Isn't it time to ditch the supposed link between
ethics and religion? |
Religion is supposedly the source of morality, conveying
God's instructions to the world. |
In Christianity, the big picture - God's constitution
- comes in the Ten Commandments, which offers such basics as "do
not steal". The details - God's law - comes in Deuteronomy, Leviticus
and elsewhere in the Bible. |
Most modern Christians respect the constitution but
are picky about the laws. Pat Robertson frequently condemns homosexual
acts but I cannot remember the last time he reminded us not to keep
different sets of measures in the house. That's a big problem for
God, according to Deuteronomy 25:14. |
Altogether there are about fifteen Commandments, repeated
with slightly different wording in Exodus and Deuteronomy. Most Americans
are familiar with the Protestant version. |
The first four come in a bunch. Make Yahweh Top God;
make no idols; do not blaspheme; keep the Sabbath holy. |
There's a reason for these priorities. Having usurped
his father El and siblings Baal and Asherah, Yahweh is still not secure
in his position as The One And Only God. He needs to enforce loyalty
in his worshippers. In modern terms, commandments one to four are
martial law - military decrees after a coup d'état.
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With dissension truly suppressed, God moves on to common
law. Commandment five tells us to honor our parents, six not to murder,
seven to abstain from adultery, eight not to steal, nine not to bear
false witness and ten not to covet our neighbor's possessions.
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They are a curious mix. We must respect our parents
"so that our days may be long", but the link between the
two is not explained. And no exceptions are allowed for abusive, criminal
or neglectful parents. |
Adultery appears here but pre-marital sex and homosexuality
are only condemned elsewhere in the Bible. |
Prohibiting theft and murder seems logical while the
ban on bearing false witness against neighbors appears unnecessarily
narrow. Who can we lie to? Who can we lie about? And when can we do
so? |
I am also confused by the last commandment: no coveting.
If it is a warning against stealing, it simply repeats the eighth
commandment. If it is a more general warning against envy, why are
other negative states of mind, such as anger and sloth, ignored? Or
is it proof that God is the ultimate capitalist who insists that the
poor stay poor and the rich stay rich? |
However we interpret them, the Ten Commandments remain
a hodge-podge of divine egoism and miscellaneous advice. |
They are also inadequate for the modern world. What
does God say about such issues as recreational drug use or loud cell
phone conversations in restricted places? |
Yahweh's heir Jesus clearly thought the constitution
needed updating. His version was summarized in the phrases "love
the Lord your God with all your heart, soul and mind" and "love
your neighbor as yourself". |
I'm with Jesus up to a point. I promise faithfully to
love God the moment he, Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny move in next
door, and I do, in principle, love my neighbor. |
In principle, that is, because I've never met my neighbors,
but I like the basic idea. Be nice to people. It's short and sweet
and covers every occasion. Forget the Ten Commandments. One Commandment
is all we need. |
© Martin Foreman, all rights reserved |
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