Is it okay to say "The Man Upstairs", "The One downstairs", etc.?

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TomS333

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I’ve heard people refer to Heaven and Hell as Upstairs and Downstairs; to God as “The Man Upstairs” and the Devil as “The One Dowstairs”.

Is it okay to refer to them by using these terms (and others that I’ve possibly forgotten)?
 
I can say God. But other people seem to prefer a euphamistic approach.
I think they were JW, or one of the denominations that say God is a Man or claim that “Man in God’s image” is literal and about the physical body.
 
I have heard people say ’ The Man Upstairs ’ sporadically since I was a kid, I may have used the same term. What I will say that no disrespect to God was meant. Surely others have have heard the same thing… I never heard the other one,though. I believe we always should refer to God as God, yet sometimes one uses the above but it does not make us any less respectful. God bless you,
 
Ya a guy I knew always said that.
But he lived in a ranch house!!

But he did have a basement!!

Hmmmm
 
People use colloquialisms sometimes to refer to God because he is like a friend to them, or a member of their family. As long as they are not blasphemous and the intention of the person is not disrespectful, I think these are fine. “The Man Upstairs” was used frequently in my family and I have other little nicknames of my own for Jesus or God (which I will not share here).

While some people find these to be a little disrespectful, there are others who feel closer to God or Jesus when using some friendly nicknames. I think to some degree it is cultural also - some cultures have humor as a very central part of daily life and some do not.

I grew up in an Irish family where there were many names for God and many little jokes about God. None of them were blasphemous, it was sort of the way one might joke about one’s earthly father. So to me, such jokes are normal. To someone from a different type of family, it might be less natural.
 
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