Response To The New Commandments

Response to “The New Commandments” The widely known religious pillar, “The Ten Commandments”, is revered as a human guideline for most branches of Christianity, but is often dismissed as being outdated. It is understandable that the author of “The New Commandments”, Christopher Hitchens, feels strongly about the tablets; perhaps it is primarily for its title that implies of forced obedience that irks this author. However, one must not disregard the historical context of these biblical rules, such as prior to the “The Ten Commandments”, the Israelites were on a journey to the Promise Land and were previously mistreated slaves to the Egyptians. The author’s use of Bible verses were utilized to provide a perspective, one feels that the author should’ve also displayed counter verses to inform another side of the story. In agreement with the author, “The Ten Commandments”, are in need of additional rules to accommodate a developing society. …show more content…
This form of depiction of Christians as blind followers without a moral compass is obviously bias, because this way of life isn’t about being more righteous than the other; it’s centered on loving a generous and benevolent Creator. In addition, the author is using modern lenses to scrutinize “The Ten Commandments”, which is faulty, because from a Biblical point of view, Exodus is also about the liberation of the Israelites and these rules were essential to organize them as they travel to the Promise Land, therefore the terminology is relevant to their time. It is reasonable for “The Ten Commandments” to be taken in the literal sense during the time of the Israelites, given that the instructions are applicable to the culture of that era. Thus, Hitchens should’ve applied the commandments in a metaphorical way if he intended for it to make sense in terms of modern