How Do You Defend the Name of God?

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CF_Mathews

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I recently came across a holy card explaining the importance of the Second Commandment:
Our Lord revealed to Sr. Marie de Saint-Pierre, a French Carmelite nun, the need for mankind to make reparation for the terrible sin of blasphemy. He told her: “Oh, if you only knew what great merit you acquire by saying even once:

Admirable is the Name of God!​

…in the spirit of reparation of blasphemy!”
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This card was published by “Our Lady of the Rosary Library,” based in Prospect, Kentucky.

What does the Second Commandment mean in our own lives? Obviously, we are not ourselves, going to take His Name in vain, but it is certain, we will be exposed to this sin. We should avoid any entertainment that commits this sin, especially if we have children in the home. The more difficult thing, is responding properly when someone in our presence speaks the Name of Jesus or God in a flippant or even disrespectful way (if they respond badly, maybe you don’t need this person as a friend). This takes a game plan and practice. It is a social skill that we all need to develop. It is not just the Name of God we must defend, but also Catholic moral teaching, when we get into discussions where these issues pop up. Again, a social skill that requires practice. It might be okay to make a mistake once. It is not okay to fail to learn from it and make a plan for the next time it happens. We all must decide for ourselves how we will handle these situations.

“But because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold, nor hot, I will begin to vomit thee out of my mouth.”​

Apocalypse 3:16

As we can see by the Scripture quote from Apocalypse, God will not look kindly on our generation for this sin. Perhaps this is one reason we see the present chastisement.

Please share your thoughts and how you deal with this problem when it arises.
 
When some says “Jesus Christ!” My pastor follows it with “My Lord and my God!” out loud.
 
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If I hear it I say “have mercy on me.” I also try to practice the devotion to the Holy Face of Jesus (which is approved by the Church; Pope Leo XIII also approved the Archconfraternity of the Holy Face).

Also, there are special promises for those who make a Holy Hour of Reparation every Tuesday to the Holy Face of Jesus for all the sacrileges and outrages He receives in the Blessed Sacrament.

The Golden Arrow (in reparation for blasphemy)

May the Most Holy, Most Sacred, Most Adorable, Most Mysterious and Unutterable Name of God be praised, blessed, loved, adored and glorified in Heaven, on earth and in the hells, by all God’s creatures, and by the Sacred Heart of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ in the Most Holy Sacrament of the Altar. Amen.
 
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Well, he is a priest, and a pastor at that, so he doesn’t care what they think! 😉 He is a Capuchin, and sometimes is in his robe when he says it.
 
Conservative radio host, as well as Conservative (not Orthodox) Jew, Dennis Prager, once explained that taking Gd’s name in vain really means doing bad things in the name of the L-rd, such as waging war and terrorist attacks. It is not so much saying the name of Gd in an offensive way, but using His name to justify committing offensive, hateful behavior. I find that interpretation interesting as well as in keeping with the Jewish emphasis on how we behave toward others.
 
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Jesus said it best: ‘But I say to you not to swear at all,… But let your speech be yes, yes: no, no: and that which is over and above these, is of evil.’ - Matt 5:33-37
 
When I hear God’s name taken in vain, I say inwardly “blessed be the name of Jesus.” When I hear people use Our Lord’s name in vain, I say the same thing, but this time I bow my head slightly.

I just wish people would stop using their names so casually, sometimes even out of anger or malice. If my memory serves me right, Our Lady warned us a couple of times that God would chastise the world for breaking the second commandment all the time…
 
When I hear “oh my God”, I’ll respond with “Oh my gosh”.
If the other person is a child (one of my patients or my children’s friends), they usually get a sheepish look.
My own friends know I don’t take the Lords name in vain and accept it as a quirk of mine.
 
When I hear someone take the Lord’s name in vain, I’ll do a slight bow of the head and respond “blessed be His holy name.”
0Scarlett_nidiyilii said:
When I hear “oh my God”, I’ll respond with “Oh my gosh”.
If the other person is a child (one of my patients or my children’s friends), they usually get a sheepish look.
My own friends know I don’t take the Lords name in vain and accept it as a quirk of mine.
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One of my “quirks” is that I also avoid saying “oh my gosh.” I was taught when I was younger that we shouldn’t say that because “we’re just trying to find a word to replace God.” I always found it interesting because “oh my gosh” is almost like the universal way of avoiding taking God’s name in vain. I typically say “oh my goodness,” which is kinda ironic because all “goodness” comes from God. I’m curious if anyone else was ever told that. It may just have been me 🤣
 
I never heard that until I was an adult.

Golly, Gee and Jeez are also euphemisms
 
I don’t “take the lord’s name in vain”, out of respect to others who may be Christian or Catholic around me. But I will add, in some cultures (including my home religious background) saying the Lord’s name casually (not in an offensive or derogatory way) is not considered a sin. The idea is that the name itself is sacred, so saying it even in a casual context can bring one closer to God and the fact that you even remembered to say his name is a sign of grace. Of course it is better to pray purposefully and say the name of God in this context, but in some religions it is not “bad” or immoral to say His name more casually.
 
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