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Luther, Martin. Edited by Kirsi I. Stjerna, The Large Catechism of Dr. Martin Luther, 1529: The Annotated Luther Study Edition, Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2016.

Miller, Patrick D. The Ten Commandments: Resources for the Use of Scripture in the Church. Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox, 2009.

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Thank you for taking the time to look at a few images I have taken inspired by the 6th commandment.  It has been incredible to work through and see this commandment in my daily life.  I encourage you to note the places in your life in which the commandments come up.  While clearly some of these images may not appear to be related to the commandment, if you look hard enough you will notice that just as God is everywhere so are God's commandments in our lives.

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These rather dissimilar images both are inspired by what Martin Luther said in the Small Catechism regarding the 6th commandment.  It says: "You are not to kill.  What is this?  Answer: We are to fear and love God, so that we neither endanger nor harm the lives of our neighbors, but instead help and support them in all of life's needs" (264).  What this piece from Luther has taught me is that there are innumerable ways of supporting our neighbor.  Sometimes it just looks very different for different people.  In the first picture is one of several clothing boxes I was giving away outside of our apartment.  I have often been grateful for the many times in which I have been helped by the community through this giving away system which has been developed at the seminary complex.  Of course there are its disadvantages, however, I have been amazed by the number of times in which I have seen people post that their piece of furniture has been in the community for years, and so they are passing it along to someone else.  I have certainly already done this as I acquired things and then gave them back to others and will certainly be doing a great deal more of this as we begin to move.  I have wondered how this system might be applied to our work in the church.  Luther was one who helped in developing the idea of a community chest in which anyone could take from it if they needed a little extra help.  I have seen similar things in churches particularly larger ones which have more funding.  I have wondered though what are some ways in which we might be able to help others through giving.

In the second picture is a grouping of music boxes.  What is not pictured is the time which I spent with my mother on this day in which we spent time together as it was the eight year anniversary of my Grandma’s death.  While this time spent together most certainly helped me as much as it did her if not more, it also made further recognize the importance of simply the act of being present as a form of healing or rather the opposite of killing.  I have come to recognize that when I have not made time to support my loved ones and friends, I have truly broken this commandment as I have not helped them in their brokenness.  Instead, I have caused further brokenness particularly during the moments I have heard them cry for help and I have done nothing.  Through the ministry of presence, it is possible that “supporting them in all life’s needs” is being done.

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Every week during the worship services at my current field education church we have a piece following the confession and assurance sequence called the "Summary of the Law."  I had not realized during our first class when Dr. Duff asked if we talk about the Ten Commandments on a weekly basis, but the very next Sunday I thought - my goodness we most certainly do! The difference is that while this may refer to the commandments, it most certainly focuses on the Matthew 22 commandment by Jesus, it still acknowledges in a sense all of the commandments.

Having been reminded of God’s love for us, Let us remember what God’s love asks of us.

Someone asked Jesus, “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in all of the law?”

And Jesus answered them, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul,

and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment.

And the second says this: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.
On these hang everything found in the law and the prophets.”

In reflecting on Jesus’ words, all forms of killing most certainly could be included in this.  In this picture, you will see one of my practice crosses for the Palm Sunday children’s worship service.  There is certainly much to say around Holy Week and the commandments as we see in the Scripture texts for this week again and again when the commandments were broken.  In considering this image in particular, I have been thinking a lot lately about how peculiar it is that we use the cross as our sacred symbol for our faith.  I have struggled with this as I have worn a small cross on a necklace since I was eight years old and a tiny cross ring since I was 12 years old, and I don’t know if I can shed these pieces from my body as it is such an important and constant  reminder for me of my faith.  As someone who is as close to a pacifist as you can get, though, I often wonder what other symbols could remind me of Christ and remind me to follow these commandments.  I am wondering what other things could symbolize for us in our daily lives the commandment not to kill.  What other image could be more powerful to show us not to kill than the cross which killed an innocent person who died for us?  Maybe that is indeed the best way to acknowledge our need to rid ourselves of killing in our lives.

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This second picture more directly aligns with what is spoken about above in my drawing. Here I was teaching a class about using art as a form of creative care for ourselves.

