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TEN GREAT PROOFS OF GOD'S EXISTENCE |
| One of atheists cherished explanation for the origin of the Ten Commandments is that they were conceived by priest magicians who were bent on controlling the masses. The book, The Ten Commandments, by atheist J. Lewis, argues that this is indeed the case, and that the Ten Commandments are not in any way Divine. The following article asserts that only a Divine Source could have conceived such a moral code. |
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The Ten Commandments have been God's moral compass for believers for thousands of years. The spirit of these ten divine commands has had a significant influence on the development of morals and ethics in the Judeo-Christian world. Yet atheists do not see in them any evidence of Divine. One of their cherished views is that the Ten Commandments are part of a "deceitful plot" conceived by "priests-magicians" to "dominate and enslave the primitive people over whom they ruled."1 Could that be the case? Are the Ten Commandments a human creation crafted by cunning humans so as to control and deceive the masses, or are they a supreme manifestation of God's love for humanity? History, psychology, and logic strongly support the view that the Ten Commandments were conceived by a Divine, loving, all-wise Mind, and that they are strong proofs of God's existence. Michael Caputo
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TEN COMMANDMENTS ANALYSIS |
"THOU SHALT HAVE NO OTHER GODS BEFORE ME" |
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In the sea of ancient polytheistic societies, it was totally
counter trend to conceive of, and assert, a monotheistic religion. Culturally, and
psychologically, it would have been much more logical, and prudent, for
priests obsessed with power and influence, to go along with the trend of the times
and the desire of the masses. History shows that the ancient peoples, be it Canaanites,
Egyptians, Greeks, Babylonians or the Assyrians, felt perfectly comfortable with having
many gods. Psychologically, it was much more reassuring to have several gods to turn to,
and get help from, as opposed to just one.
The masses and the priestly classes' aversion to monotheism is
clearly seen in Ancient Egypt where Pharaoh Akhenaton, for a brief while, tried to force
monotheistic sun worship upon his people. History tells us that, within a short period of
time, he was overthrown, and all his efforts at elevating monotheism were totally erased. 2 Therefore, given the fanatical
attachment that ancient peoples had to their many gods, trying to elevate one god to
the exclusion of all the others would have been nothing short of suicidal. Priests, at the
most, might have attempted to elevate their favorite god above all others,
but it is inconceivable that they would have attempted to abolish the worship of all other
gods or that they would have succeeded.
Throughout the
ages, humans have created a multitude of gods, and they would have been perfectly happy to
continue creating some more. Israel was not an exception. In fact, for hundreds of years
the chosen people consistently tried to adopt the polytheism of the surrounding nations,
and, "it often claimed the mass of the people"3. The true God insisted that following illusions was
not for them, and intervened firmly each time they went after other gods. Only the one
true God could have persevered in asserting His primacy and sovereignty upon an unwilling
and polytheism-bent nation. Only the one-and-only God could have asserted boldly and
resolutely, "I am He, I am the first, I also am the last" (Isaiah 48:12).
Few people fully understand how revolutionary the introduction of this commandment truly
was. Up to Moses, human beings, with the exception of the few that God had
revealed Himself to, had been slaves to beliefs in horrific beings who had to be
continually appeased in manifold ways, including child sacrifice. The manifestation
of the One true God marked the beginning of the end of all the ancient gods. Joy
davidman eloquently captures this dramatic overturn in her book Smoke on the
Mountain.
Unlike the
Pagan gods, the God of Israel was neither cruel nor immoral. He insisted on faithfulness
to Him alone, but He also demanded righteousness and love toward one's
neighbor.
The first commandment was, therefore, the grand opening to a
brand-new era that was to last perennially, and that would bring about freedom from
psychologically oppressive and socially destructive ideas that had enslaved humanity for
generations. Seeing this awesome revelation as simply the conniving attempt by religious
leaders to assert their brand of religion is both simplistic and illogical. Non-idolatrous monotheism was simply
too grand in scope for humans to conceive, too revolutionary for the masses to
accept and too dangerous for priests to implement. With the first commandment, the Almighty introduces Himself to all as the
first step toward the healing of minds and human relations and, most of all, toward
healing the breach between man and his Creator. |
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"THOU SHALT NOT MAKE UNTO
THEE ANY GRAVEN IMAGES" |
Images are tangible
and, therefore, reassuring. Worshipping a spiritual, invisible Being would have been
psychologically impossible to accept by a primitive, unsophisticated, idol-worshipping
society -- if it was only asserted by a priestly class.
