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Neil Dominic Jumamoy
wrote:
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Hi, guys —
- Could you please explain how oaths are in accord with the Scriptures?
Taking an oath is a common practice for certain people in specific fields throughout the world.
- We see oath taking in a court or when an official is inaugurated for office.
- In our school, we are required to take an oath every day as it is a sign of patriotism.
In my country, the Philippines, we call it Panatang Makabayan. In fact, it is a national order of our country.
Nevertheless, I have read a passage from the Scriptures which states:
33 Again, you have heard that it was said to those who lived long ago, 'You must not swear an oath falsely,' but 'You must fulfill your oaths to the Lord.' 34 But I tell you not to swear at all, neither by heaven, because it is God's throne, 35 nor by the earth, because it is his footstool, nor by Jerusalem, because it is the city of the Great King. 36 Nor should you swear by your head, because you cannot make one hair white or black. 37 Instead, let your message be 'Yes' for 'Yes' and 'No' for 'No.' Anything more than that comes from the evil one.
(Matthew 5:33-37 (ISV) |
I do not personally practice making promises to others that I will do something, as I just may fail (him|her). I think, no one can be certain if something will happen, or not, or whether someone can do something, or not, except God.
In the case of public oaths:
- inaugurations for a position
- oaths in a court
- oaths of patriotism, etc.
- Are these things included in what Jesus has said (above) that we should not do?
- If that's the case, then why does the world continue to practice these?, or . . .
- Why don't I hear the Church admonishing the people, or prohibiting them from making such oaths?
I was raised in a Catholic school.
- Why are they letting us take the Panatang Makabayan every day?
- Are they not informed about this passage in the Scriptures?
- Is the Church forced to conform with this kind of practice?
- Or maybe there is another reason.
Public oaths usually contain promises to oneself to have a specific virtue that one must have for a certain position. Most of them are not manual work but something that builds character, i.e.:
- I will do my best.
- I will perform well.
- I will regard this as my primary responsibility.
- I will not abuse my power.
- I will take care of my people, etc.
This idea gives me a hint but I'd still be interested in your explanation. I think it's better to solicit answers from people who know the faith better than me, and who will give me a truthful answer whether it is easy or difficult to accept.
Neil
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Why are we asked to make these oaths when Our Lord has told us in Matthew 5 that we shouldn't? }
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John replied:
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Hi, Neil —
This is one of those texts where a little common sense goes long way. Jesus is making a point about swearing oaths you can't keep or those you take lightly.
Oaths are essential elements of covenants. Oaths are vows. Without a vow you have no sacrament of Matrimony.
When we receive Holy Communion, we say Amen. We are in effect saying more than Amen
or So be it; we are renewing our covenant with the Lord and our Amen becomes our oath.
In the secular world, the most common oath is probably when we are asked to swear to tell the truth in a court of law.
That is actually a very powerful statement. We know that we are weak and may not want to tell the truth, but we invoke the power of God to assist us in telling the truth, so that justice may be served.
An oath is the invocation of God's power to be able to uphold our end of a promise. When we call upon God for such help, He will give it, but if we don't avail ourselves of this help, then we come under a curse. That's just the way a covenant works. You can't really break it once you enter it.
If you try to break it, it breaks you.
Christ is warning us not to swear oaths lightly. He uses strong language. He says don't swear oaths. Let your Yes be Yes and your No be No. Let's remember that Jesus is giving a sermon or a speech. Speeches contain homiletic devices or literary devices which are meant to emphasize points, so Jesus is using hyperbole in his rhetoric to make his point stick. He didn't mean to prohibit oaths. He was addressing their misuse.
St. Paul wrote to the Thessalonians:
10 . . . those who shall not work, shall not eat.
2 Thessalonians 3:10
- Does that mean we should starve infants, sick people, and the elderly, because they don't work?
No, of course not. We need to look at the text and apply some common sense.
John
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