Incomplete Thoughts: Profanity and Christians in Media

Note: As you follow Jesus Geek, you'll likely notice I tend to avoid saying "YES THIS IS A SIN" or "NO IT ISN'T" unless the Bible is very clear about it. I'm not Biblical studies major, a PK, or anybody with access to more than the variety of opinions on the internet and what I've read in the Bible myself. I'm also a very literally minded person.

As such, a lot of posts where a question is raised about whether Christians should partake in something will be based in my personal opinion and very open to discussion. The goal is never to judge anyone, and feedback is encouraged.

I hope nobody finds this to be a wishy washy response - if you feel I'm missing something obvious, never be afraid to say so. I hope to grow my faith in Christ stronger by writing this blog just as much as I hope reading this blog helps others.

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Today, someone brought to my attention that Kanye West has declared himself a Christian, and has released a song about Jesus... featuring his usual level of profanity.

I'm not a Biblical Studies major. I'm an English major. My response came out much longer than intended and made me realize how many opinions I have on the subject and how personal the subject of profanity in media is in my life. Below is the question and answer, in all its incomplete messiness.




"Odd question, maybe, but how do you feel about swearing in Christian music? What prompted this was listening to "Jesus Walks" by Kanye West, which has swearing and reclaimed slurs in it."

I wouldn’t personally listen to it, but - unless its using the Lord’s name in vain - if it’s helping someone get closer to God than good for it I guess? I’m surprised to hear about Kanye West doing a Christian song at all, so if God is reaching him and using him to move others, that’d be awesome. 

But the other question I’d have to ask specific to this issue is what is his other music like? I don’t know Wests’ work well, but a lot of secular rap tends to brag about doing sinful acts.

The normalization of “I believe in Christ but it doesn’t really affect my life choices” in our culture is scary. If you really believe in Christ, why don’t you believe when he says that the wages of sin is death? Why don’t you honor that he said to go off and sin no more? I don’t want to judge whether a person is a “REAL CHRISTIANtm” or not, but these are questions worth asking.

As for profanity in general… Profanity that isn’t involving the Lord’s name in vain is something I’m still kinda debating in myself to be honest. On one hand, using a ton of cussing makes you seem rude and is generally annoying and crude. On the other, I’ve seen people use it on very rare occasions for effect. I once went to a sermon where the pastor cussed once in the middle to get our attention - being the bunch of teenagers we were.

The Bible has a verse that is often cited when discussing profanity, but it also leaves me with a lot of questions:

Colossians 3:8 ESV / 20 helpful votes

But now you must put them all away: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and obscene talk from your mouth.

The Bible’s language was very different from ours, so what exactly did “obscene talk” refer to in their culture? Were there specific cuss words like we have today that as Christians we’re supposed to just avoid, or is Colossians referring to bragging about sinful acts like I just mentioned. 

There’s also the issue of a lot of our profanity being based on lewd actions - probably not the best thing for Christians to be referencing. 

But if we’re going to use that scripture (and we should use all scripture) to discuss profanity, we need to realize EVERYTHING it says Christians shouldn’t do. How many churches are full of gossip and negative relationships, but would gasp in horror if someone burst out an F-bomb? How many adults act passive aggressive to people they dislike in a church and then tell their kids not to use dirty words? This isn’t to justify profanity, rather point out that there are other problems that more of us have and we tend to ignore because they require a complete change in the heart. 

I won’t pretend I’m a perfect angel when it comes to avoiding profanity, but the least I try to stand by is not to use it in everyday speech. I’ve actually had people at school point out how seldom I cuss and try to tell me it was okay to let loose a bit more - I pointed out that the fact that they noticed I don’t cuss means that they’d definitely notice if I did. I feel like that’s kinda the point if there is one.

…I guess I have more opinions as a language nerd than a Christian on profanity, I’m ashamed to admit. ^^; The problem is I’ve heard a lot of arguments against profanity that are steeped in culture. A popular one is that not using profanity differentiates us as Christians, and we’re supposed to not just fall in with the culture around us.

While I can see the logic of this, it reminds me too much of the reasoning behind people who say Christian rock is bad because its matching the culture’s musical style. Christian rock music has played a MAJOR part in my salvation and encouragement over the years.

Also, if we’re avoiding language because it’s cultural, where does that stop? Should we be avoiding modern slang of any kind, whether its considered offensive or not? 

I think the issue is less about a word in and of itself being bad and more about the way its normally used and its cultural impact.

Proverbs 29:11 ESV
A fool gives full vent to his spirit, but a wise man quietly holds it back. - (Cluster F-bombs and the like tend to be nearly nonsensical venting.)

Ephesians 4:29 ESV
Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear. (Profanity is most often used to tear others down, and because its so heavily associated with negativity, may lead others to stumble.)

I guess the TL;DR is I’m not ready to give an all around “NO NEVER” to profanity, but I personally avoid profanity because I don’t feel it helps me as a Christian. I don’t like the person I am 9/10 times I’ve cussed and I don’t feel it adds anything to my vocabulary that I couldn’t say better - a kinder - with some well thought out wording. And surrounded by teenagers in a dorm most of the time who cuss like sailors, I feel like cussing opens up other immature facets of my personality and makes me more likely to stumble. I’m guessing it’s that way for most people. I think we sometimes use “well the Bible doesn’t say “NO”” to ignore when God is clearly saying “NO” to us as individuals.