Christianity: Details about 'Commandments'
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The Ten Commandments, or Decalogue, is a list of religious and moral imperatives which, according to the Bible, was spoken by God to Moses on Mount Sinai and engraved on two stone tablets. They feature prominently in Judaism and Christianity. In Biblical Hebrew language they are termed עשרת הדברים (translit. Aseret ha-Dvarîm), and in Rabbinical Hebrew עשרת הדברות (translit. Aseret ha-Dibrot), both translatable as "the ten statements". The name decalogue is derived from the Greek name δέκα λόγοι or dekalogoi ("ten statements") found in the Septuagint, which is the Greek translation of the Hebrew name. The terms Ten Commandments and Decalogue generally refer to the passages Exodus and Deuteronomy . Some maintain that the laws mentioned in are also a decalogue, commonly called the Ritual Decalogue, which may have predated the "Ethical Decalogue" of Exodus 20 and Deuteronomy 5 covered here.
Receiving the commandmentsPreparationsAccording to the Bible text, the commandments represented the utterances of God on Mount Sinai (sometimes called Mount Horeb), directly revealed by God to Moses and then by Moses to the people of Israel in the third month after their Exodus from Egypt. The event of Israel's receipt of the commandments followed three days of preparation at the foot of the mount:
Text of the commandmentsThe following is the text of the commonly accepted (by Christian and Jewish authorities) commandments as found in the book of Exodus:
Nature of the stone tabletsAccording to the Bible, God inscribed the Ten Commandments into stone: "God said to Moses, 'Come up to Me, to the mountain, and remain there. I will give you the stone tablets, the Torah and the commandment that I have written for instruction.'" () also referred to as "tables of testimony" (Exodus , , ) or "tables of the covenant" (verses 9, 11, 15), which he gave to Moses. Traditional Jewish sources (Mekhilta de Rabbi Ishmael, de-ba-Hodesh 5) discuss the placement of the ten commandments on two tablets. According to Rabbi Hanina ben Gamaliel, five commandments were engraved on the first tablet and five on the other, whereas the Sages contended that ten were written on each. While most Jewish and Christian depictions follow the first understanding, modern scholarship favours the latter, comparing it to treaty rite in the Ancient Near East, in the sense of tablets of covenant. Diplomatic treaties, such as that between Egyptian Pharaoh Ramses II and the Hittite King Hattusilis III, circa 1270 B.C.E, were duplicated on stone with a copy for each party, and the subordinate party would place their copy of the pact in the main temple to his god, in oath to the king (cf. ). In a pact between a nation and its God, then, the Israelites placed both copies in their temple. records that the tablets "were written on both their sides." The Talmud (tractate Shabbat 104a) explains that there were miracles involved with the carving on the tablets. One was that the carving went the full thickness of the tablets. There is a letter in the Hebrew alphabet called a samech that looks similar to the letter "O" in the English alphabet. The stone in the center part of the letter should have fallen out, as it was not connected to the rest of the tablet, but it did not; it miraculously remained in place. Secondly, the writing was miraculously legible from both the front and the back, even though logic would dictate that something carved through and through would show the writing in mirror image on the back. Breaking and replacement of the tabletsAfter seeing that the Israelites had gone astray during his absence and his brother Aaron had made the Golden Calf, Moses broke the tablets (). God subsequently commanded Moses to carve two other tablets like the first (). In Moses was commanded to recreate the tablets, and to rewrite the commandments himself. In Deuteronomy , , , , God himself appears as the writer. This second set, brought down from Mount Sinai by Moses (), was placed in the Ark, also known as the Ark of the Covenant (Exodus , , ), hence designated as the "Ark of the Testimony" (, ; compare also ). Various theories have been advanced as to why the text in Deuteronomy differs on some points with the text in Exodus (see below). Variations between the Exodus and Deuteronomy texts
A very similar, but not identical, list of commandments is found in . Other references are found to the commandments within the bible: Reference to each of the commandments and the consequences for not following them as a part of Hebrew Law are found throughout this book. In the New Testament book of and elsewhere, Jesus refers to the commandments, but condenses them into two general commands: love God (Shema) and love other people (Ethic of reciprocity) (). Division of the commandmentsThe passage conventionally considered to include the commandments in chapter 20 of the book of Exodus contains more than ten imperative statements (while Jewish law sees each as representing a separate commandment), totalling 14 or 15 in all. Nonetheless, the Bible itself assigns the count of "10". The Hebrew phrase ʻaseret had'varim - translated as the 10 words, statements or things , and . Religious groups have divided the commandments in different ways. For instance, Catholics and Lutherans see the first six verses as part of the same command prohibiting the worship of pagan gods, while Protestants (except Lutherans) separate all six verses into two different commands (one being "no other gods" and the other being "no graven images"). The initial reference to Egyptian bondage is important enough to Jews that it forms a separate commandment. Catholics and Lutherans separate the two kinds of coveting (namely, of goods and of the flesh), while Protestants (but not Lutherans) and Jews group them together. Jewish understanding
