Decalogue: A Meditation on the Ten Commandments is true to its title. It is a reflections on the ten-pillar Mosaic code. For three millennia, the Ten Commandments have had a profound influence as a central moral framework for human society. "Decalogue" plumbs afresh this moral influence, while also arguing for the code's metaphysical and remedial importance. Matteson mostly sidesteps interpretations of the Commandments relating to particular contemporary controversies, leaving those mostly to the judgment of the individual reader. However, the book's wrestlings are as obviously timely today as their subject matter is timeless. One has only to consider such headline "Decalogue" topics as aggression, infidelity, dispossession, lies, and acquisitive materialism - and their opposing core social values. But the overall attitude of the book is "big picture": generic, reflective, rational. How can we place these simple historic laws in perspective? How do they interrelate? What is their rationale, their underlying logic? What is their importance to society and individuals? Why do they matter? Matteson offers his own frank views on these and related questions. He challenges the reader to think, to look beyond the surface, while essaying to be true to the texts. The author is upfront about his reverence for Scripture, while respecting nonbelievers. But those who feel these axiomatic norms are quaint and obsolete should be prepared for a spirited counterargument.
