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Why I Gave Up On Pantheism

Proselytizing the Pantheists

As I approached the Colorado Springs city auditorium to attend the "Metaphysical Celebration," I glanced at signs posted near the entrance: "Proselytizing is not allowed. Distribution of literature is not allowed. This is a private event. Anyone found forcing their beliefs upon someone not interested in hearing them will be asked to leave."

So much for handing out copies of the booklet Are All Religions One? by Douglas Groothuis, as I'd planned. I guess the event coordinators have had their share of dealings with Christians who offered less than "gentleness" and "respect" (1 Peter 3:15) in their approach to the proclamation and defense of Christianity.

A quick tour of the exhibition floor revealed what I was up against: pantheism and various forms of occult practices. Being a former atheist¹ as well as a former pantheist, I had a good idea of what to expect, but that didn't make my task any easier.

In this article I will define pantheism, provide a brief overview of its various forms, explain what drew me to it, and what tends to draw others to it, outline why I abandoned it, and offer a helpful biblically-based suggestion for dialoguing with pantheists.

The Pantheist's Creed: "All is God, God is All"

Pantheism is derived from two Greek words, pan, meaning "all," and theos, meaning "God." Even though there are several flavors of pantheism, as outlined below, all pantheists believe all is god and god is all. Sometimes instead of referring to "god," pantheists prefer words such as the Absolute, the Universal Mind, the One, the Universe, the Life Force, and so forth.

In pantheism, God is not distinct from the universe, as in Christian theism, but is the universe. Christianity teaches that God created the universe and is separate from it. In other words, within Christianity God is said to be transcendent, but also immanent — active in the universe without being the universe. In addition, pantheism results in an impersonal god, while Christian theism believes God is a personal being.

Pantheism Gives Birth to Sextuplets

It's important to note that there are several variations of pantheism. Christian apologist Norman Geisler lists six: absolute, emanational, developmental, modal, multilevel, and permeational.²

1. Absolute pantheism, such as that posited by Parmenides, believes "all reality is one monistic whole and all multiplicity is an absolute illusion or non-being."
2. The emanational pantheism of Plotinus, on the other hand, "provides that creation comes out of God in various degrees of reality …"
3. Developmental pantheism, as found in the writings of Hegel, believes, "God is unfolding himself in the historical or evolutionary process."
4. Modal pantheism, espoused by Spinoza, "holds that everything other than the one infinite substance exists as a mode or moment in the divine essence."
5. The multilevel or manifestational pantheism of Radhakrishnan holds that "the one absolute is revealed on different or descending levels of reality."³
6. Finally, the permeational pantheism of Zen Buddhism believes "the Force [Tao] penetrates all things."⁴

While these variations of pantheism may seem confusing, and at times they are, what's important to note is that, rather than viewing God as creator, they all posit that somehow God and the universe are to be identified with one another. This takes us back to the pantheist's creed: All is god, god is all. Where these variations of pantheism differ relates to the question of how this relationship between God and reality plays out, but the belief that God somehow is the universe and the universe is somehow God remains.

Pantheists I have encountered usually fall into the permeational type, popularized by the Star Wars films. Other Western pantheists I've met generally have a minimal understanding of pantheism beyond the basic pantheist's creed, "All is god, god is all." They also tend to be syncretistic, blending various forms of pantheism into one confusing whole, sometimes even mixing in warped views of Christianity.

What's the Draw?

Like most worldviews, pantheism has its strengths. First, pantheism makes an attempt at being a comprehensive worldview; it tries to make sense of all of reality and integrate it into a cohesive explanatory system.

Second, pantheism makes an effort to satisfy human longing for spirituality. Deep down everyone longs for meaning, whether they acknowledge it or not — that's just how we're wired (Augustine, Pascal, C.S. Lewis, and other great Christian thinkers point to this longing as an argument for the reality of God).

Third, the god of pantheism, unlike the God of Christianity, makes no real demands on human beings, does not judge, and does not call anyone to repentance. As C.S. Lewis wrote, "The Pantheist's God does nothing, demands nothing. He is there if you wish for Him, like a book on a shelf. He will not pursue you."⁵

In my case, I gravitated to pantheism for all these reasons. I wanted to believe that a worldview existed that could explain reality adequately. I also felt a need for real spirituality and meaning in my life — something that atheism could not offer.⁶ For me, pantheism was safe, putting me in charge of my own moral choices, offering no judgment of my decisions, and requiring no repentance, yet, at least for a time, pantheism provided some level of spiritual fulfillment.

Why I Gave up on Pantheism

So why did I give up on pantheism? As a worldview, pantheism has too many significant flaws. The most glaring problem with pantheism is that it fails to adequately account for the reality of evil and suffering. If "all is god, god is all" is true, then there are no distinctions between good and evil. This leads some forms of pantheism, such as Mary Baker Eddy's Christian Science, to claim that evil and suffering are illusory. Pantheism also leads to moral relativism — a denial of ethical absolutes. Moral solutions in pantheism amount to what feels good subjectively, not what is right before a holy and transcendent God. Moreover, since God is at best an impersonal force, pantheism leaves no room for a personal relationship. I also had problems with pantheism's conclusion that human beings are divine. If all is god and god is all, then human beings are god, too, right? I knew enough about myself to know at an intuitive level that I wasn't god. Not even close. Pantheism also fails to account for the evidence for a theistic God and the evidence for Christ and His claims. In short, if Christian theism is true, then pantheism is false.

Dialoguing with Pantheists

While you may not be called to share your faith at "Metaphysical Celebrations," chances are that at some point you will encounter a pantheist, particularly as this worldview proliferates. So what's the best way to dialogue with a pantheist? That depends on the pantheist.

C O F F E E  S H O P

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Do you know anyone or have any experience with a pantheistic worldview? How do you talk about God and reality with them?

Join the discussion!

Evangelicalism has an unfortunate tendency to seek simplistic answers and approaches — techniques, really. Perhaps we've been influenced by American entrepreneurialism, the self-help movement, or a desire to "fix" things in easy steps. Whatever the case, there is no silver-bullet approach to reaching out to pantheists. The best advice is found in 1 Peter 3:15 — share and defend Christianity with "gentleness and respect." Do your best to communicate truth in a way that is winsome, faithfully reflecting God's love for a lost world.⁷