Ten Commandments - Part 1

 The Ten commandments, as we all know, are the ten primary commandments given to Moses when he was on Mount Sinai. These Ten Commandments then became the basis of all of the moral law of the Hebrew people, totaling 613 commandments. The first ten commandments are what's called Divine Law, the remaining 603 became the Moral Law of the Hebrew people that included liturgical, sacrificial, and criminal laws. The Ten Commandments however, can be broken into two categories. The two categories are based upon whom the commandment is directed toward. The first three commandments are directed toward God only, the other seven are directed to other people, but are still an offense against God when they are broken.

The Ten Commandments - Part 1

1. I am the Lord your God; you shall not have strange gods before me.
2. You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain.
3. Remember to keep holy the Lord's Day.

"I am the Lord your God; you shall not have strange gods before me."

This is a direct statement by God declaring who He is His authority over us. This establishes in the Hebrew people who exactly their God is, as this was a questions that they had having spent their entire lives, at this point, under the rule of the polytheistic Egyptians. This commandment by Him makes it clear who their God is, and the second half is to make clear that they are not to worship anything else, as there is no other God other than Him. This is an explicit commandment against idolatry, meaning an creature, a statue, image, or Man, the supreme worship and adoration, or Latria (Latin for worship due to God alone). This is can be clearly demonstrated when Moses returned to the people at the bottom of Mount Sinai and saw that the Hebrew people had fashioned a gold bull, and declared that this bull is the god that had freed them from Egypt, and was deserving of worship.

A common objection towards the Catholic Faith is this commandment regarding idolatry. As Catholic we have statues, art, and iconography depicting Christ, the Blessed Virgin Mary, and other Saints (angelic or human). However, as Catholics we neither adore nor serve these depictions. In fact not all Heavenly or Earthly depictions are wrongs, as God later commanded that an ark be constructed which was covered with Heavenly and Earthly depictions. The ark was not worshipped with the supreme worship and adoration, latria, that is due to God alone. However, the Ark of the Covenant was worshipped with high reverence as on the mercy seat was God, and in the ark were the commandments of God. This is called dulia. The altar in the Temple of God in Jerusalem was also adorned in great detail with Heavenly and Earthly depictions, by the command of God. The Temple was worshipped, again in the dulia sense. 

Catholics revere the Saints due to the way that Christ acted through them. We do not give latria, but dulia to the Saints, and hyper-dulia to the Blessed Virgin Mary. Meaning we give the most respect towards her as she carried and gave birth to God. 

"You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain."

This commandment is regarding the sacredness we must hold the Name of God in. We must not be irreverent with His name. We are also called to not blaspheme against His name, nor anything that is made Sacred in His name. Such as the Church, the Sacraments, Scripture, or the Saints. Nor should we take or make false, unnecessary, or unlawful oaths in His name.

"Remember to keep holy the Lord's Day."

With this commandment, we are to keep holy the sabbath. We keep this day holy by keeping in mine the acts of worship, latria, towards God. As with one of the precepts of the Church we are to go to Mass on Sunday, and any holy day of obligation. Holy days of obligation are days that are made holy by remembrance of a specific act in Christianity; such as Christmas.