God, Religion, and Philosophy

Monotheism

Capitalize the word god when used specifically to refer to the god of a monotheistic religion.

Examples

Some words with god are capitalized (God-given), while some others are not (godsend). When in doubt, Google is your friend.

Other usage

Do not capitalize god when it does not refer specifically to a god of a monotheistic religion. This includes cases where god is a title for gods of polytheistic religions.

Examples

Religions, deities, and books

Capitalize names of religions, deities, and specific religious books.

Examples

  • He is reading up on Buddhism.

  • Have you read the Bible?

Do not capitalize bible when it does not refer to the specific religious book. Similarly, do not capitalize words like biblical.

Examples

  • That book has become a bible for people believing in witchcraft.

Pronouns

Do not capitalize pronouns in reference to even the god of a monotheistic religion.

Examples

  • God watches us with his kind eyes.

Philosophies

Do not capitalize the names of philosophies, including atheism and agnosticism. The only exception is philosophies which are always capitalized, such as Epicureanism.

Examples

  • She is a Muslim, but he is an atheist.

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