Atheist and "Oh my God!"

[ChibiInuYasha]

I know several atheist (or so they say) Who have this habit of saying, "Oh my God" and "What in God's name?" and " I hope to God" and all that good stuff. I find it very ironic and...well...stupid. I even heard one go so far as to say "I don't belive in God." And I said "Yeah right, you're just sayin' that." And you know what he said "No really! I swear to God!" IT'S SO SILLY! MWAHA! :D

[Dr Unne]

http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=figure%20of%20speech

Similarly when someone says "God damn it", they aren't literally asking God to send down a curse upon something, or asking God to send something into Hell.

[Denmark]

I used to call myself an atheist, but I'd say "liek omg wtf :O!!!111!!!11!1" and "oh god" and stuff liek that.

so now I call myself an apathist. Apathy...meh.

:P

[Skogs]

It's just an expression. :eep:

[Yamaneko]

At the same time you have a believer saying it and not really meaning it.

[Peegee]

By Allah's beard!

Yes, it is just a figure of speech. It's not ironic (how is it even irony btw) nor is it hypocritical. It's just wacky.

[DMKA]

LoL...thats just ammusing. Yes, I know...I used to have a friend named Stephanie and she always talked about how she didn't believe in god and then she'd always say "OHH MYYYY GOOODDDDD" like that. Some people are just silly and don't think about random stuff they shoot off...

Infact I'm pretty sure most people are. :D

[LH]

I don't say that phrase.

I do understand how some Atheists do though. If you hear something enough times it sticks with you, and "oh my God" is something you hear dozens of times daily. If everyone went around saying "oh my unicorns" 1,000 times a day I'm sure people who don't believe in unicorns would take to saying it. Idioms are not meant to be taken literally.

[Del Murder]

It's just a reflex, I try not to say it because it might offend some religous people, but it's a handy phrase when the shock is great. Words lose their original meaning after a while. It's just a slang phrase now.

[Nait]

Merciful Buddha!


I say omg because it's funny. Sometimes, though, I change to "gods" or something else.

[DMKA]

I say "oh my Yevon!".

No seriously, I do. :O_O:

[Ifrit's Bodyguard]

http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=figure%20of%20speech



http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=blasphemy

[Duo]

They're just commonly used expressions, you fruit. @_@

[Baloki]

They're just commonly used expressions, you fruit. @_@

I do like fruit!

[Iceglow]

hmm true enough if you don't believe why say it? I used to believe in god now I don't well I do but I believe he's a lazy ass with nothing better to do than torture us. (I'll believe otherwise when I see the proof!)

[Breine]

I know. It's really silly. I'm a atheist myself and I sometimes say those things (Like 'Oh God!' and such). Anyway, it's a habit people (And I) have, and that's all that is to it.

[Nait]

http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=blasphemy


Haha, even more reason to why we do it. :D

[Dr Unne]

Many swear words and interjections are based on "blasphemies", yeah. Even the ones you wouldn't think are. "Gadzooks", dictionary.com says probably came from "God's hooks", referencing the cross or something.

But yeah, it's all quite silly. I don't think it counts as blashpemy every time you use the word G-D in a sentence. Even my old Spanish teacher, a rather devout Catholic, used to yell "Ai mi madre" (referencing Virgin Mary), and she said she picked it up from living with nuns for a few years.

[Doomgaze]

Dios mio!


(screw you, my jingoistic american keyboard doesn't have accents, and ascii codes are for hippies)

[Evelia]

Does "gosh" come from that, too? Just curious, 'cos I used to live next door to this really Christian family. They had twin girls a few years older than me and I think I once said "oh my gosh." I was about four, but they took it really seriously and told me that I couldn't see them if I continued to use language like that. =(

[Kawaii Ryûkishi]

Gosh comes from God. Gee/Geez/Jeez comes from Jesus. No idea about "willickers," though.

[Del Murder]

I always try to look for a nonreligious exclamation in those cases, but 'Jseus Christ!' is so dang effective. Is there a good equivalent?

[Kawaii Ryûkishi]

<B><i>JOEY CUCAMONGA!</B><i>

[Del Murder]

I'll try that next time.

[Blackmage]

Y'know, I really wanted to make a topic about this one day. But someone already beat me to it. Gheh...

Yeah, nowadays, "Oh my God!" and "Goddammit!" have just become absorbed into today's culture as almost reflexive expressions, as if they're the only words that can enter your mind at a time of shock. I, an agnostic, find myself saying this on a frequent basis. And it's mainly 'cause my family uses it so much.

We (people who "contradict" themselves by saying these words) don't mean to offend anyone when we say it. We just say it 'cause it seems natural to say it.

[Skogs]

In middle English they used 'sblood and 'Zounds', for God's blood and God's wounds.