Page "Wilhelm Schmidt (linguist)" Paragraph 5

From 1912 to his death in 1954, Schmidt published his 12-volume Der Ursprung der Gottesidee ( The Origin of the Idea of God ).

There he explained his theory of primitive monotheism, the belief that primitive religion among almost all tribal peoples began with an essentially monotheistic concept of a high god — usually a sky god — who was a benevolent creator.

Schmidt theorized that human beings believed in a God who was the First Cause of all things and Ruler of Heaven and Earth before men and women began to worship a number of gods: