Does it make sense for atheists to mention God in their expression?

Does it make sense for christians to use:
Monday (day of the moon)
Tues day (day of Tīw, a germanic god of war)
Wednesday (day of Woden, germanic supreme god)
Thursday (day of Thor, god of thunder)
Friday (day of Frigga, Woden’s wife)
Saturday (day of saturn, roman god of agriculture)
Sunday (day of the sun)

To my mind, it’s pointless resisting the idioms common to the language. Common expressions and expletives are just part of living. I suppose you might eliminate God from your vocabulary with practice, but then what about elves, fairies, muses, goblins…..?

@ragingloli The problem is that such gods aren’t recognized as being real by religious people, so there’s no repercussion. I believe when religious people mention God in their expression they really mean it, in other words, they believe it’s directly related/will affect their relationship with the God. If atheists utilize God in their expression it might feel like praying even though there’s no God to pray to.

I know this since when I was a kid a preacher came to our school and told us to not mention “God” in your expression unless you really mean it. Until these days I have witnessed a lot religious people are full of devotion when using God in their expression, and they’re offended when non believer or people of other religion say the same thing.

Your implication, @Unofficial_Member , is that somehow deists have ownership of the word “god” and that people who don’t believe in god are in some way constrained from using the term?

That’s ridiculous.

For one thing, “god” doesn’t have a single meaning – it is totally contextually based. (Aretha Franklin was a goddess of Soul”. And they aren’t referring to some amorphous deity there.

No, no one group “owns” words.

@elbanditoroso I agree that no one owns words but is it free for us to use it in our general expression to other related people? I know the word “nigga” is forbidden for white people to use when talking with black people. So it will also make sense when religious people are offended when others non believers use “God” in any way they like.

God doesn’t have a single meaning but in my country religious people have popularized that there’s only one God, and any reference to “God” will mean the same God that they all worship.

@Unofficial_Member
Well, I do not recognise their god as real, either, so we are even.

@Unofficial_Member: “I know the word “nigga” is forbidden for white people to use when talking with black people. So it will also make sense when religious people are offended when others non believers use “God” in any way they like.”

Saying that the n-word is “forbidden” obscures the way language, in-group and out-group dynamics, and real world consequences work. And to say that it’s similar to “for God’s sake” and other cultural sayings is absurd.

No Christians are offended by “for God’s sake”. First, because the person making that statement may or may not be Christian. There’s no racial element. Second, Christians are not an oppressed group. Third, “for God’s sake” is a saying with a meaning that is not meant to dehumanize a population. Fourth,...do I need to go on?

What imagined offense are you cooking up here? If “for God’s sake” had some historical significance that was tied to the oppression of Christians, and Christians expressed that is was hurtful for non-Christians to use that phrase, then it would make sense to stop using it. But this is in no way the case.

huh?

@Unofficial_Member Yeah, I’m not understanding the logic here. If Christians not recognizing the Germanic gods that are used in the days of the week as real makes it “okay” for them to use the names of the days of the week, then the same applies to an atheist using an expression like “for God’s sake”. These expressions are ingrained into the language and do not have specific religious meaning when they are used. “Good bye” has been completely reanalyzed to include the word “good”, when in reality it comes from a phrase “God be with ye”. Most people who use the phrase “good bye” don’t even know that fact.

Furthermore, it is generally people who believe in God who avoid those expressions (if they do at all) and substitute euphemisms like “gosh” or “golly” or “jeez” or various other terms that ultimately come from religious epithets. It has no personal meaning for someone who doesn’t believe in God.

I have wondered also. not that it has stopped me or changed my habits.

I would offer that most atheists are former christians living in a christian dominated society and picked up their habits as a matter of course from the dominant religions influence on said society.

Watching a video the other day I heard an Australian woman use the term “Show us yer tits!” as an utterance of surprise and disbelief. While I have heard the term, I have not heard it used in such a manner. I asked an Australian cousin of mine about it and she confirmed such usage is quite commonly around where she live. I wonder how many other “Titcentric” phrases they use down unda’.

Ya go with what ya know.

@Unofficial_Member As a christian, I will say that some things are highly offensive to some christians, such as GD. (Do not take God’s name in vain, so to me that’s blasphemy on par with the N-word.)

Many of us just ask our friends not to say it around us and they generally respect that. You should read past threads about christianity or God on this site, not many here care if it’s offensive or not.

Offence is taken, not given.

Oh, for Pete’s sake.

I say that, and I don’t even know someone named Pete.

“The problem is that such gods aren’t recognized as being real by religious people, so there’s no repercussion.”

Atheists don’t recognize such Gods.
It’s all good.

Well, Jesus Christ. God damn you for bringing this up.

See. I made sense.

@Jeruba When you reach the pearly gates, they say you’ll meet someone named Pete…

@Zaku, if I happen to reach any pearly gates and meet someone named Pete, I’ll probably utter the words, “Well, goddamn” before I can stop my mouth. And then we’ll see if it means anything.

“Oh my Easter Bunny”
People that are in to bunnies wouldn’t be offended by that, would they?

Because saying things like No goddamit would just be confusing?

@ragingloli It took me forever to figure out why Neil Gaiman’s main character in American Gods is named Wednesday. When I did I banged my head against the desk.

< Theist here.

A lot of people talk like that, atheist, agnostic, and lots of different kinds of people. For most folks it’s simply a habit. As far as I’m concerned, as long as you don’t get in my face and Yellit me like that, I’m fine with it.

@Caravanfan It didn’ttake me forever but it did take far longer than it should have!

”Christ on a bike”
I say that sometimes as an expression of shock & as far as i’m aware, the nazarine has never participated in the Tour de France or even owned a bikesickle at any time.

Hell, yes, it makes sense. It is a term people can associate with, so why not use it? It’s not against the law or anything…

@Unofficial_Member Does it make sense for atheists to mention God in their expression?

No, it doesn’t make sense, atheists would be fools to speak of imaginary beings.

One expression I have is “Well, f**k me running!” It doesn’t mean I want someone to try it.
If I exclaim “Oh, God!” it doesn’t mean I’m talking to an existing him/her/it.

I didn’t read every response. Can I get a quick Y/N on if I can still use the N word?

@johnpowell Y if you’re quoting rap lyrics. Your ability to use the word goes up by 90% then.

I tend to avoid the word God. As an atheist, It bothers me to say it. I make frequent use of For mercy sake!, and I picked up Good grief! from Charlie Brown. I do occasionally let loose with For Chrissakes!., especially with other Jewish people.

We are told it’s blasphemy to utter the lord thy god’s name in vain or jesus even.
Next time I fuck the wife i’m going to have a whistle & a pile of stones…just in case.