The World Pantheist Movement (WPM) is an organization of people associated with pantheism, a philosophy which asserts that spirituality should be centered on nature. It claims membership in many countries. Some critics claim that the WPM is "atheism for nature-lovers," while the WPM itself insists that their worldview, while "compatible" with atheism, encompasses much more than atheism alone. Although generally considered a successful organization, the WPM has experienced some opposition in pantheist circles, ...

Including:

• World Pantheist Movement - External link

Read more here: » World Pantheist Movement: Encyclopedia - World Pantheist Movement

Read more here: » Universal Pantheist Society: Encyclopedia - Universal Pantheist Society

This article distinguishes between two divergent groups of pantheists: Classical pantheism, which is expressed in the immanent God of Kabalistic Judaism, Advaita Vedanta Sanatana Dharma, and Monism, generally viewing God in a personal manner. Naturalistic pantheism, based on the relatively recent views of Baruch Spinoza and John Toland (who coined the term "pantheism"), as well as contemporary influences. The vast majority of persons who can be identified as "pantheistic" are of the classical va ...

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Pantheism, Pantheism - History, Pantheism - Varieties of pantheism, Pantheism - Methods of explanation, Pantheism - Debate, Pantheism - Related concepts, Pantheism - Panentheism, Pantheism - Cosmotheism, Pantheism - Pantheistic concepts in religion, Pantheism - Hinduism, Pantheism - Ayyavazhi, Pantheism - Judaism, Pantheism - Christian, Pantheism - Islam, Pantheism - Other religions, Pantheism - Quotations

Read more here: » Pantheism: Encyclopedia II - Pantheism - Varieties of pantheism

Pantheism (Greek: pan = all and Theos = God) literally means "God is All" and "All is God". It is the view that everything is of an all-encompassing immanent God; or that the universe, or nature, and God are equivalent. More detailed definitions tend to emphasize the idea that natural law, existence, and/or the universe (the sum total of all that is, was, and shall be) is represented or personified in the theological principle of 'God'. Pantheism - History. The term "pantheist" — of which th ...

Including:

• Pantheism - History
• Pantheism - Varieties of pantheism
• Pantheism - Methods of explanation
• Pantheism - Debate
• Pantheism - Related concepts
• Pantheism - Panentheism
• Pantheism - Cosmotheism
• Pantheism - Pantheistic concepts in religion
• Pantheism - Hinduism
• Pantheism - Ayyavazhi
• Pantheism - Judaism
• Pantheism - Christian
• Pantheism - Islam
• Pantheism - Other religions
• Pantheism - Quotations

Read more here: » Pantheism: Encyclopedia - Pantheism

An oft-cited feature of pantheism is that each individual human, being part of the universe or nature, is part of God. One issue discussed by pantheists is how, if this is so, humans can have free will. In answer, the following analogy is sometimes given (particularly by classical pantheists): "you are to God, as an individual blood cell in your vein is to you." The analogy further maintains that while a cell may be aware of its own environs, and even has some choices (free will) between right and wrong (killing a bacterium, becoming maligna ...

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Pantheism, Pantheism - History, Pantheism - Varieties of pantheism, Pantheism - Methods of explanation, Pantheism - Debate, Pantheism - Related concepts, Pantheism - Panentheism, Pantheism - Cosmotheism, Pantheism - Pantheistic concepts in religion, Pantheism - Hinduism, Pantheism - Ayyavazhi, Pantheism - Judaism, Pantheism - Christian, Pantheism - Islam, Pantheism - Other religions, Pantheism - Quotations

Read more here: » Pantheism: Encyclopedia II - Pantheism - Methods of explanation

Some critics argue that pantheism is little more than a redefinition of the word "God" to mean "existence" "life"or "reality". Many pantheists reply that even if this is so, such a shift in the way we think about these ideas can serve to create both a new and a potentially far more insightful conception of both existence and God. Perhaps the most significant debate within the pantheistic community is about the nature of God. Classical pantheism believes in a personal, conscious, and omniscient God, and sees this God as uniting all tru ...

