What is the eighth Commandment?
Thou shalt not steal. [Exodus 20:14, Deut. 5:19 Brenton's LXX]
How is this Commandment to be understood?
This Commandment teaches us, that we are not to possess ourselves of that which belongs to another, by any unjust means whatever; whether it be by robbery, or theft, or violently withholding the right of another. Hereby is, also, forbidden the taking away another's good name and reputation; the exacting too much of one's hirelings, or tenants; and the imposing too hard conditions of service on them. This, likewise, respects usury, of which the Apostle thus pronounced: nor thieves, nor coveters, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor raveners shall inherit the kingdom of God. [1 Cor. 6:10 ONT] This Commandment regards, also, all just contracts and bargains; in which we are required to be strictly true and upright, that we defraud not one another.
Q. What is forbidden in the eighth Commandment?
A. All sort of stealing is herein forbidden; but that the common people may have a more perfect knowledge of the nature of theft, and wherein it doth consist, we shall enumerate in this place the several kinds of stealing. Theft is either clandestine, as when we appropriate anything without the true owner's knowledge; or open, as when any man's goods are taken from him by violence; or lastly, knavish and cheating theft, as when under plausible pretenses, and cunning devices, an honest man is bereft of what is his own.
Q. How many kinds of clandestine stealing are there?
A. Very many, viz.
1. Picking of pockets, housebreaking, shoplifting, robbing of barns, fishponds, gardens, and carrying away corn and hay.
2. Plundering the public treasure of Churches or cloisters, which two last is commonly called sacrilege. To which may be reduced, rifling the graves of the dead, which kind of stealing merits a more than ordinary punishment, as being an offense of the most heinous and savage nature.
3. It is a kind of clandestine theft, not to restore things found, or to conceal a beast, or a servant, that is run away from his master, to alienate the goods of a man in distress, as when his house is on fire, or his ship broke to pieces; for this is to plunder those who are already miserable, and barbarously to add affliction to affliction.
Q. How many kinds are there of open stealing?
A. Very many, viz.
1. Highwaymen and rapparees [a name given to bandits and highwaymen in Ireland chosen by the translator to represent what was written in Russian], who plunder travelers of all their money, and threaten to murder them at the same time, which if they do, they both sin against the sixth and eighth Commandment.
2. When a man in power does take away unjustly the goods, houses, tenants, lands of another, who is not able to repel force by force, for this is no better than robbing on the highway.
3. Using other men’s things against their wills, as to drive wagons, or sow on other men’s grounds, or to use their vessels, cloths, carts, working tools, or arms, without leave either from the proprietor, or order from the public magistrate.
4. All forced buying and selling; as for example, when one man compels another to sell what he has no mind to part with, and that at a low rate, or to buy what he does not want.
5. All unjust and reasonable contracts; as when in time of dearth and famine, one sells his corn to another in extremity and want, at an excessive price, or when one offers his service to another who is upon the point of perishing either by the enemies' sword, or by danger of drowning, on very exorbitant conditions.
6. When one sees his brother in great necessity, and will not lend him either corn or money but at excessive usury.
7. Violent detaining of foreign goods, and also retaining wages due to servants of workmen.
8. Forcing people to slavery, and oppressing of a free people.
9. Forcing laborers to perform more work than what they have promised in their contract.
10. Invading other men’s territories in time of peace.
Q. How many kinds are there of cunning and artful thieving?
A. There are very many, whereof some of them are these:
1. Willful deceit in merchandize, as when one sells bad wares for good ones, or sells an old horse and warrants it young, or adulterates good wares, as by mixing dust with fine flour; or by dashing wine with water, or by selling crystal for diamonds, or marten skins for the finest sable, etc.
2. By overrating our commodities, and selling them too dear.
3. By making use of false weights.
4. By cheating, in gathering more custom and taxes than what is due, which is a crime peculiar to collectors and customhouse officers.
5. Uttering or coining false money, which is a very heinous crime, and prejudicial not only to private men, but to the public treasury.
6. Cheating in gathering of alms; as when any man pretends that he is very poor or weak, and through some bodily infirmity is unable to get a livelihood, or that through fire, water, or the like calamity, is reduced to beg his bread; or by going about to gather contribution for building monasteries, hospitals, the redeeming of prisoners, and such like knavish methods of cheating the public.
