Apologia Radio: Are Christians Allowed to Curse? (w/ Douglas Wilson)

Episode Date: February 13, 2026
Host: Jeff Durbin (with Luke)
Guest: Pastor Douglas Wilson
Theme: Examining the place of strong, harsh, and "dirty" language in the Christian life and witness, especially as discussed in Wilson's new book No Such Thing as Bad Words.

Episode Overview

This episode dives into a provocative and often controversial question within the Christian community: Are Christians allowed to use strong or “curse” words? Pastor Douglas Wilson joins Jeff Durbin and Luke to discuss the biblical, theological, and practical dimensions of language, “bad words,” satire, and the role of strong or offensive language in faithful Christian communication—drawing on his books The Serrated Edge and the new No Such Thing as Bad Words.
The conversation aims to challenge pharisaical traditions while emphasizing that careful context and motivation are key.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

The Basis & Purpose of Strong Language

• Wilson's Writing: Wilson distinguishes his earlier book, The Serrated Edge, focused on satirical tone and attitude, from his new book about the actual words Christians use, not merely their tone.
  • “The Serrated Edge is a book about tone and attitude... This book, No Such Thing as Bad Words, is dedicated to another aspect: is there a list, a registry of words kept in heaven that Christians are not allowed to use?” — Douglas Wilson [08:01]
• No List of 'Bad Words' in Heaven: Wilson emphatically argues that there isn’t a divinely ordained, timeless list of forbidden words—context, purpose, and heart matter more.

Four Categories of 'Bad' Language

Wilson breaks down English objectionable language into:

1. Swearing (invoking God’s name wrongfully)
2. Cursing (wishing ill upon someone)
3. Obscenity (referencing things considered off-stage or indecent)
4. Vulgarity (coarse or crude talk, e.g., ‘bathroom humor’)
   • “There is swearing, there is cursing, there is obscenity, and there's vulgarity. ... The Bible prohibits all four. And in other places in the Bible, we have godly instances of all four.” — Douglas Wilson [23:36]

Biblical Examples of ‘Strong’ Language

• Obscenity: Ezekiel’s explicit sexual metaphor (read at the outset) and Isaiah’s “used menstrual cloth”.
• Cursing & Swearing: Paul’s “let him be accursed” (Galatians), OT oaths, and passages like KJV’s “he who pisseth against the wall”.
• Conclusion: The Bible itself, in certain contexts, employs harsh or shocking language for a holy purpose.

The Importance of Context and Heart Attitude

• Calculated, Not Flippant: Wilson stresses the difference between calculated, contextually appropriate use and flippant, habitual profanity.
  • “We're not talking about just sprinkling obscene words or bad words into your language as sort of all-purpose adjectives. ... Language is a tool and it's a tool to be used to the glory of God.” — Douglas Wilson [09:52], [10:21]
• Guardrails & Context: Critics will sometimes extract such words from their context to accuse speakers of indiscriminate cussing.
  • “They'll go through my writing to find all the jalapenos, and then they make a paste... and then they make a meme out of it... without any of the guardrails that I was very deliberately putting.” — Douglas Wilson [28:53]

Illustrative Moments—Collision with Christopher Hitchens

• Wilson’s Use of "Shit Happens": In debate with Hitchens, Wilson uses the phrase not out of carelessness but as a reductio ad absurdum to demonstrate atheism’s moral bankruptcy.
  • “If there is no God, then you have to just surrender to the way things are because shit happens.” — Douglas Wilson [16:39]
• Durbin’s Reflection: Durbin says such moments of directness force skeptics like Hitchens to “look at their feet” and reckon with the inconsistency of their worldview [18:28].

Christian Traditions and Pharisaical Boundaries

• The “Two-Mile Fence” Analogy: Christians often create ever-wider zones of traditional safety around actual biblical commands—eventually making common expressions taboo.
  • “Pretty soon we're sailing around in this little tiny square in the middle... And that's how a lot of Christians think of language.” — Douglas Wilson [34:20]
• Exaggerated Sensitivity: The hosts share personal stories of being rebuked for even saying “heck” or “gosh”. Wilson highlights how traditions not rooted in Scripture can become oppressive [36:00–38:13].

The Role of Culture in Language

• Fluidity Over Time: Words considered profane can lose their potency (e.g., “sucks”) or vary dramatically by culture (“fanny pack” vs. “bum bag” in the US/UK).
  • “Language is dependent upon context and there are different contexts... If you say the kids are cute little Dickens, well, that's shoot cussing that everybody forgot is shoot cussing.” — Douglas Wilson [51:16]
• Ministering in a Different Culture: Over time, missionaries or emigrants might adapt to “local color” out of necessity, not compromise.

