Love for God Love for Neighbor THE TEN COMMANDMENTS Love for God Love for Neighbor

The strongest possible pledge and agreement between two parties Keeping the Commandments Covenant The strongest possible pledge and agreement between two parties

Often called the Decalogue Keeping the Commandments The 10 Commandments Often called the Decalogue Means 10 words

Keeping the Commandments

Keeping the Commandments

Keeping the Commandments Church Tradition The Decalogue is a unity. Each commandment refers to each of the others and to all collectively. To break one of the commandments is to break the whole Law.

Theological Virtues

The First Commandment I am the Lord your God: you shall not have strange gods before me. This commandment teaches us to accept the one true God of love. This means we must worship God. The theological virtues enable us to relate to God and carry out this command.

The First Commandment and the Theological Virtues Faith This virtue empowers us to say “yes” to God. It enables us to believe everything God has revealed to us.

The First Commandment and the Theological Virtues Faith Ways to strengthen faith: Prayer Read the Bible Celebrate the Sacraments Study your faith Fellowship Put your faith into action (discipleship) Avoid temptations and sin

The First Commandment and the Theological Virtues Faith Sins against faith: Voluntary Doubt – the decision to ignore or a refusal to believe what God has revealed or what the Church teaches. Incredulity – a mental disposition that either neglects revealed truth or willfully refuses to assent to it. Heresy – outright denial by a baptized person of some essential truth about God and faith that we must believe. Apostasy – The total rejection of Jesus Christ (and the Christian faith) by a baptized Christian. Schism – refusal to submit to the pope’s authority or remain in union with members of the Catholic Church

The First Commandment and the Theological Virtues Hope We trust that God controls the future and is watching out for us. Hope gives us confidence that God keeps all his promises Sins against hope: Despair – losing hope that God can save us Presumption – we can save ourselves without God’s help or God will automatically be merciful if we don’t repent.

The First Commandment and the Theological Virtues Charity The Four Loves: Storge, Philia, Eros & Agape Agape – selfless, giving love Agape love is the type of love Jesus has for us, and the kind of love we should show others. Latin word for love, caritas, means “holding someone close to one’s heart.” Sins against Charity: Religious Indifference Ingratitude Lukewarmness or spiritual laziness Hatred of God

The First Commandment and the Theological Virtues Living the First Commandment: Adoration Acts of Religion Prayer Sacrifice

Idolatry (the worship of false gods) The First Commandment and the Theological Virtues Sins against the First Commandment Idolatry (the worship of false gods) Superstition, Divination (attempts to unveil what God wants hidden by calling up demonic powers, consulting horoscopes, the stars, or mediums, palm reading, etc.) Magic (attempts to tame occult powers, so as to place them at one’s service and have a supernatural power over others)

The First Commandment and the Theological Virtues Sins against the First Commandment Irreligion – or Sacrilege (profane or unworthy treatment of the sacraments, other liturgical actions, and persons, places, and things consecrated to God.) Simony (the buying or selling of spiritual goods.) Atheism (denies God’s existences) Agnosticism (claims ignorance about God’s existence claiming it cannot be proved.)

The First Commandment and the Theological Virtues Sins against the First Commandment Forms of non-belief in God: Secular Humanism – a belief that defies humanity and human potential to the exclusion of any belief in or reliance on God. Freudianism – claims belief in God is mere wishful thinking Materialism – a belief that the physical, material world is the only reality, and that spiritual existence, values and faith are illusions.

The Second Commandment You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain. Stresses the importance of respecting God’s name. By respecting God’s name, we show respect for God himself. And recognize that some things are sacred and holy.

Breaking promises made in God’s name The Second Commandment Sins against the Second Commandment Breaking promises made in God’s name Blasphemy (hateful, defiant, reproachful thoughts and words, or acts against God, Jesus, his Church, the saints, or holy things.)

Taking the Lord’s name in vain: The Second Commandment Sins against the Second Commandment Taking the Lord’s name in vain: Swearing (misuse of God’s name in making false promises, cursing other people, or using God’s name frivolously), Perjury (when one fails to keep a promise sworn under oath or when one takes an oath with no intention of keeping it.), Obscenity (indecent, lewd, or offensive language, behavior, appearance, or expressions), cussing (an informal word that means the same thing as cursing, the calling down of evil on someone), Vulgarity (tasteless or coarse behavior or language).

The Third Commandment Remember to keep holy the Lord’s day. This commandment stresses the value of play (recreation) and prayer on the Sabbath day. It is important to use this day as a day to praise, worship and adore God. Sabbath is our small gift to God in thanksgiving for all of his gifts. For Christians, the Sabbath is Sunday, commemorating Easter and the beginning of the week.