Significance of the decalogueAccording the Jewish understandings, the Torah includes 613 commandments, of which those listed in the decalogue count for ten. Most authorities thus do not automatically ascribe to these ten commandments any greater significance in observance, or any special status, as compared to the remainder of the canon of Jewish law. Indeed, when undue emphasis was being placed on them, daily communal recitation of them was discontinued (Talmud, tractate Berachot 12a). The Jewish tradition does, however, recognize these "ten commandments" as the ideological basis for the rest of the commandments; a number of works (starting with Rabbi Saadia Gaon) have made groupings of the commandments according to their links with the Ten Commandments. Traditional Jewish belief is that these commandments, among the 613, apply solely to the Jewish people, and that the laws incumbent on the rest of humanity are outlined in the seven Noahide Laws. In the era of the Sanhedrin, transgressing any one of these theoretically carried the death penalty; though this was rarely enforced due to a large number of stringent evidentiary requirements imposed by the oral law. Division and interpretationThe text of the commandment follows:
Christian understandingOrthodox and Roman Catholic ChristianityThe official Catholic and Orthodox Christian understanding of the Ten commandments is as follows (Deuteronomy, RSV):
Moreover, within the Catholic tradition, as in much of Judaism, the Commandments are also seen as general "subject headings" for moral theology, in addition to being specific commandments in themselves. Thus, the commandment to honor father and mother is seen as a heading for a general rule to respect legitimate authority, including the authority of the state. The commandment not to commit adultery is traditionally taken to be a heading for a general rule to be sexually pure, the specific content of the purity depending, of course, on whether one is married or not. In this way, the Ten Commandments can be seen as dividing up all of morality. Protestant ChristianityThere are many different denominations of Protestantism, and it is impossible to generalise in a way that covers them all. However, this diversity arose historically from fewer sources, the various teachings of which can be summarized, in general terms. Lutherans, Reformed and Anglicans, and Anabaptists all taught, and their descendents still predominantly teach that, the ten commandments have both an explicitly negative content, and an implied positive content. Besides those things that ought not be done, there are things which ought not be left undone. So that, besides not transgressing the prohibitions, a faithful abiding by the commands of God includes keeping the obligations of love. The ethic contained in the Ten Commandments and indeed in all of Scripture is, "Love the Lord your God with all of your heart, and mind, and soul, and strength, and love your neighbor as yourself", and, "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you." Lutherans, especially, influentially theorized that there is an antithesis between these two sides of the word of God, the positive and the negative. Love and gratitude is a guide to those under the Gospel, and the prohibitions are for unbelievers and profane people. This antithesis between Gospel and Law runs through every ethical command, according to Lutheran understanding. The Anabaptists have held that the commandments of God are the content of the covenant established through Christ: faith is faithfulness, and thus, belief is essentially the same thing as obedience. Reformed and Anglicans have taught the abiding validity of the commandments, and call it a summation of the "moral law", binding on all people. However, they emphasize the union of the believer with Christ - so that the will and power to perform the commandments does not arise from the commandment itself, but from the gift of the Holy Spirit. Apart from this grace, the commandment is only productive of condemnation, according to this family of doctrine. Modern Evangelicalism, under the influence of dispensationalism, commonly denies that the commandments have any abiding validity as a requirement binding upon Christians; however, they contain principles which are beneficial to the believer. Dispensationalism is particularly emphatic about the dangers of legalism, and thus, in a distinctive way de-emphasises the teaching of the law (see antinomianism). Somewhat analogously, Pentecostalism and the Charismatic movement typically emphasizes the guidance of the Holy Spirit, and the freedom of the Christian from outward commandments, sometimes in antithesis to the letter of the Law. Quakers and pietism have historically set themselves against the Law as a form of commandment binding on Christians, and have emphasized the inner guidance and liberty of the believer, so that the law is fulfilled not merely by avoiding what the Law prohibits, but by carrying out what the Spirit of God urges upon their conscience. For those Christians who believe that the Ten Commandments continue to be binding for Christians, their negative and positive content can be summarized as follows: Typical Protestant viewExodus 20:
Jehovah's WitnessesJehovah's Witnesses hold that the commandments were given together with the Mosaic law and the old covenant. While they understand the Bible as saying Christians are not bound by the Ten Commandments, () they recognize the importance the Bible places on these principles for living a Christian life. (; ) They believe that the Sabbatarian law is obsolete. () The first four commandments define the correct relationship between God and man.
