It is never my intention to mock God with this expression; it just seems to come naturally. I’ve been trying to say "OMG!" its abbreviation, so it could mean either "Oh, my goodness!" or "Oh, my gosh," but OMG does not reflect the peak of emotions that “Oh, my God!” evokes.
OMG was first used over 100 years ago (Sept. 8, 1917) by a retired admiral of the British navy in his letter to Winston Churchill. He had to abbreviate “Oh, my God” (the first words in the act of contrition) because the phrase was regarded as the purest of profanity.
Years later, the phrase has become a little less irreverent. In text messaging and on social media, OMG is one of most common expletives used, intended to mean “wow” in one’s loudest voice when something surprising happens.
Most people today do not consider it profane at all. John McWhorter, a linguistics professor, Manhattan Institute, wrote, “The literal meaning of the exclamation is long gone. Any expression loses its power over time."
The notion that I am disrespecting God when the expression erupts from my mouth is too distant from my mind. It's just something that explodes out of me, like “Gee!”
My guilt led me to ask Pastor Ralph, our youth pastor, one day, “Is ‘Oh, my God’ taboo?”
His response, in summary: “More than the words we speak, God sees the motives and intentions of our heart. If I say 'Praise the Lord!' but my heart is cursing Him, then in reality, I am not praising, but cursing the Lord."
That drove my guilt away.
But he continued: “The issue here is, will 'Oh, my God!' build up others in faith? If it causes division, then let’s strive not to use it. Let’s weigh the pros and cons—it accurately expresses our emotion; on the other hand, is it edifying others and glorifying God?”
My guilt came back with a vengeance, so I brayed the abbreviation, "OMG!"
1 comment:
I say,"Oh My Grasshopper" hahahh
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