Recently, the state of Louisiana passed a law requiring that the Ten Commandments be posted in every public school classroom in the state. As a Christian pastor who has devoted much of his life to studying the Bible and teaching it to others, I affirm that the Ten Commandments are good and were given by God to promote human flourishing.

I worry, however, about the intent and efficacy of this new law. I fear that many will see it as a victory in the so-called “culture wars” that continue to rage in our society. I also have a number of questions I would like to ask of those who spearheaded this decision. Questions like:

What about context? We all know that it is extremely easy to take a passage of any literature out of context and make it say something vastly different than its original intent. The Ten Commandments come in the larger story of the Exodus — God working on behalf of a groups of refugees who came to Egypt to combat starvation, only to be persecuted and oppressed by the very people who originally promised to help them. They are part of a larger collection of 613 laws that show up in the Torah. Is that context not necessary for a correct understanding?

Who is the authorized interpreter? For example, what does it mean to “take the Lord’s name in vain?” If a child texts “OMG,” are they guilty? What about politicians closing speeches spewing division, hate, and war-mongering with the slogan, “God bless you, and God bless the United States of America”? Is that not taking God’s name in vain?

Which version of the Ten Commandments? Many people don’t realize that the commandments appear in two different places in the Bible — Exodus and Deuteronomy. There are slight differences in the two. Which one is the “authorized” version? Also, Roman Catholics and Protestants number the commands differently. Which one is the agreed-upon version and who gets to decide?

What is the ultimate goal? If the goal behind this law is to “stick it” to those “liberals” who aren’t going to tell us what to do, then I suppose this is a good plan. However, in my Bible, Jesus tells me that the goal is to “Go and make disciples of all nations.” To be a disciple of Jesus requires a heart change as a result of the Spirit’s presence in a person’s life. “Unless you are born again,” Jesus told Nicodemus, “you cannot enter the Kingdom of Heaven.” 

Does this law achieve Jesus’ command? Personally, I don’t remember a single poster that adorned the walls of my elementary classrooms. What I do remember are the women and men who embodied the love of Christ and showed me care at some of the lowest moments of my life — when my parents got divorced, my mom got sick, and I battled adolescent depression. They were people who loved me, not people who tried to force their convictions on me.

When our sacred symbols become mere props to score political points, I find it hard to celebrate. Instead, I pray for those called to be Christ’s hands and feet in classrooms throughout Louisiana, Georgia, and around our nation.