The second Commandment of the divine law is necessarily comprised in the
first, which commands us to worship God in piety and holiness. For he who
requires that honour be paid him, also requires that he be spoken of with
reverence, and must forbid the contrary, as is clearly shown by these words of
the Lord in Malachy: The son honoureth the father and the servant his master
if then I be a father, where is my honour? 2
However, on account of the importance of the obligation, God wished to
make the law, which commands His own divine and most holy name to be honored, a
distinct Commandment, expressed in the clearest and simplest terms.
The above observation should strongly convince the pastor that on this
point it is not enough to speak in general terms; that the importance of the subject
is such as to require it to be dwelt upon at considerable length, and to be
explained to the faithful in all its bearings with distinctness, clearness and
accuracy.
This diligence cannot be deemed superfluous, since there are not
wanting those who are so blinded by the darkness of error as not to dread to
blaspheme His name, whom the Angels glorify. Men are not deterred by the
Commandment laid down from shamelessly and daringly outraging Him divine
Majesty every day, or rather every hour and moment of the day. Who is ignorant
that every assertion is accompanied with an oath and teems with curses and
imprecations? To such lengths has this impiety been carried, that there is
scarcely anyone who buys, or sells, or transacts business of any sort, without
having recourse to swearing, and who, even in matters the most unimportant and
trivial, does not profane the most holy name of God thousands of times.
It therefore becomes more imperative on the pastor not to neglect,
carefully and frequently, to admonish the faithful how grievous and detestable
is this crime. {a}
But in the exposition of this Commandment it should first be shown that
besides a negative, it also contains a positive precept, commanding the
performance of a duty. To each of these a separate explanation should be given;
and for the sake of easier exposition what the Commandment requires should be
first set forth, and then what it forbids.
It commands us to honour the name of God, and to swear by it with reverence.
It prohibits us to contemn the divine name, to take it in vain, or swear by it
falsely, unnecessarily or rashly.
In the part which commands us to honour the name of God, the command,
as the pastor should show the faithful, is not directed to the letters or
syllables of which that name is composed, or in any respect to the mere name;
but to the meaning of a word used to express the Omnipotent and Eternal Majesty
of the Godhead, Trinity in Unity. Hence we easily infer the superstition of
those among the Jews who, while they hesitated not to write, dared not to
pronounce the name of God, as if the divine power consisted in the four
letters, {b}
and not in the signification.
Although this Commandment uses the singular number, Thou shalt not
take the name of God, this is not to be understood to refer to any one
name, but to every name by which God is generally designated. For He is called
by many names, such as the Lord, the Almighty, the Lord of hosts, the King
of kings, the Strong, and by others of similar nature, which we meet in
Scripture and which are all entitled to the same and equal veneration
It should next be taught how due honour is to be given to the name of
God. Christians, whose tongues should
constantly celebrate the divine praises, are not to be ignorant of a matter so
important, indeed, most necessary to salvation. The name of God may be honored
in a variety of ways; but all may be reduced to those that follow.
In the first place, God's name is honored when we publicly and
confidently confess Him to be our Lord and our God; and when we acknowledge and
also proclaim Christ to be the author of our salvation. {c}
(It is also honored) when we pay a religious attention to the word of
God, which announces to us His will; make it the subject of our constant
meditation; and strive by reading or hearing it, according to our respective
capacities and conditions of life, to become acquainted with it.
Again, we honour and venerate the name of God, when, from a sense of
religious duty, we celebrate His praises, and under all circumstances, whether
prosperous or adverse, return Him unbounded thanks. Thus spoke the Prophet Bless
the Lord, O my soul, and never forget all he hath done for thee. 3 Among the Psalms of David there are many, in which, animated with
singular piety towards God, he chants in sweetest strains the divine praises.
There is also the example of the admirable patience of Job, who, when visited
with the heaviest and most appalling calamities, never ceased, with lofty and
unconquered soul, to give praise to God. When, therefore, we labour under
affliction of mind or body, when oppressed by misery and misfortune, let us
instantly direct all our thoughts, and all the powers of our souls, to the
praises of God, saying with Job: Blessed be the name of the Lord. 4 {d}
The name of God is not less honored when we confidently invoke His
assistance, either to relieve us from our afflictions, or to give us constancy
and strength to endure them with fortitude. This is in accordance with the
Lord's own wishes: Call upon me, He says, in the day of trouble: I
will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me. 5 We have illustrious examples of such supplications in many
passages of Scripture, and especially in the sixteenth, forty-third, and one
hundred and eighteenth Psalms.
