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The Ten Commandments
A Love Story

This part of our series on the Ten Commandments begins with the fifth commandment—“Honor your father and your mother so that your days may be long in the land that the Lord your God is giving you.” Some of us sigh with relief at this easy commandment—we have parents who, while not perfect, were at least worthy of respect. They loved us to the best of their ability and were people we felt safe in obeying.

Others of us approach this commandment with a deep uneasiness born of years of overt or covert pain, neglect or abuse. Some of us can find little in our parents to celebrate and even less to call honorable. For those of us who have not known parental love that was healthy and positive, or those of us who have not been stellar parents ourselves, this text can feel like a barrier to God.

As we look deeply into this commandment, remember that it comes to us from a great love letter from the greatest Lover. We must acknowledge that honoring parents raises many questions.

What if our parents are not honorable? What if they have abused or abandoned us? What if they are alcoholics or drug addicts? What if they’re dishonest? Or what if they are self-absorbed? Or just absent? Are we still compelled to honor our parents, to give them a place of special privilege in our lives?

How does Rev. Eugenia Gamble reconcile these imperfections and the commandment to honor? What does the sixth commandment really mean? Find out in the March/April 2004 issue of Horizons. To subscribe call 800/524-2612 or order now.