Decalogue
The Supreme Courte recently passed two rulings on the constitutionality of the display of the Ten Commandments in public places. One ruling stated that the display of the Ten Commandments monolith on Capitol grounds here in Austin is OK but that the framed 10 Cs displayed in Kentucky is not OK. As expected, the rulings were celebrated and bemoaned by both sides of the separation-of-church-and-state debate. And more than a few people expressed dismay about the ambivalence expressed by the Supremes.
Even though I'm a strong proponent of the Establishment clause, I actually agree with the court on both issues. The 10 Cs in Kentucky where obviously meant to be a religious display. Obviously, the 10 Cs in Austin were intended that way too, but I think they are a historic reflection of the time in which they were errected -- during the '50s when fear of godless commies was ruling the land.
But the whole thing got me looking into the 10 Cs and the history behind them. I found some fascinating stuff at the Beliefnet site -- my favorite online site that deals with religion and spirituality with a minimum of hype. The have an article called The Ten Myths About the Ten Commandments that's ain interesting read.
10 Commandments as a Marketing Gimmick?
The 10C Monoliths that were being errected in the 50's by the Fraternal Order of Eagles were partly funded and supported by Cecil B. DeMille to promote his 1956 "The Ten Commandments" movie. Actors from the movies were at several of the unveilings.
How many commandments are there?
Well, 10 you say, but there are several different numberings of the commandments. Depending how you slice them up, you could come up with a couple of dozen individual commandments as written down by several Old Testament authors. And the form and contents of the Commandments appear to be based on Hittite treaties (I wouldn't used the word "plagiarised").
What do they say, anyway?
Again, as with the numbering, there are arguments as to the exact meaning of the commandments. Specifically, does the 6th commandment say not to kill or murder? While the King James wording says "though shalt not kill", many modern versions use "murder" (in Czech, I think I've only seen "kill", but it;s been a while ;-)
What did Jesus have to say about them?
When asked, Christ pared them down to six:
- don't murder
- don't commit adultery
- don't steal
- don't lie
- honor your parents
- love your neighbor as yourself
Interestingly, none of these six contain the religious imperatives that make the 10 Cs in public places so problematic.
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That is really interesting. I'm definitely in for "Hang Six!".
I'm even going to check my bible for the referred passages.