To wish people would stop saying 'Jesus' all the bloody time

[Sortyourlifeout]

I can't read a thread on here without someone saying "Jesus Christ" or "Jesus wept" or similar.

I'm not a prude AT all and I have no issue with people swearing but as a Christian I find it highly offensive when people throw Jesus' name round in a negative way, without a thought for others' feelings and religions.

Most people wouldn't dream of using words that were offensive to other religions so why is it acceptable when it's 'Jesus?'.

This is a genuine message to ask people to PLEASE think before they post/speak.

You just invalidated your entire argument.

Christians are stereotypically known for hypocrisy.

You say oh my God but the cut off for you is when people say Jesus Christ? Why, it's all 'taking the lords name in vain'.

I wouldn't sign my emails off 'yours in Christian love etc' because it assumes that everyone would accept a Christian belief as given, yet, I am supposed to put pronouns on my email signature at work.

TWAW is a belief system which some people want to impose on me, I personally don't accept it as truth. However I don't make unpleasant comments or troll people for who do believe people can change their sex.

I think you can and should be respectful to individuals without necessarily accepting or engaging in their belief system.

I'm not particularly religious but I think 'sky fairy' is a particularly insulting expression.

It's great that we aim to be an inclusive society, now that Christians are in the minority, they should be afforded that consideration too.

Language and culture are woven tightly together. Christianity has been an intrinisc part of UK culture for 1600 years, so our swear words are bound to reflect that. Perhaps you expect people to start declaring "Thor's hammer!" or "Persephone's pomegranates!" - but that's hardly likely.

Or maybe MN could start a new trend? Perhaps I'll start saying "Penis beaker" or "Naice ham!" Anyone care to join me/

No, Bloody Mary is who appears when you look in a mirror in a dark, candle-lit room and say ‘Bloody Mary’ 3 times. 😄

As for the ‘lord’s name in vain’ etc. complaints, I wish christians were as concerned about - and offended by - all the hypocrisy and ugliness perpetrated under the mantle of religion.

Nah it just sounds a bit shit so wouldn't have equivalent impact as a swearword. Unless you're Afghan or Iraqi or whatever

why are you deliberately choosing words that you know upset people? in a thread about these words being upsetting? do you think it is clever or funny to upset people? what does that say about you?

I absolutely hate it when people say Jesus in a negative way. Whatever your beliefs, saying someone’s name like that and using in a critical way, is awful. Awful for those who believe Jesus died for them. Saying anyone’s name like that would also be wrong.
it’s sad that it’s just accepted by so many

Exp's family would physically belt their kids (even adult age) for "taking the lord's name in vain" or "blasphemy" if they said "for gods sake" or "jesus christ". But thought nothing of shouting "(X name)! Dinner's ready! Get down here you fat little cunt!"

If you want to police language you'd keel over sideways where I’m from. Never mind poor jesus, it's "fuck this fuck off you fucking cunt" every other word just being around the general public with a small child in tow. Every. Single. Day.

Is the swearing in your title a deliberate joke?

Or maybe you don’t know that “bloody” is a contraction of “by our lady” referring to Mary, mother of God, and so just as blasphemous as “Jesus”?

If you think that way. Personally, I don’t. But if you’re offended by “Jesus” and not by “bloody” as expletives, then you’re either hypocritical or ignorant. Or both.

I avoid saying Jesus Christ/ OMG around my grandparents, because they don't like it, just like I moderate my language around my students etc. I'm also a Christian and tend to avoid it where I can anyway, but I don't have a problem with anyone else using it.

I have two main thoughts on the issues on this thread. One is that the persistent characterisation by some on MN of Christians in the UK as some kind of persecuted minority really annoys me. It's not true. As others have said, the reason why we have all these swears is because Christianity has been the dominant religion here for centuries. There may be less practicing Christians now, but we still have a state religion (CofE, which incidentally I disagree with as a concept). And the state religion still has influence over the government, with bishops in the house of lords etc. Christian schools are still way more common than other religious schools, and people of other faiths don't get the whole calendar built around their religious calendar. The reason why Christianity gets the mick took out of it more often is basically because of the concept of "punching up".

