I am the Lord your God: you shall not have strange Gods before me.
We offer to God alone the supreme worship that is due Him by making acts of Faith, Hope and Charity, by adoring Him and by praying to Him. A Catholic sins against faith by not believing what God has revealed. He sins against hope by despair and presumption, and he sins against charity by hatred of God or neighbor. Charity means love, hatred is against love.
Second Commandment
You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain.
We are to use the name of God or the Holy Name of Jesus Christ with reverence. We must also speak of the Saints and holy things with reverence, and never call down evil on a person.
Third Commandment
Remember to keep holy the Lord’s Day.
We are to worship God in a special manner by assisting at Mass on Sunday. The Mass is our greatest act of worship. Through the grace of our Baptism we are empowered as God’s priestly people to offer true and full worship.
Fourth Commandment
Honor your father and your mother.
We are to respect and love our parents, to obey them in all that is not sinful, and to help them when they are in need. When we obey our parents, we are obeying God. They take God’s place. When we are helpful to our parents, we can be sure God is pleased. All disrespect, unkindness, and disobedience to our parents, is forbidden.
Fifth Commandment
You shall not kill.
We are not to kill. We must take proper care of our own spiritual and bodily well-being and that of our neighbor. We must take care of our health and help others to do the same. This Commandment forbids murder, suicide, abortion, anger, fighting, hatred, revenge, and drunkenness.
Sixth Commandment
You shall not commit adultery.
We are to be pure and modest in our behavior. If we bear in mind that the Holy Spirit lives in us, we will want to keep a pure and clean dwelling for Him. We will have respect our own body and for the bodies of others. The Sixth Commandment forbids all sexual acts alone or with others outside of marriage.
Seventh Commandment
You shall not steal.
We are not to steal but to respect what belongs to others. All dishonesty, such as stealing, cheating, unjust keeping of what belongs to others, and unjust damage to the property of others is forbidden. We are obliged to restore to the owner stolen goods or their value.
Eight Commandment
You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.
We are to speak the truth in all things. “To bear false witness,” means to lie about our neighbor. Our Lord Jesus said, “I am…the truth”. If we claim to love our Lord and follow Him, we must always tell the truth. We are not to tell lies or harm the good name of another.
Ninth Commandment
You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife.
To “covet” means to desire. We are to be pure in thought and desire, and to avoid all thoughts and desires contrary to chastity, that is, immodest thoughts and desires, and willful pleasure in them. The Ninth Commandment forbids us to desire what the Sixth Commandment forbids in action.
Tenth Commandment
You shall not covet your neighbor’s goods.
This commandment forbids all desire to take or to keep unjustly what belongs to others. It also forbids envy at another’s success. The Tenth Commandment forbids us to desire what the Seventh Commandment forbids in action.
