Exodus 20:3-17 is memorable for many people who follow the teachings of the Bible (and also to those who don’t) as the book, chapter and verse when God laid down his Ten Commandments onto Moses in the Old Testament. In verse 13 specifically it says “Thou shall not kill.” and in verse 15 it states that “Thou shall not steal.” .
As time has gone by, there has been many ways to interpret these two verses specifically. For one, the world has accepted that there is more than one way to kill a person. The most basic of these is the physical death. Another way is to destroy how they are remembered; another is to simply erase their records so it seems that they never existed at all. The hardest way to kill someone is to make sure that they are not remembered at all. Regardless of how one looks at it, death is always equals to nonexistence in any way.
Stealing is also being interpreted in many different ways. Some consider it “borrowing with all the intention of bringing it back” but never do. Others go about saying “it belonged to them to begin with” and that they were just taking it back. Or even better, that the person with the form of wealth that others want starts saying that the person had no right to it in the first place (ever heard of downloading a show, movie, music, game, etc. for free, despite the fact that they are for sale somewhere else?). There’s even the classical “Robin Hood” dogma of taking from the rich and giving to the poor where the person doesn’t keep it for him/herself. No matter how you justify it, stealing is basically taking the possession of someone else without them knowing it.
More often than not, stealing or killing someone usually begins because the person forgot the tenth rule stated in verse 17 of the same passage: “Thou shall not covet thy neighbor’s wife, or his manservant, or his maidservant, or his ox, or his ass, or anything that is thy neighbor’s.”
In relation to the above verse, Proverbs 6:16-19 of the New King James Version of the Bible also states what has come to be known as the Seven Capital Sins. While the Bible defines it more clearly, these Seven Sins can be easily translated to: Greed, Sloth, Wrath, Lust, Envy, Pride and Gluttony .
Despite the easiness of understanding these verses, they are still predominant in many aspects of life today. We can see it in the TV, in movies, in music, in video games and almost every aspect of the media including marketing. Even if what is being marketed in Healthcare products.
In Proverbs 10:2, it is stated that “Treasures of wickedness profit nothing: but righteousness delivereth from death.” . Despite the saying however (and despite the fact that most people consider themselves Christians) there have been many instances where this was not followed and in turn has been proven to be true. An instance of this is in the case of breast enlargement processes where it was shown that these processes can increase the risk of breast cancer by up to 8% .
The reason why someone would usually enlarge their breast, if not because of medical reasons, is to satisfy their sense of pride or someone else’s sense of lust. Just to fulfill this, they take a great deal of risk of failing health. Had they avoided these feeling to begin with, then the problem wouldn’t exist. Another example is the famous Sildenafil citrate, more commonly known as Viagra.
A drug sold under the medical giant Pfizer, Viagra was originally created to help men with erectile dysfunction. Since then, it has been shown that Viagra can also help people with Altitude sickness and Pulmonary hypertension .
Despite the worthy goal of the drug however, Viagra became famous solely because it helped people have sex. What was once originally supposed to help those with erectile dysfunction is now being used by people solely for “recreational purposes” mostly because they usually come from a party and can’t get an erection despite the fact that studies have shown that Viagra does not have any impact when taken recreationally, even when the matter is sexual in nature such as increasing penis size, increasing libido or sexual performance .
Of course, these and numerous other practices should not dissuade a Christian from practicing marketing based on the ethics written down by the Bible and the Church. The easiest way to do this is to be honest about the product that you are selling. If it’s meant to help with a headache, for example, then be frank about the fact that it has not been proven to help any other sickness or symptom. Neither should you cater to what the people want simply to sell your product. Even if the media is now fraught with sexual tension or innuendos, that does not mean that your commercial should be as well.
Amongst the numerous brands of medicine out there, one should be careful of choosing where to buy. The best way would be to check if the brand is FDA approved, another is to find out the generic name and the meaning of it before buying the drug. Pfizer, Pegasys and Xolair are some of the few brands to receive approval from the FDA.
Health is the most important aspect of a human being. The loss of good health will always lead to the death of someone and as Exodus 20:13 clearly said: “Thou shall not kill.” The act of killing doesn’t always mean that you did it yourself, sometimes, inaction also leads to someone’s avoidable death. So market a healthcare product responsibly and truthfully, do not simply do it out of greed or because someone else told you to and always remember that there is no reward in wicked ways .
References
Chorley, M., & Owen, J. (2012, January 12). Exclusive: Silicone Implant risk 'eight times greater'. Retrieved from The Independent: http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-families/health-news/exclusive-silicone-implant-risk-eight-times-greater-6283809.html
Mondaini, N., Ponchietti, R., Muir, G., MOntorsi, F., Di Loro, F., Lombardi, G., et al. (2003). Sildenafi does not improve sexual function in men without erectile dysfunction but does reduce the postorgasmic refractory time.
Perimenis, P. (n.d.). Sildenafil for the treatment of altitude-induced hypoxemia. Expert Opin Pharmacother, 835-7.
Pfizer Inc. (2005, December 27). FDA Approves Pfizer's Revatio as Treatment for Pulmonary Arterial hypertension. Retrieved from Pfizer Company's website: http://www.pfizer.com/news
Public Domain. (n.d.). Exodus 20:3-17 (King James Version). Retrieved from Bible Gateway: http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Exodus%2020:3-17&version=KJV
Public Domain. (n.d.). Proverbs 10:2 (King James Version). Retrieved from Bible Gateway: http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Proverbs%2010:2&version=KJV
Public Domain. (n.d.). Proverbs 6:16-19 (King James Version). Retrieved from Bible Gateway: http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Proverbs%206:16-19&version=KJV
