He is all-powerful and all-knowing, and He is full of love, mercy, charity, and compassion. As long as you stick with one or the other usage consistently throughout your piece of writing, then thats fine. God is not only our Ruler and Creator; He is also our Heavenly Father. Gracie asked her mom I believe that heaven exists. This would fall under the general category of reverential capitalization, but there are no universal rules for this. As a professor, he has taught Bible and theology courses at two Christian universities. Capitalization Rules-A Quick Guide | Grammarly Psu vs Auburn: How Are These Words Connected? If there is a style guide that, for example, your publisher has asked you to follow, then its best to check there first. The answer is neither. I'm writing a book about earth-spirituality, the sacredness of Earth. I'm thinking it wouldn't otherwise be capitalized, as in "Catholic faith" or "She has faith." Should 'Father' Be Spelled with a Capital F? - This Dad Does Followers of Jesus Christ think about Heaven, talk about it, and write about it as well. Religious references, please capitalize God, Jesus, Lord, Father, Holy Spirit, Savior, Heaven, Hell, Bible and the Word (as in the Word of God) and all pronouns referring to God including Him and His. or the common noun is being used as a title (e.g. Hi, Ken. Hoping I'm making sense on some level. Examples include Brangelina (Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie) and Bennifer (Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez). Capitalizing 'he' in reference to Jesus but also to Muhammad? One thing you must learn is when words are to be capitalized. (also known as deity pronouns). But are their titles capitalized? Here are a few rules you'll want to make sure you remember: When you remember to follow these capitalization rules you can rest assured that you won't slight or improperly identify anyone who's in your common noun family. I asked my dad But there is one exception: they are not capitalized when they follow possessive pronouns such asher, his, my, our, your. For example, Heaven is an eternal state of blessing, sinlessness, and salvation. Examples given include "Genesis; the book of Genesis" and "Job; the book of Job.". A good rule is to capitalise Heaven and Hell when they are used as proper nouns (i.e. Either is acceptable, as long as you are consistent. Gospel, when used as a direct replacement for the Bible, is capitalised. So go ahead and capitalize the names of those important family members in your life, but remember not to capitalize when using a possessive pronounor talking about family in general. Use Sister or, if applicable, Mother before the name of a nun. We are created in His image. Should confirmation be capitalised such as "there was a confirmation service" ? All Rights Reserved. A game you can play to learn about Heavenly Father's love and some special things He has given you to help you find your way back home. When to capitalize church? - Answers on questions We offer some general guidelines in this post, but there is plenty of scope for variation in creative writing. Get the Facts, link to Is There Sex in Heaven? Youre welcome! When terms denoting family relationships are used as proper nouns (as names), they are capitalized. You could replace them with proper names without changing the rest of the sentence. use standard capitalization for Samsung, but nonstandard for iPhone. In religious texts, the word god is usually written with the first letter "G" capitalized. The devil is usually lowercase, but his name is capitalized. Heavenly Father - The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints I feel for Melindas loss, said the neighbor. But if you want to use reverential capitalization here, that should be fine, too. The simplest rule here is to make sure that you always capitalize a person's first and last names. Some Christian theologians and teachers capitalize Heaven because that is normal when referring to a specific location when writing. Mozart's Requiem in D minor), and it would be standard to capitalize it in those cases. Lust Vs. Love: The Heart Of The Difference, Backward Or Backwards: A Foreword On The Difference, How To Express Condolences: Sympathy Cards And Messages, How To Use Figurative Language To Enhance Your Writing. Whether you are a writer, editor, or you merely refer to religious and spiritual terms as a Christian, these following tips can serve as a helpful guide. Hi, I'm assuming you might capitalize the word "faith" when it is a stand-in for a specific sect, as in "He was baptized in the Faith." These include: As you can clearly see there are a lot of subtle nuances found throughout the English language. We will all remember Aunt Bessie No, there's no need to capitalize "holy" there. What about the word scripture? Finally, some nicknames are portmanteau terms, where parts of two names are combined into a single nickname that refers to a specific couple. I have seen a niche Christian publisher with the same policy. It is neither right nor wrong to capitalize or not capitalize pronouns