Noahide Fellowship

The Torah says that there are three partners in the creation of man - his father and mother who give birth to him and the Holy One, blessed be He, who gives him soul. The sages say that respecting G-d and respecting parents are somewhat parallel. The question is why these commandments are equated?

In ancient times  people saw the sun and the moon, the stars and the constellations, and said, since the Lord created them and raised them to the heights and bestowed honor on them - they are worthy of praise, glory and worship. When they saw that G-d forbade them to worship them, they said: "He demands this for His honor," as if the Creator was jealous of them and did not want them to honor anyone but Him. But when they saw that the Creator commanded to honor father and mother, they understood that the prohibition against idolatry did not come from jealousy, G-d forbid, for He equated honoring father and mother with honoring the Creator Himself.

What is the real difference between the stars, which are forbidden to honor because they are idolatry, and the father and mother, that we are commanded to honor them and are called "partners" with G-d? The difference is that the stars and the zodiac signs have no control or influence of their own, and they have no ability to choose. On the other hand, the parents have a choice, because they are faced with the choice of whether to marry and bring the child into the world or not. It is true that the creation of the child is in the power of G-d, but since the parents chose to be partners in his creation, they deserve gratitude for their choice.

Honoring father and mother is not officially included in the Seven Commandments of the Noahide. But the children of Noah still have to honor their father and mother, this is an obligation that stems from common sense, and some rabbinic authorities say that it derives from the seventh commandment of "Dinim" meaning not only appoint righteous judges but also supervise and create a just society.

The very power of procreation is an expression of G-d's infinite power. Creation is limited in itself, and by its very nature it gradually decays. Where does this power of renewal and procreation come from, to give birth to new humans? It comes from God's unlimited power. The parents' share in this 'partnership' is not a human thing, but is also a divine power. Therefore, when a person honors his father and mother, he actually recognizes and thanks G-d for giving his parents the infinite power to give birth to a new human being, and therefore this is "the glory of G-d” which will be fully revealed in the messianic era. 

Source: Likutei Sichot, Volume 36, page 90. Tractate Sanhedrin 56:b.