The other is that there are way more important things to worry about than swearing when it comes to being a "good Christian". Quite frankly, some of the most faithful and loving Christians I know are also the ones who can have a good old swear when it's necessary. To me, it's more important to stand up to bigotry, abuse, and malpractice within the church than it is to get offended by other people taking the Lord's name in vain.

Jesus H Christ !

There are various others so it's not punching up if they aren't CoE.

Catholics for example were not allowed to marry a royal.

I see what you mean, and I'm not CofE myself, in fact attend a tiny non-denominational church. But you see what I mean that because of the CofE, Christianity in general has a powerful status in the UK?
And not being allowed to marry a royal isn't exactly the height of discrimination, especially given it's an institution that doesn't approve of gay people being able to marry full stop. (And yes, I know all about historic religious conflict between Protestant and Catholic, my point is that Christianity as a whole is a dominant religion that everything from education to the calendar is based around)

I'd say it is "punching up" if an LGBTQ+ person takes the piss out of the Catholic church or the CofE, for example

why are you deliberately choosing words that you know upset people? in a thread about these words being upsetting? do you think it is clever or funny to upset people? what does that say about you?

@Nimbostratus100

Jesus it's a joke!

I mean I was raised christian. Though I am christian no longer. A lot of christian’s speak this way naturally so why do you assume the people who use this language aren’t christian first off?

Second I might not be christian anymore but I feel entitled to use it because I was raised that way. It was deeply instilled into me as a child as a part of my families values, and our culture.

And to the people that weren’t raised christian and are cradle to grave atheists, religious non christian’s and otherwise I will tell you most christian’s do not give a hoot and the ones that do you don’t want to get along with anyways because they are the ones that are unbearable to be around typically and give christian’s a bad name.

You know the types. The ones that go on and on about who is and isn’t going to hell. Gossiping about the recent local teen pregnancy and complaining about abortion, hook up culture, the woes of birth control and just generally unfriendly unfun conversation topics.

So please for the love of god, mary, joseph and jesus and all that is holy.

Please use the lord’s name in vain if you want to distinguish because the good christian’s and the crappy judgy ones. Always.

'Oh my God' in Urdu is literally translated as 'Hai mere Allah' and is used all the time in many Muslim/Urdu households (including mine). Similarly, 'O Lord' would be 'Ya Allah' (Allah being the Arabic word for God). I've never in my many decades come across any Muslim, Jewish or practising Christian say any of the things you've taken offence with OP but as a person belonging to a minority community, I always heard "Jesus Christ/on a bike/Mary and Joseph" and "Oh my God" being said by the majority white population where I've lived when I was growing up. In Islam, we're encouraged to remember God (Allah) in all states so remembering him in a calamity by saying "OMG/Ya Allah" is not a bad thing. I know my Hindu and Sikh friends' families would say their versions of 'OMG' in their languages without it being a big deal. Maybe others feel the same.

The LGBTQ community is over represented in the Vatican, for about 2/5% of the population globally, there are the majority running the Catholic church, so you would be punching your own community, which is a strange thing to do.

www.theguardian.com/world/2019/feb/12/four-in-five-vatican-priests-are-gay-book-claims

I have a soft spoken, very friendly, very helpful co-worker. He called me looking for someone who remained elusive. When I told him nobody had seen this person and nobody knew where they were, and we were unable to find him either, he expressed his dismay very vehemently and came out quite uncharacteristically with "Oh my Fucking God." And that is how he conveyed his great frustration. Very clear, concise, and emphatic. Did the job.

As a none practicing Roman Catholic all I have to say to your request is this

sweet baby Jesus and the orphans.

No we Muslims would take offense to that. We don't use Allah's name in vain. We also wouldn't use Jesus's name in vain as he is one of our prophets.

