“Thou shall have no gods before me.”
What a ridiculous notion! What arrogance and conceit! More than that, what an admission of fallibility.
First of all, if there were a god, and if that god were omniscient and omnipotent, ree1 would never need to lay down such an edict. Ree would have created people that would recognize rees wonders. Thus, this commandment would be superfluous.
More importantly, ree would be secure enough in rees own magnificence that ree wouldn’t have to mandate devotion. Who wouldn’t be willing to follow exclusively a divinity that was all powerful and perfect? Or even mostly powerful and mostly perfect (given the extensiveness of human frailties)? A truly good leader doesn’t need to force people to follow … they do it because it makes sense. Only tyrants need to rely upon compulsion.
Interestingly, it might be noted how many in the United States contend that the Nation’s laws are “founded” upon the Ten Commandments. Yet here we see that Commandment I is completely contrary to the Constitution of the United States. The First Amendment guarantees to every individual the right to hold before the Judeo-Christian god whatever other god (or gods …or no god) that person finds most appealing. To have a creed that says, “Thou shall have no gods before me” is the antithesis of that liberty. In the United States, “Thou has the right to hold before the Judeo-Christian god any (or no) god you desire,” and you will be protected by the full force of government in doing so.
We at FACTS certainly believe in this philosophy. Although our church finds that questioning and honesty consistently leads to the conclusion that the notion of anything “supernatural” makes no sense, we certainly adhere to the view that everyone should have the right to believe whatever makes most sense to erm. “Do what’s right” includes respecting the notion that the Judeo-Christian god obviously eschews: that each individual possesses the absolute right to freedom of conscience.
[1] For an explanation of the third person singular epicene personal pronouns, please see Sermon #3 (January 21, 2004).