Summations Only

If your faith stipulates that there is one true God then by definition any other supernatural beings, no matter how powerful, are not God.However by the measure of any polytheistic religion Satan would seem to qualify as a god by most criteria.In these terms Christians are effectively monolatrists who choose to worship one god from the multiple (well...OK, two) options available.Satanists would, in these terms, also be monolatrists.Thus Christians who believe in Satan as well as God are polytheists (maybe we need to introduce the term bi-theist) in that they believe in the existence of, and associated mythology and rituals pertaining to, more than one god.No?

Well by that definition I am not sure that Zeus would qualify as a god either then. Zeus was not uncreated accoording to Greek mythology. But he was definitely considered to be a god. Are gods necessarily uncreated? Was Zeus not considered to be a god?
Can your omnipotent God not create a god? Christianity including Satan is polytheistic in exactly the same sense that that belief in the Greek gods is also polytheistic (albeit with less options in the case of God + Satan)No?Edited by Straggler, : No reason given.

Yes. I think we are on the same page regarding this.I believe that the term for this is monolatrist.Monolatry Definition & Meaning | Dictionary.comThat is one who believes in more than one god but who worships one god exclusively. For example those dedicated to Apollo in ancient Greece would have been described by the term monolatrist as they worshipped only Apollo despite believing in the existence of the whole pantheon of Greek gods.I think the term applies equally to Christians who also believe in Satan for the reasons that you specify.

Let's recap briefly This is based on the following exchange: To which ICANT replies in his Message 124 So we have1) God created Satan
2) Satan has no free-willThus Satan is a manifestation of God's will. As concluded by Percy.If this in not what you intended to say then now is the time to change your position. We all make mistakes and nobody should be held to a position that is the result of misunderstanding even if that misunderstanding is of their own doing. But that is indisputably what you said at the time.So what do you mean exactly?

According to ICANT Satan was created in order to provide man a choice. According to ICANT Satan was created specifically to fulfill this function. According to ICANT Satan has no free-will. Unlike man who does have free-will.Thus he is a manifestation of God's will in a way that man is not.According to ICANT.

A manifestation of God's will.If you create a robot programmed to do your work is that a tool?
Is that a manifestation of your will?
Is the robot responsible for it's own actions or, are you as the creator and programmer of that robot, ultimately to be held responsible for the actions of that robot?If that robot commits evil acts as a result of your programming is it evil?Or are you?

Peter can say whatever he likes. You are the one claiming to know Satan's purpose and thus God's will.God created Satan.
Satan has no free-will.Therefore Satan's actions are an act of God's will.
Thus Satan is a manifestation of God's will.
Obviously. Who said anything about it malfunctioning. I am talking about it doing exactly as it was programmed to do. Not if it is programmed to commit evil acts. Then who is evil? The programmer or the robot? Whatever Satan does is God's will as he has no free-will of his own (according to you).
If Satan lies it is only because God "programmed" him to lie.
If Satan deceives it is only because God "programmed" him to deceive.
If Satan commits evil it is only because God "programmed" him to be evil.Satan is a manifestation of God's will.I don't understand why you are even resisting this point. You seem to agree in all but name.The alternative is that Christianity is essentially polytheistic.

If Satan does not qualify as a god then I cannot see on what grounds Hermes, Zeus or any of the other Greek gods qualify as gods.You seem to be suggesting that the ancient Greeks did not actually believe in gods at all and were thus not actually theists by your definition?Whatever definition of god you choose Christianity including Satan is equally non-monotheistic as was the religion of ancient Greece.That is the point.Edited by Straggler, : No reason given.

The Greek gods were not mortal.What atttributes do the greek gods have that Satan does not such that the Greek gods are gods and Satan is not?Be specific. You have explicitly stated that you consider the devil to have no free-will.If Satan is just following God's "programming" can you explain how this does not amount to God trying to convince people that God does not exist?The devil can only do what God designed his tool to do. No?If I programme a robot to do something I cannot then hold the robot responsible for doing it can I?Edited by Straggler, : No reason given.

So according to you the ancient Greeks were atheists?
They did not believe in any gods. By your definition.
Ridiculous. Where are you getting this nonsense from?
The Greek gods were believed to be immortal. Not mortal. However you phrase it, however you conceive it if the devil has no free-will (as you claim), if the devil can only do that which God wills, if the devil is designed specifically to turn man against God - Then there is no conclusion possible other than the conclusion that God wills some men to be turned against God.How can it possibly be otherwise?Edited by Straggler, : No reason given.

Not a bad description. But by ICANT's definition there are no gods other than God.So the majority of human history and most of the world today is populated by atheists. According to ICANT anyway...... I am quite an anti-theistic atheist but compared to those fundamentalists I am little more than a lazy lapsed liberal worshipper when it comes to the acceptance of most gods. Edited by Straggler, : No reason given.

ICANT your inconsistencies have been laid bare for all to see.Were the Greek gods actually gods or not? By your definition.If they were gods then on what basis is Satan not a god?
If they were not gods then, according to you, the ancient Greeks were atheists. Does the devil lie? Does the devil deceive? Does the devil corrupt? Does the devil seek to turn man away from God? Does the devil will that man fail God's test? Does the devil have free-will?If the devil has no free-will then anything that the devil does is the will of God.If the devil turns man from God then, however you phrase it, however you conceive it, God must will it that some men are turned from God.There is no other conclusion possible.

Were the Greek gods actually gods, or not, by your definition?If the Greek gods were indeed "gods" then on what basis is Satan not a god?
If they were not gods then, according to you, the ancient Greeks were atheists.Which is it?

If we follow your definition of the term 'god' then the ancient Greeks did not beleieve in gods and thus qualify as atheistsIf we follow the ancient Greek's use of the term 'god' then Satan qualifies as a god and thus you qualify as a polytheist.So which is it?Edited by Straggler, : No reason given.