Dearest Family and Friends of St. Margaret’s,
Greetings in Christ! I hope and pray your Lenten Season is a time of deepening renewal for you and your family in your walk with Our Lord and with one another.
This week’s first reading, from the Hebrew scripture, is from Exodus and offers us the text of the giving of the Ten Commandments.
We don’t often hear the Decalogue in our Sunday readings, though it is frequently used liturgically during Lent.
Now – do I hear yawning as you read this letter? The Ten Commandments – so what’s new?
Are these just a set of dos and don’ts written millennia ago that do not apply to our daily living in 2021? Are they just a set of rules? OR, are they a way of life?
Take a fresh look at the commandments this week as part of your Lenten self-reflection. Let it serve as a plumbline for your day.
How does each commandment call us to reflect on our life and values?
What does it mean to love God and our neighbor in a world where violence, greed, idolatry, and fear threaten our lives, our values, our hearts?
I heartily recommend a book by Sister Joan Chittister, OSB entitled, “The 10 Commandments: Laws of the Heart“. Each chapter focuses on what each one of the commandments means for us today. The final two chapters shed light on the two Great Commandments, “Love God with all your heart, and your neighbor as yourself.
Be well, look out for your neighbor, keep a Holy Lent, be smart, and stay focused on Our Lord.
Jane+
The Decalogue: Contemporary
Book of Common Prayer, page 350
Hear the commandments of God to his people:
I am the Lord your God who brought you out of bondage.
You shall have no other gods but me.
Amen. Lord have mercy.
You shall not make for yourself any idol.
Amen. Lord have mercy.
You shall not invoke with malice the Name of the Lord your God.
Amen. Lord have mercy.
Remember the Sabbath day and keep it holy.
Amen. Lord have mercy.
Honor your father and your mother.
Amen. Lord have mercy.
You shall not commit murder.
Amen. Lord have mercy.
You shall not commit adultery.
Amen. Lord have mercy.
You shall not steal.
Amen. Lord have mercy.
You shall not be a false witness.
Amen. Lord have mercy.
You shall not covet anything that belongs to your neighbor.
Amen. Lord have mercy.
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