that refer to God. And most people seem to write "the prophet Jeremiah." Thank you for doing this site! However, it's not necessary according to most style guides (e.g., AP style suggests using lowercase, and Chicago style says only to capitalize these terms in religious publications). Hi again, Jodie. Correct: My dad is the best. There is room for flexibility here in some cases, though. Case closed. Your email address will not be published. He is the Author of the plan for our happiness. A man came asking for Sister Mary Eunice. All Rights Reserved. When I write: When a kinship name immediately precedes a personal name or is being used alone in the place of a personal name, you should capitalize it. There aren't any strict rules on this, since they're not "official" titles in the same way as a job title. However, if you are addressing your dad directly, such as when . In the sentence "We christened her Lucy", should "christened" be capitalized? Finally, we have heaven and hell. What do you think of this? Hi! People will live forever with God and other believers because of the redemption that Jesus earned for them through his death and God created sex. Hi, Barbara. For example: Common noun: I went to the mall with my cousin, Jenny. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, made ready as a bride adorned for her husband. It is common, for example, to capitalize pronouns when referring to God, so you might want to opt for "Holy God, we praise Thy name." Daniel's seminary degree is in Exegetical Theology. Like godly wisdom, godly counsel, godly life. For example: Titles are capitalized when referred to in full. Hi, Laura. But you wouldn't capitalize the "M" in "Oh my God" or similar because "my" refers to the speaker, not the deity. For example would the event of the first sin be called "the fall" or "the Fall"? To some extent it is a matter of personal preference (assuming you're not using a specific style guide), but it would be unusual to capitalize adjectives or other modifiers. Hi, Sheri. And that, at least, should be celebrated. AP Style Religious References - Writing Explained I updated this article. However, as long as you capitalize these terms consistently when used alongside the names in question, it is ultimately a matter of preference. For example: A title used alone may be capitalized when used in direct address. However, terms of affection or endearment are not capitalized. If Heaven is a place, and thats communicated in part through capitalizing the term, why doesnt the Bible do it? But it isn't necessary, and you'll need to be careful to use the capitalized versions consistently. He was the matchmaker for the first couple, Adam and Eve, and designed the pair to "become one flesh" (Gen. 2:24). Generally, there will be a possessive adjective (my, her, his, our) or an article (the, a, an) in front of family titles used as common nouns. You normally only need to capitalize words that are proper nouns. The names of seasons need not be capitalized. When writing an academic paper, you may need to quote something youve read somewhere. Capitalize the title before a name. Everyone remembers her. Throughout the book, I just call him the Padre and I capitalize that without adding McCaffery is that OK. Or, the Great Tribulation? Hi, Marcia. Thus, if you're worried about the ambiguity of "sister" in parts of the story and it isn't clear which you mean from the context, it might make sense to capitalize "Sister" and "Sisters" when referring to nuns. Why do people capitalize the G in god? One of these nuances has to do with when you capitalize the word "father.". For example, my background is Welsh and English, and Im a New Zealander (colloquially, a Kiwi). Hi, Maria. But, again, there is no strict rule here and the context should make it clear enough in most cases (although I won't claim to know for sure there aren't ambiguous passages in the Bible on that count), so if you prefer to not capitalize this term, it should be fine. A good rule to follow is to capitalize them if they are used as proper nouns, as in the previous example. Patricks Day? Learn to revise your novel in two weeks (even if you dont know where to start) so you can stop procrastinating, start revising, and reduce your editing costs. The word "father" should be capitalized whenever you're using it instead of a person's proper name. as the Word made flesh). Are words from religions always capitalized? The answer to this question is actually quite simple: Proper nouns (a name used for an individual person, place, or organization) are always capitalized while common nouns (a noun denoting a class of objects) is never capitalized. And it may be acceptable to capitalize those terms in such circumstances, but it is difficult to say without seeing the document. We can receive a sure testimony of . If the name is a religious name, use the title and name together in all references. Family member titles are capitalized when used as a title immediately before a persons name (I adore Aunt Lisa) or when the title is used in place of their name (Wheres the