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The Ten Commandments

You probably remember learning the Ten Commandments when you were a child. Of course you recall the basics: you shouldn’t kill or commit adultery and you shouldn’t use God’s name as a swear word or commit idolatry.

But perhaps you’ve forgotten most of the commandments, or you aren’t really sure how they apply to your life. It seems unlikely that you have or would ever think of committing murder (a sin against the fifth commandment), but did you know there are other ways you can break the fifth commandment without killing anyone?

The Ten Commandments

1. I, the Lord, am your God. You shall not have other gods besides me.

Denying the existence of God, rejecting the Catholic Faith, loving something or someone more than God (money, power, sex, etc.), engaging in superstition or divinization, involving oneself in the occult, sacrilege, materialism, atheism

2. You shall not take the name of the Lord God in vain
3. Remember to keep holy the Lord’s Day
4. Honor your father and your mother
5. You shall not kill
6. You shall not commit adultery 
7. You shall not steal
8. You shall not bear false witness
9. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife
10. You shall not covet your neighbor’s goods

Take time to reflect on the Ten Commandments and how they relate to everyday sins in your life. You can and should use these commandments as a guide to examine your conscience and make a good Confession! 

(*This list is not exhaustive, and there is a difference in gravity between mortal and venial sins against the commandments.)