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May 4, 2007

The Ten Commandments

Stories of people struggling to follow the Ten Commandments from the book of Exodus.

Commandments One, Two and Three

Honor God

As a boy in religious school, Shalom Auslander is informed that his name, Shalom, is one of the names of God, and so he must be very careful not to take his own name in vain. Shalom Auslander is the author of "Beware of God: Stories" and "Foreskin's Lament." (9 minutes)

Commandment Four

Keep The Sabbath Holy

Six houses of worship in six different cities, each with its own way of honoring the Sabbath. (3 minutes)

Commandment Five

Honor Your Father And Your Mother

When Jack Hitt was 11, he did the worst thing his father could have imagined. Neither Jack nor his four siblings will ever forget the punishment. (6 minutes)

Commandment Seven

You Shall Not Commit Adultery

In the book of Matthew, Jesus says that looking lustfully at a woman is like committing adultery in your heart. Contributor David Dickerson was raised as an evangelical Christian, and for many years tried not  to have a single lustful thought. (9 minutes)

Commandment Eight

You Shall Not Steal

Ira talks to a waiter named Hassan at Liebman's Deli in the Bronx about some audacious thefts he's witnessed in his years in the restaurant business. (3 minutes)

Commandment Nine

You Shall Not Bear False Witness

Chaya Lipschutz wanted to donate one of her kidneys to a stranger. But to save a stranger's life, she had to break the commandment against lying. And the person she had to lie to was her mother. Chaya talked to Sarah Koenig. (8 minutes)

Commandment Ten

You Shall Not Covet

Ira talks to seventh-graders about the things they covet most. (4 minutes)

Song:

“The Ten Commandments of Love” by Peaches & Herb