Most Britons – and British Christians – only see six of the Bible's Ten Commandments as important principles to live by, according to a recent survey.
A UK study by YouGov found that four of the defining tenets of Judeo-Christian tradition – the command not to worship idols, not to take the Lord's name in vain, to worship God alone and to keep the Sabbath holy – are now seen as 'not important' by most British people. Only a minority of British Christians said that the same commandments are 'important principles to live by'.
Most Britons still firmly backed other commandments however. Ninety-four per cent of Christians and 93 per cent of those with no religion agreed that 'Thou shalt not kill' and 'Thou shalt not steal' were important life principles.
In third place among all groups was the command not to bear false witness (to lie), agreed to be important by 87 per cent of all Brits, 90 per cent of Christians, and 86 per cent of those without a religion.
Finding less support but still the backing of most Brits, the command not to covet is still backed by 61 per cent of the British public, 52 per cent of those with no religion and 72 per cent of Christians.
The more explicitly religious commandments found only minority support across the British public. Just 31 per cent of the public agreed that idols (defined as statues or symbols) shouldn't be worshipped, and even Christians were conflicted: 43 per cent said it was still an important commandment, while 44 per cent said the opposite.
The commandment 'I am the Lord thy God, You shall have no other God before me', is seen as relevant by just five per cent of non-religious Brits, and 20 per cent of the general public. The command to keep the Sabbath day holy was the least popular across the British public (19 per cent), seen as important by only 31 per cent of Christians.
The Bishop of Chelmsford, Stephen Cottrell, warned of the consequences of dwindling concern over resting on the Sabbath or avoiding idolatry. He told The Daily Telegraph: 'Whether it is celebrity, wealth, a certain designer label pair of jeans jeans or a make of car, we have all construct a sense of worth in the desire to own and possess certain things that we believe will give value.
'None of it works; or perhaps more accurately we should say it works just enough to get you hooked. Without being warned of the dangers of idolatry, we just become a society of junkies.'