Finally, we honour the name of God when we solemnly call upon Him to
witness the truth of what we assert. This mode of honoring God's name differs
much from those already enumerated. Those means are in their own nature so
good, so desirable, that our days and nights could not be more happily or more
holily spent than in such practices of piety. I will bless the Lord at all
times, says David, his praise shall be always in my mouth. 6 On the other hand, although oaths are in themselves good, their
frequent use is by no means praiseworthy.
The reason of this difference is that oaths have been instituted only
as remedies to human frailty, and a necessary means of establishing the truth
of what we assert. As it is inexpedient
to have recourse to medicine unless, when it becomes necessary, and as its
frequent use is harmful; so with regard to oaths, it is not profitable to have
recourse to them, unless there is a weighty and just cause; and frequent
recurrence to them, far from being advantageous, is on the contrary highly
prejudicial. Hence the excellent observation of St Chrysostom: Oaths were
introduced among men, not at the beginning of the world, but long after; when
vice had spread far and wide over the earth; when all things were disturbed and
universal confusion reigned out; when, to complete human depravity, almost all
mankind debased the dignity of their nature by the degrading service of idols.
Then at length it was that the custom of oaths was introduced. For the perfidy
and wickedness of men was so great that it was with difficulty that anyone
could be induced to credit the assertion of another, and they began to call on
God as a witness. 7
Since in explaining this part of the Commandment the chief object is to
teach the faithful how to render an oath reverential and holy, it is first to
be observed, that to swear, whatever the form of words may be, is nothing else
than to call God to witness; thus to say, God is my witness, and By
God, mean one and the same thing.
To swear by creatures, such as the holy Gospels, the cross, the names
or relics of the Saints, and so on, in order to prove our statements, is also
to take an oath. Of themselves, it is true, such objects give no weight or
authority to an oath; it is God Himself who does this, whose divine majesty
shines forth in them. Hence to swear by the Gospel is to swear by God Himself,
whose truth is contained and revealed in the Gospel. (This holds equally true
with regard to those who swear) by the Saints, who are the temples of God, who
believed the truth of His Gospel, were faithful in its observance, and spread
it far and wide among the nations and peoples.
This is also true of oaths uttered by way of execration, such as that
of St Paul: I call God to witness
upon my soul. 8 By this form of oath one submits himself to
God's judgment, who is the avenger of falsehood. We do not, however, deny that
some of these forms may be used without constituting an oath; but even in such
cases it will be found useful to observe what has been said with regard to an
oath, and to conform exactly to the same rule and standard.
Oaths are of two kinds. The first is an affirmatory oath, and is taken
when we religiously affirm anything, past or present. Such was the affirmation
of the Apostle in his Epistle to the Galatians: Behold, before God, I lie
not. 9
The second kind, to which comminations may be reduced, is called promissory. It
looks to the future, and is taken when we promise and affirm for certain that
such or such a thing will be done. Such was the oath of David, who, swearing by
the Lord his God, promised to Bethsabee his wife that her son Solomon should be
heir to his kingdom and successor to his throne. 10
Although to constitute an oath it is sufficient to call God to witness,
yet to constitute a holy and just oath many other conditions are required,
which should be carefully explained. These, as St Jerome observes, are briefly
enumerated in the words of Jeremias: Thou shalt swear: as the Lord liveth,
in truth and in judgment and in justice, 11
words which briefly sum up all the conditions that constitute the
perfection of an oath, namely, truth, judgment, justice.
Truth, then, holds the first place in an oath. What is asserted must be
true and he who swears must believe what he swears to be true, being influenced
not by rash judgment or mere conjecture, but by solid reasons.
Truth is a condition not less necessary in a promissory than in an
affirmatory oath. He who promises must be disposed to perform and fulfill his
promise at the appointed time. As no conscientious man will promise to do what
he considers opposed to the most holy Commandments and will of God; so, having
promised and sworn to do what is lawful, he will never fail to adhere to his
engagement, unless, perhaps by a change of circumstances it should happen that,
if he wished to keep faith and observe his promises, he must incur the
displeasure and enmity of God. That truth is necessary to an oath David also
declares in these words: He that sweareth to his neighbour, and deceiveth
not. 12
{e}
The second condition of an oath is judgment. An oath is not to be taken
rashly and inconsiderately, but after deliberation and reflection. When about to
take an oath, therefore, one should first consider whether he is obliged to
take it, and should weigh well the whole case, reflecting whether it seems to
call for an oath. Many other circumstances of time, place, etc., are also to be
taken into consideration; and one should not be influenced by love or hatred,
or any other passion, but by the nature and necessity of the case.
