LessonsObligation Beyond Capacity: Possibility, Ability, and Moral JudgmentQuiz

أَوْ مُمْكِنًا كَخَلْقِ الْجِسْمِ
Or something possible in itself, such as creating a body.

The origination of a body is not a logical contradiction; created things exist. Yet an ordinary human cannot, by sheer personal will, independently bring a body into existence out of nothing.

The crucial distinction is that a proposition being possible does not establish that every addressee has the capacity to realize it. The applicability of obligation is assessed in relation to the person’s capacity, not just to abstract conceivability.

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Possible in itself, beyond human power

Obligation Beyond Capacity: Possibility, Ability, and Moral Judgment

أَوْ مُمْكِنًا كَخَلْقِ الْجِسْمِ
Or something possible in itself, such as creating a body.

The origination of a body is not a logical contradiction; created things exist. Yet an ordinary human cannot, by sheer personal will, independently bring a body into existence out of nothing.

The crucial distinction is that a proposition being possible does not establish that every addressee has the capacity to realize it. The applicability of obligation is assessed in relation to the person’s capacity, not just to abstract conceivability.