The Third Commandment We go to Mass to give as well as receive. Why We Go to Mass We go to Mass to give as well as receive. Jesus wants us to come together to experience him in the Eucharist, his scriptural Word, and in each other (Community). As a community of believers, we thank God together through the Eucharist.

The Fourth Commandment Honor your Father and Mother This commandment helps regulate relationships within our social groups where authority is exercised. Honor involves respect, admiration, and recognition of one’s dignity. Honor flows from the virtue of justice.

The Fourth Commandment Honor This commandment promotes family values. The family is the “domestic church” which mirrors the love and community of the Triune God. Every human being is worthy of honor, especially parents. Children should honor their parents by observing their wishes. Parents should honor their children as precious images of God, and respect their vocation and career choices.

Prejudice against old people The Fourth Commandment Honor your father and mother. Ageism Prejudice against old people Any “action or omission which of itself and by intention causes death, with the purpose of eliminating suffering “ (Gospel of Life, 65). Euthanasia

The Fifth Commandment Human life comes from and returns to God. You shall not kill. Human life comes from and returns to God. This commandment teaches respect for human life It condemns as gravely sinful any direct, intentional killing.

The Fifth Commandment Capital Punishment: Special Examples of Killing Criminals do merit punishment for their crimes. Purpose of punishment: To set right the disorder caused by criminal offenses To preserve public order and personal safety To correct the offender Revenge can never be the motive for our actions.

The Fifth Commandment Capital Punishment: Special Examples of Killing Reasons U.S. Bishops oppose capital punishment in A Culture of Life and the Penalty of Death: The sanction of death, when it is not necessary to protect society, violates respect for human life and dignity. State-sanctioned killing in our names diminishes all of us. Its application is deeply flawed and can be irreversibly wrong. We have other ways to punish criminals and protect society.

The Fifth Commandment War: Special Examples of Killing The Catholic Church is against war, always promoting a peaceful settlement of disputes. The Catholic Church recognizes that governments have the right and responsibility to pass laws to enlist citizens to help defend the nation.

The Fifth Commandment Special Examples of Killing Conditions to fight in a “just” war: There must be a real, lasting, grave and certain danger. War must be a last resort. The rights and values in the conflict must be important enough to justify killing. War has to be waged for the noblest reasons and with a commitment for postwar reconciliation with the enemy.

The Fifth Commandment Special Examples of Killing Conditions to fight in a “just” war: Only proper representation of the people have the right to declare a war of defense. The chance of success must be calculated against the human cost of war. Armed conflict must not create even worse evil than that to be eliminated.

The Fifth Commandment Special Examples of Killing The moral law hold in times of warfare. There must be no attacks on innocent noncombatants; genocide; terrorism; or use of nuclear, biological, or chemical weapons – all of which indiscriminately destroy persons and property.

The Fifth Commandment Abortion Abortion and Other Violations Against the Fifth Commandment The deliberate killing of unborn human life by means of medical or surgical procedures. Direct abortion is seriously wrong because it is an unjustified attack on human life. Abortion

The Fifth Commandment Abortion and Other Violations Against the Fifth Commandment The fifth commandment forbids scandal; kidnapping; hostage-taking; torture of prisoners; terrorist acts; and bodily mutations, amputations, and sterilizations performed for non-medical purposes.

The Fifth Commandment Respect all life. Don’t judge others. Pray. What Can we do About Abortion? Respect all life. Don’t judge others. Pray. Get involved. Be informed.

The Fifth Commandment Corporal Works of Mercy The Church holds that one is not guilty of the sin of euthanasia when a decision is made with the patient’s approval to withhold “aggressive medical treatment.” Extraordinary means (like a heroic and costly operation on a dying patient) can be refused Ordinary means (food, oxygen) should always be used to care for the sick. A person may take painkillers to lessen suffering.

Suicide The Fifth Commandment Corporal Works of Mercy Taking of one’s own life Suicide We should not judge. We should pray. Suffering of grave psychological problems

The Fifth Commandment Assisted Suicide Corporal Works of Mercy The intentional assistance of any dying or suffering person in taking his or her own life.

Respecting Personal Health The Fifth Commandment requires us to exercise the virtue of prudence to take care of our health, one of God’s precious gifts to us. However, we should not make our bodies our god.

Respecting Personal Health

Respecting Personal Health

The Sixth and Ninth Commandments You shall not commit adultery. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife. These commandments serve as safeguards of God’s intention for human sexuality. They warn against the disrespectful and harmful actions involving sex.