Unless this careful consideration and reflection precede, an oath must
be rash and hasty; and of this character are the irreligious affirmations of
those, who, on the most unimportant and trifling occasions, swear without
thought or reason from the influence of bad habit alone. This we see practiced
daily everywhere among buyers and sellers. The latter, to sell at the highest
price, the former to purchase at the cheapest rate, make no scruple to
strengthen with an oath their praise or dispraise of the goods on sale.
Since, therefore, judgment and prudence are necessary, and since
children are not able, on account of their tender years, to understand and
judge accurately, Pope St. Cornelius decreed that an oath should not be
administered to children before puberty, that is, before their fourteenth year.
The last condition (of an oath) is justice, which is especially
requisite in promissory oaths. Hence, if a person swear to do what is unjust or
unlawful, he sins by taking the oath, and adds sin to sin by executing his
promise. Of this the Gospel supplies an example. King Herod, bound by a rash
oath, gave to a dancing girl the head of John the Baptist as a reward for her
dancing. 13
Such was also the oath taken by the Jews, who, as we read in the Acts of the
Apostles, bound themselves by oath not to eat, until they had killed Paul. 14
These explanations having been given, there can be no doubt that they
who observe the above conditions and who guard their oaths with these qualities
as with bulwarks, may swear with a safe conscience. 15
This is easily established by many proofs. For the law of God, which is
pure and holy, commands: Thou shalt fear the Lord thy God, and shalt serve
him only, and thou shalt swear by his name. 16. All they, writes David, shall be praised
that swear by him. 17
The Scriptures also inform us that the most holy Apostles, the lights
of the Church, sometimes made use of oaths, as appears from the Epistles of the
Apostle. 18
Even the Angels sometimes swear. The angel, writes St. John in
the Apocalypse, swore by him who lives for ever. 19
Nay, God Himself, the Lord of Angels, swears, and, as we read in many
passages of the Old Testament, has confirmed His. promises with an oath. This
He did to Abraham and to David. 20 Of the oath
sworn by God David says: The Lord hath sworn, and he will not repent: thou
art a priest for ever according to the order of Melchisedech. 21
In fact, if we consider the whole matter attentively, and examine the
origin and purpose of an oath, it can be no difficult matter to explain the
reasons why it is a laudable act.
An oath has its origin in faith, by which men believe God to be the
author of all truth, who can never deceive others nor be deceived, to whose
eyes all things are naked and open, 22 who, in fine, superintends all human affairs with
an admirable providence, and governs the world. Filled with this faith we
appeal to God as a witness of the truth, as a witness whom it would be wicked
and impious to distrust.
With regard to the end of an oath, its scope and intent is to establish
the justice and innocence of man, and to terminate disputes and contests. This
is the doctrine of the Apostle in his Epistle to the Hebrews. 23
Nor does this doctrine at all clash with these words of the Redeemer,
recorded in St. Matthew: You have heard that it was said to them of old: "Thou
shalt not foreswear thyself, but thou shalt perform thy oaths to the
Lord"; but I say to you not to swear at all; neither by heaven, for it is
the throne of God; neither by the earth, for it is his footstool; nor by
Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great king; neither shalt thou swear by
thy head, because thou canst not make one hair white or black. But let your
speech be "yea, yea"; "no, no"; and that which is over and
above these is of evil. 24
It cannot be asserted that these words condemn oaths universally and
under all circumstances, since we have already seen that the Apostles and our
Lord Himself made frequent use of them. The object of our Lord was rather to
reprove the perverse opinion of the Jews, who had persuaded themselves that the
only thing to be avoided in an oath was a lie. Hence in matters the most
trivial and unimportant they did not hesitate to make frequent use of oaths,
and to exact them from others. This practice the Redeemer condemns and
reprobates, and teaches that an oath is never to be taken unless necessity
require it. For oaths have been instituted on account of human frailty. They
are really the outcome of evil, being a sign either of the inconstancy of him
who takes them, or of the obstinacy of him who refuses to believe without them.
However, an oath can be justified by necessity.
When our Lord says: Let your speech be "yea, yea";
"no, no," 25. He evidently forbids the
habit of swearing in familiar conversation and on trivial matters. He therefore
admonishes us particularly against being too ready and willing to swear; and
this should be carefully explained and impressed on the minds of the faithful.
