The Ten Commandments I am the Lord, your God, you shall have no Gods before Me. You shall not take the name of the Lord in vain Remember to keep the Lord’s day holy Honor your father and mother You shall not kill You shall not commit adultery You shall not steal You shall not bear false witness against your neighber You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife You shall not covet your neighbor’s goods

"You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it, You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the law and the prophets." (Mt 22:37-40)

The first three commandments deal with our obligations toward God. The remaining seven deal with our obligations toward others. The Commandments are just the minimum that we as Christians are called to do. Loving God and neighbor does not only involve avoiding evil but also obligates us to do good.

The First Commandment I am the Lord, your God, you shall have no Gods before Me.

How do we live the first commandment?

We live the first commandment primarily by practicing the three theological virtues of faith, hope and charity. Through these virtues, we nurture and deepen our relationship with God.

What are some ways in which we deepen our relationship with God?

1. Adoration – Looking at God’s creation leaves us in awe of him and leads us to adore Him as the one who is responsible for all we have and all we see.

2. Prayer – Prayer is taking the time to acknowledge God’s presence in our lives.

3. Sacrifice – We are called to follow Christ’s example of sacrificial love by putting God and others before ourselves. Examples: A. Fasting and sacrificing during Lent B. Giving our time, resources and energy to help others, even when we might be tired or it is inconvenient. C. Accepting sickness and suffering with dignity and courage.

4. Promises and Vows – Just as God has fulfilled his promises to his people, we must keep the promises we make to Him in the Sacraments and in other ways.

We pray in three ways: A. Praise and Thanksgiving – We show our appreciation to God for all that he has given us B. Intercession and Petition – We bring our needs to God and ask him to provide for us what we need. C. Meditation and Contemplation – We find time alone to put ourselves in the presence of God, listening to him speak through in the silence of our hearts.

We experience all three types of prayer in the Liturgy.

Sins against the first commandment

Idolatry – Worshiping things or beings other than God. In today’s world there are many things which people sometimes put before God: money, popularity, entertainment, pleasure, for example.

Superstition – Assigning magical powers to practices or objects. What are some superstitions?

Divination – The practice of seeking knowledge or power through some supernatural means apart from God. (e.g. astrology)

Sacrilege – The abuse of Sacraments, persons, things or places that are consecrated to God. (e.g. using a church for immoral purposes or mocking religious practices)

Simony – The practice of buying or selling spiritual things and favors. (e.g. promising miraculous cures if one contributes money.)

Atheism – The denial of the existence of God. Agnosticism – Demanding concrete proof of the existence of God.

The Second Commandment You shall not take the name of the Lord in vain

The Second Commandment reminds us that as He is our Creator and sustainer, we owe God nothing less than our reverence.

The opposite of reverence is profanity – which means treating the sacred as though it was nothing special.

Profanity Profanity- speaking disrespectfully about something that is sacred or treating it with disrespect. Profanity is more than just swearing (curse words) or vulgar language. It means to treat something that is sacred as if it were ordinary or meaningless.

What’s in a name? In ancient times, a name carried with it great significance and said something about a person’s character. Misusing a person’s name caused him/her great insult and injury.

Names were not readily given to strangers, and revealing your name to another signified that he/she had gained your trust. So it was when God revealed his name – Yahweh – to Moses.

Names have power – We call someone we respect with the appropriate title of “Mr.”,”Mrs.”,”Dr.” – First names are a sign of familiarity not necessarily respect or reverence. – God’s Revelation of his name, Yahweh, to Moses (Exodus 3:14) is a big deal.

To use God’s name in vain means to use it for dishonorable or profane purposes. It is treating or using his name, which is holy and worthy of the greatest respect, as something ordinary, or even worse, for evil purposes. – “Oh, God!” – “Jesus Christ!” – “Holy Mother of God!” These exclamations express humor, surprise, or anger Why is this sinful?

How do we live the Second Commandment?

1. We give God and His name the reverence He deserves: - by not using his name in profane ways -by being reverent in places of worship and at times of prayer.

2. We remain faithful to covenants (promises) made in His name such as: - Sacramental vows such as those made in Baptism, Confirmation, Matrimony and Holy Orders -Other vows and promises that we make

Sins against the Second Commandment

Blasphemy – Thinking or speaking about God and the sacred in a way that is irreverent or offensive.  It’s like saying “I know better than God  Using God’s name as an excuse to cover up a crime or excuse some sin you have committed (ex: “Christian” militia groups that say God wants them to commit acts of terror

Perjury – Lying when under an oath (or having promised) to tell the truth.

Doing evil in the name of God – This causes harm to the name of God and so is a mortal sin.

The Third Commandment Remember to keep the Lord’s day holy

God freed the Jewish people from slavery in Egypt. As slaves they had no day of rest. Now that they were free of slavery, they would have a day to rest and thank God for their deliverance.

How do we keep the commandment?

We give back to God for all He has given us by attending Mass on Sundays Unlike the rest of the week, we make Sunday a day of rest, avoiding unnecessary work, shopping, etc.

The Fourth Commandment Honor your mother and father. We are commanded to honor those who brought us life and nurtured us. The family is our first place of learning and where we first experience love. The commandment to honor and respect our parents extends to all of our elders, our government and those in authority. We should respect them for the wisdom which they have gained from their years and experiences.

Moral obligations of children: - To be grateful to and respect their parents for the sacrifices they make for them - To obey their parents in all that they ask of them when it is for their good or that of the family - To give siblings and other members of the family the respect due to them

Moral obligations of parents: - To respect their children as children of God. Children are not property and should not be treated as such - To nurture and educate their children to the best of their ability - To raise and educate their children in their faith - To guide their children to adulthood while allowing them to become independent individuals

Moral obligations of government and society: - to protect basic freedoms such as freedom of speech and religion - the protect the stability of the marriage bond and the institution of the family - to protect the rights to private property, free enterprise, obtaining work and housing, and emigration - to provide medical care, assistance for the aged, and family benefits to those in need - to provide stability and order to maintain the security and health of its citizens - to allow its citizens the freedom to form associations with others to work for and obtain social justice.

Moral obligations of citizens: - to fulfill our obligations to society and government by obeying laws, paying taxes, voting and giving our opinion on societal issues - to fight against corruption in government - to speak out against laws that are unjust or immoral. In such instances, civil disobedience* is justified. *Civil disobedience – Deliberately refusing to follow a law (or command) that is immoral or unjust.