Saints and Sinners: Ten Commandments stay in the news
One criticism of television news is that it condenses and oversimplifies everything. You never get the full story.
NBC newsman Tim Russert once related the story of how David Brinkley told him that if Moses came down from the mountaintop today, television news would report it the following way: “Moses came down from the mountaintop today with the Ten Commandments … here’s Sam Donaldson with the three most important.”
If you were writing the TV news that night, which two or three commandments would you pick out of the 10 as the most important or most newsworthy? No killing and no stealing? No swearing and no adultery?
This would be a good icebreaker at parties. It would help, of course, if those you ask know the Ten Commandments. The majority of Americans tend to be able to name only five.
If I were asked to name the commandment that is broken the most often, I would say it’s the second commandment: “Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain.”
Most people who “take God’s name in vain” would say they mean nothing by it. Inspirational men of the cloth, like Cardinal John Newman, said that’s the point. Nothing is worse, Newman believed, than to say God and to “mean nothing” by it.
Newman advised saving God’s name for the “great occasions.” We say “God bless you” when somebody sneezes. That is hardly a great occasion. We say “My God” in the most casual conversation.
However, there are times, said Martin Luther, when we ought to use God’s name: “Call upon it in every trouble, pray, praise and give thanks.”
It would make a good exercise if we would count the number of times we use the name of God in trivial, inappropriate ways in one day, then try to cut down on that number each succeeding day until we are at zero.
The commandment that seems to have fallen out of favor with current generations is the fourth: “Thou shalt honor thy father and thy mother, that it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long upon the earth.”
This is the only commandment that has, as St. Paul noted, a promise attached to it — a promise that is psychologically sound. Good feelings toward parents can result in better physical health and longer life.
Young people who have learned obedience to parents are also more likely to be happy in adult life. They adapt better to the demands the grown-up world makes on them and their frustrations are fewer.
The Fourth Commandment carries an obligation not only for children but for parents. Children will find it easier to honor parents who exhibit honorable qualities. Here are three other exercises to try:
— Ask yourself, “What have I done 1. in my lifetime, and 2. lately, which would give my children reason to be proud of me?”
— Epitaphs on tombstones are not common any more, but if they were, what epitaph or tribute do you think your children would write for you?
— Write epitaphs for your own parents — living or dead. This will get you to concentrate on the qualities about them which you can take pride in.
But we still haven’t answered the big question: Which are the two or three most important commandments — the ones we would use to lead the evening news? Write to me with what you think and why. Send your letters to Most Important Commandments, Box 06580, Columbus, Ohio 43206.
(George Plagenz is a syndicated columnist.)