This is a 3-part series on the use of capital letters when writing Christian articles or books.
One issue with which Christian writers struggle is knowing when to capitalize a word and when not to capitalize a word. Depending on the requirements of certain faiths, a writer may feel that any reference to God or godly things require capitalization.
Capitalizing anything that is godly or Christian may satisfy the law for writing religious texts, but it can crush and flatten the spirit of the writing. Capitalizing anything that is “godly” can make reading difficult. Writers write so that their books or articles are read. A book that is overladen with capital letters can lose the reader’s attention. Over-capitalization should be avoided at all costs.
For example, look at the following paragraph and see how overusing capital letters affects the reading:
Christians who go to Church are free to Worship God and sing to His Glory. As they enter the Sanctuary, they feel the Holy Spirit and It moves them to seek Him with Godly fervor. They prayerfully sit before the Holy Altar and wait to hear the Minister read the Scriptures to guide them in God’s Word.
When referring to God or the names of God, capitalization is required because grammatically they are proper nouns. For Christian writers, capitalizing the name of God is more than that. It shows respect and reverence. Some of the names that are used to denote God are Adonai, Christ, Emanuel, El-Shaddai, God the Father, HaShem, Holy Spirit, Jehovah, Jesus, King of Kings, Prince of Peace, Son of God, Yahweh, etc.
Next week I will continue with more insights on how to properly use capital letters in faith writing.