Given this reality, it it not surprising to read in the book of Exodus that, while in the wilderness, the Israelites, insisted that Aaron make them "visible" gods that they could relate to and be led by. The Bible tells us that, "The people gathered together to Aaron and said to them, Come make us gods that shall go before us." Aaron did not hesitate and quickly made them a golden calf as a tangible representation of the God who brought them out of the land of Egypt( Genesis 32: 1, 4). This was the entrenched way of thinking of ancient peoples, and it had become the way of thinking of the Israelites as well. Imagining, therefore, that a priestly class would deprive the masses of their tangible means of communication with their various gods is ludicrous and unthinkable.
In the
book of Acts, we see a dramatic example of the masses' fanatical attachment to
idolatry, when Paul preached Christ and monotheism in Ephesus (Acts 19). Local artisans,
who sold great numbers of idols to visitors, were incensed at the possibility that
the new religious ideas would have brought about the demise of their profession. Religious
leaders were, no doubt, angrier than artisans, at the thought that their supremacy could
have been threatened. Both the priests and the masses had no intention of
allowing foreign ideas to creep in and take the idolatrous Diana worship from them
(V. 28).
What a noble idea it was to worship a Being that no sculpture or picture could ever represent. What a revolutionary concept it was to abandon the reassurance of tangible gods for One that is, yet cannot be seen. History, culture, psychological habits and needs, entrenched religious ideas and commerce, all cooperated against the rise and assertion of non-idolatrous monotheism. Yet, it emerged; yet it survived; yet it prevailed. The reason for this is simple: The invisible God is, and He prevailed over lies and deceit.
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"THOU SHALT NOT TAKE GOD'S NAME IN VAIN" |
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The true God uses one more
opportunity to assert Himself, by stressing the need to show respect for the One who
created and sustains humans. God's name represents the Almighty. Lack of respect for His
name will lead to lack of respect for Him and for His ways. This commandment is meant to
elicit complete, and well-deserved, awe for the origin of life. If God exists, and if He
were to manifest Himself to humans, would He not demand complete respect? He has the right
to expect total reverence and submission. And so He did.
But
there is more. God knew that people would have used His name to support false oaths and
ideas. God demanded that His name never be used to support falsehood and deceit (Leviticus
19:12). "The Israelite who speaks the name of the Lord must act in truth, for the
Lords name is truth."10 He also demanded that his name not be used to support
the magical thinking of the time when the names of gods were thought to have magical
powers.11 Thus, "The third commandment came crushing down on the heads of the
black magicians. The Lord was a Lord of righteousness; He was not to be invoked for evil
deeds."12
Jay Williams, in his book Ten Words of Freedom
emphasizes another critical and enlightening dimension of this commandment: the cultic
dimension.
Obviously the phrasing of the commandment reflects firm and high expectations on the part of religious leaders before all others. Why would conniving, deceitful, power-hungry priests ever place exceptionally high moral demands on themselves?
The
source of this commandment is not human but divine. The
God who enunciated it is a God of total righteousness who demands total righteousness from
all his followers, especially those who represent him.
Believing that humans concocted this commandment to control the masses is incongruous and
illogical. Once again, this is also a strong proof of God's reality, His love for what is
just and true, and his concern that righteousness prevail among His people. |
| "REMEMBER THE SABBATH DAY, TO KEEP IT HOLY" |
Before God thundered the Sabbath
commandment, humans had no God-imposed, cyclical, weekly pause that would restore them
spiritually, mentally and physically. No doubt, there were, "almost universal customs
of keeping days of rest,"14 but it's difficult to know to what extent they
were kept, or how they were kept. Some have speculated that the Sabbath finds its roots in
the Babylonian "Dies Nefasti" that were kept on the seventh, fourteenth,
twenty-first and twenty-eighth days of some months. This
hypothesis is weakened by the fact that the Babylonians had "five-day" week
cycles, and by the fact that Babylonian tablets indicate that work projects had no
interruption on the seventh day.15 The Sabbath was a day of rest and joy,16
while the Babylonian "Dies Nefasti" were days of prohibitions, especially for
kings17. Any supposed similarity with
the Akkadian "shappatu/shapattu" holds little weight, as it was the fifteenth
day of the month, the day of the full moon.18 This day is now believed to have been
a propitious day in which the king sought to appease the gods, but there is no evidence
that it was a day of cessation of work.19
Most probably, the presence of cyclical days of rest in Middle Eastern
societies may have been what had survived of the original Sabbath keeping as commanded by
God to Noah and his sons. Their descendents may have kept the Sabbath for
generations until transformations in meaning and approach took place.
