SECOND COMMANDMENT
NOT TO TAKE HIS HOLY NAME IN VAIN
150.- WHAT THIS COMMANDS.- The second Commandment of the Law of God commands us to invoke, respect and honor the Holy Name of God and fulfill the lawful oaths and vows. [Jesus Christ teaches us not to swear].
This second commandment also orders us to speak with reverence of the Virgin, of the Angels, of the Saints and of everything that refers to the Church, cult and Religion in general.
151.- RESPECT FOR THE NAME OF GOD.- Here by the Name of God we do not understand only the word or phoneme with which we name the Lord, but the supreme Majesty of the Triune and One God; that is, His divine attributes of Creator, sovereign Lord, Eternal, Infinite, Almighty, etc., and the same as it refers to Jesus Christ in the Blessed Sacrament.
We respect the Name of God if we invoke Him with piety and devotion, either to thank Him for as many benefits as we receive from His infinite goodness, or to ask Him for forgiveness or to reach strength, shelter and protection in the works, needs, hardships and dangers, and more over in the hour of death.
The pious invocation of the Holy Name of God, of the Virgin and of the Saints is an inexhaustible source of graces and blessings. A very simple and practical means of invoking them devoutly is the use of short prayers, many of which were given indulgences by the Church. (See our Missal of Sundays and Feasts, pages 24, 30 and others.)
God, the highest Good, exceeds all praise and must be praised in truth and not only with our lips. An appropriate way to praise Him is singing.
[Note: In the Old Testament, the Archangel St. Raphael told to Tobit and Tobias that we have to sing to God every day, and the Virgin of Garabandal said She wants the Hail Holy Queen sung after the Rosary.]
Prayer well done leads to devotion, but singing snatches, touches and produces deep emotion.
[Note: those beautiful old chants...
Now here in the book there follow 3 points about the kinds of oath that I will not copy because Jesus said:
Again, ye have heard that it has been said to the ancients, Thou shalt not forswear thyself, but shalt render to the Lord what thou hast sworn. But I say unto you, Do not swear at all; neither by the heaven, because it is the throne of God; nor by the earth, because it is the footstool of his feet; nor by Jerusalem, because it is the city of the great King. Neither shalt thou swear by thy head, because thou canst not make one hair white or black. But let your word be Yea, yea; Nay, nay; but what is more than these is from evil." (Saint Matthew 5, 33-37)
In point 154 it says: "It is a matter of faith that for the oath to be good it is necessary to swear with truth, with justice and with necessity. This is how it is written in the prophet Jeremiah (IV, 2): "And thou shalt swear: As the Lord liveth, in truth, and in judgement, and in justice: and the Gentiles shall bless him, and shall praise him.”
Without these requirements no oath can be taken, under penalty of sin."
It turns out that he doesn't say you to swear, but: if you swear, do it with those requirements. But Jesus, God the Son, Divine Master, continues to teach us to go the Way, and commands us not to swear. It is like the law of the Talion (or retaliation) that is incorporated at the beginning of the Bible, it was a valid principle but people had to grow from there.
I give you few samples of how, in the points of this chapter on the oath, they have deviated so much from the narrow path that Jesus teaches us, that they have returned to the pharisaism of: "if you swear by the altar it is nothing, but if you swear by the offering on the altar you are obliged".
Point 153 says that these are suitable formulas: "I swear by God, I put God as a witness, I swear by Jesus Christ, by the Cross, by the Gospels, by my soul, etc., punish me God if this..." All these go against the Word of Jesus Christ, God the Son.
They say “there are null oaths”: "there are not true oaths those that are made by invoking false gods, ancestors, parents, children, honor, light, sun, moon, etc. Usually, those who sign so-called affidavits do not swear [???!!].
Doubtful formulas are those whose binding force depends on the use or custom, or the intention that is put when pronouncing them: God lives, God knows it, I swear by my conscience, before God I say ..."
That is a whole pharisaical paraphernalia because of not following Jesus Christ on the narrow path He teaches us.
