Q&A: Commandments Require Belief
Commandments Require Belief
Question
Good evening, Rabbi,
In many places on the site I’ve come across your position that an atheist cannot fulfill an obligation / be counted toward a prayer quorum. Could you explain the reasoning behind the idea that commandments require belief? Are there authorities who hold otherwise? If there are discussions of this among halakhic decisors, I’d be happy for sources. Also, what is the difference between this discussion and the dispute about intention in performing commandments?
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Answer
Hello,
The usual discussion is about including sinners in a prayer quorum. See, for example, here:
https://etzion.org.il/he/%D7%A6%D7%99%D7%A8%D7%95%D7%A3-%D7%9E%D7%97%D7%9C%D7%9C-%D7%A9%D7%91%D7%AA-%D7%9C%D7%9E%D7%A0%D7%99%D7%99%D7%9F
But here the entire discussion is about whether they deserve a sanction (like captured children who were raised without knowledge of Judaism). According to my interpretation, those sinners are believing Jews who sin either out of defiance or out of desire. An atheist, or someone who does not believe in the revelation at Mount Sinai, has a different status. Not counting him toward a prayer quorum is not because of a sanction, but rather just as one cannot count a flowerpot, a gentile, or an incompetent person toward a prayer quorum. A person who does not pray and does not believe in prayer is like a flowerpot, a gentile, or an incompetent person in this respect.
As far as I know, most halakhic decisors disagree with me. It seems to me that their reason is that in their view, deep down every Jew is a hidden believer (a Jewish / divine spark). In Peninei Halakha this reasoning is raised regarding Sabbath desecrators or sinners, and there it may perhaps be relevant, because with them not counting them is a sanction. Then there is room to discuss it: https://ph.yhb.org.il/02-02-08/
One could suggest another reasoning: that the atheist is still a Jew, and when ten Jews gather, the Divine Presence rests among them (see Berakhot 6), and therefore they can pray with a quorum (just as when there are ten present and some of them have already prayed). But in my opinion this is not comparable, because the atheist has no connection to prayer at all. In my humble opinion, when he is part of the ten, the Divine Presence does not rest there, just as when a gentile is present there.
Discussion on Answer
First and foremost, this is a matter of reasoning. But beyond that, the Talmud in Berakhot says that the Divine Presence rests upon ten Jews even before they pray (as opposed to three, where that is only when they engage in Torah study or judgment), meaning that not just any gathering of ten Jews merits the resting of the Divine Presence. From here it follows that this was said only about ten who are standing to pray, and not nine and a flowerpot (= a person who does not recognize the concept of prayer). The fact that he has mental capacity only makes things worse. Fine, someone who lacks mental capacity is one thing, but someone who has mental capacity and knowingly decided that he does not believe is certainly not included in this. The fact that he is commanded does not improve his situation; it makes it worse. In my view, the concept of the resting of the Divine Presence is not automatic; rather, the Divine Presence rests with one who invites it and expects it.
Why indeed shouldn’t the Divine Presence rest there? After all, the commandment still applies to that person; he just doesn’t acknowledge it. That’s not like an incompetent person, who from the outset is not commanded because he lacks the mental capacity required for commandment. A heretic has mental capacity, so why should he be considered a flowerpot?