7. All fulsome flattery for enticing heedless and unwary persons, and all hypocritical presences to uncommon piety, the better to excite well-meaning people to deal out alms more plentifully, is a kind of stealing.
8. Those who with images and relics of pretended saints, and pilgrimages to certain places, with a design to cheat people of their money, do falsely pretend to the power of doing miracles.
9. Those who are not faithfully diligent in their master's service, for that part of their wages, which by suitable diligence they do not earn, may be said to be stolen. The same may be said of all laborers, whose work is not proportional to their wages.
10. All forgers of false wills, in order to defraud the lawful heir of his inheritance, and all false pretenders to affinity and nearness of blood, with a view only to make themselves heirs to an estate.
11. Receivers of the public money, who lessen their receipts, and magnify their expenses, in order to appropriate the money of the nation, which is a very heinous crime, because the prince will thereupon be necessitated to burden his people with new taxes, to make up the sum embezzled by his officers.
12. All judges, who take gifts for passing unrighteous judgments, are thieves according to this commandment, though in other things they may be morally just and honest men.
13. All unfair proceedings in the consecration of bishops and other ecclesiastical persons, for the sake of filthy lucre, which sinful practice is called simony, or the sin of Simon Magnus, who would buy the gift of God for money.
14. All unequal distribution of civil employments to worthless and unskillful persons, although there is no bribing in the cafe; for it is an injury done to people better qualified, and the public suffers for it.
These are some of the several species of stealing; and if we have omitted any, it may be easily reduced to one of these. But take these two remarks along with you:
1. That the sin of stealing does either come from insatiable desire of getting riches, for a covetous man is never satisfied with what he has; therefore by right or wrong he appropriates the possessions of others. Or from indolence, and a lazy temper, which will soon bring a man to poverty; and necessity and want set men on coveting and stealing their neighbors' goods.
2. That there is no forgiveness to be expected for any of the aforementioned species of stealing, until restitution and satisfaction is made to the injured parties.
Q. What is forbidden by the eighth Commandment?
A. To steal, or in any way appropriate to ourselves, that which belongs to another.
Q. What particular sins are forbidden hereby?
A. The chief are:
l. Robbery—the taking of any thing that belongs to another openly, by force.
2. Theft—taking what belongs to another privately.
3. Fraud—appropriating to ourselves any thing that is another's by artifice; as when men pass off counterfeit money for true, or bad wares for good; or use false weights and measures, to give less than they have sold; or conceal their effects, to avoid paying their debts; or do not honestly fulfill contracts, or execute wills; or when they screen others guilty of dishonesty, and so defraud the injured of justice.
4. Sacrilege—appropriating to ourselves what has been dedicated to God, or belongs to the Church.
5. Spiritual sacrilege—when one sinfully gives and another fraudulently obtains any sacred office, not of desert, but for gain.
6. Bribery—when men receive a bribe from those under them in office or jurisdiction, and for gain promote the unworthy, acquit the guilty, or oppress the innocent.
7. Eating the bread of idleness—when men receive salary for duty, or pay for work, which they neglect, and so in fact steal both their pay, and that profit, which society, or he whom they served, should have had of their labor; in like manner when they who are able to support themselves by work, instead of so doing live upon alms.
8. Extortion—when under the show of some right, but really against equity and humanity, men make their own advantage of the property, the labors, or even the misfortunes of others: as when creditors oppress their debtors by usury; when masters wear out their dependents by excessive imposts or tasks; when in time of famine men sell bread at an exorbitant price.
Q. When these sins are forbidden, what contrary virtues are thereby enjoined?
A. Those of
1. Disinterestedness;
2. Good faith in performing engagements;
3. Justice;
4. Mercy to the poor.
Q. Does he then who is not merciful to the poor sin against the eighth Commandment?
A. Certainly he does; if he has the means of assisting them. For all that we have belongs properly to God, and our abundance is given us by His Providence for the assistance of the poor. Wherefore, if we do not impart to them of our abundance, we do in fact thereby rob and defraud them of their right, and the gift of God.
Q. Is there not yet a higher virtue contrary to sins against the eighth Commandment?
A. Such a virtue is absolute poverty, or the renunciation of all property; which is proposed by the Gospel, not as a duty for all, but as a counsel for them that would be perfect. Jesus said to him, “If thou art willing to be perfect, go and sell thy possessions, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven; and come and keep on following Me.” [Mt. 19:21 ONT]