FOURTH

COMMANDMENT
“HONOR YOUR FATHER
AND MOTHER”
Exodus 20:12
Learning Targets:
1.Believe that God is the source of love and unity in
the family
2. Show respect and love to the family
3. Draw from prayer the inspiration to love and
honor their parents
The fourth commandment is
seen as a “bridge” between
the two parts of the Ten
Commandments.
Love of God- the first three
commandments
Love of neighbor- the
succeeding seven
commandments
Bridge
The love of our parents takes on a
sacred meaning, because through
their love, we have a first
experience of God’s love for us.
The love of parents takes a special
place because it is the most basic
love that God bestows on us
Fourth Commandment
-to honor is to “prize highly” to
show respect, to glorify and to
exalt.
Our parents who stand as the visible
representative of God’s love and
authority should not only be obeyed
but also be shown great affection and
love.
To honor one’s parents also
means to care for and protect
them in their old age. Persons
grow old and sick and can no
longer work.
Unless they are truly
loved, they are seen as
burdens.
If parents are not honored
in their old age, the very
moral foundation of society
is shaken
Not only should the basic
dignity of persons be protected
; they should also be embraced
with a loving care and
affection.
A. Nature of
the family
 1. Covenant relationship
Most Christian Filipinos connect the family wit
God’s creating Adam and Eve through love and
calling them to mutual love, since he made them in
the image and likeness of himself , who is absolute
and unfailing love.
 CFC 1013
It is a “covenant” love because it creates
and sustains the basic community we
need to become and survive as persons.
What is the use of anything we do or
think or strive for if we cannot share it
with our loved ones?
Deep down, even with all the frustrations, and the
ups and downs of family life, it is within our
families that we come to some personal experience
of God’s love and fidelity for each of us.
 Our family is the “covenant”
where we truly belong and find
our “home”
2. Domestic Church
For the family is not only where “new citizens of
human society are born, (but) by the grace of the
Holy Spirit received in baptism, these are made
children of God, thus perpetuating the People of
God throught he centuries.
2. Domestic Church
The Church in the home.
The basic unit of Christian life
The first school of discipleship
3. First and vital cell in the society
Through its service to life by birth and the
education of its youth in social virtues , the family
ground continually nourishes the existence and
development of society itself.
3. First and vital cell in the society
The experience of communion and sharing which is
characteristic of the family’s daily life represents its
first and fundamental contribution in the society.
 B. Family Relationships
Filial respect for parents.
The Church speaks of filial piety that is
characterized by an openness and willingness on
the part of the children to listen to the wisdom of
the parents.
They are always to respond in
respectful obedience.
The children must seek to see the wisdom, love
and goodness in what their parents are asking
them to do, and the parents must be able to
help their children understand and appreciate
their parental advice and concern
 B. Family Relationships
The children are to honor their parents and regard
them with affection and gratitude.
They care for them in their sickness and old age.
To honor one’s parents is more than a social
obligation demanded by the culture and society. It
is a deep religious obligation, because honoring
our parents is honoring God.
Responsibilities of Parents
1. Parents must strive to provide quality human
life for their children so that they may grow into
decent human beings, responsible citizens and
good Christians
Responsibilities of Parents
2. Parent have to build a home where they and
their children can relate with openness, honesty,
respect and care for one another