When the Israelites became unfaithful they, as representatives of Jehovah by bearing his name, "took it up" or "carried" it "in vain"(Vs.7)
Muslim understandingMuslims regard Moses as one of their greatest prophets, but they reject the Biblical versions of the Ten Commandments. Islam teaches that the Biblical text used in Judaism and Christianity has been corrupted over the years, by carelessness or malice, from its divine original. Muslims believe that the Qur'an is a revelation from God continuing the revelations on which they believe the Torah and Gospels to be based, intended to restore the original Adamic and Abrahamic faith. Despite the Ten Commandments not being explicitly mentioned in the Qur'an they are implied by the following verses in the Quran (using Jewish numbering):
Views of other faithsWhile other faiths do not generally recognise the Ten Commandments in their unity, many of them (Buddhism, Hinduism, Jainism, etc.) have comparable laws or principles . Origins of the lawSome historians have argued that the Ten Commandments originated from ancient Egyptian religion, and postulate that the Biblical Jews borrowed the concept after their Exodus from Egypt. Chapter 125 of the Book of the Dead (the Papyrus of Ani) includes a list of things to which a man must swear in order to enter the afterlife. These sworn statements bear a remarkable resemblance to the Ten Commandments in their nature and their phrasing. These statements include "not have I defiled the wife of man," "not have I committed murder," "not have I committed theft," "not have I lied," "not have I cursed god," "not have I borne false witness," and "not have I abandoned my parents." The Book of the Dead has additional requirements, and, of course, doesn't require worship of YHWH. ControversiesSabbath daySee main articles: Shabbat, Sabbath Most Christians believe that Sunday is a special day of worship and rest, every week commemorating the Resurrection of Jesus on the first day of the week on the Jewish calendar. Most Christian traditions teach that there is an analogy between the obligation of the Christian day of worship and the Sabbath-day ordinance, but that they are not literally identical - for a believer in Christ the Sabbath ordinance has not so much been removed as superseded, because God's very work of creation has been superseded by a "new creation" (), according to this Christian view. For this reason, most teach that the obligation to keep the Sabbath is not the same for Christians as in Judaism, and for support they point to examples in the New Testament, and other writings surviving from the first few centuries. Still others believe that the Sabbath remains as a day of rest on the Saturday, reserving Sunday as a day of worship. In reference to Acts 20:7, the disciples came together on the first day of the week (Sunday) to break bread and to hear the preaching of the apostle Paul. This is not the first occurrence of Christians assembling on a Sunday; Jesus appeared to the Christians on the "first day of the week" while they were in hiding. One can maintain this arguement in that Jesus himself maintained the Sabbath, although not within the restrictions that were mandated by Jewish traditions; the Pharisees often tried Jesus by asking him if certain tasks were acceptable according to the Law (see: Luke 14:5). This would seem to indicate that while the Sabbath was still of importance to the Jews, Sunday was a seperate day for worship and teaching from Scriptures. Sabbatarian Christians (such as Seventh-day Adventists) disagree with the common Christian view. They argue that the custom of meeting for worship on Sunday originated in paganism, specifically Sol Invictus, and constitutes an explicit rejection of the commandment to keep the seventh day holy. Instead, they keep Saturday as the Sabbath, believing that God gave this command as a perpetual ordinance based on his work of creation. These sabbatarians claim that the seventh day Sabbath was kept by all Christian groups until the 2nd and 3rd century, by most until the 4th and 5th century, and a few thereafter, but because of opposition to Judaism after the Jewish-Roman wars, the original custom was gradually replaced by Sunday as the day of worship. They often teach that this history has been lost, because of supression of the facts by a conspiracy of the pagans of the Roman Empire and the clergy of the Catholic Church. See Great Apostasy. IdolatrySee main articles: Idolatry, Idolatry in Judaism, Idolatry in Christianity, Idolatry in Islam Christianity holds that the essential element of the commandment not to make "any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above" is "and bow down and worship it". Thus, they hold that one may build and use "likenesses", as long as the object is not worshipped. As a result, many Christian buildings and services feature images, some feature statues, and in some Orthodox services, icons