THE TEN COMMANDMENTS

Homily for Friday, July 26^th, 2013.

          Many Catholics understand the Ten Commandments as a moral test in which we must first get a passing grade, before God will bless us in this world, and admit us to heaven in the next. This overlooks the words God speaks before giving us the Commandments: “I, the Lord, am your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt, that place of slavery.” Between that sentence and the First Commandment, “You shall not have other gods before me,” there is an unwritten “Therefore.” Because of all I have done for you, and given you, the Lord is saying, you shall keep these Commandments.

          The Commandments, in other words, are a description of how we respond to all God gives us. Can you think of something that is all your own, and not a gift from God? Many people might cite their achievements, the money they have earned, the awards they may have received. Would any of that be possible without the talents and abilities God has given us?

          Oh, there is one thing we have which is all our own: our sins. Everything else comes ultimately from God – not as a reward for services rendered, but as a free gift, given to us simply because God loves us. The Commandments, then, are not a moral test. They are a description of how we respond in gratitude for all God’s gifts.

          Another common mistake is thinking of God’s Commandments as fences, to hem us in. That’s wrong! The Commandments are actually ten signposts pointing the way to a happy and fulfilled life. Imagine what life would be like in our families, in the communities in which we live – yes, in our country – if everyone really kept the Commandments. There would be no gun violence, no lying, no robberies, no envying of others, no disrespect of the old and vulnerable.

          When we fail to keep God’s Commandments, as we all do at times, there is a simple remedy. Pope Francis told us about it when he said: “God never grows tired for forgiving us. We grow tired of asking for forgiveness.”