Superseded Laws in Public Schools

Let me begin by stating that I am not a cultural warrior — a spiritual warrior, perhaps. But I have no interest in the so-called “culture wars.”

And so I’m not interested in weighing in on the latest skirmish in the ongoing culture clash. Instead, I want to bring some truth and clarity to the legal fight over posting copies of the Ten Commandments in public schools. I read a recent Rolling Stone article about Louisiana becoming the first state to sign into law a requirement that the Ten Commandments be displayed in every public school classroom in a poster-sized display in a “large, easily readable font.”

While I’m not particularly interested in this battle of the culture war or the specific legal arguments involved, I AM VERY interested in the underlying spiritual truth related to this particular law.

The driver for this particular legal requirement of posting the Ten Commandments in public schools seems to be organized Christian groups. What most baffles me, confuses me and motivates me to do a podcast episode about this is the fact that I find it spiritually misguided and in error. And here’s why…

The core, the foundation of spiritual truth, for a Christian is the New Testament of the Bible, which contains all of Jesus’ teachings, St. Paul’s various letters to Gentile groups, and the Book of Revelations, among other things.

The New Testament sets forth what is called the New Covenant, which is the new profound spiritual agreement between God and His people established through Jesus Christ. Now, the focus of the New Covenant involves internal spiritual transformation rather than an external set of rules. This is what distinguishes it from the Old Covenant, given through Moses, which was primarily a set of laws and regulations that governed the behavior of the Israelites. So, while the Old Covenant specifically was intended for the Israelites, the New Covenant extends to all people, including Gentiles, non-Jews.

I mean, can this law mandating posting the old superseded commandments in schools really be just a simple mistake? Wouldn’t the good Christians behind requiring the posting of commandments in our public schools want our children to know the spiritual truth from the newest version of the commandments given by Jesus, himself?

Transcript

E19 — Posting Superseded Laws in Schools

Let me begin by stating that I am not a cultural warrior — a spiritual warrior, perhaps. But I have no interest in the so-called “culture wars.”

And so, I’m not interested in weighing in on the latest skirmish in the ongoing culture clash. Instead, I want to bring some truth and clarity to the legal fight over posting copies of the Ten Commandments in public schools. I read a recent Rolling Stone article about Louisiana becoming the first state to sign into law a requirement that the Ten Commandments be displayed in every public school classroom in a poster-sized display in a “large, easily readable font.”

Despite being a retired lawyer and current member of the State Bar of California, I will defer any legal analysis to the very many highly skilled lawyers with expertise in First Amendment matters who will be garrisoned around this particular legal battlefield for the foreseeable future.

 While I’m not particularly interested in this battle of the culture war or the specific legal arguments involved, I am VERY interested in the underlying spiritual truth related to this particular law. So, let’s get into it.

And just for context, for those of you who may not know, I spent most of 2024 feverishly researching and writing a book about a spiritual revelation I received a little over a year ago now. I took that cryptic revelation as a kind of bid to undertake a personal quest, and I chronicled that journey in Finding the Fractal Christ: An Integrative Spiritual Quest.

As I’ve been hearing these reports about posting copies of the Ten Commandments in public schools, I understand that this has become a kind of politicized symbol originating from … maybe I can say… from the “religious right.” Again, I want to stay apolitical here, but that term can be found in the current versions of generative AI chatbots like Perplexity and ChatGPT 4o. So, it has some validity as a term related to a Christian-oriented political movement. But I don’t want to quibble about it here.

The relevant point I want to make here is that organized Christian groups seem to be the driver for this particular legal requirement of posting the Ten Commandments in public schools. Okay?

What most baffles me, confuses me and motivates me to do a podcast episode about this is the fact that I find it spiritually misguided and in error. And here’s why…

Like I said, I’m focused on finding and living by spiritual truth. And the core, the foundation of spiritual truth, for a Christian is the New Testament of the Bible, which contains all of Jesus’ teachings, St. Paul’s various letters to Gentile groups, and the Book of Revelations, among other things. Sounds reasonable, right?

Okay. And the New Testament sets forth what is called the New Covenant, which is the new profound spiritual agreement between God and His people established through Jesus Christ. Now, the focus of the New Covenant involves internal spiritual transformation rather than an external set of rules. This is what distinguishes it from the Old Covenant, given through Moses, which was primarily a set of laws and regulations that governed the behavior of the Israelites. So, while the Old Covenant specifically was intended for the Israelites, the New Covenant extends to all people, including Gentiles, non-Jews.

We find an Old Testament prophecy of the New Covenant in the Book of Jeremiah chapter 31: verses 31-34. It reads:

Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, when I will make a New Covenant with the house of Israel. . . . Not like the covenant which I made with their fathers. . . . I will put my law within them, and I will write it upon their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people . . . and they shall all know me . . . and I will remember their sin no more.

I don’t think I’m alone in thinking that, even back in Jeremiah’s day, there was this talk anticipating a New Covenant, not written on stone tablets or inscribed on parchments, but written upon human hearts. Now, in my research, I concluded that if the Israelites of Jeremiah’s time and even Jesus time were around today, instead of stating the New Covenant would be written upon human hearts, they might say this New Covenant would be imprinted as a divine pattern on human consciousness. That’s all I’ll say about that here, but I wrote about it in Finding the Fractal Christ.

Besides the Jeremiah prophecy of the New Covenant, Jesus speaks to his disciples as the New Covenant lawgiver. And we have his words recorded across at least three gospels where he amends and supersedes the original Ten Commandments of the Old Covenant lawgiver, Moses. 

Now, If we read Matthew chapter 5, verses 21-48, we hear Jesus amending and revising Commandments 6, 7, and 9. So, in verse 21, he tells his disciples:

You have heard that it was said to those of ancient times, ‘You shall not murder’; and ‘whoever murders shall be liable to judgment.’ But I say to you that if you are angry with a brother or sister, you will be liable to judgment; and if you insult a brother or sister, you will be liable to the council; and if you say, ‘You fool,’ you will liable to the hell of fire.

Just to state the obvious, that’s way stricter than saying, just don’t murder anyone, right? I mean, how many times a day across all media is that commandment being violated… just sayin'.

If you like that one, consider the revision to the commandment against adultery in verse 27:

You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lust has already committed adultery with her in his heart. If your right eye causes you sin, tear it out and throw it away; it is better for you to lose one of your members than for your whole body to be thrown into hell.

And, as a person who has been through a divorce, verse 31 got my attention:

It was also said, ‘Whoever divorces his wife, let him give her a certificate of divorce.’ But I say to you that anyone who divorces his wife, except on the ground of unchastity, causes her to commit adultery, and whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery.

Now, that’s a drop-the-mic Jesus moment! Wow!

Now, Jesus also issued a new commandment to his disciples in John chapter 13, verses 34-35: 

A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.

Anyway, if you want to see what other revisions Jesus had for commandments 4, 5, and 10, then check out Matthew chapter 15, verses 3-9, Mark chapter 2, verses 27-28, and Luke chapter 12, verse 15.

I mean, … no offense, but can this law mandating posting the old superseded commandments in schools really be just a simple mistake? When some people refer to “old-time religion,” are they talking pre-Christian?  I mean, wouldn’t the good Christians behind requiring the posting of commandments in our public schools want our children to know the spiritual truth from the newest version of the commandments given by Jesus himself? 

Copyright © 2025 by Joe Kornowski