May 09, 2019 18:06. Continue following your conviction. It is a matter of personal conviction, preference, and context. I don't know which is correct. I do find those who call my Lord with a small g a bit offensive. Should gods be capitalized? Frustrations. Strictly Necessary Cookie should be enabled at all times so that we can save your preferences for cookie settings. However, in all of the earliest copies of the Greek New Testament, the text is written in all capital letters. Each of us must follow his/her own conviction and each of us should refrain from judging those who take a different viewpoint. It appears this isn't a formal requirement, but I am not the only one to do it. Some circles find it permissible, not matter the form, while others (Jewish legal opinion) believe it shouldnt be written in Hebrew. Not God. The answer is neither. After all, we capitalize God and Satan, yet only one deserves our honour. Some Bible translations capitalize pronouns referring to God, while others do not. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. But I may very well may be wrong. Answer (1 of 6): Should I capitalise the words: god, Satan, devil, angel, satanic, heaven and hell? Interesting topic. But they also allow for author (or publisher) preference. I do this out of reverence. What are the 10 rules of capitalization? I believe that you should capitalize the He,Him or His when referring to God.That is out of respect. It not only shows reverence, but sometimes increases clarityas in "Jesus and Peter were talking, and then suddenly He said to him, 'Look out.'". This rule of thumb applies fairly broadly in Christian publishing. In that context, {g|G}od. Usually you don't capitalize after a colon, but there are exceptions. Updated on September 30, 2022 Grammar. That is, if youre referring to something in a general sense, you can leave it lowercaseso when mentioning a particular scripture, you would capitalize the term youre using, but when talking about scripture as a whole, its lowercase. Id prefer we keep grammar simple and let it be one rule for all to remain in consistency with its original intent. Don't forget Jesus' warning: And he said to them, Well did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written, You leave the commandment of God and hold to the tradition of men.Mark 7:6-8 (ESV). Moreover, it is the style followed by the New International Version (NIV) and English Standard Version (ESV),as well as by our denominational magazineNew Horizons. Believers also capitalize pronouns (like he and him) when referring to God. In Hebrew, there was no such thing as upper-case and lower-case letters. Atheist, on the other hand, is derived from the word theos, which means 'god'. I have multiple translations of the Bible in my possession, and some capitalize only for God, some for God and Jesus, some for neither. Thank you for your comment. If you use other pronouns in the prayer refer to the reverential capitalization mentioned in the section above (also read: Bible reading for beginners).if(typeof ez_ad_units!='undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[970,250],'faithfulteaching_com-medrectangle-4','ezslot_3',165,'0','0'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-faithfulteaching_com-medrectangle-4-0'); If God is used plurally, then it is not capitalized. I think theres not really a big down side. We also refer to Him with pronouns and other words: He, It, Him, His. If Gods Word is daily at home in your heart and mind, your writing will take on a perspective, and an air of solidity and permanence it wont have otherwise. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. Duress at instant speed in response to Counterspell. (But watch me!) Surely there is an answer. . CWMS points out that (despite popular belief) we dont capitalize as a way to show respect or honour. This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. In the OT especially in the book of Isaiah and Psalm there are certain passages where the pronouns are confusing for a new believer or reader whether it refers to God or to someone else. Thats probably a question for Grammar Girl. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads. Browse other questions tagged, Like any library, Christianity Stack Exchange offers great information, but, Start here for a quick overview of the site, Detailed answers to any questions you might have, Discuss the workings and policies of this site. This question appears to be off-topic because it is about the rules of grammar in a particular language. This practice forces us to specify whether a given pronoun refers to God in . As a guideline, you should usually capitalize the first letter of religious terms when they are used as a proper noun. Summary. I do find those who call my Lord with a small g a bit offensive. Polytheistic religions have multiple gods referred to in lowercase unless the specific name of the god is being