Besides, if you meditate Prophet Jeremiah: "You shall swear by the life of Yahweh, with truth, with right, and with justice”, you will agree with someone I read in the past that said it is unfair to make God a witness of our words when we can neither make a hair of our head black or white. It is difficult to understand the oath some Ministers make, saying: “I swear by the Gospels and the Constitution”, so… if he is a deceiver… would the Gospels suffer? Or another oath (swear?): “I will fulfill my duties with honesty, if not, let God and the Country demand against me” , this is my approximate translation, those words are irrelevant because God MAKES JUSTICE sooner or later, and the Country… it depends. If we cannot swear by our own head… how is it that some people names others?
It has been said, "There is everything in the vineyard of God". The Church is not made of perfect people but only in the Church we find and receive God. Jesus chose a demon as an apostle, for example, to show us that they will not destroy His Church. There are many stories of good nuns with viper superiors or good superiors with viper monks, etc.
After writing this, I read in lesson 14: Sins Opposite the 2nd. Commandment:
{169.- PRACTICAL ADVICE.- Regarding the oath, it is good and prudent to avoid it as long as possible, following the most wise advice of Jesus Christ [His Words are Commandments!!!!]: "Do not swear in any way: not by heaven, throne of God; nor by the earth, pedestal of his feet; nor by Jerusalem,... not even by the head... Say simply: yes, yes; no, no." But if you swear, you will keep your commandments to the Lord. (Read S. Mat., V, 33-37).
[Here the infiltrated one mentions S. Matthew between brackets, so if someone do not pays attention, would think that the added words: “but if you swear…” are part of Jesus’s Words]
Keep in mind what the Jewish philosopher Philo of Alexandria said: "If you are asked to swear the truth today, promise that you will swear tomorrow; and if tomorrow they ask you that again, delay it for the day after tomorrow: who knows if you will avoid having to swear?"
Take an oath only because of absolute necessity or true utility, trying to enter into as few obligations as possible.}
So… God the Son was made man and spoke to us, and it turns out to these infiltrated vipers that His Words are mere "most wise advice"! And on top of that they put the advice of someone who teaches you to promise by lying just because he doesn’t know how to be consistent with what he thinks. That coward is trying not to break the 2nd. Commandment but he blindly teaches to break the 8th. Commandment. Moreover, between the Words of Jesus (which they quoted badly) and the biblical verse, they added very maliciously "but if you swear, you will fulfill..."]
155.- VOW.- Vow is a free and deliberate promise made to God of a good, possible and better thing than its opposite, with the intention of obliging oneself. It is an act of the virtue of religion by which man offers and sacrifices to God what he has of most value: the will and freedom. It is a binding of the weak human nature to force him to fulfill what he owes to God or promise Him. It embraces everything we need to do or omit.
The vow is an act of latría, therefore, it is only made to God, but it can be presented to Him through the Virgin or the Saints, as witnesses or protectors. Anyone who has sufficient use of reason can make vows.
The works that are done by vow are better and of greater merit than those that are done without it, because they have double goodness: their own and that of the vow. "The vow is a chain that binds, obliges and imprisons; but it is a golden chain, because it was formed by love, and it ennobles the works to which it compels."
The most excellent vows are those of poverty, chastity and obedience made by the religious.
156.- VALIDITY OF THE VOW.- For the vow to be valid, the following conditions are necessary:
1ª That he who makes it enjoys complete and absolute personal freedom.
2ª That he has a current intention (or at least virtual) [??] firm, and exact intention to be linked to it.
3ª That the matter of the vow is morally possible, good and better than the omission of the vow.
4ª The vow is null and void if the person ignores its obligation, if it is not done for a religious reason in the name of God, if it exceeds the physical or moral capacity [?!] of the one who promises (vow to fast when one lacks health), if it is done under pressure of serious and unjust fear, if it is of vain things, if it goes against one's duties. The feigned vow is invalid [I suppose e.g. in a theatre play], also the vow made with complete ignorance.
157.- PRACTICAL ADVICE.- Prudence advises that no vows be made lightly or in a moment of fervor. Before making them, it is advisable to consult them with a prudent confessor.