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This picture aligns with the above picture and comments I made regarding non human life.  To be honest, my relationships with my pets have always been as important as human relationships and so I have a significant bias on this one.  I have often wondered, though, why more funding does not go to the preservation of animal life. For instance, while we would like to have pet insurance for our little 12 year old chihuahua, it is much too costly for how often we actually take him to the vet. In turn, though, because his vet is very expensive, we have not been able to afford taking him there as often as we would like in regards to his eyes which have rapidly deteriorated causing for him to be completely blind.  While the one vet said there was nothing to be done, I would have liked to have gone to another place to have a second opinion.  Nevertheless, because of our lack of finances we could not swing to going to yet another vet.  I have wondered if pet healthcare should become more of a requirement as is the case with human healthcare, or if there should be some form of help when it comes to caring for our pets. Pictured here is my little doggy pitifully thinking he was looking right at me.

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There were several much more beautiful pictures taken by my talented photography friends during this change of season, but here is my not so beautiful picture I took right as this bush began to bloom.  Within just a few days it then became covered with ten times as many white blooms, yet this picture captures shows the onset of it.  Something which I think is important to consider when thinking about the 6th commandment is the idea of not killing anything including the things found in our natural world.  In regards to this commandment Luther writes, "God has placed this commandment as a wall, fortress, and a refuge around our neighbors, so that no one may do them bodily harm or injury.  The meaning of this commandment then is that no one should harm another person for any evil deed, no matter how much that person deserves” (327).  I think this is fascinating to evaluate if we were to apply this to all living things.  While it is assumed that the second tablet is referring to our relationship with humans, it is very possible that we could identify it as being in relation to all living things.  If for some reason one does not care about caring for plants, it could also be argued that caring for our nature in turn cares for us.

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Clearly this is not a picture I have taken, but rather one of my many drawings.  This particular one with the words written to one side is now the banner on my resume (because hey why not stand out with a picture). This image I believe encapsulates a lot of what my ministry thus far has been about which has included community activities which involve diverse people working creatively to care for one another and engage with God.  How this connects to the 6th commandment?  I believe it has everything to do with it.  Miller writes, "Matters become more complex when one tries to relate the prohibition to actual acts of taking life." (221)  He says this in response to how we should not simplify the commandment as it is so often done.  I believe in our ministries we sometimes tend to simplify what we do.  In the end, though, in any caring field, nothing is simple when it comes to caring for people.  I have been wondering what more the church can do in caring for one another rather than causing for divisions even within a single denomination.  It is a hard pill to swallow to think that we could be killing others simply in the work we are doing which may be more catered to the more vocal people in the congregation.  I think about one woman I have spoken to a few times in church who always attends the education events, yet never speaks and seems to feel like an outsider even though she could very well be included if the church offered her a space which allowed her to open up.  Through our love is it possible to show that we want to care for all individuals in the congregation and in the surrounding community?  I believe so.  It is just whether or not we want to make sacrifices and whether or not we are truly willing to sacrifice our own comfortable habits and our finances.

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I have been using the MTA since I was quite young as I went back and forth to school getting to my many diverse destinations.  As any New Yorker would say, often times it does not work well, and even though they keep raising the prices, and supposedly are trying to improve it, it seems about the same to me as it was ten years ago as it is now.  I took this particular picture in Grand Central which is a very familiar stop to me and one which has changed very little as I think back on when I would get off at this stop during high school to meet up with my mom after work or to take the longer route home when I was bored with the usual route I took.  As I have seen the various statistics, there are of course many parts of the MTA which are not very safe, yet considering how many people ride it daily, it is a wonder that more does not happen on the subway.  Personally, I have been privileged not to have too many dangerous encounters on it.  Partially because I always try to be as discreet as possible.  Nevertheless, I have had witnessed several times how individuals have been physically or emotionally hurt by the other individuals who use it.  When reading from Miller’s book about how the community should handle killing one of its members in regards to the legal code of Numbers 35 (224), I am wondering if not providing a very safe transit environment is a way of killing members of the community.  For instance, while some stations are beyond impeccable such as the new Q train stations on the Upper East Side, there are others which are far from deteriorated and are clearly not care for simply because the neighborhood houses more impoverished people.  I would say that this is a form of killing as certain stations are not as kept up as others which then attracts poor behavior on the part of some people who use the station.  I wonder if every station was well kept up how different the MTA could be in caring for and not hurting the people who use it.

