Monotheism

==Etymology and usage==
The word ''[[:wikt:monotheism|monotheism]]'' comes from the [[Ancient Greek|Greek]] {{lang|grc|[[:wikt:μόνος|μόνος]]}} (''monos'')<ref>[https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/ptext?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.04.0057%3Aentry%3D%2368642 Monos] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070526171732/http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/ptext?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.04.0057%3Aentry%3D%2368642 |date=2007-05-26 }}, [[Henry George Liddell]], [[Robert Scott (philologist)|Robert Scott]], ''[[A Greek–English Lexicon]]'', at Perseus</ref> meaning "single" and {{lang|grc|[[:wikt:θεός|θεός]]}} (''theos'')<ref>[https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/ptext?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.04.0057%3Aentry%3D%2348292 Theos] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070526153128/http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/ptext?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.04.0057%3Aentry%3D%2348292 |date=2007-05-26 }}, Henry George Liddell, Robert Scott, ''A Greek-English Lexicon'', at Perseus</ref> meaning "[[Deity|god]]".<ref>The compound {{lang|el|μονοθεισμός}} is current only in [[Modern Greek]]. There is a single attestation of {{lang|grc|μονόθεον}} in a Byzantine hymn (''Canones Junii'' 20.6.43; A. Acconcia Longo and G. Schirò, ''Analecta hymnica graeca, vol. 11 e codicibus eruta Italiae inferioris''. Rome: Istituto di Studi Bizantini e Neoellenici. [[Sapienza University of Rome|Università di Roma]], 1978)</ref> The English term was first used by [[Henry More]] (1614–1687).<ref>{{cite book |title=An Explanation of the Grand Mystery of Godliness |last=More |first=Henry |year=1660 |publisher=Flesher & Morden |location=London |page=62}}</ref>

Monotheism is a complex and nuanced concept. The biblical authors had various ways of understanding God and the divine, shaped by their historical and cultural contexts. The notion of monotheism that is used today was developed much later, influenced by the [[Age of Enlightenment|Enlightenment]] and Christian views. Many definitions of monotheism are too modern, western, and Christian-centered to account for the diversity and complexity of the ancient sources, which include not only the biblical texts, but also other writings, inscriptions, and material remains that help reconstruct the ancient beliefs and practices of the people of Judah and Israel.<ref name=":2">{{Cite journal |last=Ballentine |first=Debra Scoggins |date=2021-11-15 |title="Monotheism" and the Hebrew Bible |url=https://compass.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/rec3.12425 |journal=Religion Compass |language=en |volume=16 |issue=1 |doi=10.1111/rec3.12425 |s2cid=244280953 |issn=1749-8171}}</ref>

The term "monotheism" is often contrasted with "polytheism," but many scholars prefer other terms such as monolatry, henotheism, or one-god discourse.<ref name=":2"/>