---

---

To the Christian conservative right, the ten commandments rule.
But as a moral, ethical, or legal guide they are a worthless tool.
Believers think they were carved by god on two tablets of stone.
They were most likely written by Moses when he was on the mountain alone.
How Christians should worship their god, are commandments one through four.
For non-Christians, they are meaningless words and nothing more.
They are rigid rules with no allowance for variation.
But what’s right or wrong often depends upon the situation.
For example thou shall not kill, absolutely makes no sense.
If you are attacked, can you not kill in self defense?
Or kill an animal, if it’s food you need?
Or kill a plant, by pulling a weed?
Honor thy father and mother is another one.
Should you honor a father who molests his son?
Child molestation is a serious crime, but
in the final ten it didn’t make the cut.
The harmless act of coveting was forbidden by ten,
as an attempt by Moses to quiet his men,
who were squabbling about possessions and about to fight,
as they wandered the desert with no end in sight.
A perfect God would make perfect laws,
but an examination of these revealed flaws.
So instead of the ten commandments being God's command
We must conclude they were written by Moses' hand.