[ULFGARD]

Originally Posted by johndallman

That question is potentially extremely sticky. Here's an example:

There are a load of people who say they worship god X. Nobody has ever met this god, and he never communicates with worshipers. Other "gods" who are worshipped and can be communicated with say he doesn't exist (the more intellectually inclined ones sometimes add "as far as I know").

Yet miracles definitely occur when X is invoked, and it really doesn't seem that wizards or other gods are doing them.

Is this (a) some kind of "magic" done collectively and unconsciously by the worshippers or (b) a real god who doesn't show himself? Can one always tell the difference?

Sure, that's fine. But the GM is creating the world. I suppose one can be "agnostic" as the the reality of deities in one's own world. And it doesn't really matter in some games, especially short-term or one-shot adventures. But -- at least for me -- if one is planning a campaign in the hope it will have the potential to go on for years, some of these questions need to be answered. And if the answer is "well, hard to say" then that right there is an essential aspect of the cosmological "truth" of the world. However, a deity that is incomprehensible may manifest in this fashion -- miracles occur with no other explanation, magic that isn't magic happens, etc. In such a case, the existence could well be questioned by the skeptical, and the GM could choose to remain "agnostic" as to the actual existence of a god.

I personally find it useful when world building to answer that question for myself at least, as it leads to consistency down the road. In much the same way as in, say, a fantasy world, I'll decide what the world is shaped like and how closely its physics resemble our own. I.e., is it a flat world? If so, does the sun god actually ride his chariot across the sky every day? Etc.