Supreme Being

The term Supreme Being is often defined simply as "God",[1] and it is used with this meaning by theologians of many religious faiths, including, but not limited to, Christianity,[2] Islam,[3] Hinduism,[4] and Deism.[5] However, the term can also refer to more complex or philosophical interpretations of the divine.

Contents

Use of the term in religious contexts

Christianity

In Christian Theology, the term Supreme Being is used to refer to God.[6] Although mostly used specifically as a reference to God the Father, it can be used to refer to Christ or the Christian Trinity of Father, Son and Holy Spirit.[7]

Hinduism

In the Shaiva tradition of Hinduism, Shiva is referred to as the "Supreme Being".[8]

In the Vaishnavite traditions of Hinduism, the term is applied to Vishnu/Krishna.[9][10]

Islam

Islamic scholars have used the term Supreme Being to refer to Allah, an Arabic name for The God.[11]

Sikhism

The holy scripture of the Sikhs, Sri Guru Granth Sahib, uses terms that are sometimes translated as "Supreme Being". Sikhs personally use Waheguru, or the term Ek Omkar, meaning One God.

Deism

Deists use the term Supreme Being to refer to the Divine (although the Divine is not defined).

See also

References

  1. ^ definition according to Miriam-Webster on line dictionary.
  2. ^ http://www.actsweb.org/articles/article.php?i=1431&d=2&c=2 and http://www.orthodoxresearchinstitute.org/articles/dogmatics/baroudy_god_supreme_being.htm
  3. ^ Revelation - Sacred Theology
  4. ^ The Hindu Online edition of India's National Newspaper, Monday, Sep 22, 2003
  5. ^ website showing usage by Deists during the French Revolution.
  6. ^ God - the Supreme Being
  7. ^ The Sense of a Supreme Being
  8. ^ http://www.himalayanacademy.com/resources/books/dws/dws_mandala-02.html
  9. ^ Delmonico, N. (2004). "The History Of Indic Monotheism And Modern Chaitanya Vaishnavism". The Hare Krishna Movement: the Postcharismatic Fate of a Religious Transplant. ISBN 9780231122566. http://books.google.com/?id=mBMxPdgrBhoC&pg=PA31&dq=Vaisnava+monotheism. Retrieved 2008-04-12. 
  10. ^ Elkman, S.M.; Gosvami, J. (1986). Jiva Gosvamin's Tattvasandarbha: A Study on the Philosophical and Sectarian Development of the Gaudiya Vaisnava Movement. Motilal Banarsidass Pub. 
  11. ^ Allah, al-llah