Q&A: The Revelation at Mount Sinai
The Revelation at Mount Sinai
Question
Hello and blessings,
In my humble opinion, it’s worth watching this short lecture: https://youtu.be/d0BKe6N4Mnw
If I understood him correctly, he argues:
A. Belief in the story of the giving of the Torah is not belief that the event actually occurred in reality, but rather a belief necessary for the existence of the religion, intended to instill the obligation to uphold these norms and to see them as the will of God.
B. The Torah and the commandments are expressions of norms that existed before the Torah was written, rather than the norms being an expression of what appears in the Torah. That is, the story that God commanded such-and-such is not true, but was put into His mouth by scribes.
C. Religious norms are valid by virtue of our obligation to worship God, not by virtue of the reality that God commanded them.
What do you think of his arguments?
Answer
Unfortunately, I don’t have time. If there is a specific argument, you can raise it and we can discuss it.