Do you use profanity in your writing? Frankly, I have been alarmed lately at the amount of profanity I have found in books and motion pictures. I won't argue with you, at least at this point, if you tell me that I should not be reading those books or watching those movies. For now I just want to deal with the phenomenon. First, while all of these words represent bitterness and rebellion, there are actually at least four separate categories of profanity.
First, there is language that is just nasty. This includes bathroom talk and other course words. These begin with course humor, but tend to normalize the coarsest thinking.
The intent behind these words often leads to sexual language. Such words are usually titillating. But they include the most violent of curse words that degrade sexual relations and abuse women.
I would also include racial slurs as profane. Profanity abuses that which is sacred. A person's race is God-given. Also, racial slurs usually lie outrageously. I don't believe Hitler invented racial jokes, but demeaning whole people groups was certainly pushed forward by the Nazis. This is one area of profanity that is usually avoided by writers.
Finally, there is blasphemous language. This includes language that treats hell or other truths lightly. And it extends to taking the name of God in vain.
Note that I did not include a fifth category of words of hate, violence, and abuse. I am aware that you may be able to think of hateful words that don't fit into these four categories. But words from all four of these categories can be used to abuse.
If you ask fiction writers why their characters use filthy language, they will tell you that they are trying to accurately reflect life. I do not know if I am extremely sheltered or not. But to be honest, I never hear people talk as bad as I read in books or have seen on television or in movies. Nevertheless, I think there is some truth to this. We have descended to the place in our society where even our highest political officials regularly use foul language and attack other people mercilessly. The corruption of our society is a great part of my concern. Jesus said that the mouth speaks out of the overflow of the heart. Ungodly speech reflects wicked hearts. And when we use bad language in our writing, we also make our society more blasphemous and violent.
This is a more complex problem then I have shown it to be so far. While I would like to influence writers to guard our language, I would like this to be more than a rant against society. I would like to make this a matter of prayer. After all, I am primarily writing to Christian writers in this blog.
In the 6th chapter of Isaiah the prophet says, “Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts!” Isaiah was convicted of their unclean hearts and lips because he had experienced the presence of God. And I believe the solution to the problem is to expose people by our writing to the reality and presence of the living God.
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No comments on this post about profanity.... I needed to change that. This post is diabolically convicting. It's not that I want to make a confession here, it's just that it doesn't matter who you are, you can fall into the trap of the lowest common denominator. It seems that everyone that frequents specific affinity groups all tend to take on the characteristic of the least common denominator whether it be a behavior, a thought process or belief, or the language one uses when in the presence of one another.
ReplyDeleteAs pastors, especially youth pastors, we believe we are immune to this phenomena and by our will we can turn the tide of the least common denominator by raising the bar of expectations for what is acceptable. But subtly, more often than not, one begins to slip into the behavior of the group rather than rather than championing the example of the best Christ-like foot being put forward.
Your blog is convicting not for writing, but in life! How many times does the wrong word, a disgusting one at that, come to my lips ready to be exposed to the world only to be held back at the last second leaving me wondering, "Where in the world did THAT come from?"
If it happens to me, then who is safe?
Ephesians 6:18-20, "...praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end, keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints, and also for me, that words may be given to me in opening my mouth boldly to proclaim the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains, that I may declare it boldly, as I ought to speak."
I certainly cannot speak boldly if I am ashamed of what comes out of my mouth.
Thank you brother David. I miss you.