The vast majority of people, atheist, christian and agnostic seem to say things like 'oh my god' and 'jesus christ' to express shock. Myself included. However, I've come to see it as a bad thing, not least because I'm claiming god as my own. I was wondering what other people here thought about it.
To be honest, I don't expect people to start thinking I'm religious because I say oh my god, and I'm aware that some religious people think it is taking the lords name in vain (and thus it follows that if I were intending to offend xtians, I should use it more). Its more the fact that religion seems to be so ingrained in so called secular societies that it seems secular.
As a matter of principle, I now try not to say it, but I've struggled to find anything to replace it with. My immediate replacement for 'oh my god' is 'jesus christ', which isn't any better. 'Oh my gosh' seems weird to me, as does 'oh my goodness'. Right now, I'm settling on 'oh your god'.
To be honest, I don't expect people to start thinking I'm religious because I say oh my god, and I'm aware that some religious people think it is taking the lords name in vain (and thus it follows that if I were intending to offend xtians, I should use it more). Its more the fact that religion seems to be so ingrained in so called secular societies that it seems secular.
As a matter of principle, I now try not to say it, but I've struggled to find anything to replace it with. My immediate replacement for 'oh my god' is 'jesus christ', which isn't any better. 'Oh my gosh' seems weird to me, as does 'oh my goodness'. Right now, I'm settling on 'oh your god'.
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