As per the textbook of reference, the rise of monotheism in early civilizations was spurred by the similarities that existed between the many religions at that time. An example of such similarities is the argument that god was responsible for creating the universe. To put it in another way, the different gods that were worshiped by the different communities at that time were all believed to have created the universe. Another similarity is that the different gods that were worshiped back then were believed to be powerful by the different communities.
The significance of monotheism in early civilizations is that it helped promote unity. Different communities began to develop positive interpersonal relationship with each other after noticing the similarities that existed in their various religions. One more thing that helped promote unity is the fact that the different religions back then encouraged brotherhood. The new change in belief helped promote rapid development in these civilizations. People began to work together after being united through monotheism ideology. A few of the activities that people in early civilizations collaborated include trade and sport events.
From my point of perspective, monotheism created tensions in some societies because some people feared being controlled for subscribing to the ideology of monotheism. Most of these societies did not want any form of external. The main reason was that they wanted to preserve their culture. Societies that did not experience monotheism are those that understood the logic behind this belief. These types of societies are those that were ready to embrace new thought with regards to region.
References
https://oer.galileo.usg.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?referer=&httpsredir=1&article=1001&context=history-textbooks
