The deontological argument for the existence of God attempts to answer the question of whether the moral order and grounding ethics are possible without assuming that God exists. One of its formulations is Kant’s argument, which states that a superior order is required to guide people in their actions. God acts as a supreme legislator and equilibrates the moral law, and his existence is necessary for the possibility of the supreme good.
Kant presents his argument as the only valid proof of the existence of God. He critiques the traditional ontological, cosmological, and teleological arguments, claiming that they refer only to the possible experience. God is not part of the possible experience and, therefore, he cannot be known through a speculative way. Instead of a priori arguments based on theoretical deduction, Kant introduces a posteriori arguments grounded on empirical data. He claims that knowledge about God can only be based on moral experience. The reflection on moral duty, determinable by means of the categorical imperative, leads to the idea of God as a definitive guarantee of freedom and immortality of human beings. Without God, no supreme good would be possible, and, therefore, there would be no universal moral consciousness, which is the foundation of human existence.
The doubts connected to Kant’s arguments can be formulated as the question of whether God existed if there were no moral laws. The societies which are not guided by morality still find their way and meaning to exist. Kant’s theory was developed in the 18th century in the context of the educated European society, and it is doubtful whether it can be applied to other contexts, cultures, and civilizations.