Several aspects make the Sabbath rise high above any
other human-devised days. The Sabbath was to remind Israel that Yahweh, who created all
things, and who had delivered them from Egypt, was their savior and God, and that they had
to set aside sacred time to "reconnect" with Him weekly so as to maintain a
strong spiritual relationship.
The keeping of the Sabbath was to be a day that celebrated the dignity of man, the epitome
of Gods physical creation. Among all living
beings, he was given the privilege of knowing God and of enjoying a special relationship
with Him. This physical being also had the
special opportunity to meet with His Creator weekly so as to be instructed in His ways and
thus deepen his knowledge of Him.
The Sabbath was to be a day of joy, not a gloomy day of bad omen, as celebrated by the
Babylonians. It was especially a day of joy for the weak and the oppressed, such as
servants, slaves and animals (Exodus 20:10, Deuteronomy 5:14). God demanded that
masters allow their servants and slaves to rest as well. This is not an, "only-if you
see-fit" principle. It is a divine command from the highest power of all.
Can we
see how benevolent and how divine that is? Forcing
everyone to stop and rest; commanding families to rest together a full day a week and
be recharged; stopping all trade and commerce so as to give everyone, rich and poor,
master or slave, a chance to be refreshed, is both revolutionary and powerful in impact.
Author, Samuel H. Dresner effectively emphasizes the equalizing power of the Sabbath:
"Although one Jew may have peddled onions and another may have owned great forests of
lumber, on the Sabbath all were equal, all were kings, all basked in the glory of the
seventh day. . . On the Sabbath there were
neither banker nor clerk, neither farmer nor hired hand, neither rich nor poor. There were
only Jews hallowing the Sabbath."20
Sabbath scholar, Samuele Bacchiocchi, captures the worth of the Sabbath eloquently in the
following reflection: "The Sabbath (gives) a chance to our souls to catch up with our
bodies to give a change to our souls, through worship and meditation, to be enriched with
new moral and spiritual values. This spiritual renewal that comes to us on the Sabbath
through worship and meditation enables us to turn a new page in our life, to start a new
week with a fresh provision of divine wisdom and grace.21
The Sabbath is a gift to from God to all humans--no one excepted--to contribute to
their mental, physical, and social well being. As Christ reminds us in the New Testament,
"The Sabbath was made for man" (Mark 2:27). It was made for our benefit not as a
limit to our potential. This is, undeniably, a manifestation of divine love.
Yet, though
enormously beneficial, many people would have resented this imposition. How many greedy
people would want to be told to limit their gains? How many masters would appreciate being
told that their slaves had "rights"? How many would naturally go along with a
concept that would take both power and riches from them?
This
commandment went against all human grain. A human origin of such an imposition would have
been tenaciously challenged by the ruling classes and quickly defeated.
The strong
aversion to anything that interferes with commerce can be seen today in capitalistic
societies. Business wants money coming in continually, thus 24/7 is what they are pushing
for, more and more, and, unfortunately, they are getting their way at the expense of
people's mental, and physical health.
The true God conceived the Sabbath rest for the benefit of all of humanity. Its existence yells out that there is a Being who not only exists, but who also cares deeply for His creation. |
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"HONOR THY FATHER
AND THY MOTHER" |
Loving one's parents and respecting
them should be natural. Most people in all societies do.
Entrenching respect for one's parents in a
code of conduct may not seem particularly divine at all. Yet, a close analysis reveals
that a divine mind is clearly behind this commandment as well.
God demanded that parents be given the highest
esteem, (Reverence). The punishment for not adhering to this commandment was stoning.
Clearly, parents are very important in God's eyes. After a lifetime of suffering and
sacrifices, God wanted parents to be treated with the highest dignity, as a reward for
their efforts. This, unfortunately, is not what is happening in our society. An
ever-increasing number of elderly people are being given over to old age homes to be
looked after by strangers who do not always have their best interest at heart. It is also
a very sad reality that the number of elderly who are being abused daily is
scandalously high. Only in New York State, in the year 2000, the number of elderly who
received assistance because of abuse was over 6000.22
God knew, all too well, that, though most people would have
treated the elderly with dignity, some would not have done so.
