Merriam-Webster defines the world worldview as, "a comprehensive conception or apprehension of the world especially from a specific standpoint." Basically, it's your mental model of the world that defines how you perceive reality around you, and encompasses notions of the origin of the universe, fundamental existential values, ethical and moral considerations, and ultimate destination. While one's worldview is inextricably linked to their religious beliefs, at a basic level a worldview is really how they see the world.

 

While technically there are a myriad of worldviews due to arguable nuances, at a fundamental level there are four primary categories that encompass all potential ones: pantheism, deism, atheism/agnosticism, and theism.

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• Pantheism - the belief that the universe and all things in nature are God.

• Deism - the belief in a supreme creator of all things, however, the creator does not intervene after establishing the initial creation. The creator does not interact with humanity.

• Atheism/agnosticism - essentially the belief that there is no God, or even if there possibly was one, He can never be known. Materialism (the belief that all that is exists is matter and energy, and that the idea of self and mind is a mere illusion constructed by the brain) falls under this category.

• Theism - the belief in the existence of a creator of the universe who continually intervenes in His creation and sustains a personal relationship with his creations, as is the case in Christianity.

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