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This is a picture of the food spread which my sweet friend and my sister created for my baby shower.  The shower was extremely thoughtful for many different reasons and captured all of our personalities.  Even the baby who at the moment is still throwing himself around inside of me.  While I did not think that I would address abortion in my daily life, it has been more on my mind simply because of carrying my own baby.  I have always seen abortion or any form of killing should be decided by the government.  To show my own cards, I am personally more of the mindset of the "consistent life ethic" which became popularized by the Roman Catholic Cardinal Joseph Bernardin.  In this ethic, it is opposed to capital punishment, abortion, unjust war, and assisted suicide.  It also includes the importance of caring for immigrants and refugees and in providing adequate healthcare to the poor.  What I would like to note is that while I don't think all of this would apply to everyone, I personally could not go through with the above things if I was the one in a position of power.  Anyway, this is just to show my position.  On the other hand, I have been thinking a lot about if I was in a different place with the baby inside me.  For instance, I have often thought about the women who become pregnant as a result of rape, or are lacking any support in terms of insurance or have no family support either physically or emotionally.  I can completely understand why someone would choose to have an abortion.  Apart from that,  I have also been thinking about - how has our society failed young people who had no intention of getting pregnant, but because of a lack of education do not understand or do not have the resources to prevent pregnancy? In the end, I truly believe that it is a failure of our society rather than the women who feel forced to choose abortion and we cannot blame women for choosing this as our society does not then support the poor individuals who cannot afford to have a baby and raise a child.

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While I have never worked in a large church prior to working at my third and last field education setting, I have to admit I could almost walk blind folded around the neighborhood it is in.  Located on 74th street in Manhattan, I can list several different connections I have to this area ranging from my places of education - middle school, high school, and college to one of my other former places of employment being the Met museum to innumerable connections.  This picture was taken from the roof garden of the church which looks down onto Madison avenue and to the church's steeple.  I have been thinking about what are the things which bring me life, and the things which do not. It is fascinating to me how there are things which bring others life would absolutely kill another person. For instance, looking at this neighborhood brings me such comfort and is such a source of familiarity which makes me relaxed, yet for another person it would be the worst place one could be. I have wondered if it is a form of killing or at least punishment to force others to be in the places and spaces which bring them emotional or spiritual harm. So often it seems that martyrdom is pushed onto many individuals as people feel that they are "supposed" to work at a particular job or in a particular place. Might it actually be better to place a person where they feel most content and won't that only allow them to perform or function better wherever that might be? For another commandment, Miller speaks about the importance of "covenant community" (274) which is very specific to the second table of the commandments. There is something to be said for lifting up others and caring for them even through our encouragements which I think we sometimes lack in helping others as they make particular life decisions such as career choices and identifying where they should be.

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During my senior service which I had the honor of leading at the seminary, my primary focus for the service was on the importance of using our own creative languages to communicate with God inspired by Genesis 1:1-27.  During the service, my husband did a live painting inspired by the reading, music, and my sermon.  Around the chapel works of art created by the community inspired by Genesis 1 were displayed.  As I planned for the service, and now that I reflect on it, I am continually recognizing how we often choose to kill other's creative spirits within the church.  Although is not bringing harm to the physical body of a person, I have seen multiple times both in the church as well as in education how much the creative spirit has been stifled as other forms of worship, care, and outreach have been lifted up as more essential or more necessary.  Miller writes, "The commandment itself clearly prohibits some forms of taking life.  What those are, how extensive they may be, and the broad function of the commandment to protect life requires an exploration of the movement of the commandment and its playing out in the statutes and stories..." (223).  I think it is easy to argue that there is some form of taking of life when we discredit other's form of worship simply because we ourselves cannot identify with it.

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In these images you may notice a lot of different things which seem seemingly disconnected.  For a little over a month, I have been taking pictures in my daily life which I believe connect to in some way to "You shall not kill," the commandment from the second table of the ten commandments.  As a refresher, here are all of the commandments from the second table as found in New Revised Standard Version of Exodus 20:

13 You shall not murder.

14 You shall not commit adultery.

15 You shall not steal.

16 You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.

17 You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or male or female slave, or ox, or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.

As noted in Patrick D. Miller's commentary on the ten commandments,* there are a number of ways in which these commandments can be applied to our lives.  While the commandment may appear to be obvious, by stretching the commandments to show what we should do rather than what we should not do, it is possible that we can understand the law in a new way.  I encourage everyone to see how we constantly combat or support these commandments even in the very simple and everyday tasks we do.  You can see how I have journeyed through the sixth commandment in particular throughout a month's time.  By taking up this practice, it is possible to see how deeply rooted these commandments are in everything we do.

*I highly recommend purchasing this commentary
if you would like to do further study on the ten commandments.
You can click the link below to purchase on Amazon.

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The Ten Commandments: Interpretation: Resources for the Use of Scripture in the Church

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Shared via Kindle. Description: In this volume, Patrick D. Miller studies the Ten Commandments as ancient document and as contemporary guide. With careful attention to each commandment in its original context, this book shows the reader the modern relevance...