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When a Man Believes He Answers to No One

by Ram ben Ze'ev


When a Man Believes He Answers to No One
When a Man Believes He Answers to No One

A curious phenomenon of the modern age is the man who proudly declares that he believes in nothing higher than himself, and yet expects to be trusted with everything that matters most in life.


I saw a profile description on a social media account for a Jewish man in Israel who tells the world that he is a husband and a father. These are not small titles. In the Torah understanding of life, they are among the most serious responsibilities a human being can carry. A husband is entrusted with the wellbeing, dignity, and security of his wife. A father is entrusted with the shaping of souls, the moral direction of children, and the example by which they will learn how to live in the world.


Yet in the same breath he proudly announces that he believes in no G-D.


The contradiction is not philosophical; it is practical.


If a man truly believes that there is no higher authority above him, then the only judge of his behaviour is himself. His conscience becomes self-defined. His standards become self-constructed. His moral boundaries become negotiable. A man who answers only to himself can always justify himself.


A wife understands this, whether she articulates it or not. A marriage built upon the idea that one partner ultimately answers to nothing greater than his own reasoning rests on unstable ground. In difficult moments, when sacrifice, restraint, or humility are required, what authority compels him to choose what is right rather than what is convenient?


The Torah view of marriage is entirely different. A husband is not merely accountable to his spouse; he stands accountable before G-D for how he treats her. His behaviour is measured against commandments, not preferences. His role is not self-defined but divinely commanded. That knowledge restrains ego, disciplines speech, and anchors the relationship in something stronger than emotion.


Children face an even deeper consequence.


Children instinctively search for moral structure. They want to know why something is right or wrong. If a father teaches that morality is simply what people decide it is, then the foundation of authority becomes arbitrary. Rules become negotiable. Truth becomes flexible.


Without a higher source of moral law, every value eventually reduces to opinion.


The Torah tradition never viewed belief in G-D as a private spiritual preference. It is the foundation of moral accountability. The awareness that G-D sees, judges, and holds every person responsible gives weight to human behaviour. It reminds a father that his actions shape souls. It reminds a husband that dignity and kindness are obligations, not optional virtues.


When a man publicly celebrates the absence of that accountability, he is not merely making a personal statement about theology. He is announcing the framework by which he governs his life.


The troubling part is not that such a man exists. Every generation has those who distance themselves from the authority of heaven.


The troubling part is that in the modern world some have begun to boast about it.


A society should pause when a father proudly declares that he answers to no one. Because if a man truly believes that nothing stands above him, then the only law he ultimately recognises is his own will.


And history has shown, again and again, that when human beings place themselves at the top of the moral hierarchy, the results are rarely admirable and often destructive.


The Torah teaches the opposite lesson: true strength begins when a person recognises that he is not the highest authority in the universe. When a man stands before G-D with humility, responsibility follows. When responsibility takes root, families become stronger, children gain moral clarity, and society itself gains stability.


A man who answers to heaven behaves very differently from a man who believes there is nothing above him.



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