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Jizzo T. Clown
Joined: 28 Apr 2005
Posts: 668
Location: performing in a classroom near you!
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 Posted: Tue Nov 07, 2006 2:57 pm Post subject: Why do we capitalize "God"? |
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A student asked me this yesterday, and I told him that God is a name, and all names are capitalized. But then, "God" is also an idea, and the word itself isn't always capitalized...
I hope I didn't steer him too wrong!
Any ideas on what to tell him should it come up again? |
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furiousmilksheikali
Joined: 31 Jul 2006
Posts: 1660
Location: In a coffee shop, splitting a 30,000 yen tab with Sekiguchi.
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| Posted: Tue Nov 07, 2006 3:03 pm Post subject: |
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"God" is a proper name if you are referring to a single entity, as is "The Universe" and "The Internet". But if you are referring to a particular type of entity then you would say "god" as in "the Japanese gods". This also applies to when people are talking of "other universes". Whether there is only one universe (The Universe) or one god (God) is a matter of belief.
Actually, I'm not sure if the definite article "The" in "The Universe" should be capitalized.
More controversial is the capitalization of "He" when referring to "God". Although it is customary to do so many people won't for ideological reasons. |
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Deicide
Joined: 29 Jul 2006
Posts: 1005
Location: Caput Imperii Americani
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| Posted: Tue Nov 07, 2006 3:09 pm Post subject: |
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I have done away with capitalising god. It lends credence to the belief in the fairy tale of its/his/her existence...but technically Furious is right and it's a shame he is right...I hope this changes at some time in the future....  |
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furiousmilksheikali
Joined: 31 Jul 2006
Posts: 1660
Location: In a coffee shop, splitting a 30,000 yen tab with Sekiguchi.
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| Posted: Tue Nov 07, 2006 3:11 pm Post subject: |
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| Deicide wrote: |
| I have done away with capitalising god. It lends credence to the belief in the fairy tale of its/his/her existence...but technically Furious is right and it's a shame he is right...I hope this changes at some time in the future.... |
Well, lending credence is not really what it does. I think it's fine to say "I don't believe in God" just as we believe Hamlet is fictional yet still capitalize his name. |
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Deicide
Joined: 29 Jul 2006
Posts: 1005
Location: Caput Imperii Americani
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| Posted: Tue Nov 07, 2006 3:29 pm Post subject: |
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| furiousmilksheikali wrote: |
| Deicide wrote: |
| I have done away with capitalising god. It lends credence to the belief in the fairy tale of its/his/her existence...but technically Furious is right and it's a shame he is right...I hope this changes at some time in the future.... |
Well, lending credence is not really what it does. I think it's fine to say "I don't believe in God" just as we believe Hamlet is fictional yet still capitalize his name. |
Fair enough...Hamlet is my GOD  yeahhh |
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Jizzo T. Clown
Joined: 28 Apr 2005
Posts: 668
Location: performing in a classroom near you!
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| Posted: Tue Nov 07, 2006 3:51 pm Post subject: |
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| furiousmilksheikali wrote: |
More controversial is the capitalization of "He" when referring to "God". Although it is customary to do so many people won't for ideological reasons. |
Thanks!
Do other languages capitalize the pronoun when referring to a deity? If so, that might help students to understand why this is done in Western/Christian/English-speaking societies.
Last edited by Jizzo T. Clown on Tue Nov 07, 2006 5:00 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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rusmeister
Joined: 15 Jun 2006
Posts: 867
Location: Russia
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| Posted: Tue Nov 07, 2006 4:32 pm Post subject: |
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| Deicide wrote: |
| I have done away with capitalising god. It lends credence to the belief in the fairy tale of its/his/her existence...but technically Furious is right and it's a shame he is right...I hope this changes at some time in the future.... |
Thank God! (Ooops - sorry  )
Can I do away with capitalizing the big bang? Wouldn't want to lend credence to the belief in the fairy tale of its self-creation...
(Oh... guess I just did.)
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MikeySaid
Joined: 10 Nov 2004
Posts: 509
Location: Torreon, Mexico
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| Posted: Tue Nov 07, 2006 5:47 pm Post subject: |
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It is also done in Spanish.
And they're more anal about what is capitalized and not. Days of the week and months aren't capitalized, but when using the word as a name, "God" is capitalized.
I'd like to see an example where it's not the case in a language using the Roman or Cyrillic alphabet. |
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JZer
Joined: 16 Jan 2005
Posts: 3898
Location: Pittsburgh
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| Posted: Tue Nov 07, 2006 9:57 pm Post subject: |
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| Quote: |
| I have done away with capitalising god. It lends credence to the belief in the fairy tale of its/his/her existence...but technically Furious is right and it's a shame he is right...I hope this changes at some time in the future.... |
Deicide, capitalizing God has nothing to do whether he is real or not. Pinocchio is capitalized and he is not real. It depends whether a word is a proper name. God is a proper name when refering to one god whether that be a Christian God or a Muslim God. |
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