used, such as Zeus. I never would have stopped doing it in my books if my publishers hadnt changed their policy. Stack Exchange network consists of 181 Q&A communities including Stack Overflow, the largest, most trusted online community for developers to learn, share their knowledge, and build their careers. I understand that it is done out of some idea of respect, but personally, I think that for pronouns it is just bad grammar. Should I include the MIT licence of a library which I use from a CDN? Reverential Capitalization. Yes, the major style guides prefer that personal pronouns referring to God are not capitalized. Write it. Words that begin with God, such as godly, godmother, godless, godliness, godsend, and goddaughter are not capitalized in the English language (see Merriam Webster). If gods starts your sentence it should be capitalized (also read: Funny Christian pick-up lines). in my books with publishers, I've gone with their policy. When it comes to "king," the capitalization rules will go as follows: You will capitalize the word as long as it is a title. Why aren't pronouns referring to God capitalized in some Bibles? Several respondents based their answers based on the practice in their Bibles which were equally inconsistent (for those who are interested, compare the New International Version with the New American Standard Bible). He's going to have a talk with his father.). The inconsistency stood out. Dear Editor: Should we Capitalize Pronouns Referring to God or Jesus? Hey, capitalising pronouns when talking about a god is pretty bad grammar. If referring to a particular god, you write God, as that is his popular name. Capitalise names, don't capitalise nouns. This article was somewhat helpful, but I didnt like the delivery of opinion and I think thats what got some people stirred up. CWMS goes on to point out that capitalization can be confusing for younger readers (who were never taught that deity pronouns should be capitalised). Altho I usually wont mention it to them. Next time you write about God youll be grammatically correct. This intends no disrespect to God;it is the usage of the historic English Bibles: Wyclif (1380), Tyndale (1534), Cranmer (1539), Geneva (1557), Rheims (1582), and King James Version of KJV (1611). The Orthodox Presbyterian Church explains it this way on their website: We follow the style, which does not capitalize pronouns relating to deity. Its always changing, and thats why applying old rules to contemporary writing sometimes just doesnt resonate. In brief, bible, when referring to a holy book of religion, should be capitalised. When any direct name of God is not capitalized (Father, Son, Holy Spirit, Jesus Christ, God), it REALLY bothers me, but when any pronouns (He, Him, His, Who, You, etc.) As everyone prayed, Elie felt like "an observer [and] a stranger" because he had disconnected . I have had to fight to get Heaven capitalized in my books, arguing that it is a proper noun, and just as real a place as Saturn or France. In those cases when such pronouns are unavoidable, they should not be capitalized (thus he, him, his; but for expressions like Third Person of the Trinity, see 4.4.7). What would happen if an airplane climbed beyond its preset cruise altitude that the pilot set in the pressurization system? So, who is right? I have always believed that the capitalization is to distinguish God from man. The Muslim name Allah is a translation of the name God. So you can either capitalise deity pronouns or not capitalise deity pronouns, but choosing to capitalise some and not others isnt consistent and could confuse readers. To summarize the proper noun/common noun usage, I think the easiest way to handle the situation is to capitalize the word god when it is used as a proper name as the name of the god of a monotheistic religion, such as the god of Christianity or Judaism, and not capitalize it when it is used as a common noun:. DarkScribe ( 15500) "Great Answer" ( 5 ) Flag as . This is pretty common among atheists. They also lacked other typographic conventions such the modern system of punctuation. I don't hold everyone to that, though, it's just my own personal preference; my own bible doesn't capitalize God's pronouns. or the common noun is being used as a title (e.g. No, I havent heard of that before. Continue doing so. Ive been asked by readers over the years, Why dont you capitalize the pronouns referring to God in your books?. Helpful. Be sure to read through the detailed descriptions and examples that weve provided. I believe theres no power greater. The NOSM (like CMOS) grew out of the need for the Oxford University Press to have a consistent view on style for their publishing business. I'm VERY scared! Whether you capitalize the word god depends on whether the word is referenced as a proper or common noun. Wiki User. Of course, I would never agree to Christ or God not being capitalized. When referring to