Is saying "Oh my Gosh/Goodness" blasphemy?

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Hi there, fellow Catholics/Christians!

I’ve recently found out that some Catholics consider saying “Oh my Gosh!” or “Oh my Goodness!” blasphemy. I’ve said this quite often, and I would like to ask if this is really true and would like to have a definitive answer to this question.

Edit: Is it a sin? If so, is it a Mortal sin?

God bless,
  • Cecilia.
 
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These people have too much time on their hands and their is no “definitive” answer. Don’t worry about it.
 
“Some Catholics”, like some people, will always find some unimportant hill to make a last stand on.
 
Your point being that the Ten Commandments are unimportant and not worth our time, presumably in favor of the “really” important stuff like making sure everyone thinks we’re all very nice and worldly?
 
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ChunkMonk said:
Your point being that the Ten Commandments are unimportant and not worth our time, presumably in favor of the “really” important stuff like making sure everyone thinks we’re all very nice and worldly?
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My point is people have a tendency to make a big deal over nothing…whether using the phrase “Oh My God” is a mortal sin, or even grave matter takes more than tracing the possibility to the 10 Commandments…if you feel that way, fine, but don’t load people with guilt by judging them strictly on the “letter of the law”…I would rather concentrate on the log in my own eye before getting my panties in a twist over the speck in the eye of another.

But, whatever floats your boat!
 
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If it is a mortal sin to use God’s name in vain, then there really is nothing more important than letting people know that they shouldn’t be doing it.
 
ChunkMonk said:
If it is a mortal sin to use God’s name in vain, then there really is nothing more important than letting people know that they shouldn’t be doing it
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It may be grave matter…but as far as being a mortal sin, if you can conclude that from any post here, you don’t understand the teachings of the church on just what constitutes mortal sin.

No need to further this tit-for-tat.

I’m done. If you insist, feel free to have the last word.

Pax et Bonum! And Rejoice in the Lord Always…The Gospel is to offer happiness and hope, not disparagement and doom!
 
These terms started life as euphemisms but I think that’s long forgotten by now. It was the same story with Jeepers Creepers and Jiminy Cricket. But as early as 1940 Walt Disney could create a cartoon character named Jiminy Cricket without giving offense to Christians. That one got past the ever-vigilant Hays Office, apparently without raising so much as an eyebrow.
 
The whole point of using nonce words instead of swearwords is that the person is trying not to swear. It is good, healthy, and praiseworthy. It shows respect for God’s Name.

Making people feel ashamed of using nonce words is contemptible. It is holy-go-pious and hellish, because it calls a good thing evil.

(UPDATE: Of course a person with scruples, or with all good intentions, can mean well when condemning nonce words. It’s the overdoing that is bad, not necessarily the person.)

So no, it is not a mortal sin, or any kind of sin, to say “Oh my goodness!”
 
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I don’t think saying “oh my goodness” is the same as saying “oh my God”. If you think it is, what is an appropriate expression to use? I can’t imagine people going around like Gomer Pyle saying “well, go-llllly”. Unless you also think that’s blasphemy.
 
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If my follow-up post ever gets out of moderation, it’s from the 1946 edition of a 1937 book by Fr. Winfrid Herbst, S.D.S, that was published by the Society of the Divine Savior (Salvatorian Seminary) Publishing Department. _Questions of Catholics Answered_ came with an Imprint Potest as well as a Nihil Obstat and an Imprimatur. The matter of cursing (sinful) and “vulgar expressions” (not sinful) is treated in the chapter on “Precepts of Various Kinds.”

I don’t make this stuff up…

I forgot to add that Fr. Herbst said that even “Abuse of the Holy Name” is “a venial sin, unless such use in anger against God partakes of the character of blasphemy or contempt of God.” He condemned it as an irreverent and shameful habit, and praised the Holy Name Society for its work toward breaking such habits.
 
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Not only do I not believe that saying “Oh my gosh / goodness!” is blasphemy; I also believe that there are times when “Oh my God!” as a heartfelt expression of genuine surprise (not every half-sentence, as current usage would have it) would not be considered blasphemy.

While we’re on the subject, let us remember that the commandment is not against the misuse of the word “God”; it is against the misuse of the name JHWH.

D
 
I don’t think so. I’ve heard a lot worse, and “O my goodness” was something my very saintly grandmother said all the time.
 
I think part of this is cultural. I was raised as an evangelical Protestant in North America and was taught that even saying “OMG” was a sin. North American Catholics seem to have similar attitudes. Latin Americans? Catholic and Protestant alike are constantly saying “Dios Mio!” My wife who was raised very conservative Pentecostal in Latin America was absolutely flabbergasted that we would equate crying “my God” to using God’s name in vein.
 
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