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Reading: Exodus 20:12 Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving you! Reflection: The fifth commandment is unique in that it requires both parents, father, and mother, to be equally honored. Interestingly, the father and mother are singled out as objects of special recognition and honor. This goes against not only the patriarchal culture of that time, but also a modern culture that puts strong, successful, victorious, powerful, heroic, and mostly male leaders on a pedestal, not mom and dad. Often, we […]

Reading: Exodus 20,8-11 Remember to keep holy the Sabbath day. Six days you may work and do all your tasks, but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God. On that day, no work may be done by you, your son or daughter, your male or female slave, your livestock, or the resident alien within your gates. For in six days, the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea and all that is in them; but on the seventh day, he rested. That is why the Lord has blessed the […]

Reading: You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name. Exodus 20,7 Reflection: Have you ever driven through Herzegovina and passed a billboard with a picture of Mary holding Jesus and the caption “Stop cursing my son!”? When thinking about the third commandment, it’s easy to fall into the trap of the obvious. Of course, the commandment tells us not to curse God, swear by his name, use it in profanity, or in any other inappropriate way in speech. However, the […]