The Ten Commandments: How Our Most Ancient Moral Text Can Renew Modern Life

The Ten Commandments: How Our Most Ancient Moral Text Can Renew Modern Life
ISBN-10
1416562516
ISBN-13
9781416562511
Series
The Ten Commandments
Category
Religion
Pages
304
Language
English
Published
2010-09-07
Publisher
Simon and Schuster
Author
David Hazony

Description

ACROSS THE WESTERN WORLD, the Ten Commandments have become a source of both inspiration and controversy, whether in Supreme Court rulings, in film and literature, or as a religious icon gracing houses of worship of every Christian and Jewish denomination. But what do the commandments really stand for? According to polls, less than half of all Americans can even name more than four of them. Fewer still can name all ten, or have a clear idea of the ideals they were meant to promote. For most of us, agnostics and faithful alike, they have been relegated to the level of a symbol, and the teachings they contain are all but forgotten. In Western life today, the Ten Commandments are everywhere— except where we need them most. In The Ten Commandments, David Hazony offers a powerful new look at our most venerable moral text. Combining a fresh reading of the Old Testament’s most riveting stories and ancient rabbinic legends with a fearless exploration of what ails society today, Hazony shows that the Ten Commandments are not just a set of obscure laws but encapsulate a deeply valuable approach to life—one that is as relevant now as it was when they first appeared more than two millennia ago. The Ten Commandments begins with a daring claim: Although they have become a universally recognizable symbol of biblically based religion, they are not, strictly speaking, a religious text. Rather than making a statement about faith or mystical realms inaccessible to reason, they contain a coherent prescription for how to make a better world. At their core stands what Hazony calls the "spirit of redemption," which he describes as one of the two basic spiritual components of Western civilization. While the Greeks gave us the "spirit of reason," teaching that we should be free to explore and express our views, the spirit of redemption teaches that every individual can, and should, act to improve the world. This spirit reached us from ancient Israel, in the form of the Hebrew Bible, and has stood at the heart of the most important social movements in our history. Going through the commandments one by one, Hazony shows how each represents a poignant declaration about honesty, the self, life, love, freedom, community, and inner peace. Each commandment, we discover, adds another piece to the puzzle of how the redemptive spirit may enter our lives and help us become more caring, world-changing individuals. Part memoir, part scholarship, part manifesto for a vital approach to life, The Ten Commandments tackles some of the most painful human questions that stand at the heart of who we are as modern, thinking people—and offers answers that are sure to start a new discussion about the meaning of one of our most enduring, yet least understood, traditions.

Get the book

Amazon.com
Amazon.com
Search the book
eBay.com
eBay.com
Search the book

Other editions

Similar books

  • The Ten Commandments
    The Ten Commandments
    By Patrick D. Miller

    The Lord alone -- Hallowing the name of God -- Keeping the Sabbath -- Respect for parents -- Protecting life -- Marriage, sex, and the neighbor -- Property and possessions -- Telling the truth -- Desire and its repercussions -- The ethics ...

  • The Ten Commandments: Manual for the Christian Life
    The Ten Commandments: Manual for the Christian Life
    By Jochem Douma

    This insightful exposition of the Ten Commandments demonstrates the wisdom of God's Word for the pressing issues of our day.

  • Written in Stone: Making Cecil B. DeMille's Epic, the Ten Commandments
    Written in Stone: Making Cecil B. DeMille's Epic, the Ten Commandments
    By Katherine Orrison

    From concept stage through production in Egypt to release of the film: Katherine Orrison carefully recreates the behind-the-scenes story of Cecil B. DeMille's beloved epic.

  • What Are the Ten Commandments?
    What Are the Ten Commandments?
    By Who HQ, Yona Zeldis McDonough

    This book looks back at the time when the commandments were written, how the belief in one all-powerful God set the Israelites apart from other ancient peoples, and the roles the ten commandments have played in Judaism, Christianity, and ...

  • The Ten Commandments: Laws of the Heart
    The Ten Commandments: Laws of the Heart
    By Joan Chittister

    Are the Ten Commandments just a set of rules or are they a way of life? In this book about laws of the heart, each chapter focuses on what one of the commandments means for Christians today.

  • The Ten Commandments from the Back Side
    The Ten Commandments from the Back Side
    By J. Ellsworth Kalas

    Ten Commandments from the Back Side

  • Keeping the Ten Commandments
    Keeping the Ten Commandments
    By J. I. Packer

    J. I. Packer explodes common misconceptions about the Ten Commandments and gives readers God's blueprint for relational, spiritual, and societal well-being.

  • The Ten Commandments: Still the Best Path to Follow
    The Ten Commandments: Still the Best Path to Follow
    By Dennis Prager

    That is why He gave us the Ten Commandments.” In this illustrated guide, noted moral teacher and popular talk show host Dennis Prager explains the Ten Commandments in a way that young readers can understand.

  • The Ten Commandments: The Liberating Rules of God
    The Ten Commandments: The Liberating Rules of God
    By Stuart Briscoe

    This book provides a moral compass for society and serves as a barometer of our love for God and respect for others. Learn how life-giving and liberating it can be live by God's rules.

  • The Ten Commandments
    The Ten Commandments
    By Rob Suggs

    God's rules do more than restrict—they give freedom.