Didache

The Didache was written in the first century, dated around 40-60 CE. It was supposedly written by the Apostles, and in 1873 a man by the name of Philotheos Bryennios discovered a Greek manuscript. J. Schlect discovered a Latin version of the Didache in 1900. Parts of the Teaching of the Twelve Apostles are said to be the "oldest written catechism," according to the Wikipedia website dedicated to this subject.
Honestly, I think the only modern parallels we can make today is the Constitution. Our Constitution and laws lay the moral groundwork for our culture. They tell us what we can and cannot do, but the only difference is that it doesn't tell us what we should do, such as letting our neighbor steal from us.
All in all, there aren't very many parallels you can pull from this reading and our culture today. The theme of this literature is purity. The idea behind the rules, or guidelines, listed in this writing is to make you pure before God. Pure heart, pure body, pure mind. 1:9 directs the reader to "abstain from fleshly and bodily lusts." In the middle of 2:2 the author orders listeners not to commit fornication.
In addition to this theme, we also see the writer putting a lot of emphasis on loving one another. As in the Bible we know today, the author says that if a person is to slap us on the cheek, we must give him the other. If a person should "take your cloak, give him your coat also." (1:12)
I think it is interesting in 2:2 that the author instructs his reader "not to corrupt boys." I am not sure what the author intended that to mean, but it sounds like it could mean one of two things: that the reader must not lead the boy into a sinful lifestyle, or, and this may be a stretch, that the reader must not violate or sexually harm the boy. I am not completely sure of the meaning, but either way, I thought it was interesting that the author would mention that.
As I read this piece, I was reminded of how we have to read the Bible today. Our culture is completely different than it was in Bible times, so we're required to decide the timelessness or timeliness of the things we read. There are some things that are obviously timeless, but other things are in a gray area...can we still do that thing? Why or why not?
I think as a Christian culture, that's something we struggle with a lot these days. If we have too many rules, we're legalistic. If we don't have enough rules, people question whether or not we're really Christians. I think it's important to have rules and beliefs and to think things contrary to our secular, sexualized culture. But something that God has been known to do is take the customs of the day and infuse them with His presence. God is really, REALLY good at that. Us, not so much. The Christian music genre is just one example...and I really could go on and on and...well, I'll stop there.