Thus, the imposition of a commandment with strong consequences, if
transgressed. The ones who feel that death is too harsh a punishment for parent abuse,
might want to put themselves in the shoes of the elderly who are being beaten
regularly by their own children, or those who are callously killed by their children
who cannot wait for their inheritance. Perhaps, imagining this might help them see the
need for a strong intervention and Gods wisdom in doing so.
Another
aspect that shows God's authorship of this commandment is the fact that parents are
mentioned as deserving of reverence "above" other authority figures.
If the Ten Commandments had been conceived by priests, they
would have stressed "their" dignity above that of parents, so as to reinforce
their power and control. A priest-conceived code would have, logically, stressed the
primary importance of the priesthood. They would have received primary emphasis in
place of, or at least together with, parents--but they did not. Neither priests, nor kings, found a place within the Ten
Commandments, because to God they did not have the same importance as parents.
Respect for kings and priests was emphasized in the book of the law,
but not in the "Great Code." This commandment is clearly from God.
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| "THOU SHALT NOT KILL" |
The ancient world was a
fierce world. Self-control and rational thinking were not necessarily stressed or taught.
Pride, instead, was taught and nurtured. Offended males would teach the offender a
lesson by reacting violently and vengefully; escalation would, no doubt, regularly ensue,
and death would have followed often. God said to Israel that the time had come for
self-control and respect for for the lives of others. Killing another human being out of
anger, pride, etc. would be no longer tolerated. Penalty: death.
As
the other commandments, this one, too, went against the culture and the psychological
mental sets of the times. Historians tell us that other major legal codes of the time did
not regard murder as a crime of concern to the State. It is worth noting that,
'Neither the Code of Hammurabi or the Middle Assirian Laws have any general provisions on
murder... murder was not treated as a crime but as a matter for the relatives of the
deceased." 23 Protecting the honor of the family was a duty of the family
as was getting revenge for the murder of a family member.
Within Middle Eastern societies of the time, murder must
have been very common. The wounding of the family's honor could not be by-passed and
forgotten, if the respect of the community was to be retained. Alcohol abuse must have
abounded as well as the mortal conflicts that often ensue from drunkenness. Knives and
swords were not forbidden, and, therefore, their use must have been quite common.
If this were a man-invented principle, humans would have resisted it
and, eventually, heavily modified or abolished it. If
an all-powerful God stood behind it, it would have stood and become an authoritative,
unchangeable commandment -- and it did. |
"THOU
SHALT NOT COMMIT ADULTERY" |
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Adultery abounds in our
society, and it abounded in ancient societies as well. Men, in ancient times,
had no compunction about lusting after
married women, and they had no scruples about taking advantage of them, if possible. God,
being a moral Being concerned with family unity, and with preventing psychological traumas
in betrayed mates and children, commanded, "Thou shalt not commit adultery."
Objective and aware minds see the critical value of this commandment. The family unit
is critical if a society is to remain healthy and strong. Strong, loving families
make for healthy minds and have an anti-deviant effect on the minds of future adults. 24,
25 Psychologist, D. Myers, tells us that, "Compared with those who grew up in
intact two-parent families, children of divorce grow up with a diminished feeling of
well-being. As adults they are more likely to divorce and less likely to say they are very
happy."26 God knew of the devastating impact that adultery, and ensuing
divorce, would have on a society and on individuals and intervened to keep it from
happening.
Sex-crazed societies of the past, where temple worship often entailed sexual relations
with priestesses and temple prostitutes, would have had no respect for a human commandment
that would forbid sexual freedom--if humans had concocted it, that is. No human in his right mind would interfere with
the sexual freedom desired by the masses, especially in the Middle East where sexual
perversions abounded (Deut. 18: 9-14). God intervened because He could see the agony that
accompanies adultery, the problems that ensued illegitimate births
Since
the Sixties the Western world has adopted a Laissez faire mentality toward sex and the
results have been horrific. While before men were the ones that betrayed their wives, the
trend now is for both to explore the excitement of having an affair. Such an irresponsible
and hedonistic approach to marriage has made thousands susceptible to incurable venereal
diseases that then bring devastating viruses to innocent and unknowing mates.
The
scourge of AIDS is presently decimating Sub-Saharan Africa. Whole nations run the risk of
disappearing within the next twenty years because of sexual irresponsibility and because
marriage fidelity is next to nonexistent. The same scourge is spreading through the rest
of the world and will continue to in spite of the superficial and ineffective “safe
sex” campaigns.
