The Moral Imperative argument is one of the classic discussions which address the existence of G-d. It is also valuable in terms of what it teaches us about morality itself, and why morality matters so much to all of us.
PART I — Consider what type of a world would exist if there were no absolute, objective morality.
If there were no absolute, objective scale of morality, then all choices of actions would be based simply on our personal inclinations, what we “felt” like doing. We could call this what is most practical, productive, or what seems best — but it would never be what is right. When we say that an action is “right” or “wrong” we aren’t merely referring to our own personal beliefs — we mean that the action is actually right or wrong. Without an absolute, objective scale of morality, a decision of stealing or not stealing would be the same as the choice between chocolate and vanilla ice cream. No one action could ever be more justified, more moral, or more right than the other.
Just as matter is amoral (i.e., neither good nor bad), people would also be immoral. A brick falling on one’s head and a volcano may certainly be destructive, but they could never be considered “bad” or “evil.” Likewise, human beings would be nothing more than an elaborate collection of atoms and electrons — merely suffering from the delusion of being more than that.
If this were true, we could never morally condemn or judge anything! Senseless violence, incest, the Nazis …there would be nothing wrong with shooting children (it just might not be “our thing”). While some things might be very unpleasant, we couldn’t judge any of them; we could never say that these types of actions were “wrong.”
Is this reasonable? We all know that this is absurd! We expect and demand people to rise above what they feel like doing and consider whether an action is right or wrong.
We know that we are much more than merely a collection of atoms and electrons, that we are fully capable of judging values, and that we can and must condemn atrocities! Religious people don’t equate morality with opinions; we connect it to an absolute, objective scale of morality.
A support for this is that virtually all people would ultimately die rather than transgress some moral limit, or would at least admire others who would do this. This demonstrates that morality is as real to us as anything in our lives and is of crucial importance to all of us. For example, most of us would be willing to risk our lives for our family, for causes like democracy or freedom, and perhaps also for Israel. We know that there is a justification for our behavior that goes beyond life itself (i.e., physical survival alone is not the highest good).
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Rabbi Asher Resnick serves as a senior lecturer at Aish HaTorah’s Executive Learning Center, and is a senior training lecturer for Aish’s Rabbinical Ordination program. As a close student of Rav Noach Weinberg, zt”l, he developed a special expertise in addressing fundamental issues in Judaism, as well as in bringing classical texts to life. As a bereaved parent, Rabbi Resnick’s extensive writings on loss, suffering and trauma provide a sensitive Jewish perspective on coping with these fundamental life cycle issues. OlamiResources.com is happy to highlight several essays over the coming months featured on his website JewishClarity.com. This essay should be l’zechut ul’iluy nishmat Ruchama Rivka, a”h, bat Asher Zevulun.
