Reimagining the Ten Commandments to Nourish the Soul and Guide Our Lives
Living with Purpose and Integrity is a bold, heartfelt, and deeply reflective reimagining of the Ten Commandments by the highly respected Unitarian Universalist minister, the Rev. Tom Owen-Towle. With over five decades of spiritual leadership, Owen-Towle brings warmth, candor, and moral urgency to this timeless subject. Writing from his attic-turned-sanctuary, he wrestles with ancient wisdom to uncover fresh relevance for today’s ethical crises, cultural divides, and spiritual yearning. Whether you’re a devout believer, curious seeker, or thoughtful skeptic, this book is an exploration worth taking.
This isn’t a doctrinal treatise—it’s a spirited exchange. With pastoral insight and poetic clarity, Rev. Owen-Towle invites readers to engage the Decalogue not as rigid law but as a set of enduring moral challenges. Drawing from Jewish, Christian, Buddhist, and secular traditions, he cultivates a welcoming space for readers of all backgrounds to reflect, disagree, and grow. Each chapter ends with open-ended prompts that encourage readers to examine their own lives and values with renewed honesty and compassion. It’s a rare book that makes ethics feel both deeply personal and urgently collective.
“Rev. Tom Owen-Towle wants to bring the Ten Commandments ‘up to date,’ to demonstrate their abiding relevance for skeptics and believers alike. He aims to add moral fi ber to our cultural diet. Not afraid to reveal his own missteps, Tom shares slivers of his story to inspire our own honest reckoning.”
—Rabbi Rachel S. Mikva, Ph.D., author of D
angerous Religious Ideas and Editor of B
roken Tablets: Restoring the Ten Commandments and OurselvesABOUT THE AUTHOR
Rev. Dr. Tom Owen-Towle is entering his 58th year of ordained ministry and is the author of two dozen books on personal relationships, social justice work, and spiritual growth. Tom is a guitarist and parlor magician who, in what he calls his “re-firement” years, sings in nursing homes, mentors youth, and volunteers at the local homeless center. Owen-Towle also lectures and conducts workshops on Conscious Aging and Mindful Dying. Rev. Owen-Towle has dedicated this book to his wife of 50 years, Carolyn, who died in 2023, amidst its very creation. She soulfully embodied the vision Tom shares in
Living with Purpose and Integrity: A Fresh Perspective on the Ten Commandments.