milk, Mom?). Also see Can People With Tattoos Go To Heaven? That isn't a full sentence (it looks like an appositive phrase), but if you're referring to the capitalization in particular, we can only point you to the advice in this post: you would not need to capitalize words like "Lord" and "Savior" in most contexts, and if you're using a specific style guide it is worth checking for advice on reverential capitalization, but otherwise it's a matter of choice. What if I'm writing a Christian character who would usually capitalize heaven, and they refer to it while talking. Meeting the author of CWMS was like meeting a celebrity for us editors! The King James and New International Bibles both have a lowercase heaven and hell. Why doesnt the Bible capitalize Heaven? Author Randy Alcorn capitalizes Heaven to emphasize an important truth to his readers, To underscore the fact that Heaven and Hell are real places, I am deliberately capitalizing them throughout the book, as I would other proper nouns, such as Chicago, Nigeria, Europe, or Saturn. The key will be making sure to apply the capitalization consistently. Do you capitalize the G in godly? - TimesMojo But AP style tends to recommend capitalizing terms related to scripture, so this would likely mean capitalizing "Book" when referring to the Bible as well (e.g., "In the Book of Psalms"). It can also be traced back to other languages as well. "Sharing Time: I Am a Child of God" (January 2004 Liahona and Friend) Includes an activity to make a scripture box that includes scripture references to remind us that we are children of Heavenly Father. PDF Is heavenly father capitalized Good luck with the style guide either way, and let us know if you need anyone to proofread it! As a rule, you do not need to capitalize these terms. A grace is a short prayer or thankful phrase said before or after eating. Please advise. Instead, we should simply choose to step back and take a look at how the word is functioning in the sentence. Child should be lowercase, even when its referring to Jesus. God the Father - The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints nouns - When should "Mom" and "Dad" be capitalized? - English Language I'm finding a lot of inconsistency even within Bible translations for certain terms, particularly the Gospel vs. the Gospels or the Gospel of John; Epistle(s), the Word of God, This is the word Aside from preference, which of these should be capitalized? There are a few rules you must remember so you know what the proper way of writing it is. Glad this article and thread are helpful! The word "dad" should only be capitalized when it's being used as a name. The conventional rule would be only to capitalize "Sister" when it functions as part of a proper noun (e.g., in the name of an order of nuns, like you mention, or before the name of a specific nun such as "Sister Mary" or similar). I thought it to be respectful to capitalize those words but finding it hard to be consistent. Keep reading to learn the answers to these questions and others. In other words, capitalize words such as Mother, Father, Grandmother, Grandfather, Son, Daughter, and Sis when they are used in place of the persons name. After school on Monday, Father took me to my karate class. Capitalizing Common Noun Names Of Relatives This means that every time you visit this website you will need to enable or disable cookies again. If youre writing biblical fiction that features God, Jesus, and their relationship, then it would be appropriate for God to call Jesus Son rather than son.. Heaven is the great desire of all Christians. Subscribe to our newsletter and get writing tips from our editors straight to your inbox. Grammarly can check your spelling and save you from grammar and punctuation mistakes. Here are the guidelines in sections 8.111-113 of The Chicago Manual (15th ed. LifeWay may style curriculum and resources differently than Zondervan or Thomas Nelson. are capitalized because they are being used like names. And you should only capitalize these words if you use them in a religious context, not when theyre used elsewhere. 2. And you'd always capitalize "Exodus" when referring to the book from the Bible. Hi, Betty Lou. I'm trying to develop a style guide for consistency, and I lean toward not capitalizing. Thanks for your question theres no time limit! Kim, nuns Capitalize Sister, or Mother if applicable, before a name: Sister Agnes Rita in all references if the nun uses only a religious name . The Word of the Lord, In Jesus' Name, etc. Capitalize Adjectives That Are Part of God's Name Examples: Almighty God, Anointed One, Divine Savior, Good Shepherd, Great Physician, Heavenly Father, High Priest, Holy Father, Holy Spirit, Promised One, Sovereign Lord, Suffering Savior, Suffering Servant, Supreme Being, Wise Creator ANY CHARACTER HERE Refer to the Holy Spirit as "He," not "It" Hi, Alain. Capitalize the names of major events in the life of Jesus Christ in references that do not use his name. Thus, it would be wrong to say they need to be capitalized as standard. I thought that if you say the