You would never be able to guess it from my posts, but I have put a bit of effort into the study of Christendom.
So I got a PM today- and I made a rather lengthy response to it and thought I would share the post here.
I edited out the name because it really doesn't matter.
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At the risk of being very annoying and being slightly terrified of you mrgreen
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May I ask, what has been your experience with deities that you have come to the conclusion that polytheism is alive and well and not archaic for today?
Polytheism exists merely because there are polytheists. I'll cite Nuri, CuAnnan and Celeblin as proof.
As for my personal experiences with deities, I don't know you well enough to indulge any such request.
I will say that based on the scripture of the Jews and Christians, there isn't a whole lot of support for monotheism aside from some cultural references to world dominion of a ruling class of Chosen People.
For starts, Genesis 1:26 uses the plural form Eloheim.
Then we skip ahead to the creation of YHVH's Children in Genesis 2:7-8.
Go forward further to Genesis 4:16 wherein Cain left YHVH's presence. Clearly this is not possible with an omnipresent deity, but instead is more consistent with a tribal deity or a deity bound to the land.
Genesis 4:17 addresses the fact that a woman from Nod joined with Cain.
This even before we get into Deu 6:14. Judaism and Christendom started as Monolateralist faiths, not monotheistic faiths.
And this is even before we get into the New Testament where it's acknowledged that there are many gods and many lords in 1Cr 8:5.
The authors of these scriptures aren't ones to mince words. There's no suggestion that these deities don't actually exist, merely that 1) The god of Moses isn't found inside physical items (idols) and 2) that there is only one god to be worshiped by those who would lay claim to the spiritual traditions birthed on Mount Sinai.
As for anything being archaic, the notion that any theistic aesthetic is out of date strikes me as silly, it relies on a shallow understanding of what pagan gods are. They are no less individuals than the Abrahamic god is. After all, comparative mythology isn't designed to suggest that the terms in which foreign cultures come to a given understanding is a statement of what those things actually are.
So there you have it.
Top it off with my complete befuddlement as to why anyone would be even remotely afraid of me and you have the summation of my personal reaction.
I'm typically more forthcoming with my own spiritual experiences with people I know. I've only seen this person a couple of times in M&R and my impressions haven't been favorable. Likely because I think they are a troll.
This is of course in contrast with my deep seeded trust issues and my desire to keep that which is sacred to me from being profaned by some dipshit who thinks that if they speak the lingo I'm suddenly going to consider them a Sister or Brother.
To say nothing of the things that are lost in translation. I think one of the reasons Cu and I are as close as we are is because there are some cultural attitudes that, while not the same, lend enough passing familiarity that we don't recoil from each other.
