The New Ten Commandments
Winners and losers
The original Ten Commandments, it is said, were handed down from heaven, but the New Commandments came together on the internet, and in a more democratic way. Here's how.
Online pollsters YouGov conducted two surveys for Channel 4. In the first poll, voters were asked to suggest a set of New Commandments that were relevant to the way we live today. Over 4,000 people took part, and all the suggestions they made were used to produce a top twenty.
The second poll asked voters to select just ten New Commandments out of the top twenty. Over 40,000 people took part from right across the UK.
Moral map
What do the New Commandments reveal about moral attitudes in the different regions of Britain? Looking at the way the regions voted, we discover the following...
Don't kill
Londoners came out most strongly against capital punishment (73%), while Northerners
weren't so sure (64%).
Don't steal
20% of people in the West Country think it's ok to steal
the office paperclips.
Respect mum
and dad
If you're a parent living in London or East Anglia,
you're more likely to get grief from your kids than anywhere else
in the UK – only 38% of people in these areas voted for this
commandment.
Enjoy life
Only 32% of people in Tyne Tees thought enjoying life was
important.
Don't commit adultery
Out of all the UK regions, people in the north of Scotland
are most set against adultery. Some 28% of them say it should be
forbidden.
The top commandments
'No! No! No! No! No!' was the anguished cry of supermodel, Caprice, on learning that young men had bowed down in worship before her image in an ex-church. The stunt was set up by Channel 4's New Ten Commandments programme to illustrate the fact that the second of the old Ten Commandments had been firmly rejected by the public. 'Make no graven images' was out.
Altogether, seven of the Ten Commandments were overturned in the Channel 4 poll.
Out went the commandments against breaking the Sabbath, taking the Lord's name in vain and coveting the possessions of others. In came commandments which are positive and generous in spirit. 'There's none of the cynicism you might expect from these times,' comments Jon Snow.
Here are the top 20, in no particular order...
- Be honest
- Don't kill
- Look after the vulnerable
- Respect your mother and father
- Enjoy life
- Nothing in excess
- Be true to your own God
- Treat others as you would like to be treated
- Be true to yourself
- Protect your family
- Try your best at all times
- Look after your health.
- Don't commit adultery
- Live within your means
- Appreciate what you have
- Never be violent
- Protect the environment
- Protect and nurture children
- Take responsibility for your own actions
- Don't steal
The Chief Rabbi, Jonathan Sacks, is intrigued by the New Commandments,
and doesn't see them as a radical break with the past. 'Almost
all the New Commandments are back there in the Bible. The only
really new one is "Be true to yourself",' he says.
Come back after the programme on Saturday night to find out the top commandment.
