The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions (1747 page)

 
Back
  -  
 
New Search

Omnipotence
.

A characteristic of God in all theistic religions. It is especially prominent in Islam, where the power of God cannot be frustrated and where everything that is or that happens can only be or do so because he wills it. Theologians have introduced some qualifications in their attempts to define the extent of God's power: nearly all would rule out God's being able to do something self-contradictory, whilst many would say that God not only does not but also
cannot
do evil. God's omnipotence does not preclude his limiting or abdicating from his power on occasion. The so-called ‘paradoxes of omnipotence’ concern whether God can make a stone so heavy that he cannot lift it, can make a creature which he cannot subsequently control, and so on.

 
Back
  -  
 
New Search

moto-ky
or Omoto
(Teaching of the Great Origin and/or Foundation)
.

A Japanese ‘new religion’. The group traces its history from 1892 when its foundress,
Deguchi
Nao (1837–1918), was possessed by the folk deity Ushitora-no-Konjin. Through this and later experiences of
kamigakari
, she articulated a radical
millennarian
world-view centred on this god. Following the failure of her
eschatological
prophecies in 1905, her cult was reorganized by her son-in-law and co-founder, Deguchi Onisabur
(1871–1948). Onisabur
rejected Nao's more radical teachings in favour of his own nationalistic Shinto doctrines, modernization theories, and spiritualistic practices. Today, the group maintains headquarters at Kameoka and Ayabe in W. Kyoto prefecture and claims a national membership of 163,000. Although non-proselytizing,
moto-ky
supports charitable activities abroad and participates in the international ecumenical and peace movements.

 
Back
  -  
 
New Search