Scriptures, it will be capitalized, but what about "through the encouragement of scripture" is scripture capitalized in the latter case? As a Catholic, I should know, but am suddenly unsure which to use. For example, The doctrines of the Last Supper, the Crucifixion, the Resurrection, and the Ascension are central to the Christian faith. Go ask your father if you can go out with Joyce Saturday night. Whether or not a noun is a common or proper noun often depends on how the sentence is written. This just becomes tricky because you're using the same word in both circumstances but since we intuitively understand the rule here, we shouldn't let it grow foggier here. Spirit Children of Heavenly Parents - The Church of Jesus Christ of Hi, Ishfaq. Overview. ): "The names of books of the Bible are not italicized. Id really be interested in what changes you view have happened in recent years. Looking online, it seems that "the Apostle John" and "the apostle John" are both fairly common (although "John the Apostle" seems to be the most common proper name). You wouldn't usually need to capitalize "grace," no. Write Tip | How to use Colons and Semicolons, Writing Tips | Tips for Writing Younger Characters, Book Review | Hook Your Readers by Tamar Sloan. Thank you. There seems to be a strong secularization of the Gospel in Christian publishing & I would love to know what changes you have seen. An Introduction to Relative Pronouns With Examples, How SubjectVerb Agreement Works With And/Or, Religions and religious movements (e.g., Judaism, Methodism), Religious figures and deities (e.g., Jesus, Zeus), Religious holidays (e.g., Easter, Diwali), Titles when used with a name (e.g., Reverend Green). Otherwise, use what you prefer, but the only thing to remember is to make sure its consistent throughout your book. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful. However, the Chicago Manual of Style and Associated Pressnow both state that black is lowercase when referring to a color, but capitalized when referring to a person or people group who identify as Black. And, as we point out in the post, not even all Bibles capitalize these terms! This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged. Hi, Anthony. Great advice here! The word "father" should be capitalized whenever you're using it instead of a person's proper name. I don't believe that MLA style has any guidelines on the capitalization of religious terms in particular. . When using reverential capitalization, should adjectives and nouns in reference to God follow suit? We do mention that some people prefer to capitalize "Heaven" and "Hell" when referring to the Christian afterlife, and it's fine if you prefer to do so. None of those words would need capitalizing if used generically, but I'm guessing this is some kind of legal agreement based on your use of "eligible individual"? So, it seems logical to accord Jesus the same courtesy as you would his heavenly father and capitalize Him, while Mohammed was just a man and his pronoun should remain uncapitalized. Hi, Jodie. Also see Are Adam and Eve in Heaven? For example: In that final example, capitalizing Son will be a subtle hint to readers that this character is the Jesus figure which is why its important not to capitalize son if its merely being used as a term of endearment. If "The Order" is the name (or part of the name) of the religious organization in question, then it is a proper noun and probably needs capitalizing. For example, "in this Catholic house, we pray before our meals" or "under this Catholic roof, you abide by the rules". "Requiem" is mostly used in a religious context (i.e. (the, a, an) in front of family titles used as common nouns. For instance, do you know the answer to the question, do you capitalize "father"? Avoid unnecessary capitalization. Hi, Debbie. Stork vs Crane: Which One Is The Correct One? As mentioned above, you should always capitalize the first letter in a proper noun. Your example comes under what is known as reverential capitalization, so whether you capitalize "the one" is a matter of personal preference, or, if you are following a style guide, it may be best to check what the preference is there. If that's the title of the song, you might want to capitalize the first letter of every word (i.e., Holy God, We Praise Thy Name). Hi, Kellie. We'd be happy to help with the proofreading either way! Hi, Beau. We are using cookies to give you the best experience on our website. Many people capitalize the "Holy" in terms like "the Holy Spirit" and "the Holy Bible," and while "Holy God" seems less common, this is ultimately a matter of preference (unless you or your organisation has a style guide you're following, in which case it might have guidelines on capitalization you can use). Gospel: Whether to Capitalize Depends on Meaning, Examples: heaven, hell, paradise, garden of Eden, kingdom (Gods kingdom; kingdom of God). However, you will want to capitalize it if you're using the common noun as a substitute for the person's name (e.g. on first reference before the name. Most sources seem to use the