New morality is a steal

This article was published in The Sydney Morning Herald 12 January 2010

In 1631, England's royal printers reprinted the Bible but somehow omitted the ''not'' in Exodus 20:14, the seventh commandment concerning adultery. An amusing mistake for everyone but the printers, who were fined £300 and lost their licence, while the archbishop of Canterbury complained about declining standards among proofreaders.

Yorkshire Anglican priest Tim Jones promulgated a similar amendment to the eighth commandment, ''thou shalt not steal'', in his Christmas sermon. He advised parishioners that it was OK to shoplift if they were desperate - much better than burglary, mugging or prostitution - but they should target big stores that could pass the costs on through slightly higher prices.

The clerical Robbin' Hood said this would not break the commandment because ''God's love for the poor and despised outweighs the property rights of the rich''. He said stealing was neither good nor harmless but sometimes it was the best option.