The Whole Duty of Man, According to the Law of Nature

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Samuel Pufendorf. The Whole Duty of Man, According to the Law of Nature

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THE WHOLE DUTY OF MAN

ENLIGHTENMENT CLASSICS

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II. That God is. L. N. N. l. 2. c. 4. §3.

Amongst those Notions that every Man ought to have of GOD, the first of all is, that he firmly believe his Existence, that is, that there is indeed some supreme and first Being, upon whom this Universe depends. And this has been most plainly demonstrated by learned and wise Men from the Subordination of Causes to one another, which must at last be found to have their Original in somewhat that was before them all; from the necessity of having a first Mover; from the Consideration of this great Machin, the World, and from the like Arguments.14 Which if any Man denies himself to be able to comprehend, he is not therefore to be excus’d for his Atheism. For all Mankind having been perpetually, as it were, possest of this Persuasion, that Man who undertakes to oppose it, ought not only solidly to confute all those Arguments that are brought to prove a God, but should advance Reasons for his own Assertion, which may be more plausible than those. And since by this Belief of the Deity the Weal of Mankind may be supposed to have been hitherto preserv’d, he ought to shew that Atheism would better answer that End than sober Religion and the Worship of God. Now seeing this can by no means be done, the Wickedness of those Men who attempt any way to eradicate this Persuasion out of the Minds of Men, is to be above all things abominated, and restrain’d by the severest Punishments.

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