The Ten Commandments
The Ten Commandments, or Decalogue (which literally means “ten
words”) can be found in two places in Sacred Scripture – Exodus
20:2-17 and Deuteronomy 5:6-21.
Are there different Commandments for different Churches? No, though
Catholic Church number 2066 says, “The division and numbering of the
Commandments have varied in the course of history. The present catechism
follows the division of the Commandments established by St.
Augustine, which has become traditional in the Catholic Church. It is
also that of the Lutheran confessions. The Greek Fathers worked out a
slightly different division, which is found in the Orthodox Churches and
Reformed communities.”
God, and the other seven love of neighbor.”
There are those who say that the Ten Commandments are merely suggestions;
they are optional. They are jokingly referred to these days as
the Ten Suggestions. There are even Christians who say we no longer
need to observe the Ten Commandments, citing the writings of St. Paul
(Romans, Galatians). This is a great mistake. In talking about “the law,”
St. Paul does not mean the Ten Commandments, but rather the Jewish
laws that dealt with ritual cleansing, eating and the like.
The Catechism number 2072 says, “…the Ten Commandments reveal, in
their primordial content, grave obligations. They are fundamentally immutable,
and they oblige always and everywhere. No one can dispense
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from them.”
The Ten Commandments are not always easy to live by, especially when
The Catechism number 2082 lays it out: “What God commands he
makes possible by his grace.”
For further study:
*Note: The entire section on the Ten Commandments
can be found in CCC 2084-2557