The commandements they forgot to tell you about. Exodus 19 - 24.

Considered a moral code for Christianity, an ideological base for much of the Jewish law and mirrored in verses from the Qur'an, these 10 commandments have received a lot of attention over the years. At least 5 movies have been made about them, which is just one less than movies made about ancient Mayan paw-paw recipes, so even Hollywood thinks they're important.

But what about the other commandments? Besides the laws governing various ceremonies, Exodus lists a whole whack of other commandments that Rabbinical Jews consider as important as the first 10. Ever read them? I did for the first time yesterday, and picked out some whoppers:

• If someone curses their father or mother, the penalty is death (21 v17). Oops....
• If you hit someone with a rock, and the injured person manages to hobble around for a while, you get to avoid the death penalty (21 v18-19). So hit softly with rocks, OK?
• One ox = five cattle, and one lamb = four sheep. Except when they're worth two (22 v1-5). No wonder I failed at maths.
• If you lend money to poor people, do not gouge them with interest (22 v25). Same goes for collateral - give it back before you're paid (22 v26-27). Money lenders must have missed this verse
• Help your enemies out. If you find their stuff - take it back to them (23 v4-5). So if George had found those WMDs, I guess he would have given them back. Lucky he didn't find anything then.
• Don't boil a kid in it's mother's milk (23 v19). I know, it's a goat, but sheez!

I get that these can't be taken out of historical and cultural context, so I know that I am being facetious and that they are intended to build a fabric for justice and righteousness. But I think I prefer the way Jesus put things: Make sure you get things in order and don't mess up your priorities, and then love others like you love yourself (Matthew 22, v37-40). You can build a life on that.