Question for American atheists

originally posted by: SlapMonkey
a reply to: Cuervo

Actually, the god of Christianity is not named "God." Its name is YHVH/YHWH (pronounced either as Jehovah or Yahweh).

But as for your assertion, there's this:

Allah is the name of the only God in Islam. Allah is a pre-Islamic name coming from the compound Arabic word Al-ilah which means the God, which is derived from al (the) ilah (deity).

So, "Allah" also means "god" in the generic sense, but has been as its formal name as well.

And don't even get me started on the relatively provable point that Allah and YHWH are the same deity...

I think most of us are aware of the name YHWH. The point is that, while there are names for their gods, western Christianity just monopolized the word "god" to mean their god. It's part of their mythology of god being unknowable.

Besides, I was saying that as a point that everybody knows which god a westerner is probably talking about when they just say "god". Even when I'm using the term "god" to describe all of mine (the male ones) as a collective concept, I still at least say "THE god" and not as if the word "god" is his name. When "god" is used as a name, you can be almost 100% sure the person saying it is talking about the Christian gods.

Thanks everyone for the replies. The conclusion of this thread is.........there is no conclusion
How about that for a plottwist!

Goodnight stay safe and don´t worship the dollar bills. Or do.... whatever you like.

Peace!

originally posted by: intrptr
a reply to: WhiteAlice

From what I can tell, we're not a very cash-centric society anymore so it's almost irrelevant and I don't see "In God We Trust" on my god forsaken debit card.

Thats because god forsaken credit cards are offered by private companies. The ruse behind putting god on the dollar was to further everyones belief in paper money. Nowadays its no longer necessary to convince people money is "good".

You know, I could almost believe that and kind of thought something similar along those same lines after posting on this thread a bit ago. I think my thought on the matter was more utilizing God as the ultimate car salesman though.

Trust me!

originally posted by: WhiteAlice

originally posted by: intrptr
a reply to: WhiteAlice

From what I can tell, we're not a very cash-centric society anymore so it's almost irrelevant and I don't see "In God We Trust" on my god forsaken debit card.

Thats because god forsaken credit cards are offered by private companies. The ruse behind putting god on the dollar was to further everyones belief in paper money. Nowadays its no longer necessary to convince people money is "good".

You know, I could almost believe that and kind of thought something similar along those same lines after posting on this thread a bit ago. I think my thought on the matter was more utilizing God as the ultimate car salesman though.

Trust me!

That's not the reason it was put there. It was a purely political move.

a reply to: Annunak1

I always found the "In God We Trust" part on the dollar bill kind of comical in a way.

What with the fact it's paper representing the greatest scam of all time and all. Not to mention there's an Egyptian pyramid with a giant eye on it.

Either way I don't care if it's on there. I doubt it will be removed anytime soon though. Maybe it will be removed when those dollars actually mean something. Then people won't have to trust in god every time the bank cartels pull strings that destroy their life savings. You might also note that Bitcoin currently has no "In God We Trust".

a reply to: Annunak1

I think an even more interesting question would be, how do Christians feel about "In God We Trust" on The Dollar Bill, considering this verse:

"No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money."- Matthew 6:24

If Atheists don't have a problem with Pagan symbolism (such as the Eye over the Pyramid), I don't see why they would have a problem with the dollar bills saying "In God We Trust".

a reply to: Cuervo

I wasn't trying to be a jerk about symantics, I was just making a point that there are actual names associated with these gods (who are probably the same entity).

Keep in mind that, at least in Judeo-Christian religion, the second commandment says that the lord's name shall not be used in vain, so I'm guessing that they evolved the generic names of "god," "lord," etc., to avoid violating said commandment.

Just my thought on it. I don't disagree with you that Christianity has monopolized "god" as a name for their deity, but I was just expanding a bit.

Best Regards!

originally posted by: arpgme
a reply to: Annunak1

I think an even more interesting question would be, how do Christians feel about "In God We Trust" on The Dollar Bill, considering this verse:

"No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money."- Matthew 6:24

If Atheists don't have a problem with Pagan symbolism (such as the Eye over the Pyramid), I don't see why they would have a problem with the dollar bills saying "In God We Trust".

must we have a master at all?

a reply to: WhiteAlice

I think my thought on the matter was more utilizing God as the ultimate car salesman though.

Trust me!

The image that popped into my mind when you said car salesman was William H. Macey's character in "Fargo".