that by a cause, which has also been determined by another cause, and this last by another cause, and so on to infinity." - [[Baruch Spinoza]]<ref>Spinoza, Baruch, "The Ethics", Proposition 48.</ref>

== Other uses of "Classical Pantheism" ==

*Typical or archetypal pantheism. This usage varies according to the judgement of the writer as to what constitutes typical or archetypal pantheism, but usually includes Spinoza.<ref>Pantheism: A Non-Theistic Concept of Deity, Michael Philip Levine, 1994, p. 163.</ref>

*Pantheism of the Classical period, specifically Ancient Greece and Rome (for example, [[Stoicism]]).<ref>Paul Harrison, "Elements of Pantheism" Element Books 1999 p. 13.</ref>

== See also ==

*[[Pantheism]]

*[[Determinism]]

*[[Stoicism]]

==References==

{{Reflist}}

[[Category:Pantheism]]