The commandment forbidding adultery was meant to spare
untold suffering for hundreds of millions who will die excruciating and needless deaths.
It was also meant to spare hundreds of innocent children the agony of seeing their parents
die and be left to fend for themselves in horrendous circumstances.
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"THOU SHALT NOT STEAL" |
Humans have taken what is not theirs since time began. Most stealing is donesecretly. A man can steal in secret in great abundance, and for long periods of time, and
yet retain a semblance of dignity and honesty.
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"THOU SHALT NOT BEAR FALSE WITNESS" |
We live in a world
where one must continually watch one's back. Trusting anyone is a risky affair. All humans
have known, or will know the disillusionment of believing in someone, and then finding out
that he, or she, had been lying all along. Every year millions of mates find out that
their "loving" husbands or wives had been cheating on them for a long periods of
time, while feigning faithfulness. Seemingly trustworthy business people finally show
their true colors, after having cheated people of their life savings.
Humans
seem to look at lying as a mild transgression. It is an easy way to cover up inappropriate
behavior while maintaining a semblance of integrity. The mind can easily rationalize
lying. After all, some say, "It protects
betrayed partners from being hurt;" "It insulates family, friends and
relatives from disillusionment;" "It builds the egos of people who crave
praise;" "It helps to steal from
the undeserving rich and powerful," and, "It helps protect citizens from unfair
tax laws."
A
society where truth is not treasured is a society where anxiety abounds; it is also a
society where suffering abounds as well. Recent
events in the USA are proving this to be an undeniable reality. Leaders in top
corporations have deceived millions of investors into thinking that all was well and
encouraged the buying of new shares when the reality was the very opposite. The end result
has been devastating losses that have shattered the dreams of a comfortable retirement for
thousands of people.
God knew the horrible consequences of lying. He knew that a
society that condones lying would, in time, become an unlivable society where the most
cunning would rule. Thus, in His love for humans, and for the weak in particular,
He asserted that lying was an extremely serious sin, that it was unacceptable, and that it
would be punished severely.
Priests who wanted to endear
themselves with the masses would never condemn a culturally common and seemingly
harmless human tendency to such a high degree, as they would have been judged to
be both unrealistic and ludicrous.
Humans would never elevate honesty to such a level of importance. Humans would never make
lying an offence of the highest magnitude. God did,
because He knows the devastating societal and psychological consequences of deceit. We
have God to thank for this magnificent commandment, not man.
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"THOU
SHALT NOT COVET" |
Sins start in
the mind. Before adultery, stealing and some killing, comes lust. Lust is an illicit and
obsessive desire for what is not ours.
Before adultery comes an obsessive lustful desire for another man's wife. Before stealing
comes the desire for another man's property. To take another woman or to steal another
person's property, some people are willing to kill.
God,
who created the human mind, knows its dynamics better than anyone else. He knows the steps
to sin. Lust is step one before a multitude of sins (James 1:14-15). In His great wisdom,
He concludes His Commandments with a preventative command: "Stop the thought and
you'll stop the action. " Grand, indeed.
Believing that cunning priests would be at all concerned
about human motives and the control of sinful thoughts is both inconceivable and absurd. Only a Divine Mind could have conceived the need to deal with causes
rather than just effects. Only a divine mind could have had such a deep understanding of
the human mind, and its deep and dark ways of operating. Only a Divine, and a Righteous
Mind, could have put into effect such a brilliant, and effective preventative measure |
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CONCLUSION |
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In this essay we have looked at some of the reasons that support the idea that the Ten Commandments are one of the greatest
proofs of God's existence and that
they are a powerful expression of divine love for humanity. They were conceived by the Creator to prevent humans from following false
gods, and they are meant to prevent behaviors that, eventually, bring about havoc
and turmoil in any society.
A close analysis also reveals that they were meant to protect the weak,
the powerless and the righteous from the abuse of those who have power, and those who are
callous and insensitive toward the rights of others.
MICHAEL CAPUTO Author of GOD SEEN THROUGH THE EYES OF THE GREATEST MINDS (A book about the greatest minds who believed in God) AND... WHAT IF GOD...? (Thought-provoking reflections about the God of the Bible)
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WORKS CITED |
1. Lewis,
J. The Ten Commandments, New York: Freethought Press Association
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© Copyright M. Caputo, 2003