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Pantheism, Pantheism - History, Pantheism - Varieties of pantheism, Pantheism - Methods of explanation, Pantheism - Debate, Pantheism - Related concepts, Pantheism - Panentheism, Pantheism - Cosmotheism, Pantheism - Pantheistic concepts in religion, Pantheism - Hinduism, Pantheism - Ayyavazhi, Pantheism - Judaism, Pantheism - Christian, Pantheism - Islam, Pantheism - Other religions, Pantheism - Quotations

Read more here: » Pantheism: Encyclopedia II - Pantheism - Debate

Pantheism - Panentheism. Pantheism has features in common with panentheism, such as the idea that the universe is part of God. Technically, the two are separate, inasmuch as pantheism finds God synonymous with nature, and panentheism finds God to be greater than nature alone. Some find this distinction unhelpful, while others see it as a significant point of division. Many of the major faiths described as pantheistic could also be described as panentheistic, whereas naturalistic pantheism cannot (not seeing God a ...

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Pantheism, Pantheism - History, Pantheism - Varieties of pantheism, Pantheism - Methods of explanation, Pantheism - Debate, Pantheism - Related concepts, Pantheism - Panentheism, Pantheism - Cosmotheism, Pantheism - Pantheistic concepts in religion, Pantheism - Hinduism, Pantheism - Ayyavazhi, Pantheism - Judaism, Pantheism - Christian, Pantheism - Islam, Pantheism - Other religions, Pantheism - Quotations

Read more here: » Pantheism: Encyclopedia II - Pantheism - Related concepts

Pantheism - Hinduism. In Hindu theology Moksha and achieving godness is the ultimate, both transcendent and immanent, the absolute infinite existence, the sum total of all that ever is, was, or ever shall be. As the sun has rays of light which emanate from the same source, the same holds true for the multifaceted aspects of God emanating from Brahman, like many colors of the same prism. This concept of God is of one unity, with the individual personal Gods being aspects of the One; thus, different deities are seen by different adherents as particularly well suited to their worship. Pan ...

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Pantheism, Pantheism - History, Pantheism - Varieties of pantheism, Pantheism - Methods of explanation, Pantheism - Debate, Pantheism - Related concepts, Pantheism - Panentheism, Pantheism - Cosmotheism, Pantheism - Pantheistic concepts in religion, Pantheism - Hinduism, Pantheism - Ayyavazhi, Pantheism - Judaism, Pantheism - Christian, Pantheism - Islam, Pantheism - Other religions, Pantheism - Quotations

Read more here: » Pantheism: Encyclopedia II - Pantheism - Pantheistic concepts in religion

Islamic Sufism is regarded by some as being influenced by eastern philosophies (Indian and Persian) and has Pantheistic doctrines within its many varieties. Pantheism - Other religions. There are elements of pantheism in Theosophy, some forms of Buddhism, and Taoism along with many varying denominations and individuals within and without denominations. Many Unitarian Universali ...

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Pantheism, Pantheism - History, Pantheism - Varieties of pantheism, Pantheism - Methods of explanation, Pantheism - Debate, Pantheism - Related concepts, Pantheism - Panentheism, Pantheism - Cosmotheism, Pantheism - Pantheistic concepts in religion, Pantheism - Hinduism, Pantheism - Ayyavazhi, Pantheism - Judaism, Pantheism - Christian, Pantheism - Islam, Pantheism - Other religions, Pantheism - Quotations

Read more here: » Pantheism: Encyclopedia II - Pantheism - Islam

Adherents feel that naturalistic pantheism might best be understood through the teachings of Spinoza and Taoism historically, and the Universal Pantheist Society (UPS) and World Pantheist Movement (WPM) today. Although the UPS is the older of the two, it has seen decreased activity in recent years. The WPM (founded by former UPS vice-president Paul Harrison), on the other hand, has expanded more considerably due to its promotion of "scientific pantheism", which many critics claim is essentially no more than "atheism for nature lovers" ...

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Naturalistic pantheism, Naturalistic pantheism - Adherents, Naturalistic pantheism - Criticism and response, Naturalistic pantheism - Semantics, Naturalistic pantheism - Mysticism, Naturalistic pantheism - Spirituality

Read more here: » Naturalistic pantheism: Encyclopedia II - Naturalistic pantheism - Adherents

pantheism: "All-is-God doctrine."

A term applied to a variety of philosophical position in which God and the world are identical. To the pantheist, God is not a Personal Lord, nor a transcendent or formless Being, but is the totality of all existence, including universal laws, movement, matter, etc.

See: monistic theism, panentheism.

(See also: Pantheism, Hinduism, Body Mind and Soul)