That countless evils grow out of the unrestrained habit of swearing is proved
by the evidence of Scripture, and the testimony of the most holy Fathers. Thus
we read in Ecclesiasticus: Let not thy mouth be accustomed to swearing, for
in it there are many falls; and again: A man that sweareth much shall be
filled with iniquity, and a scourge shall not depart from his house. 26. In the works of St. Basil and St. Augustine against lying, much
more can be found on this subject. 27 {f}
So far we have considered what this Commandment requires. It now
remains to speak of what it prohibits; namely, to take the name of God in vain.
It is clear that he who swears rashly and without deliberation commits a grave
sin. That this is a most serious sin is declared by the words: Thou shalt
not take the name of thy God in vain, which seem to assign the reason why
this crime is so wicked and heinous; namely, that it derogates from the majesty
of Him whom we profess to recognize as our Lord and our God. This Commandment,
therefore, forbids to swear falsely, because he who does not shrink from so
great a crime as to appeal to God to witness falsehood, offers a grievous
Injury to God, charging Him either with ignorance, as though the truth of any
matter could be unknown to Him, or with malice and dishonesty, as though God
could bear testimony to falsehood.
Among false swearers are to be numbered not only those who affirm as
true what they know to be false, but also those who swear to what is really
true, believing it to be false. For since the essence of a lie consists in
speaking contrary to one's belief and conviction, these persons are evidently
guilty of a lie, and of perjury.
On the same principle, he who swears to that which he thinks to be
true, but which is really false, also incurs the guilt of perjury, unless he
has used proper care and diligence to arrive at a full knowledge of the matter.
Although he swears according to his belief, he nevertheless sins against this
Commandment.
Again, he who binds himself by oath to the performance of anything, not
intending to fulfill his promise, or, having had the intention, neglect its
performance, is guilty of the same sin. This equally applies to those who,
having bound themselves to God by vow, neglect its fulfillment. {g}
This Commandment is also violated, if justice, which is one of the
three conditions of an oath, be wanting. Hence he who swears to commit a mortal
sin, for example, to perpetrate murder, violates this Commandment, even though
he speak seriously and from his heart, and his oath possess what we before
pointed out as the first condition of every oath, that is, truth.
To these are to be added oaths sworn through a sort of contempt, such
as an oath not to observe the Evangelical counsels, such as celibacy and
poverty. None, it is true, are obliged to embrace these divine counsels, but by
swearing not to observe them, one contemns and despises them.
This Commandment is also sinned against, and judgment {h} is violated when one
swears to what is true and what he believes to be true if his motives are light
conjectures and farfetched reasons. For, notwithstanding its truth, such an
oath is not unmixed with a sort of falsehood, seeing that he who swears with
such indifference exposes himself to extreme danger of perjury.
To swear by false gods is likewise to swear falsely. What more opposed
to truth than to appeal to lying and false deities as to the true God? {i}
Scripture when it prohibits perjury, says: Thou shalt not profane
the name of thy God, 28 thereby forbidding all irreverence towards all other things to which,
in accordance with this Commandment, reverence is due. Of this nature is the
Word of God, the majesty of which has been revered not only by the pious, but
also sometimes by the impious, as is narrated in Judges of Eglon, King of the
Moabites. 29
But he who, to support heresy and the teaching of the wicked. distorts
the Sacred Scriptures from their genuine and true meaning, is guilty of the
greatest injury to the Word of God; and against this crime we are warned by
these words of the Prince of the Apostles: There are certain things hard to
be understood. which the unlearned and unstable wrest, as they do also the
other Scriptures, to their own destruction.
It is also a foul and shameful contamination of the Scripture, that
wicked men pervert the words and sentences which it contains, and which should
be honored with all reverence, turning them to profane purposes, such as
scurrility, fable, vanity, flattery, detraction, divination, satire and the
like-crimes which the Council of Trent commands to be severely punished. 31
In the next place, as they honor God who, in their affliction implore
His help, so they, who do not invoke His aid, deny Him due honor; and these
David rebukes when he says: They have not called upon the Lord, they
trembled for fear where there was no fear. 32
Still more enormous is the guilt of those who, with impure and defiled
lips, dare to curse or blaspheme the holy name of God - that name which is to
be blessed and praised above measure by all creatures, or even the names of the
Saints who reign with Him in glory. {j} So atrocious and horrible is this crime that the
Sacred Scriptures, sometimes when speaking of blasphemy use the word blessing.