It is unwise to bind oneself at first under grave sin; oblige yourself only under light guilt. It is convenient to go little by little, first to force yourself for a short time; it is better to renew it from time to time than to do it forever. If after long experience it is seen that it is not a hindrance, but an incentive to practice virtue, it can be done for longer; but if the opposite happens, it is advisable to ask for the dispensation from the one who can give it.
158.- CLASSES OF VOW.- The vow is public when it is accepted by a legitimate Superior in the name of the Church, such as those of the religious. It is private if it lacks this formality: I vow to abstinence during this year. For example, it was a private vow made by St. Louis Gonzaga, in Florence, to keep perpetual chastity.
It is solemn when it is recognized by the Church as such, in that case, the vow itself consecrates the voter with the utmost firmness to the service of God; makes him unfit for acts contrary to the vow, therefore, such acts are unlawful and invalid; its nature is perpetual. Simple are the vows that the Church does not recognize as solemn. Acts contrary to these vows are unlawful, but not invalid. Some ancient religious orders are of solemn vows, and modern Congregations are of simple vows.
[Here was a note indignant about since when is something illicit a valid thing. But I deleted it because today, January 16, 2025 I learned that a sacrament can be illicit but valid. E.g. if a Russian Orthodox celebrates the Eucharist it is illicit because he is a heretic but it is valid because he does consecrate the species of wine and bread..]
It is reserved if the Pope reserves for himself the right to exempt that person from it; otherwise it is called “not reserved” [my approximate translation].
It is personal when the vow commits to executing an action; and real when the person promises a thing; if the vow has both conditions it is called mixed.
It is perpetual or temporary, depending on whether it is done forever or for some time. It is conditioned or absolute, depending on whether or not it depends on a condition to be fulfilled.
Conditioned vows were, for example, those who during our war of liberation promised to go on pilgrimage to this or that sanctuary, if God would preserve their lives. Absolute vow was that of St. Francis of Borja when he said: "Never again to serve a Lord that can die".
Conditional vows were that of Jacob at Bethel (Gen., XXVIII, 20-22), that of Samuel's mother (I Sam., I, 11), that of Jephthah before going to battle (Judges, XI, 30-31), that of the parents of Mary Most Holy.
159.- MANDATORY NATURE OF THE VOW.- The vow obliges of its own; it is like a law that one imposes on oneself; in general, this obligation shall be severe or light, depending on the matter of the vow. However, in serious matters, the obligation can be serious or light, depending on the intention that the person had when taking the vote. But in light matters one can never oblige oneself to have a penalty of grave sin if the vow is broken.
In the case of vows, it is serious matter if its object equals an ecclesiastical law that obliges under penalty of mortal sin, such as hearing Mass, the fasting of a day.
Deferring the fulfillment of a vow for a long time (a few years) can be a grave sin, if the matter is serious, or when there is a danger of oblivion. The time-bound vow must be fulfilled as soon as possible. The delay of the fixed-term vow, when there has been no serious cause, is a grave sin.
Conditional vow is to be fulfilled when the condition is verified; if that condition does not happens, there is no obligation. The obligation of the real vow and also that of the mixed one, in what is real, passes to the heirs.
He who makes a vow to enter or profess in a religious Order or Congregation is obliged, by the very fact, within the limits of what is possible; it is not enough, therefore, to exempt someone from the fulfillment of the vow, the fact that this kind of life is uncomfortable for him; he can desist and brake his vow only in the event that he sees that it is morally impossible for him [????] to enter or profess.
"When thou hast made a vow to the Lord thy God, thou shalt not delay to pay it: because the Lord thy God will require it. And if thou delay, it shall be imputed to thee for a sin. If thou wilt not promise, thou shalt be without sin. But that which is once gone out of thy lips, thou shalt observe, and shalt do as thou hast promised to the Lord thy God, and hast spoken with thy own will and with thy own mouth" (Deut. XXIII, 21-23)
160.- CESSATION OF THE VOW.- The obligation of the vow can cease mainly for one of these three causes: by annulment, by dispensation and by commutation. It can also disappear due to physical or moral impossibility, because the condition was not met, when the end that motivated it ceased [note: Saint Charles (if I remember his name correctly) made a vow to make a pilgrimage to honor a relic in order for an epidemic to end in his region. The epidemic ended, and since he was very old and could not make the way, and he was already considered a Saint, the relic was taken to a nearby place so that he could fulfill his vow, it is understood that this was not done to make an easy (false) way for lazy ones, he was a true Saint], by finishing the term for which it was made, and for other intrinsic causes.
