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That's why the greatest sin is religious evil. That's
what the Third Commandment is there to teach:

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People who murder in the name of God not only
kill their victims, they kill God, too.

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or was done in the past in the name of Christ.

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In fact, the most frequent argument against
God and religion concerns evil committed in

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eruption of atheist activism -- followed the
9-11 attacks on America by Islamist terrorists.

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God's name -- whether it is done in the name
of Allah today

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the name of God. It is not coincidental that
what is called the New Atheism -- the immense

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bomb, cut throats, and mass murder -- all
in the name of God -- do terrible damage to

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In our time, there is an example of this.
The evils committed by Islamists who torture,

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they are doing terrible damage to thename of God.

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especially in God's name, they are not only committing
evil,

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it doesn't bring God and religion into disrepute.
But when religious people commit evil,

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Why not?
When an irreligious person commits evil,

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This is much closer to the original's intent.

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And that God will not forgive.

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than the word "take:" "You shall not misuse
the name of the Lord your God."

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What does it mean to "carry" or to "misuse"
God's name? It means committing evil in God's name.

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new translations of the Bible, the New International
Version, or NIV, uses the word "misuse" rather

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The Hebrew literally reads, "Do not carry the name of the Lord thy God in vain." One of the most widely used

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The Hebrew original doesn't say "Do not take;"
it says "Do not carry."

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Well, as it happens, the commandment is not
the problem. The problem is the translation.

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That would render God and the Ten Commandments
morally incomprehensible.

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someone who said, "God, did I have a rough
day at work today!" Let's be honest:

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one's parents, stealing, adultery, or even
committing murder -- He would never forgive

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whereas God could forgive the violation of
any of the other commandments -- dishonoring

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the Third Commandment. But that interpretation
presents a real problem. It would mean that

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no good reason. So, something like, "God,
did I have a rough day at work today!" violates

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Most people understandably think that the
commandment forbids saying God's name for

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"will not forgive" -- whoever takes His name
in vain."

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"Do not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain.
For the Lord will not hold guiltless" -- meaning

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What does this Commandment say?
It is most commonly translated as,

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of the Ten Commandments that states that God will not forgive a person who violates the commandment.

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How do we know? From the Third Commandment of
the Ten Commandments. This is the only one

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So, then, what is the worst sin? The worst
sin is committing evil in God's name.

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an office item with murder.

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much common sense as we do. The God of Judaism
and Christianity does not equate stealing

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that some sins are clearly worse than others.
We are confident that God has at least as

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God's eyes as a murderer. But most people
intuitively, as well as biblically, understand

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In this view, a person who steals a stapler from the
office is committing as grievous a sin in

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worse than any other. "To God, a sin is a
sin," is how it's often expressed.

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I'm Dennis Prager.

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Is there such a thing as "the worst sin" -- one
sin that is worse than all others?

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Don't carry God's name in vain. If you do,
God won't forgive you.

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Well, there is. I am well aware that some people differ.
They maintain that we can't declare any sin