To suppose more than one supreme Source of infinite wisdom

The theologian and scholar Adam Clarke proclaimed with the fire of conviction: “To suppose more than one supreme Source of infinite wisdom, power, and all perfections, is to assert that there is no supreme Being in existence.” In this declaration he lifts high the banner of unity, teaching that the divine cannot be divided, for to divide it is to diminish it. The eternal Source of all things must be one, else perfection is fractured and sovereignty undone. For if there are many supreme beings, then none is truly supreme.

The origin of this teaching rests in Clarke’s work as a commentator on the Scriptures, where he defended the oneness of the Almighty against error and confusion. He saw that infinite wisdom, infinite power, and infinite perfection cannot be multiplied, for infinity admits no rival. The One who governs heaven and earth cannot share His throne with another, lest both fall short of supremacy. Thus Clarke thundered: to believe in more than one is to deny the very existence of a supreme Being.

History bears witness in the story of Akhenaten, the pharaoh of Egypt who cast aside the multitude of gods to worship Aten, the single sun-disc. Though his reign was short and controversial, it stands as an echo of the eternal impulse toward oneness, the recognition that beneath the many lights there is but one flame. Later, the Hebrews proclaimed the Shema: “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.” In such voices we hear the same truth Clarke declared centuries later.

The ancients themselves struggled with this mystery. The Greeks, who bowed before a pantheon, still longed for a higher order—Plato spoke of the “Good,” Aristotle of the “Unmoved Mover.” These philosophies pointed beyond the many toward the One, as though the human soul itself hungered for unity. For divided gods make for divided hearts, but the one Source offers a foundation firm and eternal.

Therefore, O children of the future, hold fast to this truth: there is but one supreme Source, the fountain of all wisdom, power, and perfection. To scatter your reverence among many is to lose sight of majesty; but to anchor your faith in the One is to stand unshaken, even when the world trembles. Know this and walk boldly, for the unity of God is the strength of the soul, and the eternal Source is both your origin and your end.