The Goodness of Sex God created us as sexual beings. Sex is derived from the Latin word secare which means “to separate.” Both created in God’s image, men and women are complementary beings who are equal in dignity. According to Genesis, sex was intended to be very good.

The Goodness of Sex Our sexuality involves our emotional and spiritual makeup. Sexual activity involves respect: looking at ourselves as creations of God and looking at others as persons and not objects to be used.

The Sixth and Ninth Commandments Sexual Intercourse is for Marriage God intended sexual intercourse and all actions leading up to it to be shared exclusively by a man and a woman in the union of marriage. Marital faithfulness between husbands and wives that requires reserving all sexual activity and affection for each other and also asks couples to be loyal to each other through good times and bad. Fidelity

The sharing of LOVE between the spouses The Sixth and Ninth Commandments Two Purposes of Sex in Marriage The sharing of LOVE between the spouses Transmission of LIFE Purposes of Sex

The Sixth and Ninth Commandments Two Purposes of Sex in Marriage Moral means of birth regulation must be in harmony with the two ends of marriage: openness to life and sharing of love. Periodic abstinence and Natural Family Planning methods are effective, natural ways of regulating birth. It is wrong to use immoral means to conceive a child. Any procedure that separates sexual love making from the act of procreation is disordered.

The Sixth and Ninth Commandments Offenses Against Marriage: Adultery – sexual relations with someone other than one’s spouse or an unmarried person with a married person Divorce – dissolution of the marriage contract Polygamy – having more than one spouse Incest – sexual intimacy between relatives or in-laws within a degree that prohibits marriage Free unions – extended relationships where couples refuse to have their commitment formalized or sanctioned by law. e.g. Cohabitation

Allowing our sexual thoughts and desires to control us. Chastity, Purity, and Modesty The virtue that helps us control our sexual desires and use them according to our situation in life. Chastity The virtue of temperance, related to the virtue of purity, applies to how a person speaks, dresses, and conducts himself or herself. Protects the intimate center of a person by refusing to unveil what should remain hidden. Modesty Allowing our sexual thoughts and desires to control us. Lust

Offenses Against The Sixth and Ninth Commandments Masturbation – the deliberate stimulation of the genitals to obtain solitary sexual pleasure Fornication – sexual intercourse engaged in by an unmarried male and female Pornography – media that’s motivation is to depict sex acts in a way that causes sexual arousal

Offenses Against The Sixth and Ninth Commandments Prostitution – engaging in sexual intercourse or other sexual activity for money or some other advantage Rape – forcing another to have sex Homosexual activity – sexual activity between members of the same sex. Lacks unity between a husband and wife and openness to the transmission of human life

Offenses Against The Sixth and Ninth Commandments Homosexual Activity Those with homosexual orientation are not morally guilty for who they are. Prejudice against someone who has a homosexual orientation is wrong. We must accept persons of homosexual orientation as our brothers and sisters.

Seventh Commandment You shall not steal. This commandment outlaws theft, that is, taking someone else’s property against his or her will. Seventh Commandment calls for respect for the property rights of others.

Seventh Commandment You shall not steal. This commandment also requires us to respect the beautiful creation God gave us for the use of all humans – past, present, and future. Seventh commandment outlaws anything that leads to the enslavement of people.

Tenth Commandment You shall not covet your neighbor’s goods. This commandment deals with the inner desires, the “lust of the eyes” which is at the root of theft, robbery, fraud, etc.

Tenth Commandment The Tenth Commandment outlaws: You shall not covet your neighbor’s goods. The Tenth Commandment outlaws: Greed - desire to accumulate unlimited goods Avarice - the passionate desire for riches and the power that comes with them Envy - sadness over another person’s possessions and the desire to get them for oneself.

Eighth Commandment You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor. Keep any promises you make, and be faithful to the truth. This commandment rejects the vices of: Duplicity – being deceptive or misleading Dissimulation – hiding something by pretense Hypocrisy – the false claim or pretense of having admirable principles, beliefs, or feelings

Violations Against the Eighth Commandment

Violations Against the Eighth Commandment Seriousness of a lie: The nature of the truth that is distorted The circumstances The intentions of the one who lies The harm suffered by the victims of the lie

An Honest Society Individuals must listen to the truth, speak the truth, and live the truth. Citizens have the right to information based on the truth, freedom, and the virtues of justice and solidarity.

An Honest Society The media have a serious duty to communicate information honestly. Government officials have a serious obligation to defend and safeguard the just and free flow of information, to enact laws that protect citizens’ rights to a good name and privacy, and that public morality is not assaulted by pornography, propaganda, and other serious misuses of the media. A society can do much to promote truth by encouraging people to express themselves in fine art.