God, Religion, and Philosophy

Monotheism

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

Examples

• I believe in one God.

• Fifteen years ago, Earth was abandoned by God.

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

• Three gods grace Ryouma with a second chance to pursue one goal: savor the wonders of life.

• The ingenious 17-year-old Japanese student Light Yagami and sadistic god of death Ryuk share one belief: their worlds are rotten.

• Dressed in a conspicuous outfit and armed with an eccentric spirit, Hina Satou goes around insisting that she is the Asgardian god "Odin."

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.