Pandeism – an Anthology

Few readers will have heard of the term 'pandeism', the proposition that the Creator of our Universe created by becoming our Universe, but this extensive anthology fills the gap. The three parts cover fundamentals of pandeism, its philosophical implications and some criticism and analysis from other views. The editor provides a brief history, in which many familiar names such as Newton, Leibniz and Spinoza appear. Elaborating on the basic definition, Encyclopaedia Britannica notes that pandeism 'attempted to unite aspects of Deism with pantheism. Since God becomes the universe in the act of creation, 'there is no theological need to posit any special relationship between God and creation; rather, God is the universe and not a transcendent entity which created and subsequently governs it.' In other words, God expresses him/herself through conscious lifeforms and is therefore immanent rather than transcendent. This corresponds to Whitehead's notion of the consequent or evolutionary nature of God as opposed to the transcendent. There are also parallels with New Thought and the idea of an omnipresent universal mind, and there is a contribution from William Walter Atkinson (1862-1932).

There are many good analytical essays in this volume, which require some philosophical background on the part of the reader. Bernardo Kastrup provides an interesting idealist slant, while Alan Dawe gives a proof of the pandeist theorem that if God exists, then God is identical to the Universe. Mapson argues that theism requires more assumptions than pandeism, while Dan Dana, arguing from a scientistic perspective, finds even pandeism unparsimonious. Zoltan Istvan takes an upbeat view of transhumanism in contrast to what he calls 'deathism', supporting technological enhancement of human biology. Apart from one reference, love is conspicuous by its absence, and experience of the divine as love is the basis of mystical theism. A stimulating collection articulating an interesting viewpoint.