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Showing posts from September, 2019
Why the Ten Commandments are for atheists, too The Second Commandment: You shall not take the name of the Lord, your God, in vain.    "Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will make me go in a corner and cry by myself for hours." -Eric Idle                Words matter. A man is hanging a picture.   His hand slips and his finger shifts in front of the hammer.   Instead of hitting the nail, he hits his thumb.   “ Jesus Christ!” he shouts.                 He could have said a lot worse.   I have actually had this discussion with nonbelievers who see absolutely no reason why they should refrain from using such expressions.   Their attitudes usually soften when I point out that such language might offend people.   They also usually concede that such expressions should not be used around children.                 But can we look beyond expressions of anger or surprise?   A friend of mine who is a Catholic priest would routinely use expressions wi