Religion

Religion and Theology : Analysis of the Literary Context

Religion and Theology

Analyzing the sentences:

In 2:8-11, James recites the ten commandments in scripture, warning mankind that if they were not to follow them, horrible events may occur in their lives. It lists down some examples of how mankind is doing right by following the commandments, and examples of how ignoring the commandments may lead to breaking the Biblical Law. Although a small part of the Bible, it says enough that can enable an individual to think about what is being said, since there are only two roads presented, the right and the wrong. Seen in literary context, the quote is really quite simple in its explanation of right and wrong, and should not be as controversial and unconventional as people believe it to be.

Although most people are aware of the ten commandments, they do not understand them as thoroughly as they should, as good Christians and cultured human beings. People who believe that they know everything there is to know about the commandments often don't take the time to analyse and dissect them properly, and in this paper, I will be examining the quote as well as the ten commandments. There is controversy in the analysis of the first commandment, thus ensuring the fact that religion has always been the cause for conflict of opinion. The first commandment states, “ Thou Shalt Not Have Any Gods Before Me”, thus ensuring this is the most basic and the first thing a good Christian must follow. In the first commandment itself, there is plenty of controversy and conflict, as some people claim that the commandment is the first of two. However, controversy and religion go hand in hand so the quote will not be taken out of literary context.

The second commandment is “Thou Shalt Not Make Graven Images”, which means that any idols or pictoral representations of religious figures is prohibited. Often this particular commandment is ignored or not adhered to, since there are countless remakes of the scene of Christ's death, among others. The third has also been in and out of controversies, as it states that “Thou Shalt not Take The Lord's Name In Vain”. Some confusion and misinterpretation of this quote has been seen in earlier times as well as now, as some believe this was in accordance with the Lord's name used in a playful manner, while others believe this relates to the fact that the Lord's name must never be attached to the occult or magic. Not only this, the first part of the ten commandments seem to be the ones most immune to be taken out of context, and cause a lot of confusion among religious text analysts and Often in the face of confusion such as this, Christian elders make up their own interpretations and these are then used to preach among religious temples and so on.

With time, these commandments as well as the rest of them have been taken for granted, and not followed at ...