Which Ten Commandments, part 2
In my last post, I pointed out that there's a tiny problem with hanging up the Ten Commandments everywhere: not everyone agrees on which commandment is which. There are a total of 25 instructions in the original text and the Commandments are not numbered. In fact, they are not even copied exactly in different places in the Bible. Jews, Protestants, and Catholics have slightly different interpretations. Muslims are told by the Qur'an to honor the Commandments, but they are not repeated in that book.
Of course, Swiftee ignored my main point and rushed into a discussion of why the Ten Commandments apply to this "Christian" nation. So I decided to go through with my idea of examining each of the Ten Commandments for their applicability to US law.
I decided to use the Catholic version, because I was raised Catholic and because that's the version Swiftee quoted (#4 gives it away -- in the Protestant and Jewish versions, it's remembering the Sabbath. In the Catholic version, it's honor your parents). Assume for a second that the Lutherans and Jews didn't sue over hanging up the Catholic commandments in every government building. Which ones would still apply to US law today?
Ronald Youngblood notes that, "According to rabbinic tradition, the purpose for having two tablets was to divide the Ten Commandments under two rubrics. The first tablet, we are told, contained the so-called religious commandments, describing obligations owed to God. The second tablet contained ethical or moral commandments, describing obligations we owe to one another as creatures of God and as fellow human beings." So we can pretty much agree that the first five (or rather, first four in the Catholic version) will be thrown out due to the separation of church and state, as they entail specific obligations to a specific God.
The Ten Commandments (Catholic Version)
1. I am the Lord thy God. Thou shalt not have strange gods before me.
First amendment prohibits favoring one religion over another, so this one is right out.
2. Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain.
Oops, freedom of speech.
3. Remember thou keep the Sabbath Day.
Which one?
4. Honor thy Father and thy Mother.
A good idea, but impossible to legislate. And what about abusive parents?
5. Thou shalt not kill.
Good one. One of those timeless classics. Apparently there are some exceptions that we're still working out, though.
6. Thou shalt not commit adultery.
Define "adultery." What if everyone's OK with it? No longer illegal in most places.
7. Thou shalt not steal.
Another timeless classic.
8. Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor.
Generally a good policy, but that pesky free speech thing keeps interfering. Breaking this one will probably get you a bad repuation. Of course, modern politics is practically built on breaking this Commandment. Still illegal in court (perjury).
9. Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's wife.
Thought crime?
10. Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's goods.
Our whole economic system is practically built on coveting thy neighbor's goods, conspicuous consumption, keeping up with the Joneses. The whole country would fall apart if we legislated this one!
Commandments, revised and updated
Based on these observations, I've whittled the Ten Commandments down to a more manageable Three. I look forward to getting these posted in courthouses and schools across the country.
1. Thou shalt not kill.
2. Thou shalt not steal.
3. Thou shalt covet thy neighbor's goods.
Update: Chris posted this in the comments, and it's so good I'm bringing it up to the main post:
That fact that we are dickering over the spiritual intent of the ten commandments speaks to Luke's original point. Seven of the ten commandments have nothing to do with the law. I can legally "covet" anything I want to, no matter how you define it, even though it is not good for me spiritually. I can also make graven images, cheat on my wife, pick Wednesday as my Sabbath Day, sass off to my mom and dad, gossip and exaggerate (though not under oath) about my neighbor and lust after his wife and pray to a strange God - and not break any laws of the land.
I would no more hang the ten commandments in a courthouse than I would hang the 400 bc Roman penal code in a church.
Exactly.
posted by Luke Francl @ 9:37 PM |
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8 Comments:
Luke, this post is going down as a timeless classic.
You are missing the point of thou shalt not covet thy neighbors goods, ass, etc.
Biblically its OK to want to be as successful as your neighbor. (In our case, maybe coveting a splitlevel, tastefully appointed and two cars in the garage.) Going out and earning these is fine. What isn't OK is taking it from your neighbor.
You have two cars and I have none, so you have to give me one.
The purpose of this commandment is not to discourage consumption or promote living in caves. Its to discourage collectivism. (In our parlance, that would be socialism and promotion of the welfare state.)
I do believe that you have it exactly backwards.
It'd be nice to keep the adultery one in, just to watch all the family values hypocrits on the right squirm: Bob Barr, Giuliani, Henry Hyde, Jack Ryan, Strom Thurmond.... The list goes on and on.
The other Anonymous must be a Protestant. His/her interpretation of the 10th commandment is based on the Protestant notion of pre-determinism. Read your Max Weber. The idea is: Protestants amass possessions here on earth to prove that they are among God’s chosen people destined for heaven. If you were chosen, God would give you two cars too.
Catholics on the other hand, - who are supposed to give to the needy (aka socialism/welfare) - interpret the 10th commandment as prohibiting the sin of envy.
This is from the Vatican’s page on the 10th commandment: “The tenth commandment forbids greed and the desire to amass earthly goods without limit. It forbids avarice arising from a passion for riches and their attendant power.”
Your interpretation is laughable, anonymous. The clear meaning of the text is that "You shall not covet." Covet means "want longingly." Your interpretation is "You shall want your neighbor's goods, but don't take them." Not only is that needlessly complicated and nuianced, but stealling's already covered by "Thou shalt not steal."
The Bible can be used to support many ideologies, but I believe the plain meaning of Jesus' teachings can be easily determined by reading the text. He taught a revolutionary thing: a responsibility to love all of God's people.
Just read what the Vatican has to say about the 10th Commandment. You can read the whole thing here.
The majority of the page specifically refers to the sin of envy. The summary at the end of the page doesn't even mention the one point Decaf9 harps on - a point that is completely negated by Section III: "Poverty of Heart". That section includes this gem: "The Lord grieves over the rich, because they find their consolation in the abundance of goods."
That fact that we are dickering over the spiritual intent of the ten commandments speaks to Luke's original point. Seven of the ten commandments have nothing to do with the law. I can legally "covet" anything I want to, no matter how you define it, even though it is not good for me spiritually. I can also make graven images, cheat on my wife, pick Wednesday as my Sabbath Day, sass off to my mom and dad, gossip and exaggerate (though not under oath)about my neighbor and lust after his wife and pray to a strange God - and not break any laws of the land.
I would no more hang the ten commandments in a courthouse than I would hang the 400 bc Roman penal code in a church.
Decaf9 thinks this one line is most important: "It is not a violation of this commandment to desire to obtain things that belong to one's neighbor, provided this is done by just means."
I could just as easily say this is most important: "The Lord grieves over the rich, because they find their consolation in the abundance of goods."
All that shows us is that Chris should have had the last word. We can't even reach a consensus on a single commandment amongst 3-6 people. Yet some folks still want all ten of them in our court houses!
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