Cursing; what exactly is a sin?

[Robert_Plant]

This is from a christian apologetic website that I posted a little while ago but have gotten no takers on enlightening me...to preface, I know what the ten commandments say about it...


Now I know that taking the Lord's name in vain is a sin, buuuutttttttt...

I've wondered how this ropes in the curse words that, lets just use the usual american english language suspects, people say today. If you lets say drop something on your foot and exclaim either the f word or any other "can't say on TV during childrens shows" combination or swears, if you aren't saying "God d--nit" or "JChrist" then you aren't cursing God, right?

And if my assumption of the dirty words that aren't using God or Jesus' name are still sins is correct, I've thought that saying "dang it" or "shoot" or any other thing you blurt out in anger or pain should be just as bad as sh-t or b--ch. Your doing the same thing but, "I'm not saying one of the agreed upon dirty words of our country/culture so technically I'm not cursing".

So then is anything said in anger or pain, be it a single word or a paragraph, cursing? Is it the societys agreed upon swears with the "name in vain" thing, or just cursing God directly? Or is this a matter or intent; perhaps said at someone else or God its a curse, but stubbing your toe and yelling, "owwww, stupid sidewalk crack..." is okay since your insulting no one but the street and maybe your own shufflefoot walk?

[Joan of Bark]

I'm not quite sure what to say to you except: Joseph Lewis wrote an excellent book called The Ten Commandments (http://www.positiveatheism.org/hist/lewis/lewten0c.htm) which may enlighten you. It goes into a lot of detail regarding the relevent commandment.

[smellincoffee]

There are laws in the Bible about not swearing. I believe Christians have taken this for a double meaning -- no "I swear to God" or "Why is this damned idiot doing the speed limit in the passing lane?". The rules in the Bible are there to prevent people from swearing and making vows that are troublesome to fuflill; like Jephthah, who had to murder his daughter, because he said upon winning a great victory that the first thing to cross the threshold of his door when he got home would be sacrificed to God. It turns out that his daughter was the first to cross the threshold, so she had to go to the moutains, mourn about still being a virgin, and come home to die for daddy's God.

Although, I have read another spin on that:

We have
questioned the rashness and the timing of the vow. Perhaps instead (and
I'm speculating here) the problem was as obvious as, when you vow to offer
a sacrifice, be specific as to what you will offer. I think it might have
been acceptable to God if he had vowed, I'll give the best sheep, or the
fattest calf, or the best ram I find at home. But as it was, what would
Jephthah have done if an unclean sheep, a dog, a camel, or a pig had met
him? In effect, he was saying, I'll offer any old thing from my house --
whatever "randomly" comes up. That was unacceptable to God, and God
punished Jephthah severely for the loose nature of his oath.

Source: http://lists.ibiblio.org/pipermail/b-hebrew/2002-September/014148.html

[Robert_Plant]

Thanks for the info...that definetely, at least to me, shows that all the times I was scolded for saying a "dirty word" and how it was a sin was all a bunch of bullsh-t.:banghead: