I don't like Jehovah because he selected a 'pet' people, the Jews. Then he laid down the law threatening those who would disobey it yet knowing exactly who would and would not obey; then he punished those who did not obey, and sometimes those who would obey he punished to win a bet. Then he dumped them since so many disobeyed but never told them straight out. As a result we have had 2,000 years of fighting, killing, torturing, etc., among the many many who have tried to understand his words. Did he ever call a meeting to clarify things? No. Didn't bother.

I kinda like the nature gods that the North Americans have. Plus you can worship them outdoors and you don't have to build a cathedral. Good and evil are explained by means of good and evil gods who war with each other. I guess you have to please all the gods. That can be time-consuming.

Then there's the Norse system. In the End Times, all the souls of the dead must fight for the good gods, but they will lose. Must be the short days, and the prevalence of S.A.D., that would give rise to such a bummer philosophy.

I've been re-reading the Iliad and the Odyssey (translated into English, of course), and I kinda like the Greek god system. They don't pretend to be all-good, and though one of them is more powerful than all the rest, he is not all-powerful. And they're all very human, morally. They lie, get jealous, fornicate, play favorites... And pity the poor mortal who does not provide the correct burned sacrificial meats in correct quantities, and giving off smoke in a plesing manner.

What's refreshing about the pagan Greek explanation of the fortunes of war is that people are not always to blame. Sometimes a god will send a lying dream if for some reason he/she wants someone to act wrongly.

So we wouldn't need to bust our brains trying to figure out if Zeus could make a rock so heavy he couldn't lift it. First of all, Zeus would rather be out sexing with human women than making rocks, of which there seem to be no shortage - rocks, that is.

Second of all, he would not make a rock so big he couldn't lift it. Why would he need such a thing? And third, if he did build a rock he couldn't lift, he certainly wouldn't try to lift it. He's not that dumb. He has a human-like back, after all.

So when ancient Greeks speculated about their gods, it was probably a bit like me sneaking a read of the tabloids in the supermarket lineup, seeing who the tabloid writers think is tupping who.

So anyhow, all you atheists, who's your fave?

I quite like the idea of Coyote - the native American trickster God. Having such an unpredictable spirit fooling around with Creation seems to explain things better than having the po-faced, goody-goody Gods, who're supposed to have our best interests at heart, in charge.

'In the Native American oral tradition, the vulgar but sacred Trickster assumes many forms. He can be Old-Man Coyote among the Crow tribes, Raven in northwestern Indian lore, or, more generically, "The Tricky One" (such as Wakdjunkaga among the Winnebago or Manabozho among the Menomini), to mention just a few of his manifestations.

As will be suggested by the tales below, Trickster alternately scandalizes, disgusts, amuses, disrupts, chastises, and humiliates (or is humiliated by) the animal-like proto-people of pre-history, yet he is also a creative force transforming their world, sometimes in bizarre and outrageous ways, with his instinctive energies and cunning. Eternally scavenging for food, he represents the most basic instincts, but in other narratives, he is also the father of the Indian people and a potent conductor of spiritual forces in the form of sacred dreams.' members.cox.net

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Originally posted by babthrower: So anyhow, all you atheists, who's your fave?

Granted, I am not entirely an atheist but my deity-worship is not entirely pagan, either. I guess it would depend on the myths that surround the particular deity and the things they stand for. Certain strong warrior-like female deities are attractive to me (like the Morrigan) but they can also be a bit brutal for my taste. I like the Celtic Goddess Brigid, as she has many talents and stands for many varied things (the hearth, home crafts, women, etc.), and also feel a pull toward the Celtic entity Esras, though it’s hard to find out much about him. Native American deities are also fascinating and much more grounded in reality, it seems to me, than some of the western gods.

Good question Babs.

Its a shame Buddha isn't a God. I would have picked him. I really like many of the Hindu concepts. The 8 fold path is especially sensible to be. Be a good person, do the right thing and karma will 10 fold your life. (Karma in the sense that you get out of life what you put into it)

Wisdom (Sanskrit: prajñā, Pāli:liañpaññ
1. Right understanding
2. Right intention

Ethical conduct (Sanskrit: śīla, Pāli:liīla)

3. Right speech
4. Right action
5. Right livelihood

Mental discipline (Sanskrit and Pālli ssamdhdhi
6. Right effort
7. Right mindfulness
8. Right concentration

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Copied from Wiki: According to the monotheistic and panentheistic theologies of Hinduism, God (the Supreme Being) is, in the highest sense One: beyond form, infinite, and eternal. God is changeless and is the very source of consciousness. God is beyond time, space, and causation and yet permeates everything and every being. God is beyond gender.[9] When God is thought of as this infinite principle, God is called Brahman (Hindi: ब्रह्म). Brahman is the indescribable, inexhaustible, omniscient, omnipresent, original, first, eternal and absolute principle—the Supreme Cosmic Spirit—who is without a beginning, without an end, who is hidden in all and who is the cause, source, material and effect of all creation known, unknown and yet to happen in the entire universe[10]. Brahman is the Absolute Truth: it is pure existence, consciousness and knowledge.

While I don't agree with all of the Hindu concepts, I think this religion and God system is the closest to enlightenment for me.

I think the Hindu concept, if I understand it rightly (and of course I do not, people spend years studying and meditating on these concepts), is somewhat like the Deist idea - and the Deists led to the founding of the United States of America, its constitution and its bill of rights. Those are, arguably, the noblest documents in human history. In spite of American tendencies of late on the world stage, I hope the idealism will not be lost.

And the concept of karma makes all kinds of sense to me.

Also I think the Buddha was a noble figure whose humility should be a model to the world's religious and secular leaders.

I'm for one of the household gods.Cardea would be a good choice. She was in charge of the door hinges. Ovid tells us "Her power is to open what is shut; to shut what is open" ( don't ask for the Latin: the translation found gives no clue to it or the book where it is ) Seems a good one for AnswerPool: we could do with a bit of that power sometimes, particularly in the religion forums.