Son uses God's name in Vain

  • Thread starter Thread starter novelist99
  • Start date Start date
Status
Not open for further replies.
N

novelist99

Guest
Our adult son, 30-years old, is living in our home. He claims to be an atheist. He frequently says God’s name in vain, using the GD word. It seems to be every other phrase out of his mouth. I’ve asked him to quit saying this in our home, and yet he keeps doing it. I don’t know what to do. I feel that he’s bringing a lot of negativity to our home.

Any suggestions?
 
novelist99 said:
Our adult son, 30-years old, is living in our home. He claims to be an atheist. He frequently says God’s name in vain, using the GD word. It seems to be every other phrase out of his mouth. I’ve asked him to quit saying this in our home, and yet he keeps doing it. I don’t know what to do. I feel that he’s bringing a lot of negativity to our home.

Any suggestions?
Click to expand...
I"m curious. Why have you not given him his walking papers?

Annie
 
Tell him that if he wants to live in your house, he needs to abide by your rules. It sounds like he is enjoying riling you up after you consistently have asked him to stop. Unfortunately, he’s not going to have any motivation to stop until you put your foot down.
 
Concur with question above. It may be hard but it sounds as if the time may have come to say “Son, we love you and always will, but we can no longer put up with your rudeness and disrespect to God and to us when you take the Lord’s name in vain. Either accept that one of the rules of this house is not to take the Lord’s name in vain, or leave.”

I can just hear the “but he …”

Its hard but doable. Years ago, a mother said to her 2 sons, get a job within one month or you will find your stuff outside the front door. She said she didn’t care that there was high unemployment, they had to get a job, any job. They did. Those grotty jobs were the spring boards to much better work.
 
Evania said:
Tell him that if he wants to live in your house, he needs to abide by your rules. It sounds like he is enjoying riling you up after you consistently have asked him to stop. Unfortunately, he’s not going to have any motivation to stop until you put your foot down.
Click to expand...
I agree with Evania I bet he is doing it to rile you up since he knows it’s offensive to you.
Maybe time for the tough love approach; the rule is you can’t live here and take God’s name in vain. Then it’s his choice to follow the rule or be asked to leave.

I hope that conversation goes well and your son will respect your wishes and your home will be relieved of some of that negativity and replace it with some positive things.

God Bless,
Mary.
 
I read this suggestion in a different post but can’t it. I thought it was a great idea.

Whenever someone uses the Lords name in vain-finish the sentence.
Example: when your son says this, you attach and say–have mercy on us or something similar.

Mommyk
 
He sounds like a typical atheist. Atheism seems to go way beyond simple non-belief, and instead borders on hatred of God. I suggest you make a hard and fast rule against his cursing, give him 7 days to correct the bad habit, and boot him out if he fails to respect the rule after the grace period is up.
 
Deus_tecum said:
He sounds like a typical atheist. Atheism seems to go way beyond simple non-belief, and instead borders on hatred of God. I suggest you make a hard and fast rule against his cursing, give him 7 days to correct the bad habit, and boot him out if he fails to respect the rule after the grace period is up.
Click to expand...
“seems”?

I think you can drop that qualifier.
 
That’s an offense I would issue walking papers over. You don’t have to believe in God to live in my house, but you WILL speak of him with respect if you use His name.

30 years old? He’s old enough to understand that when somebody tries to help you out by letting you live under their roof, you treat them with respect.
 
novelist99 said:
Our adult son, 30-years old, is living in our home. He claims to be an atheist. He frequently says God’s name in vain, using the GD word. It seems to be every other phrase out of his mouth. I’ve asked him to quit saying this in our home, and yet he keeps doing it. I don’t know what to do. I feel that he’s bringing a lot of negativity to our home.

Any suggestions?
Click to expand...
Time for tough love. What is his special condition that makes you want to shelter him from the real world? Time to update the resume (if there is one), find a job (if he doesn’t work), any job, time to gently push the bird off the nest before his wings stop working permanently. Let him develop some initiative, some resourcefulness, he’ll be more proud of himself and less likely to lash out at God.

As far as atheism goes, atheism is often a gut, emotional reaction, I don’t think most atheists really believe in their heart of hearts that the universe came into being spontaneously and ordered itself without a director. Some very smart science people conclude on the inexistence of a deity based on simplistic, childish reasonings. Show me an atheist who is serene, mentally balanced who doesn’t disrespect nor scorn believers, God and religion, and I’ll die from sheer shock.
 
Blaspheming in your home, according to the Vatican’s exorcist, also invites evil into the home.

