When is it acceptable to break one (or more) of the Ten Commandments?

Question

Example: Kill in self defence

beta_fish: I fully agree with you

Answer 1

If you opt for a career in politics, the Ten Commandments become the Ten Suggestions.

Answer 2

Simple answer, it is never acceptable, however the Ten Commandments have been superseded by Jesus's two. Love God and Love your neighbour.

The Ten Commandments are sensible rules to follow, but there are sometimes reasonable reasons to a break the letter of the law, by following the spirit of the law (love your neighbour).

1) I'm the Real God, you should be putting me first. Why should we waste our efforts on false gods.

2) No idols, an idol distracts from God, wealth, success. He gives you His full attention, why shouldn't we return the favour.

3) Don't abuse My name. It shows a lack of respect to God who is far more important and worthy of respect than you.

4) We need a day off, it's not good to work every day of the week, but who would fault a doctor or fireman saving a life.

5) Honour your parents, true some parents aren't great examples, but you owe them your existence, isn't that worth at least the appearance of respect.

6) Don't murder, no one sane wants to be murdered, so why should anyone be allowed to murder. The self-defence and warfare arguments are based on the premise that the only way to stop a would-be killer is to kill them. In self-defence, you shouldn't be trying to kill someone, just incapacitate them.

7) No adultery, it destroys the trust between married people. For the most part marriage is a promise of monogamy, spoken before witnesses, so adultery is breaking a promise and trust at once, hardly moral behaviour.

8) Don't steal, wouldn't the world be horrid if everyone took what they wanted at the expense of everyone else.

9) Don't lie, the exact wording implies slander and perjury, more than the polite lie to spare feelings. The implication is that we should be honest especially in our dealings with other people. But honesty often demands tact as well, don't humiliate someone when a quiet word in private would do.

10) Don't want what your neighbour has, why should you want the same things as your neighbour? For the most part they have earned what they have (or inherited / won). If your focus is on what they have, isn't it away from what you actually want. Envy is a poisonous emotion and often leads to resentment, spite and hatred.

Answer 3

The correct answer would be never, regarding your example of killing in self defence, if you look at the word used as 'kill' in the KJ version of the Bible a more correct interpretation would be 'murder' which is a calculated pre-meditated action, not as would be the case in self defence or accidental killing someone in an accident.

JB

Answer 4

When you don't have any other choice? We are all doing our best. To me, the ideal is that we learn how not to have to be faced with that ultimate choice of taking ours or another's life. I think the greatest contest is to be able to be competitive and not win, to be a participator and be respected as being part of a participation. Eventually mankind will merge the mindset and we will no longer worry about killing to resolve conflict, reasoning will take over. And instant understanding eventually where one person knows what is on another person's mind. Differences will only last nano seconds and eventually will not last at all. The remission of sins? My prediction is that it will be impossible to kill anybody in less than 1000 years, that medicine and technology will have progressed to that point and maybe further to the point of bringing the dead back from death. Just try to be as brotherly, as sisterly, as loving as you can.

Answer 5

The best person to answer this very profound question would be the Pope or the Archbishop of Canterbury.
Jesus told us to 'turn the other' cheek. But in various parts of the Bible you will find reference to God delivering plagues and other acts of violence to those who broke his commandments.
Therefore, it is a reasonable argument - I suggest - to say that when the Day of Judgement comes the breaking of a commandment for the better good will not necessarily be a black mark against your name. For instance to wage war against a nation carrying out barbarous acts - ethnic cleansing, for example or to kill someone to defend youir life should not condemn you to purgatory.

Answer 6

Short answer.... It's never acceptable to break one of the 10 Commandments.

In regards to your example, the context of the phrase "thou shalt not murder," is denoting a heartless killing (which contradicts the beliefs of terrorists) like premeditated or vengeful or heartless. Killing in self defense is a still a sensitive topic, because self defense can be acheived by subduing the opposition just as a well as taking it to death.

Answer 7

When?...Always...you break a Commandment every day, what is unacceptable..is when you don't stand accountable for your error in judgment, and make atonement for that error. The Ten commandments, are common sense rules ( Moral & Ethical ) that can be broken, you just have to realize how your actions affect others and what those actions say about you.

Answer 8

Most of the more sensible commandments still exist in modern law, so i would say take notice of law rather than religion. Stuff like stealing and murder (unless in self defense) are perfectly logical, acceptable laws which fit in with todays society. 'Keeping the sabbath day holy' however in my opinion is a bit lazy, and so can be ignored.

Answer 9

Pretty much all...

the first few are *** kissing and anti competitive tripe


Killing in self defence or defence of others.

Stealing ie confiscating dangerous stuff from shildren or life saving items in an emergency or food .


healing the sick on a sunday or rescuing them, wnating a better life if in the streets or ijn a bad relatioships,


Fighting off abusive parents or ignoring moron parents

Answer 10

when it becomes ridiculous or out dated

like this one:

8 Remember the sabbath day, and keep it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work. But the seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord your God; you shall not do any work—you, your son or your daughter, your male or female slave, your livestock, or the alien resident in your towns. For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but rested the seventh day; therefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day and consecrated it.

and this one: (because we all know some people dont deserve to be parents)

Honor your father and your mother, so that your days may be long in the land that the Lord your God is giving you.