There is no question about the centrality of the Ten Commandments to Judaism and subsequently to Christianity The Ten Words as the Old Testament itself calls them Ex 34 28 Dt 4 13 or Decalogue which God spoke to Moses resonate down through the centuries into our lives The Catechism of the C

The first thing Abraham had to do was listen to God but Abraham also had to be willing to hear God no matter the word spoken And the word Abraham first heard from God the command to sacrifice his beloved son Isaac remains even now at some level inconceivable and incomprehensible Why would God

Many theological reasons for Jesus rsquo baptism have been proposed explaining it as a sacramental model for the church an act of solidarity with sinful humanity or ldquo a manifestation of his self-emptying rdquo Catechism of the Catholic Church No 1224 but any answer must stress that ld

In Impurity and Sin in Ancient Judaism Jonathan Klawans outlines the differences between ritual impurity and moral impurity Moral impurity which includes acts like adultery and murder comprises a category of impure sinful acts Ritual impurity includes natural processes like childbirth marita

Our evaluation of work is equivocal A person without work is in a precarious situation financially and emotionally and being jobless can erode a sense of worth But those lucky enough to have jobs seem always to be plotting when to retire Although work is sometimes a burden it is also necessary

When is the best time to repent Now Now is the time Now is always the time Who knows whether there will be time if you wait This seems to be the approach of the Ninevites who appear in the prophetic book of Jonah as the most eager of penitents Scholars do not see Jonah as a historical account