Rabbi Howard Morrison

Shavuot – Sunday June 1, 2025  
10 Commandments: Judaism and Christianity, Similarities and Differences

It’s such an honor to join you tonight on this very important moment as together we recognize the significance of the giving of the 10 Commandments that have shaped the thinking and behaving of the Jewish and Christian communities, and much of the western world.

Rabbi Howard graciously took time on Tuesday evening to record a video with me to share with our congregation about the importance of Shavuot.  I shared with him that if our congregation was ever to hire a Rabbi – he would be the first one hired!  Our congregation loves Rabbi Howard Morrison, and I consider him to be my friend!

Shavuot (Feast of Weeks) is paralleled in the Christian community with what we refer to as Pentecost.  50 days after the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, the Church celebrated the pouring out of the Holy Spirit recorded in Acts 2, which Christians believe is a fulfillment of Joel 2:28-29; “And afterward, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men will see visions. Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days.”

The 10 commandments are highly esteemed in the Christian community.  In Exodus 20:2, the beautiful declaration sets the stage for the 10 commandments – “I am the Lord your G-d, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.” Hashem reminds the Hebrew people that the commandments are given not to enslave, but to keep the Hebrew people free!  A boundaryless world is a dangerous place!

The Christian community believes that the 10 commandments are for all God-fearing people and for anyone who wants to align themselves to the ways of G-d.

The second commandment for Christians, “You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below” (Exodus 20:4) is understood by Christians to mean that no image will accurately capture or do justice in its representation to the beauty, power, and uniqueness of the One True G-d.  Therefore, any effort to capture G-d in “image form” will fall short and distort the understanding of Hashem.  Hashem is Spirit, he transcends physicality and anything material will fall short of depicting the One True G-d.  Idols lead to the worship of false gods, but icons are permitted in some Christian places of worship and homes.  An icon is something we ‘see through’ – they serve as a window to help us see something bigger.  In many Roman Catholic churches, you will see a crucifix, which is an icon, not an idol. 

The commandment, “You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your G-d” has a couple of widely held application points in the Christian community.  The first is to recognize that the ‘name’ represents someone’s ‘character or person.’  Christians have generally understood that we are to live in a way that would reflect the character of G-d and as the Apostle Paul declared; become the ‘fragrance of Christ’ in the world.  Dr. Eugene Peterson wrote, “We should all be angled mirrors that reflect the glory of G-d to one another.”  This commandment also instructs us to not use G-d’s name in a manner that would be disrespectful or in some form of expletive.  I personally love that within the Jewish community there is high regard for Hashem and that G-d's name is written in a manner that omits the ‘o’ and replaces it with a ‘hyphen’ to consciously remind the writer or reader of the holy and sacred nature of Hashem.

The commandment to “Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord your G-d” (Exodus 20:8-10), is observed by most Christians on Saturday evening to Sunday evening, in keeping with the celebration of the resurrection of Jesus.  A Christian denomination known as the Seventh Day Adventists observe Sabbath in a manner that would reflect the Jewish observance (and I also believe that the 7^th Day Adventists are getting it right!).

Within the Christian community there are diverse interpretations pertaining to the “Do not murder/kill” commandment.  There is a small minority of Christians within the Anabaptists, Mennonites and Brethren denominations that have adopted a passivist posture, while many Christians including Evangelicals understand ‘killing’ happens (Just War Theory) and that there is a clear distinction between murder, and war related killing.  As a point of information and opinion, I do believe that what Israel is carrying out in Gaza is a ‘Just War’ and not a breaking of a commandment.

Jesus most influential and widely regarded teaching known as the Sermon on the Mount, recorded in Matthew 5-7 includes all the 10 commandments.  Here are two examples of how Jesus teaches on two of the commandments – Adultery and Murder.

“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’  But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart.” (Matthew 5:27-28).  Jesus appears to have deepened the commandment or perhaps included the words of Job to widen the application of the commandment to take it from action to cultivated lust - “I made a covenant with my eyes not to look lustfully at a young woman” (Job 31:1). 

Regarding the commandment “Do not murder” Jesus taught, “You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘You shall not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.’ But I tell you that anyone who is angry with a brother or sister will be subject to judgment” (Matthew 5:21-22).  Mismanaged anger can lead to destructive thoughts, motivations and actions. 

At Sinai, Hashem was forming his people and providing a ‘constitution’ for them that would guard them and keep them free – if they would obey, they would be blessed, and if they would disobey – there would be consequences.  We understand that the ‘ways’ of Hashem work!  They provide a societal lift when we collectively say ‘yes’ to the commandments.  As Rabbi Jonathan Sacks has written in his book “A Letter in the Scroll: Understanding our Jewish Identity and Exploring the Legacy of the World’s Oldest Religion” – “One of the gifts of Jewish culture to Christianity is that it has taught Christians to think like Jews, and any modern man who has not learned to think as though he were a Jew can hardly be said to have learned to think at all.”

There are many things that I continue to learn from my Jewish friends – one is your determination to tell the story of your faith to your children and grandchildren.  Rabbi Moses Ashekh wrote, “We can only pass onto our children what we ourselves love.” 

May we together, Jewish and Christian communities pass onto our children and grandchildren what we love – We love the One True G-d, His commandments and his ways, and we love each other deeply!  Amen