One thing I have noticed lately is how incredibly pervasive and ubiquitous blaspheming has become in our society. I listen to a lot of audiobooks and I am constantly stopping and apologizing for its use in the audiobook. Television is the same. Most non-devout people I know blaspheme quite a lot. It’s an easy habit to pick up. But it sort of stings when I hear it. I can’t explain it. Yet our culture has degraded to such a point that, if I were to ask a person to stop, it would be me who was being “intolerant” and rude.

That said, in my own house, I would not allow it. If for no other reasons than those provided by Fr. Amorth in his book about exorcisms. The American exorcist Fr. Ripperger also states that frequent blaspheming in a home can bring about problems.
 
Thank you for all of your replies. They’re helpful and have given me much to think about. My son is unemployed and suffers from depression. That’s why he lives at home. He is not a bad person though. He’s actually a very caring person who would do anything for anyone. I don’t know when or why he became an atheist as he was raised Catholic.

Rete, I agree fully with Father Amorth. In fact, we have had shadow people in our home and other odd supernatural happenings, such as knocking and doors opening and closing. My family and I have also had very bad luck during the past few years–loss of jobs, health problems, etc. I’ve been saying prayers several times each day in hopes of countering this negativity. I think I’ve made a lot of progress and the oppressive feeling has decreased.

As for my son, I’ll talk to him about this again and let him know that he will have to move out if it continues. We have also tried to get him to get a job but have been unsuccessful.
 
novelist99 said:
Thank you for all of your replies. They’re helpful and have given me much to think about. My son is unemployed and suffers from depression. That’s why he lives at home. He is not a bad person though. He’s actually a very caring person who would do anything for anyone. I don’t know when or why he became an atheist as he was raised Catholic.

Rete, I agree fully with Father Amorth. In fact, we have had shadow people in our home and other odd supernatural happenings, such as knocking and doors opening and closing. My family and I have also had very bad luck during the past few years–loss of jobs, health problems, etc. I’ve been saying prayers several times each day in hopes of countering this negativity. I think I’ve made a lot of progress and the oppressive feeling has decreased.

As for my son, I’ll talk to him about this again and let him know that he will have to move out if it continues. We have also tried to get him to get a job but have been unsuccessful.
Click to expand...
I hope the discussion with your son goes well and the situation can be resolved.
Mary.
 
Your 30 year old son still lives at home?

Your 30 year old son still lives at home AND is an atheist?

Your 30 year old son still lives at home AND is an atheist AND uses God’s name in vain in your presence in almost every sentence?

I know he is your son and you love him and only want the best for him. However he is USING you for free room and board and is MOCKING you for your love of God. At this point all you can do is pray for him.

Millions of people suffer from depression and they do not live at home with Mom. They live productive lives. Send him to a psychiatrist for a medical evaluation and hopefully he will start taking medication. Depression is simply a chemical imbalance in the brain. He will feel better than he ever with meds and will be able to have the desire to find a job and keep it. If you don’t seek medical help for him the illness will get worse and he will be in further misery and will never leave home. In the mean time:

KICK. HIM. OUT. TODAY.
 
I don’t agree with this mainly Protestant sentiment that you should throw your children out of the home when they become adults. If your son is not married, and the economy is bad like this, then I don’t think it a big deal for your kids to still live at home with you. But his respect ought to be given to you.

As far as the weird things that happen, you could try holy water and exorcised salt. In that book I mentioned, he mentioned blessing articles of clothing belonging to the person in question as a kind of test. But don’t get too freaked out. Weird things happen all the time. Doesn’t mean demons are afflicting your home any more than usual. A person constantly blaspheming and bringing sin into the house is obviously not a good thing.

Also crucifixes, statues of Mary, and sacramentals help.
 
novelist99 said:
Thank you for all of your replies. They’re helpful and have given me much to think about. My son is unemployed and suffers from depression. That’s why he lives at home. He is not a bad person though. He’s actually a very caring person who would do anything for anyone. I don’t know when or why he became an atheist as he was raised Catholic.
Click to expand...
His atheism could come from the depression. There are quite a few people that think a loving God should make them feel good all the time, and if that doesn’t happen they decide there must be no God at all. In your son’s case it sounds more like he still believes deep down and is angry at God.

Now if he truly is a very caring person who would do anything for anyone, it should be a simple matter for him to stop cursing as a favor to you. If we refuses to stop then he is not being very caring about you, and he apparently is not willing to do anything (even something simple and easy) for anyone (even a parent).
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top