Taking God's Name In Vain?

[Michael]

Is "gosh" not a substitue for the word "god"? When you say "Oh my gosh!", aren't you really saying, "Oh my God!" in an indirect way?

I was thinking back about a childrens sermon on the subject a while back and though it would be an interesting debate.
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[UnholyVashX]

That is true, and although personally I don't believe in God so I might be found doing it, but saying "holy cow" is a way to use someone elses god in vain. Although you might not think of that, it's just a new way to look at things...

[WonkasWilly]

I don't believe you are because they are different words, although one implies the other, I'm sure it's much better than being subtle about it.

[thunderboltz]

'gosh' is a more lighter word. It is more of an exclamation. You do not think of God when you say that, do you?

People need to exclaim in order to release the adrenalin fueled excitement that builds up. And I personally think there is no problem with saying 'gosh'. After all, you aren't explicitly swearing.
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[MoUrNbLaDe]

This seems to be a little bit of splitting hairs, but I think 'gosh' is perfectly acceptable, even though it may be a derivative of 'god'.

It's not the same word, so it should be fine, IMHO.
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[Magpie]

They're just words. I use "God", "Jesus" and "Holy..." all the time.

If we're talking about modifiers such as "gosh" then could (and I'm spelling these phonetically) "jeez" or "gee" be derivatives of "Jesus"?
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[SoulJah]

Gosh isn't a bad word nor is it using God's name in vain. However, if you think about God when using that word then I would suggest to rethink how you use that. Sin is all in the mind, if your mind thinks it is wrong then most probably it is wrong.
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[marinaroz]

I don't see what the big deal is about using God's name. It's my personal interpretation that "in vain" refers to using God's name when lying and telling untruths. I don't think God would mind being brought up in a general conversation.
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[slsc]

Yes, "gosh" is a euphemism for "God" -- but "God" is not God's name (at least not in Christianity). If I remember correctly, the Israelites took the commandment not to take the God's (actual) name in vain that they very rarely spoke it, even in reverence to God, and in manuscripts wrote it without vowels.

Is saying "gosh" equivalent to saying God? Decide that for yourself. But saying "sex" is not equivalent to saying *that other word* (given, sex is not always used as a euphemism, but you get the idea).
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[thunderboltz]

[slsc]

[golan_s]

I am not sure if it's relevant to the discussion here, but "Elohim" (אלהים) is considered by religious Jews as one of God's (many) names and they avoid saying and even writing it. I have once heard a Rabbi explaining that "God", "Allah" and other translations of the Hebrew names of God to and from other languages must be avoided to.
Not sure if Christians are bothered that much by this issue, but it is a big concern for religious Jews.
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[slsc]

That is very relevant. How to apply it... I'll think of that when it's not 2am. [grins] Thanks for the insight.
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- David

[Jeff's Mentor]

As you said, LP-slsc, it is kind of splitting hairs. It all depends on how serious one is about their religion. I have heard some preachers who claim that anything that even remotely suggests something sinful is evil (including christian alternative music and light swear words, like "gosh" or "darn").

Would one be offended if someone used the word "fudge" for the f-word, "beeyotch" for the b-word, or "shiznit" for the s-word? In some cases, the "light" words are very close to the "hardcore" words, and sometimes not, but it's all about context. "Gosh" sounds like someone drunk saying "God" or "God's", while "darn" is just substituting one letter to escape the technical word.

[marinaroz]