Updated 2:26 PM ET June 22, 1999
By Alan Elsner, Political Correspondent

RICHMOND, Va. (Reuters) - Republican presidential front-runner George W. Bush Tuesday derided Vice President Al Gore as a "Washington D.C. person," further heating a war of words between the two men who may square off for the White House in next year's
 election.

Bush, the governor of Texas and son of former President George Bush, also spoke out against abortion in strong terms and expressed support for posting the Ten Commandments in public buildings.

 Bush made his comments to reporters after visiting a library in a poor, mostly black district  of Richmond where his wife, Laura, read a book to a group of small children.

 He later addressed a fund-raising lunch at which he collected $350,000 and was due to  raise at least another $1 million at a fund-raiser in Washington in the evening. Bush  campaign sources said he might reach $20 million raised by the end of this month.

 The fact that Bush and Gore already are sniping at one another 16 months before the  election reflects the fact that both men confidently expect to face one another in next year's  election campaign and both are anticipating a tough battle.

 Asked about Gore, Bush first said he was not paying much attention to the vice president's  speeches.

 "There will be ample time, if I'm fortunate enough to be the nominee, to square off against Vice President Gore. There will be a huge difference between him and me," Bush said.

 "He's a Washington D.C. person. He thinks Washington has got all the answers. I don't. I believe the answers are found in our communities. I believe the answers are found in faith-based institutions, in community organizations," he said.

 A Reuters poll Monday found Bush and Gore both leading the race for the presidential nominations of their respective parties by a wide Margin. In a one-to-one matchup, Bush  was 18 percentage points ahead of Gore.

 Gore, who formally launched his candidacy last week, has been taking shots at Bush's slogan of "compassionate conservatism" without mentioning him by name. In his announcement speech, Gore ridiculed the notion that society's problems could be solved by scattering "crumbs of compassion."

 That drew a strong response from Bush.

 "There are no such things as crumbs of compassion as far as I'm concerned. When people feel compassion toward a neighbor, that act ought to be lauded, that act ought to be praised. Because societies change one heart, one soul, one conscience at a time," he said.

 "I don't view that as crumbs. I view that as the greatness of America, the soul of America that has made our nation so unique, so different. And my job as the president, should I be fortunate enough to win, will be to elevate our spirit."

 Bush endorsed last week's House of Representatives vote supporting public display of the Ten Commandments, despite objections it would violate the constitutional separation of church and state.

 "I have no problem with the Ten Commandments posted on the wall of every public place," he said.

 Asked if he favored the Protestant, Catholic or Jewish version of the Commandments, which differ slightly from one another, Bush replied: "The standard version. Surely we can agree as a society on a version that everybody can agree to."

 A key emerging difference between the candidates is abortion, where Gore has vowed to defend "a woman's right to choose" and Bush appeared to be hardening his language against the procedure.

 "My hope is that America will have a law that protects the unborn child and that every child will be welcomed into life," Bush said. "I understand that's the ideal, that it will take leadership to convince people to protect life."

``I have no problem with the Ten Commandments posted on the  wall of every public place,'' Bush told reporters this week  while visiting a public library in Richmond, Virginia.

Asked if he favored the Protestant, Catholic or Jewish  version of the Commandments, which differ slightly from one  another, Bush replied: ``The standard version. Surely we can  agree as a society on a version that everybody can agree to.'' 

The Texas governor was responding to a vote by the House   last week on an amendment to the Juvenile Justice Bill that  would have permitted the posting of the Ten Commandments in  public schools. The House bill has to be worked out with a  Senate bill that does not contain the Ten
Commandments language.

The problem is, there is no standard version of the Ten  Commandments and theologians contacted by Reuters said any  attempt to concoct one might only produce rancor, disputation  and ill feeling.

``There is no standard version and I don't see how you could  arrive at one. If you try, will people be offended? Sure they  will,'' said Frank Kirkpatrick, a professor of religion at  Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut.

Religious conservatives have argued posting the Commandments  in schools would help prevent violence, like the April shooting  attack in Columbine High School in Littleton, Colorado, in which  12 teenagers and a teacher were killed by two fellow students  who then killed themselves.

Robert Franklin, president of the Interdenominational  Theological Center in Atlanta, which prepares black graduate  students for ministry, said that  posting the Ten Commandments in  schools would cause nothing but trouble in a country that has  become culturally and religiously diverse.

``Some of us forget we are a religiously diverse society and  there are differences on the Ten Commandments even within the  Christian family,'' he  said.

``A more mature response is to look at the moral teachings  of the great faith traditions and find a way to introduce them  to students. We should display the love ethic at the core of  Christianity by showing respect for other religions,'' he said.

The Ten Commandments occur in two places in the Bible, in  Exodus, chapter 20, and in Deuteronomy, chapter five. Even these  versions differ slightly with the Deuteronomy version being  somewhat longer and including some different elements.

In the original Hebrew traditions, they are not even called ''commandments'' but the ``ten words'' or ``ten utterances.'' 

Neither version conveniently lists the commandments from one  to 10. In Exodus, the relevant passage covers 17 verses and  encompasses at least 14 imperatives.

Different religions and sects have divided the Commandments  in different ways. For example, for Catholics, the imperative  against adultery is the sixth commandment; for Jews and most  Protestants it is the seventh. 

``It's not so much that people are working from a different  text but we have different enumerations, which carry theological  significance,'' said Kirkpatrick.

And historically, the commandments have been drastically  abbreviated to aid memorization, which then leads to differences  on what to put in and what to leave out. The version that is  often displayed in homes and offices is a radically shortened  version of the original.

Lastly, there are a myriad of different translations. It is  often believed  one of the key Commandments states, ``You shall  not kill.'' But the original Hebrew does not use ``kill.'' It  says, ``You shall not murder,'' which is clearly very different.

Jews begin the Commandments with the statement, ``I am the  Lord your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of  the house of bondage.'' The great medieval philosopher  Maimonides argued this was the greatest Commandment of all, even  though it does not command anyone to do anything,  since it forms  the basis for monotheism and for all that follows.

Christians usually treat this as a preamble rather than an  actual commandment and begin with the statement, ``You shall  have no other gods before Me.''

Rob Boston of the Americans United for Separation of Church  and State said  the debate was a waste of time since the Supreme  Court in 1980 struck down an attempt by the state of Kentucky to  require the posting of the Commandments in public schools.

``This is political posturing at its worst. It enables  politicians to go home to their districts and tell voters, 'I  voted for God','' he said.