Thou Shalt Not Take the Name of the Lord in Vain

I Googled Ten Commandments and guess what came up? This explanation for the 3rd commandment - "Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain."  I could not believe it when I read this. I guess it should not surprise me though because there are so many people who think nothing at all of saying "Jesus Christ" or "God damn it" or even as Jeremiah Wright has said, "God damn America." Here is the article I found:

The Third Commandment

We all know it. So highly symbolic are the Ten Commandments that almost all human beings on earth - even non-Christians - are aware of their existence. It is mostly because of the third commandment that shouting ‘Jesus Christ’ in conversation is frowned upon. I’d like to challenge that notion.

Does your God think less of you or possibly even punish you if you utter ‘Jesus Christ’ or ‘God damn it’? That’s too bad. Mine doesn’t! My God does not exhibit human-like pettiness. He does not care whether his name is used as an expression of surprise, anger or frustration. My God does not view uttering ‘Jesus Christ’ as a sign of disrespect. The need for respect from others is purely a human notion. God transcends all human reactions and emotions. He’s an entity that is much more grand than that.

Trust me folks. Your God cares much more about other things: kindness and helpfulness toward others; supporting those in need; sense of awe at his creations; sympathy; empathy; humility. You get the idea.

Who decided that the third commandment means saying ‘Jesus Christ’ is a blasphemous act? I want to meet that person. That’s just silly. Did that person talk to God personally? Who’s to say that the correct interpretation of this commandment should not be “You are not to make use of the name of the Lord your God for an evil purpose.” That would make much more logical sense. Here’s an example. In the dark ages, the church punished, in the name of God, those who did not believe the earth was the center of the universe. See what I mean? Here’s a more recent example: clergies abusing boys and covering it up.

That last sentence sounded so like liberal thinking. Just because clergies abusing boys and covering it up is a horrible thing, it doesn't mean that taking God's name in vain is just fine and dandy. Maybe you could argue that God is more interested in how we treat other people. Does that mean that using his name as a curse word is OK because we might think something else is worse? Does God want us to respect others, but show disrespect for Him? How can anybody think that way? 

Something I've thought about for a long time. Why is it only "Jesus Christ" and "God" that people say when they want to curse? Why not Mohammed, or Buddha or some other religious icon? I think this proves - at least it does to me - that all those others are false. To use their name would mean nothing.  You wouldn't get the "shock value". 

I want to show respect to all people but especially to the creator of the earth who loved us so much that he came to earth and died to save us. Think about it.

It is so true - THEY JUST DON'T GET IT