The reading for this Sunday from the Hebrew scriptures is the well-known giving of the 10 commandments to Moses. This account actually appears twice in the Bible once in Genesis and once in Exodus.

The 10 commandments have been hugely influential in western culture and the basis for our legal system. Which got me thinking of the play on words “Law” and the other version of organising societal life that sounds the same – “Lore”

Law is structural. It is written, codified, and enforced by institutions. Law demands compliance, relies on logic, and establishes boundaries through consequences and logic. It governs our external civic duties.

Lore is cultural. It is spoken, felt, and passed down through generations. Lore demands connection, relies on myth, and establishes boundaries through shared values and identity. It governs our internal communal spirit. In Australia we can see the two expressions of these words – in our legal system and in the Dreaming of the First Nations people. They present quite a varying comparison.

Australian Aboriginal Lore (Dreaming) emitted from the Ancestral Beings who shaped the land during the Dreaming while the Ten Commandments are said to be dictated by a singular Creator God to Moses on Mount Sinai (though many of us would question the literal historicity of this account.) Aboriginal Lore is embedded in songline, art, dance and the landscape. The 10 commandments and accompanying law is a codified text, purportedly inscribed in stone and recorded in scripture. The concept of time presents a contrast with the Dreaming envisioned in the past, present and future.

First nations people think of themselves as belonging to the land and have a sacred duty to care for country. Lore dictates precise social rules, marrying structures and environmental responsibilities. Traditionally Christianity has held a view of humans as “stewards” over the earth and while it has definitely led to the exploitation of the earth this is slowly turning around. God exists outside of the physical creation. The laws are handed down to humanity from a transcendent sphere, rather than emerging from the earth itself.

Despite significant differences which we should not deny, both systems share a striking common purpose: the survival and cohesion of the collective group. We must resist the temptation of judging these world views, and definitely not be calling the First Nations of this country “primitive” but accept the good both have produced and hold them as the basis for the sacred care of our country, society and land.