What else are you supposed to say during a heated nightly encounter instead of " oh my God, fuck yes"

'Some more please, thank you dearest'? 😉

I was just about to write something similar! Lots of my Muslim and Hindu friends/ their families will say Hai Allah! Or Ayyo Rama! Or similar. It’s very much a part of the everyday language, it’s not considered rude or ‘blasphemous’ and no one is offended.

Came on to say I’m muslim and many south Asian Muslims will say “hai Allah” ie oh god or my favourite “Allah jee” meaning dear god! I don’t understand the biggy and many of the conservative older people will say stuff like that which is how I’ve picked it up, not meaning to be disrespectful just part of the lingo.

What a thread.

Believe what you want to believe, so long and it doesn't harm others and you don't force it on them(or you know, say everyone who doesn't belive in your magic book writen thousands of years ago, probably to control people, but also useful as a way of putting years of useful knowledge of how to run a society) is doing to hell or should be killed)...

Couple of great Bill Hicks quotes might make people smile:

Short:

“You think when Jesus comes back, he really wants to see a cross? That’s like going up to Jackie Onassis with a rifle pendant on.”

---------

Long:

“Fundamentalist Christianity: fascinating. These people actually believe that the world is twelve thousand years old. Swear to God. Based on what? I asked them.

"Well, we looked at all the people in the Bible and we added 'em up all the way back to Adam and Eve, their ages? Twelve thousand years."
"Well, how fucking scientific, OK. I didn't know that you'd gone to so much trouble there. That's good. You believe the world's twelve thousand years old?"
"That's right."
"OK, I got one word to ask you, a one word question, ready?"
"Uh huh."
"Dinosaurs."

You know, the world's twelve thousand years old and dinosaurs existed, and existed in that time, you'd think it would been mentioned in the fucking Bible at some point:

And O, Jesus and the disciples walked to Nazareth. But the trail was blocked by a giant brontosaurus... with a splinter in its paw. And the disciples did run a-screamin'. "What a big fking lizard, Lord!"
"I'm sure gonna mention this in my book," Luke said.
"Well, I'm sure gonna mention it in my book," Matthew said.
But Jesus was unafraid. And he took the splinter from the brontosaurus paw, and the brontosaurus became his friend. And Jesus sent him to Scotland where he lived in a loch, O so many years, attracting fat American families with their fat fkin' dollars to look for the Loch Ness Monster. And O the Scots did praise the Lord: "Thank you, Lord! Thank you, Lord!"

Twelve thousand years old. But I actually asked this guy, "OK, dinosaur fossils-- how does that fit into your scheme of life? What's the deal?" He goes:

"God put those here to test our faith."
"I think God put you here to test my faith, dude. I think I've figured this out."

Does that-- That's what this guy said. Does that bother anyone here? The idea that God might be fucking with our heads? Anyone have trouble sleeping restfully with that thought in their head? God's running around burying fossils: "Ho ho! We'll see who believes in me now, ha ha! I'm a prankster God. I am killing me, ho ho ho!" You know? You die, you go to St. Peter:

"Did you believe in dinosaurs?"
"Well, yeah. There were fossils everywhere. (trapdoor opens) Aaaaarhhh!"
"You f**kin' idiot! Flying lizards? You're a moron. God was fuckin' with you!"
"It seemed so plausible, aaaaaahh!"
"Enjoy the lake of fire, fucker!"

They believe this. But you ever notice how people who believe in Creationism usually look pretty unevolved. Eyes really close together, big furry hands and feet? "I believe God created me in one day." Yeah, looks like he rushed it.

Such a weird belief. Lots of Christians wear crosses around their necks. You think when Jesus comes back he's gonna want to see a fucking cross, man? "Ow." Might be why he hasn't shown up yet.

"Man, they're still wearing crosses. F** it, I'm not goin' back, Dad. No, they totally missed the point. When they start wearing fishes, I might show up again, but... let me bury fossils with you, Dad. Fuck 'em, let's fuck with 'em! Hand me that brontosaurus head, Dad.”