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Friday, April 25, 2025

Those 613 Mosaic Laws and What About Them?

 Nadene Goldfoot                                                         

Moses broke his first set of laws after finding the people dancing around a golden calf they had made.  He had to make a 2nd set.  

Some people are talking about those 613 laws that Moses (1393 BCE-1273 BCE) gave to his people way back after he started on the Exodus at age 80. That was about 3,400 years ago.   It took him about the length of time they were on it of 40 years to get them across to the people, possibly. Of them all, the first 10 became the most well known and 7 out of the 10 adopted by many people.                                         

When mankind was first created, we had primates, part of the animal kingdom.  Luckily, they seemed to choose fruit from trees for food and not other primates.  Of our DNA, 97% of all nucleotide bases are exactly the same as the chimpanzee's.  For that matter, 99.9/5 of these nucleotide bases are exactly the same in all people. Nucleotide bases are nitrogen-containing molecules that are fundamental building blocks of DNA and RNA. They are part of a nucleotide, which also includes a sugar and a phosphate group. In DNA, the bases are adenine (A), guanine (G), cytosine (C), and thymine (T). In RNA, uracil (U) replaces thymine.

We're lucky we can tell each other apart! Animals still exist, and early man has had to make room for us, the final product, homo Sapiens.   Early man is known to have been cannibalistic-to eat other humans, to sacrifice the best of the group to satisfy their gods, and yes, early man had many gods to worship at one time, like the Greeks and Romans did.                               

Abraham, stopped from sacrificing his son, Isaac by an angel, a practice of his peers...learning that this was not to be allowed anymore.  
 

Abraham is the culprit we've heard who thought all of life was the product of one creator.  He lived from about 1948 BCE, son of Terah;  the 2nd millennium, about 4,000 years ago, so he was 1,000 years ahead of Moses, almost.  Abraham, starting off as Abram, traveled from Ur, his home town, to Canaan in order to be away from other people and raise his own children under his own theory about life that the unseen G-d had shared with him.  In Genesis 12:1-3, G-d instructed Abraham to "Go from your country, your people, and your father's household to the land I will show you." He also promised that he would make Abraham a great nation, bless him, make his name great, bless those who bless him, curse those who curse him, and that through him all the families of the earth would be blessed. 

Moses Maimonides or the Rambam( 1135-1204) is considered the most famous and influential figure in compiling and listing the 613 commandments (mitzvot) found in the Tanakh. His work, the Mishneh Torah, is a comprehensive legal code that includes a detailed enumeration of these commandments. While the Talmud mentions the number 613, Maimonides's work is the most well-known and detailed list, according to Wikipedia. medical writer, at 13, left his native Cordova, Spain with his family to escape the Almohade persecutions of Jews (forcing Islam on people) , wandered in North Africa, reached Palestine in 1165, wrote the list of the 613 precepts.  Could not settle in Palestine then still suffering from the aftermath of the Crusades, so went to Egypt with family. 

The Ten Commandments, according to Jewish sources, are a set of moral and religious directives given to Moses on Mount Sinai. They are: 1) You shall have no other gods; 2) You shall not make or worship any idols; 3) You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God; 4) Remember the Sabbath and keep it holy; 5) Honor your father and mother; 6) You shall not murder; 7) You shall not commit adultery; 8) You shall not steal; 9) You shall not bear false witness; and 10) You shall not covet.  

The 1st 10:  Just to remind you, here’s the full list from Exodus 20 (Tree of Life Version) and it’s repeated again in Deuteronomy 5:

  1. You shall have no other gods before Me.
  2. Do not make for yourself a graven image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above or on the earth below or in the water under the earth. Do not bow down to them, do not let anyone make you serve them. For I, Adonai your God, am a jealous God, bringing the iniquity of the fathers upon the children to the third and fourth generations of those who hate Me, but showing lovingkindness to the thousands of generations of those who love Me and keep My mitzvot.
  3. You must not take the Name of Adonai your God in vain, for Adonai will not hold him guiltless that takes His Name in vain.
  4. Remember Yom Shabbat, to keep it holy. You are to work six days, and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Shabbat to Adonai your God. In it you shall not do any work—not you, nor your son, your daughter, your male servant, your female servant, your cattle, nor the outsider that is within your gates. For in six days Adonai made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day. Thus Adonai blessed Yom Shabbat, and made it holy.
  5. Honor your father and your mother, so that your days may be long upon the land which Adonai your God is giving you.
  6. Do not murder.
  7. Do not commit adultery.
  8. Do not steal.
  9. Do not bear false witness against your neighbor.
  10. Do not covet your neighbor’s house, your neighbor’s wife, his manservant, his maidservant, his ox, his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor’s.

The Ten Commandments include several that are often considered difficult to follow or are interpreted differently in modern society. Three common examples include:
1. Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image: This commandment is often understood as a prohibition against idol worship or the worship of any representation of God. Some interpret this as a more general warning against placing objects or ideas above God in one's life. 
2. Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain: This commandment is interpreted to mean not using the name of God lightly or disrespectfully, often understood as using God's name in oaths, curses, or as a mere filler word. 
3. Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy: This commandment is about dedicating a day for rest and worship, often understood as observing a day of rest and spiritual reflection.                          
    However, this is a synagogue in Portland, Oregon with the 10 commandments in Hebrew-not a public place  
The primary reason the Ten Commandments are not permitted in many public places, particularly schools and government buildings, is a matter of religious freedom and the separation of church and state, enshrined in the First Amendment of the US Constitution. Specifically, the establishment clause, which prohibits the government from establishing a religion, is the legal basis for these restrictions. The core argument is that displaying the Ten Commandments, often considered a religious text, in public spaces constitutes government endorsement of a particular religion, violating the principle of religious neutrality.  Phew!  Getting through the discussions on the first 10 is amazing!  

Such states such as Israel is a religious state-that of Judaism.  Saudi Arabia only allows
Muslims into their country.  

 The Ten Commandments are a well-known set of religious laws, while the 613 commandments encompass a broader range of Jewish law.  Rambam (Maimonides) is often associated with the 613 commandments and their categorization, but he did not propose a 11th commandment beyond those already established. He is known for his extensive work on Jewish law and philosophy, including his codification of the 613 commandments. Some interpretations suggest an "11th commandment" in a broader, symbolic sense, such as a commandment to love Israel or a commandment to live a life guided by Jewish principles. However, this is not a formal, accepted part of Jewish law as defined by Rambam or other Jewish scholars. 
You'd think that after 4,000 years we could all respect 10 little rules about living that has to do with how we treat others.  
Resource:
Book:  DNA & Genealogy by Colleen Fitzpatrick & Andrew Yeiser
The New Standard Jewish Encyclopedia

 

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