different versions of ten commandments

http://www.examiner.com/x-14414-Columbus-Interfaith-Spirituality-Examiner~y2010m5d21-Spirituality-and-what-is-the-Jewish-holiday-Shavuot-about-101

continued from my examiner column . . .

http://www.the-ten-commandments.org/the-ten-commandments.html reports ‘For the Jews, the Ten Commandments are a special set of spiritual laws that the LORD Himself wrote on two stone tablets (luchot) that Moses brought down from Mount Sinai. In the Scriptures these laws are called the “aseret hadevarim,” the “ten words” or “ten utterances”. In rabbinical writings, they are usually referred to as “Aseret haDiberot,” and in Christian theological writings they are called the Decalogue which is derived from the Greek name “dekalogos” (ten statements) found in the Septuagint (Exodus 34:28, Deuteronomy 10:4), which is the Greek translation of the Hebrew name.
To the Jews the Torah has a total of 613 commandments which includes the ten from the Decalogue. Traditional Rabbinical Jewish belief is that these commandments apply solely to the Jewish people.’

Christians recall that of all commandments the single most important according to Jesus is to love God first and love one’s neighbor as oneself. Everything else hinges upon that. Jesus came to free people from slavish adherence to 613 laws that he felt distanced one from the direct experience of God. The ‘reign of God’ [a more timely translation than 'kingdom of God'] must be lived and experienced as a reign of justice and love.

Religious Tolerance.org presents all points of view regarding the 10 commandments, along with two jokes, 'Only 68 of 200 Anglican priests polled could name all Ten Commandments, but half said they believed in space aliens.' 1 and, 'Concerning the Ten Commandments in courthouses and legislatures: You cannot post 'Thou Shalt Not Steal,' 'Thou Shalt Not Commit Adultery,' and 'Thou Shall Not Lie' in a building full of lawyers, judges and politicians...It creates a hostile work environment.' 2 [To that I'd add . . . bankers and corporate executives]

One may compare the verses in the Qur’an with the Torah and Hebrew scripture versions. http://www.religioustolerance.org/chr10cisl.htm The Islamic account is that the angel Gabriel dictated the verses to the Prophet Muhammad rather than that Moses received them. There is a lovely deeply spiritual quality in these: ‘6:103: No visions can encompass Him, but He encompasses all visions. 2:224: Do not use God's name in your oaths as an excuse to prevent you from dealing justly. 73:8: Remember the name of your Lord and devote yourself to Him exclusively. 76:25 Glorify the name of your Lord morning and evening. . . . and, 4:32: Do not covet the bounties that God has bestowed more abundantly on some of you than on others.’

Here are some rather thought provoking alternatives and updated versions of the 10 commandments for today. These are from differing points of view and would make a great basis for a group discussion. http://www.religioustolerance.org/chr_10cm.htm There are the humanist version, the version for the third millennium and positive versions: ‘thou shall’s’. The Native American version reads like this: This has been published in many places on the Internet. The author is unknown:
'Treat the Earth and all that dwell thereon with respect.
Remain close to the Great Spirit.
Consider the impact on the next six generations when making decisions.
Work together to benefit all humanity.
Freely give help and kindness wherever needed.
Do what you believe to be right.
Look after the well-being of your mind and body.
Contribute a share of your efforts to the greater good.
Be truthful and honest at all times.
Take full responsibility for your actions.'

Clearly not derived from the orignal in a side by side comparison. It sounds rather 'hippie'.

Here is the Humanist Version as reported by the religious tolerance website:
‘We, the members of the human community speak these words, saying.
We shall not limit freedom of thought.
We shall not cause unnecessary harm to any living thing or the environment.
We shall be respectful of the rights of others.
We shall be honest.
We shall be responsible for our actions.
We shall be fair in all matters to all persons.
We shall be considerate of the happiness and well being of others.
We shall be reasonable in our actions.
We shall nurture these values by word & deed in our children, family, friends and acquaintances.
We shall not limit inquiring or testing by their consequences, on any matter, including these Commandments.’

Conservatives may take issue with these. Although many favor limiting 'big government' some might also favor 'big clergy'.

Clearly neither of these versions compares with the originals. Of course, some historians content the original original came from the Egyptians as there are remarkable similarities with some passages in the Egyptian Book of the Dead as an individual's life is weighed worthy or not of afterlife. Obviously, the context is radically different 6,000 or so years later. People get into fist fights defining what life is and when it began. Can you write 10 commandments (even suggestions) that express your point of view, guidelines for living for our times, yet is reasonably ‘faithful’ to the original given genetic engineering, in-vitro fertilization, euthanasia, abortion, 50% divorce rate, post industrial society, mass media and so forth?