are venerated. For most Christians, this practice is understood as fulfilling the observance of this commandment, as the images are not being worshipped. Eastern Orthodoxy teaches that the incarnation of God as a human, Jesus, makes it permissible and necessary to venerate icons. For Jews and Muslims (and some Protestants as well), veneration seems to violate this commandment. Jews and Muslims read this commandment as prohibiting the use of idols and images in any way. Very few Christians oppose the making of any images at all, but some groups have been critical of the use others make of images in worship. (See iconoclasm.) In particular, the Orthodox have criticized the Roman Catholic use of decorative statues, Roman Catholics have criticized the Orthodox veneration of icons, and some Protestant groups have criticized the use of stained-glass windows by many other denominations. Jehovah's Witnesses criticize the use of all of the above, as well as the use of the cross. Amish people forbid any sort of graven image, such as photos. Public monuments and controversy in the USASee also: Roy Moore, Van Orden v. Perry, Separation of church and state in the United States and Legal Egalitarian with Voluntary Simplicity. There is an ongoing dispute in the United States concerning the posting of the Ten Commandments on public property. Certain conservative religious groups, alarmed by the banning of officially-sanctioned prayer from public schools by the U.S. Supreme Court, have sought to protect their right to express their religious beliefs in public life. As a result they have successfully lobbied many state and local governments to display the ten commandments in public buildings. As seen above, any attempt to post the Decalogue on a public building necessarily takes a sectarian stance; Protestants and Roman Catholics number the commandments differently. Hundreds of these monuments – including some of those causing dispute – were originally placed by director Cecil B. DeMille as a publicity stunt to promote his 1956 film The Ten Commandments. Secularists and most liberals oppose the posting of the Ten Commandments on public property, arguing that it is violating the separation of church and state. Conservative groups claim that the commandments are not necessarily religious, but represent the moral and legal foundation of society. Secularist groups counter that they are explicitly religious, and that statements of monotheism like "Thou shalt have no other gods before me" are unacceptable to many religious viewpoints, such as atheists or followers of polytheistic religions. In addition, if the Commandments were posted, it would also require members of all religions to likewise be allowed to post the particular tenets of their religions as well. For example, an organization by the name of Summum has won court cases against municipalities in Utah for refusing to allow the group to erect a monument of Summum aphorisms next to the Ten Commandments. The cases were won on the grounds that Summum's right to freedom of speech was denied and the governments had engaged in discrimination. Instead of allowing Summum to erect its monument, the local governments removed their Ten Commandments. Some religious Jews oppose the posting of the Ten Commandments in public schools, as they feel it is wrong for public schools to teach their children Judaism. The argument is that if a Jewish parent wishes to teach their child to be a Jew (as most do), then this education should come from practicing Jews, and not from non-Jews. This position is based on the demographic fact that the vast majority of public school teachers in the United States are not Jews; the same is true for the students. This same reasoning and position is also held by many believers in other religions. Many Christians have some concerns about this as well; for example, can Catholic parents count on Protestant or Orthodox Christian teachers to tell their children their particular understanding of the commandments? Differences in the interpretation and translation of these commandments, as noted above, can sometimes be significant. Organizations such as the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) have launched lawsuits challenging the posting of the ten commandments in public buildings. Opponents of these displays include a number of religious groups, including some Christian denominations, both because they don't want government to be issuing religious doctrine, and because they feel strongly that the commandments are inherently religious. Many commentators see this issue as part of a wider kulturkampf (culture struggle) between liberal and conservative elements in American society. In response to the perceived attacks on traditional society other legal organizations, such as Liberty Counsel have risen to defend the traditional interpretation. Further reading
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