Blog 423 – 10.03.2016

I grew up in a part of the country where people are proud of their ignorance of most things including but not limited to history, math, science, and even the book they revere and honor as the most sacred book of all. Though many have never read it they would still fight anyone over what they think it says and suspect anyone as a godless Communist who does not have a big one on their coffee table. Some of these same people are the ones who continue to get upset at judges for prohibiting Manger Scenes and replicas of The Ten Commandments on court house lawns. They have trouble understanding how the U.S. Constitution, another document they worship without having read in most cases, can say it is against the law to set up a state religion and that freedom of (and “from” as I read it) religion is the right of every U.S. citizen.

There are some interesting things about those Ten Commandments that I would like to note.

1.  Thou shalt have no other gods before me.

Just before this in the expanded version in the Bible it says “Behold I, the LORD           thy God am a jealous god.” Though jealousy does not make the list of the seven           deadly sins envy does and some one has said, “Envy is a two-pronged situation             whereas jealousy is a three person situation. Envy is a reaction to lacking         something. Jealousy is a reaction to the threat of losing something (usually someone). … This means that when you are feeling jealous, you are also feeling envy as well.” Jealousy is therefore a sin and not a nice characteristic for a loving and holy god. So much for Rule One.

2.  Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven images.

You mean like granite carved memorials of The Ten Commandments to place on court house lawns? Rule Two check.

3.  Thou shall not take the name of the LORD, thy God, in vain.

I wrote an entire blog on this one. So people think taking God’s name is using God and damn together like asking God to curse someone. Though cursing someone or asking God to is not very nice, God’s name is not God or Lord. Those are titles. God’s name per His exchange with Moses at the burning bush is “I am.” And since we are His children I think a real example of using God’s name in vain is when we say things like, “I am so stupid.”, “I am never going to figure this out.” etc. So strike Rule Three.

4.  Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy.

Another easy one to dispute with Christians at least because most of them think Sunday is the Sabbath. Read the book. Saturday is the Sabbath, the seventh day. Sunday is the first day of the week, the Lord’s day, Easter Sunday, the day Jesus rose from the grave in the Easter story. But ignorance is bliss or blister more often. All across the country especially in the south we used to have Sabbath laws about what you could sell on Sundays. Now of days business has trumped most of that although some lucky folks mostly government workers have the Sabbath off work and even Sunday. Rule Four is remembered only by some orthodox Jews. Hey, these are their rules anyway. They must be amazed at people who pay little or no attention to hundreds of others of their rules to live by in the Old Testament but obsess about the Ten God supposedly wrote on stone tablets in His own hand writing and Moses dropped and broke because the people ticked him off. God made him stay after school and recopy them. Does this story strike anyone else as a stretch?

5.  Honor that father and mother.

Especially on Father’s Day and Mother’s Day. They did not even have those holidays back then and since parents had then the right to kill disobedient children and did no wonder there had to be a rule about honoring them. The rest of the verse says, “That thy days may be long upon the earth.” A more literal translation might be, ” Respect your parents and do as they say or they might kill you.”  So much for Rule Five, five more to go.

6.  Thou shalt not kill.

At last, one that I agree is a pretty good idea. But I am in the minority on this one.
Christian soldiers have killed more than their fair share of military personnel and civilians in the countless foolish wars that have been fought over the last couple of centuries. As they made me memorize and yell at the top of my lungs when I was a soldier once when asked the question, “What is the spirit of the bayonet?” – “TO KILL” ; the spirit of the gun is to kill. It is inconsistent for me to think of Jesus with a concealed carry permit. It just does not jive with the “turn the other cheek” thing. Oops there goes Rule Six.

7.  Thou shalt not commit adultery.

In what world? That certainly cannot be referring to this country where adultery is far more the America’s Pastime than baseball ever was. Come on lucky Seven, give me a seven.

8. Thou shalt not steal.

Unless you are the President and CEO of the company, or to make your bonus quota of new checking accounts. How about it Wells Fargo execs? Fire the little guys, prosecute and imprison the petty criminals but never or seldom ever the big guys, the rich, and the powerful who laugh out loud at Rule Number Eight.

9.  Thou shalt not bear false witness.

Unless it is to sell some new drug, product, surgical procedure, or to protect profits even though you may be killing your customers. How about it Big Tobacco, Big Oil, or Big Just About Business. All is fair in love and in war, and in business and in politics especially in a Bearing False Witness market.

10.  Thou shalt not covet.

Wow, our whole capitalistic, get one up on the Jones society is based on breaking this
one. I rest my case, not only do these Ten Commandments not belong on the court
house lawn for separation of church and state reasons these rules just no longer apply if they ever did. But then rules that people come up with are almost always about giving one person or group an advantage over others. The Golden Rule is one we ought to push, “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” It would certainly revolutionize the way we do business.

These are ten very negative rules. For ten more positive statements to live by check out Ten Intentions For A Better World. Google it. Just because something is written in stone does not make it infallible or even sensible. Someone once said we are each of us a living bible.

Your friend and fellow traveler,
David White