A vote can be annulled by those who have dominant power on the will of he that makes it, such as parents over minor children, and superiors over their subjects.
[It is difficult to be understood. If someone uses the Name of God, only the Church can annul that vow. If someone promised something to God, only a representative of God (a priest or a bishop or the Pope ) can annul that. When Saint John Bosco was very ill and in risk to die, the pupils of the Oratory made promises that were almost impossible to fulfill, eg. not to drink anything during the day, and some of them were construction workers. When he was almost recovered, his first strength was used to confess those children to annul those promises. ]
The Church can dispense from them, for just cause, and in the Name of God. The Pope: to all the faithful and of all kinds of vows; the Bishops: of the unreserved [not reserved] private vows of their subjects. That exemption from fulfilling the vow would be void if it infringed the right of another.
As for commutation, it can be done by the same person that made the vow of his own free will, to another equal or better work, that is, equally fit or more fit for the glory of God. If he wants to commute his vow for another less good work, it could only be done by the Pope, the Bishop, or his delegate.
To lawfully exchange a promise for a better one, no cause is needed, but to change it for another equal one requires a reason, even slight.
161.- PRACTICAL LESSON.- He that makes a vow makes a very pleasing sacrifice to God and obtains graces and favors more easily.
The child Samuel was the fruit of a vow of his mother. The Blessed Virgin was the fruit of a vow of Her Saint parents; the same is said of several Saints. As soon as the inhabitants of Oberammergau (Bavaria) had vowed to perform every ten years the drama of the Passion of the Lord, not a single more person died of the plague in 1633. By a vow that Marseille made to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, it was free from cholera.
The vow is an effective means of reaching perfection more quickly and achieving greater sanctity.
[But they transcribe a practical piece of advice in point 157: “A person who intended to make the vow of praying the Rosary every day, asked the advice of Saint Francis of Sales. The Saint answered him categorically: "Keep yourself from doing so. I did so when I was young, but now that I am older, I repeat to you not to make such a vow. Pray it, yes, every day, but without making a vow." Well, he made the vow and fulfilled it and by the Grace of God and his efforts he became a Saint.
An example of point 159 is: "St. Peter Damiano, doctor of the Church, tells us that a young man, rich and noble, promised to become a religious within 10 years. He spent this time without fulfilling the vow and died after receiving the Holy Sacraments and leaving great sums of money for almsgiving. But soon after he appeared to a religious prelate, assuring him that he was condemned for not keeping his promise."
We don't know how well he confessed. But it seems that confession is not enough, he that cannot fulfill the vow must ask for the dispensation correctly, that is: to the correct Church authority. As it is not enought for a criminal to confess a crime, in the Sacrament of Confession it is implicit that we must repair to God and the neighbor, so he must surrender himself to justice (and repair to the victims, and change his life). Making vows is a delicate matter.]
Of some Saints, for example, St. Teresa of Jesus, St. Jeanne Françoise de Chantal, St. Andrew Avelino, it is referred that they forced themselves with a vow to always do what is most perfect. St. Stanislaus of Kostka, in his tender years, when he barely started to reason, consecrated himself to the Blessed Virgin with a vow of perpetual chastity and later he forced himself with a vow not to offend God neither even with a venial sin. Of St. Margaret Mary Alacoque, it is said that at the age of seven she was horrified at all sin and had an unconscious inclination to purity and, as she herself later assured, she felt continually impelled to repeat: "My God, I consecrate to You my purity and I make to You a vow of perpetual chastity." [Note: her parents, when she was a baby, nearly after Baptism, consecrated her purity to the Blessed Virgin.] St. Rose of Lima, at the age of five, also consecrated her virginity to God, forever.