The Use of Profanity

On the prevalent practice of profanity, we cite these words from George Washington: “The foolish and wicked practice of profane cursing and swearing is a vice so mean and los, that every person of sense and character detests and despises it.”

There are many who have expressed their feelings on the same subject. “Profaneness is a . . . vice,” said Edwin Hubbel Chapin. “He who indulges in it is no gentleman.⎯I care not what his stamp may be in society, or what clothes he wears, or what culture he boasts.⎯Despite all his refinement, the light and habitual taking of God’s name in vain, betrays a course . . . will.”

“Profanity never did any man the least good,” said an unknown author. “No man is the richer, or happier, or wiser, for it. It commends no one to any society. It is disgusting to the refined; abominable to the good; insulting to those with whom we associate; degrading to the mind; unprofitable, needless, and injurious to society.”

The “tendency to speak lightly of God;” “The habit of flipping out an oath on any and every pretext” is, in fact, a “poverty of language.” “Among many nations,” reports a widely respected periodical “profanity is restricted to the ignorant and underprivileged; with us it is the educated and the sophisticated alike . . . Even if we try to judge generously, we must concede that swearing . . . reveals both a paucity of ideas no less than of vocabulary . . . ” “When men interlard their otherwise dull speech with a number of oaths, they are said to use ‘strong language.’ But they are in reality weakening language.”

Despite the prevalence of profanity, there is still good language and bad language, refined speech and crude speech, reverent language and irreverent language, and the prevalence of such practice hasn’t removed the difference between the two.

Basic to all of this is what is called a commandment⎯indeed, one of the Ten Commandments, none of which has ever been repealed so far as we are aware: “Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain; for the Lord will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.”