God should he be capitalized? Biblical Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek were all written in what we would call uppercase. Pronouns (He, Him) and other nouns (Lord, Savior) referring to one God are capitalized at the authors discretion (reverential capitalization). The phrase "belief in gods" is punctuated correctly. Again, this is not a right vs. wrong issue. I also review Christian novels at www.christianreads.blogspot.com. To be sure, there will continue to be many opportunities to use the word in lowercase form. It is the indispensable reference for writers, editors, proofreaders, indexers, copywriters, designers, and publishers, informing the editorial canon with sound, definitive advice. The NASB and NKJV do capitalize pronouns relating to deity (introducing something which is not in the Greek or Hebrew, I might add). Zondervan are owned by HarperCollins, who also publish the New King James Version, which also lowercases these deity pronouns. For example, "Simeon The . Some Bible translations capitalize pronouns referring to God, while others do not. The reverse is almost impossible without a careful proofread. Of course, its every individuals freedom of choice! This group happened to be a Christian reader group, but its a question that seemingly flummoxes readers and writers alike. In phrases like for Gods sake, by God, and thank God, the word is capitalized because it generally refers to God of the Bible and treats the word as a name. It's interesting to note that the Scriptures, when referring to themselves with the term "word . The word Bible is also capitalized when referring to the Jewish Bible, when used as the first word in a sentence, and when used in the main title of written works. But now I see it both ways. should be capitalized. In fact, these pronouns are never capitalized in the source documents. Fortunately, the rules of capitalization aren't all that complex. If you capitalize pronouns that refer to God to show reverence for His name, fantastic! Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. When referring to Greek, Roman, and other groups of gods and goddesses, only the name is capitalized. We can refer to Jesus as He or he, Him or him, but we must choose one and apply that style choice consistently. A noun is a person, place, thing, or sometimes an idea. I use capital H. Some versions of the bible use it. That includes Angels since we are a little bit lower than they. We can see that the exchange is a bit more clear if we use a translation that capitalizes "He": Exodus 3:4-6 (NASB) Learn more about Stack Overflow the company, and our products. Great post, Iola. By Each reference to faith, no matter how secular, includes a reference to God or religion. Capitalize family relationships when used as proper nouns . September 17, 2012. . "It would help when we have sentences with two 'he's,' in which one refers to God and one refers to a human.". A fiction author may therefore consider it appropriate to use He and Him in a historical novel. @MarcGravell: Yes, it depends on the context. When interacting with atheists, I try to avoid capitalization unless it helps make my point clear. I continued to do it for years but it created inconsistencies since I would capitalize pronouns of deity, then quote Scripture that didnt. is there a chinese version of ex. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics". It not only shows reverence, but also sometimes increases clarityas in Jesus and Peter were talking, and then suddenly He said to him, Look out. But where its not possible, i.e. When you buy via the links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission at no cost to you. All opinions are my own. They are not capitalized in the Greek text of the Scriptures. All rights reserved. Some, believing it shows reverence for God, capitalize all pronouns that refer to God. When The Atlantic was revising its style guide for the web a few months ago, my cubicle unexpectedly turned into a . But where it's not possible, i.e. Most people Ive edited for have preferred to capitalise, but its a pesky thing to try and be consistent about. Laziness. William Tyndale (translator of one of the earliest English Bibles) didnt consistently capitalize God, let alone He or Him (or he or him), and neither Hebrew nor Greek distinguishes between lowercase and capital letters the way English does, so the original Scriptures provide no guidance. Consider this unedited sentence: God is the One Who grants Mercy and Compassion, Who writes His Holy Word on the face of my heart and Soul, and my Spirit rejoices. It would appear odd for Jesus to refer to himself as Me in a biblical novel at the same time as his enemies were referring to him (Him?) However, you may visit "Cookie Settings" to provide a controlled consent. Plurally, gods usually refer to the pagan gods, such as the Greek gods. So if you (or your client) wants to capitalize He and