Catholic Transcript Online

Part Three of the Catechism is entitled "Life in Christ," and has two sections titled "Man’s Vocation: Life in the Spirit" and "The Ten Commandments." By employing the familiar story of the young man, the Church intends to present the Ten Commandments as a means to living a uniquely Christian vocation in response to the redemptive Incarnation of Jesus Christ.

Put simply, Jesus offers the Ten Commandments as the singular way to follow him. Jesus looks into the eyes of the young man with the declaration: "If you would enter life, keep the commandments." It is very important to appreciate the Catechism’s affirmation that Jesus not only points to The Commandments, "but he also showed the power of the Spirit at work in their letter" (CCC, 2054).

With this insight, the Commandments are seen as not only essential to the Christian, but also realized through the work of the Holy Spirit. The origins of the Commandments in Sacred Scripture and Tradition testify to the importance of the Commandments in God’s plan for salvation.

The expression or term, "Ten Commandments," also known as the "Decalogue," is a translation of Hebrews’ "Ten Words" found in Exodus 34:28; and Deuteronomy 4:13; 10:4. Some confusion can be found in that Exodus 34:28 actually offers Twelve Commandments and not Ten. Nevertheless, the revised Catechism of the Catholic Church states clearly: "The Decalogue must first be understood in the context of the Exodus, God’s great liberating event... life freed from the slavery of sin" (CCC, 2057).

In Deuteronomy, the expression applies to the commandments found in Deuteronomy 5:7-21 that mention the two stone tablets given to Moses. Other texts offer incomplete summaries of the Ten Commandments (i.e., Lev 19:3-4, 11-13; Ps 15:3-5; Hos 4:2). All the scriptural references are understood as a codification of duties owed to Yahweh and are part of ancient tribal wisdom.

In order to grasp the real significance of the "Ten Words," it is essential to note that it was God who authored the commands. The Scripture text states that God gave "these words, and nothing more" to Moses and the people of Israel (Deut 5:22). Thus, we are to take the Ten Commandments as a clear and intentional address by God to his people. They must be understood as God’s desire to share himself with mankind and offer man the fullness of life. The Ten Commandments "belong to God’s revelation of himself and his glory. The gift of the Commandments is the gift of God himself and his holy will. In making his will known, God reveals himself to his people" (CCC, 2059).

The "Ten Words" are a path for life provided by God: "If you love the Lord your God, by walking in his ways, and by keeping his commandments and his statutes and his ordinances, then you shall live and multiply" (Deut 30:16).

This point is further illumined by observing the legal form of the Commandments. Often understood as hard and negative in tone, their formal manner and direct second-person address is unique to Israel in the ancient world. They can be understood as a series of apodictic laws, laws that formally impose an obligation upon the individual person. The declarative form of the "Ten Words" provides the individual with clear directions: "Do this, avoid that." Failure to observe this law ends with not only the individual’s falling into sin, but harming the entire tribe, or community.

From this historical perspective, the Ten Commandments must be understood as part of a loving God’s care for his beloved people. The Commandments aren’t impersonal edicts, like our civil laws that direct traffic, set a speed limit and require the paying of taxes; here, the law offers a personal way of living with God and at peace with his plans for the world. Speaking directly to the believer, the Lord guides our path in holiness.

Mindful of the sacred tradition of the Commandments, we can appreciate the final moments of the rich young man’s encounter with Jesus. The Lord called the young man to go beyond the letter of the Commandments and invited him to a vocation led by the Spirit in the evangelical counsels of poverty and chastity (CCC, 2053). So, too, for us. With the Ten Commandments, we aren’t obligated by some impersonal rule book. To the contrary, we are called personally by the Lord to share our lives with him in a path marked by holiness and leading to life eternal.