Not 10 Suggestions

Jesus said to his disciples: "As the Father loves me, so I also love you. Remain in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father's commandments and remain in his love. "I have told you this so that my joy might be in you and your joy might be complete." (John 15:9-11)

Very short Gospel reading, but the message is clear: we are loved.  There are provisions, however.  We must keep the commandments.  As a reminder: (1) I am the Lord your God: you shall not have strange Gods before me; (2) You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain: (3) Remember to keep holy the Lord’s Day; (4) Honor your father and your mother; (5) You shall not kill; (6) You shall not commit adultery; (7) You shall not steal; (8) You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor; (9) You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife; and (10)  You shall not covet your neighbors’ goods.

I suspect all of us (with very few exceptions) don’t merit Jesus’ love.  We cannot keep his commandments.  I wager very few of us give any thought to the commandments, never mind keeping them.  Numbers 8 and 10 are especially challenging during these perilous times of religious and political divisions.  Consequently, our joy is not complete. 

The internet has made number 9 tough to follow with so many sites for pornography to which many men and women are addicted.  We slip into trouble with #6 as a consequence.  

Number 1 should be first and foremost but many of us worship other “Gods” such as money, power, possessions, and privilege.  These “Gods” rule our lives.

“You shall not kill” is given lip service by so many Catholics who promote the ownership and unregulated use of guns such as AR-15 and AK-47 semi-automatic weapons.  Congress continues to violate this commandment by refusing to pass any meaningful gun control measures such as banning assault weapons used in school shootings and the killing of innocents.  

The 10 commandments are just so much window dressing for too many people. They are not 10 suggestions. Therefore, they (we) do not remain in Jesus’ love.  Now that’s a real sin and tragedy.  Fortunately, it’s never too late to mend our ways.  Start sewing.  There is much to repair.

Deacon David Pierce