lowercase "faith" in all circumstances (e.g., even though. Examples of "Heavenly-father" in a Sentence | YourDictionary.com Do You Capitalize Fields Of Study And Majors In College? God loves His children; He loves us with an everlasting love! Unless you're using them as part of a title or proper noun, those words don't usually need to be capitalized. In the OT the NIV uses both "Name" and "name" often when God is speaking or referenced. Home Dear Editor | Should I Capitalize Nicknames or Brand Names or . Which of these styles do you use most in your everyday life? Your opinion? Funny Toasts For Every Occasion (That Will Actually Get Laughs), Students Vs. Students: A Lesson On The Differences. As with the word "father", when you capitalize the word daddy really depends on how you use the word. Writing, grammar, and communication tips for your inbox. When the word daddy is used as a direct address or as a proper noun (as a name), then you should capitalize it. Leaving it uncapitalised when using it by itself looks like it would be confusing. By James Taiwo. *Style guides have been updated since this post was published. Spiritual Style | Christi McGuire | Christi McGuire One question remains: assuming reverential capitalization is being used, are possessive pronouns supposed to follow suite? Is Heaven a real place or just a spiritual state of awareness? However, if you do use reverential capitalization, there are two key rules to follow: You can apply reverential capitalization in other situations as well, but it is most common with pronouns. In the past, it was common to capitalize the first letters of pronouns when referring to religious figures. However, when the terms are used as common nouns (not as names), they're not capitalized. Would you spell out Second Corinthians if it is at the start of a sentence? I also capitalize the New Earth, just as I would New England. Should priest be capitalized? Also see Do Short People Go To Heaven? Note that writers should refer to Black people, not Blacks (which is considered derogatory). At first glance, the rules of English capitalization seem simple. It's when it comes to the moms, dads, aunts, uncles, cousins, and possessive nouns that things become a bit more convoluted. Author Randy Alcorn capitalizes Heaven to emphasize an important truth to his readers, Some Christian theologians and teachers capitalize Heaven because that is normal when referring to a specific location when writing. Special occasions the Olympic Games, the Cannes Film Festival Streets and roads Lowercase Reference List Here is a list of categories not capitalized unless an item contains a proper noun or proper adjective (or, sometimes, a trademark). If it is just a lyric from the song and there isn't a lyric sheet available to see how the terms are usually capitalized, and you're not following a specific style guide, then it may just be a matter of preference. Some Bible translations capitalize pronouns referring to God, while others do not. This makes good sense. For instance, it is fairly common to capitalize "Word" when discussing the "Word of God" as this often refers to a specific religious concept (i.e., the Logos), not just words as we use them in day-to-day speech. Required fields are marked *. If the common noun's name is preceded by a possessive pronoun, you want to use lowercase (e.g. This was super clear and very useful! Thanks! Do you blog about God or how the Scriptures impact your life? We also see it in other places where it's less recognizable. Examples: Lord, Almighty, Baby Jesus, Christ, Comforter, Counselor, Creator, Father, Godhead, Judge, King, Providence, Redeemer, Savior, Servant, Son, Sovereign, Trinity, Examples: friend, person, baby, child, boy, and man (Jesus is my friend. 17 Oct. Matthew, NEW TESTAMENT. The Content Authority is where you will find great content, written by amazing writers, around topics like grammar, writing, publishing, and marketing. There is a convention in some forms of legal writing to capitalize particular terms as proper nouns if they are defined as such when they are introduced (e.g., a contract might begin with a sentence like "This agreement, hereafter referred to as the 'Contract'," then use the capitalized term "Contract" to distinguish the specific document at hand as from other contracts). Obviously, if I were referring to a particular order of nuns, I would write: "The Ursuline Sisters", for instance, but if I was saying: "The sisters then went into the chapel", I'm suddenly not sure if it should be a capital 's' or not. I am writing out personal affirmations that are affirming God's qualities which would make them adjectives and verbs which I think I understand you to say is not necessary to capitalize. Lorraine wondered what her grandmother Would you capitalize the word our when it is written with Our Savior? God is the Supreme Being in whom we believe and whom we worship. Hi, Tom. Dear Editor | Should I Capitalize Nicknames or Brand Names or I feel for Melindas loss, said the neighbor. So, if you're referring to "my dad," you don't want to capitalize it.