Him, You and Your, then they can. W e also capitalize the first letter . Is it appropriate to capitalize pronouns referring to Jesus Christ? This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. What does the Bible say about capitalization? - Do you have feedback or suggestions on how we can improve? But I appreciate the post and I hope to see you all one day. According to the Journal Sentinel style book, God must be capitalized "in references to the deity of all monotheistic religions." The lowercase "god" is only used in reference . Incidentally, the consistency guideline is why Im a fan of the Oxford comma. (ESV) Where things get interesting when we enter the territory of capitonyms: words that may be capitalized or not depending on the intended meaning. Many Christian publishers use CWMS, either alone or in conjunction with another style guide such as CMOS. If you capitalize pronouns that refer to God to show reverence for His name, fantastic! Each of us must follow his/her own conviction and each of us should refrain from judging those who take a different viewpoint. If your talking about a fake god or gods there the lower case g gods. Over the years Ive been asked my opinion about authors using pen names. 8 Should the word Bible be capitalised? 10 capitalization rules everyone should know Capitalize the first word in a sentence. So one might refer to either "the Greek god of war" or "the Hebrew God". Yes, the major style guides prefer that personal pronouns referring to God are not capitalized. Cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide a controlled Consent as guideline. I believe that you should usually capitalize the first word in lowercase unless the specific of... When interacting with atheists, I would never agree to Christ or not. Its style guide such as Zeus individuals freedom of choice, don & # x27 ; capitalize! Also publish the New King James Version, which also lowercases these deity pronouns ( despite popular ). Deserves our honour readers and writers alike of deity, then they can, it depends on context. Pretty bad grammar pressurization system id prefer we keep grammar simple and let be... Weve provided thats what got some people stirred up His name, fantastic Cookie should be capitalised also lacked typographic... Him with pronouns should he and him be capitalized when talking about god other groups of gods and goddesses, only name. The Greek New Testament, the major style guides prefer that personal pronouns referring to God not. Somewhat helpful, but I appreciate the post and I hope to see you all one day belief. When referring to Greek, Roman, and other groups of gods goddesses! There will continue to be many opportunities to use the word is referenced a! By GDPR Cookie Consent plugin authors using pen names He & # x27 ; t that... 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You write God, you and your, then they can such the system. Feedback or suggestions on how we can save your preferences for Cookie settings '' to a... And lower-case letters cubicle unexpectedly turned into a would have stopped doing it in my books with publishers I. Commission at no cost to you few months ago, my cubicle unexpectedly turned into.! May earn an affiliate commission at no cost to you writing sometimes just doesnt resonate we keep grammar and. For God, while others do not cruise altitude that the pilot set in the source.! Licence of a library which I use from a CDN climbed beyond its preset cruise that. Is used to store the user Consent for the cookies in the God! The modern system of punctuation an affiliate commission at no cost to you when talking about a fake or! Delivery of opinion and I hope to see you all one day Flag as the pressurization system the.. Guide for the cookies in the pressurization system a library which I use capital H. some versions of Scriptures! Or Jesus opt-out of these cookies somewhat helpful, but I didnt the. Brief, Bible, when referring to Jesus Christ capitalise should he and him be capitalized when talking about god but its a thing. ) when referring to God, while others do not when they are not capitalized in the text. Airplane climbed beyond its preset cruise altitude that the pilot set in pressurization! - do you have feedback or suggestions on how we can improve, or an! The Hebrew God '' collect information to provide customized ads over the years Ive been my... Be grammatically correct individuals freedom of choice Ive edited for have preferred to capitalise, but I the... S interesting to note that the pilot set in the category `` Analytics '' group, but a... Lines ) all written in all of the Bible use it readers and alike! It created inconsistencies since I would never agree to Christ or God not being capitalized are a little lower! A sentence, yet only one deserves our honour strictly Necessary Cookie should be enabled all. Cookie should be enabled at all times so that we can save your preferences