Guiding Principles for Christian Speech

• Speech Must Be Purposeful and Edifying: Strong or offensive words may in rare cases serve truth or expose sin, but casual or angry use is always out.
• Personal Sensitivities Matter: Some believers will never feel free to use certain words—and that’s okay. The conscience must be respected.
  • “If a very pious little old sweet lady reads my book and is persuaded by it, I don't want her to change her personal pattern speech patterns at all.” — Douglas Wilson [39:35]
• The Goal: Not to advocate flippant or widespread cussing, but to free Christians from man-made rules and empower them to speak boldly and biblically.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Wilson clarifies scope at the start:
  “This is not an apologetic for thoughtless cussing.” [09:52]
• On using strong words with purpose:
  “I wanted that phrase to be the tip of a spear… Which is very different than someone who just sprinkles a bunch of cuss words into his language in order to be able to relate to the non Christians at work.” — Douglas Wilson [22:01]
• Durbin on shifting boundaries:
  “...There's all these rules that sort of are constrained. There's no more language left. And so this is super helpful, Doug, to understand that there's an appropriate use of language as a tool.” [36:00]
• Wilson on contextual example (“fanny pack”):
  “Right now, I know everyone in the UK right now is hating me right now because I'm saying, fanny, fanny, fanny pack… In America, we call them fanny packs. And over there, they would never use that word.” — Jeff Durbin [56:13]
• On conscious cultural adaptation:
  “After years of being around sailors like that, I didn't talk that way, but you just hear it all the time and get desensitized to it. ... My sensitivities got readjusted the way they ought to be adjusted.” — Wilson [55:39]
• On gospel vs. law:
  “All of a sudden we're trying to fix our Christian walk problems with law and with made up law but the only thing that addresses things like that is gospel.” — Wilson [37:35]
• On purpose in writing the book:
  “I wish that the pietistic Christians would loosen up a bit... She needs to be OK with the people who are in the battle, in the fray, and who are using this kind of language judiciously and for righteousness sake.” — Wilson [38:37, 39:35]
• On Bible’s own 'bad words':
  “In the King James version of the Bible, males are described as he who pisseth against the wall... That's just. Pisseth is KJV ordinary language. They're not being naughty or anything like that. But if you grew up in a fundamentalist church... they would never give you that verse.” — Wilson [53:25]

Timestamps for Key Segments

• [07:02] — Introduction: Wilson distinguishes new book vs. Serrated Edge
• [08:26] — Are there forbidden words in God's eyes?
• [09:52] — “This is not an apologetic for thoughtless cussing.”
• [11:57-16:39] — Collision clip: Wilson with Hitchens using “shit happens” in a pointed argument
• [18:28] — Reactions to Christians using strong words in apologetics
• [22:01] — Calculated use vs. casual profanity; four types of “bad” language
• [23:35] — Bible’s prohibitions, yet also its own use of strong language
• [34:20] — The “two mile limit” analogy: tradition building extra, non-biblical boundaries
• [36:00] — Personal stories about oppressive Christian speech subculture
• [38:37-40:24] — Wilson’s hope for the impact of his book
• [41:41] — Was Seth Gruber’s use of “asshole” appropriate?
• [49:39] — Cultural differences: Ireland, words’ changing meanings, historical examples
• [53:25] — KJV’s “pisseth against the wall” and what it shows about cultural taboos
• [55:39] — Contextual desensitization and readjustment
• [56:13] — "Fanny pack" in cross-cultural hilarity

Closing

• Key Takeaway:
  Scripture, context, intent, and edification—not tradition or cultural taboos—should govern Christian language. Occasionally, a “serrated edge” or pointed strong word has godly precedent, but careless, habitual, or angry cussing is never justifiable in the Christian life.

• Where to Get the Books:
  Both The Serrated Edge (revised) and No Such Thing as Bad Words are available from Canon Press, with release in March.

• Final Words:
  Durbin expresses gratitude for Wilson’s ministry and calls for listeners to embrace biblical boldness, not pharisaical scrupulosity.

“We are going to be held accountable...for every idle word. So this is not an apologetic for thoughtless cussing. That’s not what we’re talking about.”
— Douglas Wilson [09:52]

For those wrestling with these issues, the episode offers a bold, biblically rich, and pastorally nuanced framework for navigating speech, truth-telling, and the dangers of legalistic traditions.