It says “Oh, My God” and not “oh my god!” but Dominic Steele, minister at Village Church Annandale, does describe it as a “slightly cheeky ad.”

“We’re reclaiming an expression. We wanted to point out that the significance of Christmas is the incarnation of God, and so it is an appropriate time to say “My Lord and my God”.

The newspaper ad lists Christmas services at Sydney’s inner west churches. Asked what response the ad has had, he replied, “Well, a number of Christian leaders have “liked” it on Facebook. I’m not a crusader against swear words. I’m not trying to rebuke the community. I just want people to recognise that Jesus is our Lord and Saviour.

“I do think that people use ‘Oh my god’ without actually reflecting on the seriousness that they are, in a sense, mocking the God of the universe–and that this is at best careless, and at worst blasphemous.”

“Oh my god” and its acronym “OMG” are often said in the same vein as “Jesus Christ!” which often makes Christians flinch. To a believer, it’s using God’s name in vain, as cautioned against in the third commandment: “You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name” (Ex 20:7).

Those averse to “oh my god!” sometimes use alternatives such as “horrors”, “sugar”, and “my word”. Steele recalls an incident at his former workplace – a commercial radio station. He was not yet a Christian, though his (then) news duty editor was. “At one minute to the noon bulletin, the printer wouldn’t print. The General Manager was watching this crisis unfold. In that tense situation, all that the news editor said was, ‘ah sugar!’ I thought his response was such a model of godliness, that I’ve remembered it for 25 years.”

Eternity asked Steele what he’d most likely say when really surprised or shocked by something.

“Crikey!” was the reply. “Personally I don’t use ‘oh my god!’ or ‘Christ!’ or ‘Jesus!’ as exclamation words. The names of the Divine are to be treated with respect and honour, and I want to be an influence on others to use that name with honour.”