Q&A: The Obligation to Obey God as a First Principle
The Obligation to Obey God as a First Principle
Question
Hello Rabbi,
You wrote to me in a reply yesterday that the obligation to obey God’s command is a first principle that exists for most of the world, and there’s no point arguing about it.
But the very fact that there is a discussion over whether such a first principle exists undermines its very existence. Have we heard of many people who challenge the first principle that is the moral imperative? Who challenge the first principle that is the principle of causality?
By contrast, many challenge the claim that there is an obligation to obey the divine command as a first principle.
A first principle, by its very nature, is supposed to be an absolute consensus.
Moreover, in my opinion this principle contradicts morality. The obligation to obey God is servitude, and servitude is not moral. It is inconceivable that in the name of gratitude I would have to enslave myself with all my might, with all my heart, and with all my soul, as required in the service of God. And it cannot be that there are two contradictory first principles (morality and the divine command).
If God were to reveal Himself to me and demand that I observe His commandments, I would politely refuse (and if I nevertheless agreed, it would be out of fear or some other bad reason).
By the way, I saw that the option to comment was blocked in the original discussion. Was that accidental or intentional? If it was intentional, you’re welcome to delete my question.
Thank you very much
Answer
I’ll look for the original discussion. Nothing was blocked.
Please give a link to that thread. I can’t find it. In the meantime I’ll write my reply here, but I won’t continue here:
As I explained, in my opinion there is no serious discussion about this. Usually, someone who accepts the existence of God, the revelation at Mount Sinai, and the command given there understands that it must be observed. Someone who does not think it must be observed usually explains this on the grounds that there is no God or that He did not reveal Himself.
Beyond that, you can have a discussion about anything. Even about the laws of logic, the principle of causality, induction, and so on. All of these are first principles. The fact that people discuss them does not mean they are not first principles, and it does not even mean that the person discussing them does not himself see them as first principles.