Here we look at Catholic explanations, showing that this concept of the 10 Commandments being part of the Old Covenant legal code, and therefore not the legal code in effect today, is indeed believed by Catholics and supported by Catholic teaching.
Tag: 10 Commandments
Nov 01 2013
The Sabbath and the Old Covenant, part 3
In the first part of this series, we saw that the Sabbath commandment is one of the 10 Commandments, that the 10 Commandments are the words of the Old Covenant, and that the Sabbath was the sign of the Old Covenant. In Part 2 we looked at the New Covenant’s legal code, and saw that the 10 Commandments are no longer binding as a legal code under the New Covenant. Now we’ll look at how the 10 Commandments still apply to Christians.
Oct 31 2013
The Sabbath and the Old Covenant, part 2
In the first part of this series, we saw that the Sabbath commandment is one of the 10 Commandments, that the 10 Commandments are the words of the Old Covenant, and that the Sabbath was the sign of the Old Covenant. Now we’ll look at what the New Covenant’s legal code is, and what the 10 Commandments are under the New Covenant.
Oct 30 2013
The Sabbath and the Old Covenant, part 1
If you ask the average Christian, “Should we obey the 10 Commandments?” they will likely say “Yes.” Enter the Adventist, who then asks why the average Christian doesn’t keep the 4th commandment, which states that we should keep the Sabbath. … The Decalogue was the actual set of words making up the Old Covenant. The Old Covenant was replaced with the New. Even Paul acknowledges that the law written on stone has been replaced.
Oct 27 2013
St John Chrysostom on the Sabbath
St John Chrysostom makes a very interest point: 9 of the 10 Commandments were part of natural law, known to man before the 10 Commandments, and therefore not in need of any explanation. The Sabbath commandment was not like this – it needed to be revealed, and that is why it did not remain binding when the Mosaic Law came to an end – it was not part of natural law.
Aug 17 2013
Testimony – Adventist converts to Maronite Catholic
This is a series of e-mails I got from a lady who converted from Anglican to Adventist, spent 20 years as an Adventist, realised how wrong it was, went back to the Anglican church for a while, and then finally converted to the Catholic faith. … “I have only recently discovered your Catholic help webpage on the net and wish to thank you for your courage in sharing your faith, plus the extensive biblical/Early Church Fathers debunking of SDA teachings re Catholic Christianity, salvation, the role of Jesus Christ etc. that you have made available.”
Aug 09 2013
What Catholics Believe – Sunday observance
Catholics (and most other Christians) believe Sunday is a special day to be celebrated, because it is the day Jesus rose from the dead. The Jews kept the Sabbath on Saturday, and this is reflected in the 10 Commandments. However, only the moral code of the Old Testament is applicable to Christians – we don’t need to sacrifice animals, keep Passover, Yom Kippur, or the Sabbath, and we are free from the dietary restrictions as well.
May 21 2013
Adventists and abortion – updated again
One of Teresa and Arthur Beem’s turning points in their conversion from Adventism to Catholicism was the issue of abortion. Adventists neglect the commandment against murder. Tesa has a lovely post on her blog about this.
Jan 14 2007
The Sabbath in the Gospels
Adventists tell us that the Bible commands Sabbath keeping for Christians. All the verses mentioning the Sabbath in the New Testament (apart from the Gospels) are discussed [link]. Not one commands Sabbath observance, and not one gives an example of Christians keeping the Sabbath.
Jul 23 2006
Adventists changing the Bible?
He chopped out the word “commandments” in Exodus 16:28, and replaced it with “Sabbaths” – he may well be quoting from the Clear Word Bible, but I am not sure of that. The Clear Word Bible is an Adventist composition that makes tremendous changes to the actual text in order to support Adventist teachings.
Mar 15 2006
The 4th Commandment and Bacchiocchi
In his latest Endtime Issues newsletter, Samuele Bacchiocchi makes an error that has been corrected many times in the past. One shouldn’t have to point out such facts to a scholar who claims to have researched issues like this, but then one must take his agenda into account.
Dec 30 2005
Displaying the 10 Commandments
The Adventist Review online newsletter (AR In Touch) reports on a decision by an American court that the display of the Ten Commandments is constitutional. It’s not something I’ve followed much – it’s really just a bunch of silly people trying to inflict a revisionist “history” on the reasonable American.
Oct 29 2005
Counting the 10 Commandments
Adventists often complain because Catholics count the ten commandments differently, and claim that we have changed things. Here is an Adventist commentary that explains that how they are counted is not important. So if we count it the (western) Catholic way, it’s fine. If we count it the (eastern) Catholic way, like Adventists, it’s also fine.
Dec 27 2004
To whom was the Sabbath given, as a sign of what?
These verses point out that the Sabbath was a sign between GOD and ISRAEL, that it was given as a sign of the OLD COVENANT, and that this covenant was NOT made with their fathers. Scripture speaks of God giving ISRAEL the Sabbath, not MAN, and NOT anyone before the time of Moses. It was to the people at the time of Moses that God first made known his Sabbath. With these verses, and a total lack of any text in the Bible that indicates anyone prior to Moses knew about the Sabbath, anyone without an agenda to push the Sabbath would come to the obvious conclusion that the Sabbath was given first to Moses.
Dec 31 2003
The Sabbath and the 8th day
The Sabbath command is the only one of the Ten Commandments which can be altered in any way, because only it is a part of the ceremonial law. This is taught by the Roman Catechism issued after the Council of Trent: “The other commandments of the Decalogue are precepts of the natural law, obligatory at all times [and for all people] and unalterable. Hence, after the abrogation of the Law of Moses, all the Commandments contained in the two tables are observed by Christians, not indeed because their observance is commanded by Moses, but because they are in conformity with nature which dictates obedience to them
Jul 19 1998
Is the Sabbath moral or ceremonial law?
Seventh-day Adventists teach that the moral law laid down by God through Moses is still intact today, and must be kept (though they, unlike their founder Ellen White, do admit that salvation does not come through the keeping of these commandments.) They also teach that the ceremonial laws laid down by God through Moses are no longer in effect today – we need no longer observe ritual purification like the ancient Israelites did, nor need we sacrifice lambs at Passover. However, they teach that the Sabbath, because it is part of the Ten Commandments, is part of the moral law, and not part of the ceremonial law. Are they right ? I had a debate on IRC with several Adventists defending their views, and managed to get nothing out of them except the claim that the Sabbath was moral law because it was part of the 10 Commandments. But they were totally unable to explain WHY.
Dec 08 1997
The use of statues, pictures, and other icons in worship
To me this is a fairly simple issue, and the problem lies in Protestant misinterpretation of the second commandment and of what the Bible says. It can be solved using the Bible alone, therefore I will deal with it first. The way I see it, the second commandment is conditional – we may make statues, pictures, etc., but we may not worship them. And since Catholics do not worship the images in their churches and homes, they are not breaking any of God’s commandments by using those images.
- 1
- 2