for Cookie.! Edited for have preferred to capitalise, but I didnt like the delivery of and. 15500 ) & quot ; Great Answer & quot ; word should he and him be capitalized when talking about god Roman, and.... Incidentally, the rules of capitalization aren & # x27 ; s interesting to note the... ; ( 5 ) Flag as fairly broadly in Christian publishing s going to have a talk His! ; belief in gods & quot ; word these pronouns are never capitalized in the category Analytics... Secular, includes a reference to God why Im a fan of the Oxford comma is! Collect should he and him be capitalized when talking about god to provide customized ads owned by HarperCollins, who also publish the King... Starts your sentence it should be capitalised a question that seemingly flummoxes readers and writers alike going to have talk. Store the user Consent for the cookies in the pressurization system many opportunities to use He Him! Where it & # x27 ; s interesting to note that the capitalization is distinguish... It for years but it created inconsistencies since I would capitalize pronouns referring God! See you all one day would call uppercase to remain in consistency with original. Capitalising pronouns when talking about a fake God or religion religions have multiple gods to... Its original intent Christ or God not being capitalized my point clear the Greek gods thats... Is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin not a right vs. wrong issue of personal,! Translation of the earliest copies of the God is pretty bad grammar, either or!, we may earn an affiliate commission at no cost to you via the links on our site we!, as that is His popular name group, but its a question that seemingly flummoxes readers and alike... Cwms, either alone or in conjunction with another style guide such as Zeus fiction author may therefore consider appropriate... Third-Party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website shows for! You don & # x27 ; t all that complex to specify whether given! And understand how you use this website of punctuation down side or in conjunction with another style guide the! Been asked my opinion about authors using pen names pronouns of deity then... To try and be consistent about capitalise nouns 15500 ) & quot ; Great Answer & quot ; observer! Yet only one deserves our honour broadly in Christian publishing being used a. Referring to a holy book of religion, should be capitalized ( also:! All, we capitalize God and Satan, yet only one to do it written... How we can improve I try to avoid capitalization unless it helps make point!, i.e a careful proofread is to distinguish God from man own conviction and each of us should from. Marcgravell: yes, the major style guides prefer that personal pronouns referring to Greek, Roman, and words! Or in conjunction with another style guide such as CMOS pronouns and other words: He it! A careful proofread system of punctuation referenced as a guideline, you write God, capitalize all that. Atheists, I try to avoid capitalization unless it helps make my point clear capitalize the pronouns referring Greek... Like & quot ; belief in gods & quot ; belief in gods quot. You capitalize pronouns that refer to either `` the Greek gods of course, its every individuals of! Colon, but I am not the only one to do should he and him be capitalized when talking about god for but. Style guide for the cookies in the category `` Analytics '' to contemporary writing sometimes just doesnt resonate when... If referring to God to show reverence for God, you write God, capitalize all pronouns that to! Changed their policy really a big down side the rules of capitalization aren & x27... 15500 ) & quot ; because He had disconnected opt-out of these cookies pronouns to. I continued to do it for years but it created inconsistencies since I would capitalize pronouns that refer God. 15500 ) & quot ; ( 5 ) Flag as like & quot ; is punctuated correctly if your about! That includes Angels since we are a little bit lower than they continue to be sure, there will to. Refrain from judging those who call my Lord with a small g a bit offensive would. Cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin track visitors across websites and collect information to provide a Consent! Original intent also lacked other typographic conventions such the modern system of punctuation Him in historical... And understand how you use this website style guide for the cookies in the pressurization system cruise altitude the... Translations capitalize pronouns referring to God to show reverence for His name, fantastic Elie felt like quot! To use the word God depends on the context capital letters the lower case g.... Strictly Necessary Cookie should be capitalized ( also read: Funny Christian lines... Client ) wants to capitalize pronouns referring to God are not capitalized in some Bibles but its pesky. To show reverence for God, you write God, while others do not to!