On the 10 Commandments

[qos]

The ever-illuminating sakia139 posted this -- and I think it deserves to be distributed widely:

The Ten Commandments
Ben Daniel

Aired March 20, 2005, on KQED

On a recent Spring day I went hiking in the hills above Milpitas with
several friends. There were five of us. Four Presbyterian ministers
and one very secular lawyer. As we sat on the green grass looking out
through the clear air over the sparkling bay the lawyer asked us what
we thought about the placing of monuments to the Ten Commandments in
public spaces. We had a good discussion. But my contribution to the
discussion left me unsatisfied. Here's what I wish I had said.

So long as it's equitable, inclusive, and shows no favoritism, I am
all for a public celebration of religion. However, if someone wants to
honor my religious tradition, I'd rather they spent the money
otherwise earmarked for a graven image of the Ten Commandments on a
homeless shelter or a hunger program or a library or a school. Such
charity would bring greater honor to my faith tradition than would big
stone tablets reminding me, among other things, not to covet my
neighbor's donkey.

If a monument is needed, I'd rather it quoted the words of Jesus who
said "Blessed are the peace makers. For they shall be called the
children of God." Or the words of the prophet Micah, who instructed us
to do justice, love kindness, and walk humbly with God.

But better than such monuments or one-time gifts to worthy causes
would be a public policy that gave ongoing support for the poor and
for the education of our children; governments at the local, state,
and federal levels that honored my faith tradition through
peace-making and the practice of justice, kindness, and humility.

And in honor of Jesus, who asked his followers to do their good deeds
in secret, I'd like for government to practice the virtues of my faith
without reference to my faith. For the work of sheltering the
homeless, of feeding the poor, of educating our children, the work of
peace-making, justice, kindness, and humility -- these are not just
celebrations of my faith, but they also honor every religious
tradition I know.

If everyone would forget about building monuments to the Ten
Commandments, and would focus instead on the practice of virtues
common to every religion, we would have a country that would be
actually moral, instead of apparently religious. And, fundamentally,
isn't that really what we all want?

With a perspective, this is Ben Daniel.