Q&A: God’s Name in a Foreign Language
God’s Name in a Foreign Language
Question
I read in the Mishnah Berurah (below) that it is forbidden to utter God’s name in vain even in a foreign language. The implication of his words is that all the prohibitions that apply to uttering God’s name in the Holy Tongue also apply in a foreign language, and only for praise and thanksgiving is it permitted.
Does the Rabbi think that this is the correct meaning, and what is the Rabbi’s general view on this? Many people use God’s name in a foreign language in contexts other than praise and thanksgiving, and are careful only about using it in a curse.
(19) In vain — that is, even if he recites the blessing in the standard formula as an expression of thanks and praise, since it is unnecessary; all the more so if he mentioned God’s name in vain, Heaven forbid. And this does not apply only to the Four-Letter Name; the other names are also included in this prohibition. And likewise, if he uttered the Name in a foreign language in vain — meaning not by way of praise and thanksgiving — that too is forbidden (later authorities). The Eliyahu Rabbah wrote in the name of Sefer Chasidim: if you hear your fellow mentioning the Name, do not interrupt him in the middle by saying, “Do this or that for me,” for by doing so he will stop in order to hear you, and you will be causing him to utter the Name of Heaven in vain. But if you hear your fellow mention God’s name in order to curse another person, then interrupt him, because he sins when he curses.
Answer
There are expressions that use God’s name, in a foreign language or in Hebrew, not in the sense of addressing Him. When someone says, “Good God” (or, as is common in foreign languages, “Oh my God,” which I personally detest), or “the image of God,” that can come even from the mouth of an atheist.
Any substantive speech about the Holy One, blessed be He, is not considered uttering His name in vain. True, this is somewhat difficult in light of the views of some medieval authorities who see an unnecessary blessing as a Torah-level prohibition of false utterance, but in my view those positions are plainly unreasonable.
Discussion on Answer
None of the speakers imagines for a moment that this is about God. It’s just an expression that cheapens God’s name and is a poor imitation of a corrupt foreign expression.
Why does the Rabbi detest the slang expression “Oh my God”?
In my opinion, this is actually something very important: that in every action, whether for good or the opposite, the Creator of the world is involved in all our deeds and all our actions. (Like the idea explained by Maimonides about Jesus the Christian and Muhammad, that they help prepare the way to repair the world for the coming of the Messiah; so too in this sense, even heretics become accustomed to this slang, though at its root it expresses an important idea.)