Is the use of "G-d" a demonstration of respect and fear of God or is it something else?

Answer 1

It comes from the Jewish tradition. They do not speak or utter the name of God (YHWH). They believe they are not holy enough to speak something so holy. YHWH *I am* was the name given to Moses, so they take it to mean the TRUE name of God. How could they possibly be holy enough to speak that?

The tradition moved to some Christian churches. Since Christianity doesn't say Yahweh often, it was transferred to G-d. It's respect and a way to declare that we are not holy enough to approach God. I don't do this, but it is simply something that some people are convicted to do. Just as some people call Jesus by his Hebrew name rather than the English.

Amanda

Answer 2

The word God is a generic term for a being beyond our level of intellect. Any sufficiantly advanced life form would be percieved as a God.

If a person of modern times would be back in the times of the bible they would be viewed as a God. Not because we are a God but because the things that to us are common place, Cell phones, Lap tops, Zippo lighters, Cars would be viewed by those superstitious people as magic items.

This just means the more we know about nature and how science effects our world the less likely a person is to believe in a God being!

Answer 3

I think it comes out of the secularization of all things religious from anything public---Christmas, In God We Trust, God Bless America, One Nation Under God, Bestowed by The Creator, Prayers in the Supreme Court, etc
That arrogant atheists are trying to force on the country right now, when it actually shows that they are a bunch of looneys.

Answer 4

Demonstration of respect as far as I know. I see that Jews always write it this way, I haven't seen others doing this. I think it is like Heron By The Sea wrote.

Answer 5

It depends on what religion one follows. Some religion fear a lot about god, while some treat god with little fear and more love, some only love.

Answer 6

The use of terms such as "G-d" result from anti-YHWH activism. Such activism acts against the use of any form of the personal name of Jehovah God.

The name "Jehovah" is an English translation of the Hebrew name pronounced as or similar to "Yahweh" or "Yehowah"; the exact original pronunciation is unknown. The four Hebrew characters corresponding to the letters "YHWH" are well-recognized as the biblical personal name of Almighty God, and are universally designated as "the Tetragrammaton" or "the Tetragram".

For centuries, most Jews have superstitiously refrained from pronouncing aloud any form of the divine Name. They base that superstition on the third of the Ten Commandments given to Moses:
(Exodus 20:7) You must not take up the name of Jehovah your God in a worthless way
http://watchtower.org/e/bible/ex/chapter_020.htm?bk=Ex;chp=20;vs=7;citation#bk7

Over the centuries, that Jewish superstition has expanded to also forbid writing or engraving any form of "YHWH", even when simply copying from one of the nearly 7000 occurences in the Hebrew Scriptures. In recent centuries, some superstitious Jews have even forbade unabbreviated EUPHEMISMS for "YHWH"; capitalized terms such as "Tetragrammaton" and (amazingly) even "the Name" are forbidden by such superstitions.

More recently, the Jewish superstition has ballooned out of all reasonableness by also forbidding respectful impersonal TERMS referring to the Almighty; thus many Jews insist upon writing "G-d" or "G~d" rather than "God". They may even refrain from capitalizing impersonal terms such as "Creator" and "Almighty".

Naturally, the religious and superstitious practices of a person are between him and his Creator. However, in recent decades these superstitious Jews have worked to impose their superstitious sensibilities beyond their religious communities, and onto the entire populace. Thus, although "YHWH' is unanimously recognized as the personal name of God, few today use any form of it in their writings and conversation.

Interestingly, Christendom has largely joined with superstitious Jews in suppressing the use of "Yahweh" and "Jehovah". However, it seems that Christendom's anti-YHWH bias largely devolves from their hatred of Jehovah's Witnesses, the religion almost single-handedly responsible for the growing public recognition that the Almighty God of Judaism and Christianity actually does a personal name.

It seems that too many are more interested in coddling superstition than in allowing intellectual honesty and respect for the Almighty.

Learn more:
http://watchtower.org/e/na/
http://watchtower.org/e/20040122/


Interestingly, Encyclopaedia Judaica says that “the avoidance of pronouncing the name YHWH ... was caused by a misunderstanding of the Third Commandment.”
http://www.jehovantodistajat.fi/e/20040122/article_02.htm

(Psalms 83:18) That people may know that you, whose name is Jehovah, You alone are the Most High over all the earth

(John 17:26) [Jesus said] I have made your name known to them and will make it known, in order that the love with which you loved me may be in them

Answer 7

It is a demonstration of the utter sanctity of God's name, that one treats it with respect, and does not want to see it defamed or erased. That is why it is written that way.

Answer 8

I've heard that Jews don't write the full name of God so in case whatever it's wrote on is destroyed,they won't be destroying God.

Answer 9

some people believe/feel they should not use the lords name out of respect/awe the god of abraham is called many different names but there is one god, only the peoples names for god are different.

Answer 10

Fear.