33 {k}
As, however, the dread of punishment has often a powerful effect in
checking the tendency to sin, the pastor, in order the more effectively to move
the minds of men and the more easily to induce to an observance of this
Commandment, should diligently explain the remaining words, which are, as it
were, its appendix: For the Lord will not hold him guiltless that shall take
the name of the Lord his God in vain. 34
In the first place (the pastor) should teach that with very good reason
has God joined threats to this Commandment. From this is understood both the
grievousness of sin and the goodness of God toward us, since far from rejoicing
in man's destruction, He deters us by these salutary threats from incurring His
anger, doubtless in order that we may experience His kindness rather than His
wrath. The pastor should urge and insist on this consideration with greatest
earnestness. in order that the faithful may be made sensible of the
grievousness of the crime, may detest it still more, and may employ increased
care and caution to avoid its commission.
He should also observe how prone men are to this sin, since it was not
sufficient to give the command, but also necessary to accompany it with
threats. The advantages to be derived from this thought are indeed incredible;
for as nothing is more injurious than a listless security, so the knowledge of
our own weakness is most profitable.
He should next show that God has appointed no particular punishment.
The threat is general; it declares that whoever is guilty of this crime shall
not escape unpunished. The various chastisements, therefore, with which we are every
day visited, should warn us against this sin. It is easy to conjecture that men
are afflicted with heavy calamities because they violate this Commandment; and
if these things are called to their attention, it is likely that they will be
more careful for the future.
Deterred, therefore, by a holy dread, the faithful should use every
exertion to avoid this sin. If for every idle word that men shall speak, they
shall render an account on the day of judgment, 35 what shall we say of those heinous crimes which
involve great contempt of the divine name?
1>
Exod.
xx. 7.
2>
Mal.
i. 6.
3>
Ps.
cii. 1.
4>
Job
i. 21.
5>
Ps.
xlix. 15.
6>
Ps.
xxxiii. 2.
7>
Ad.
Pop. Antioch. horn. xxvi.
8>
2
Cor. i. 23.
9>
Gal.
i. 20.
10> 3 Kings i. 17, 30.
11> Jerem. iv. 2.
12> Ps. xiv. 4.
13> Mark vi. 28.
14> Acts xxiii. 12.
15> Ps. xviii. 8.
16> Deut. vi. 13.
17> Ps. lxii. 12.
18> 2 Cor. i. 23; Philem. i. 8;
1 Thess. ii. 10.
19> Apoc. x. 6.
20> Heb. vi. 17; Gen. xxii. 16;
Exod. xxxiii. 1.
21> Ps. cix. 4.
22> Heb. iv. 13.
23> Heb vi. 16.
24> Matt. v. 34-37.
25> Matt. v. 37.
26> Eccl. xxiii. 9-12.
27> Hom. in Ps. xiv. n. 5; Aug.,
Lib. De Mendacio, c. 14.
28> Lev. xxix. 12.
29> Judges iii. 20.
30> 2 Pet. iii. 16.
31> Sess. iv. at the end.
32> Ps. xiii. 5; liii. 26.
33> 3 Kings xxi. 13; Job i. 11;
ii. 9.
34> Exod. xx. 7.
35> Matt. xii. 26.
{a}
On the second Comandment see Summa Theol. 2a. 2æ. cxxii. 3; 1a. 2æ. c. 5; St
Alphonsus, Theol. Mor. iii. tr. 2.
{b}
The name Yahweh, by which God was called among the Hebrews, was written with
only four consonants, the vowels being omitted, and is therefore called the
tetragrammaton.
{c} On profession of faith see Summa Theol. 2a.
2æ. iii.
{d} On praise of God see Summa Theol 2a. 2æ.
xci; on gratitude see ibid.cvi.
{e} David is speaking in this Psalm of what kind
of men shall dwell in the heavenly kingdom.
{f} On oaths see Summa Theol. 2a. 2æ. lxxxix.
xc.; Code of Canon Law, canons 1316 ff.
{g} On vows see Summa Theol. 2a. 2æ. lxxxviii.;
Code of Canon Law canons 1307 ff.
{h} Judgement, as was said above, is the second
condition of an oath.
{i} On perjury see Summa Theol. 2a. 2æ. xcviii.
{j} On blasphemy see Summa Theol. 2a. 2æ. xiii.
xiv.
{k} The expression to bless here is a euphemism
meaning to bid farewell to, to neglect, to curse. Hence the Hebrew barak of Job
i. 11 is translated by the Septuagint ĸaĸà
ενενόηơαν.