Cleanliness is Next to Godliness

We can all agree that it is a good thing to live in a clean house. Often this is accomplished by hiring a house cleaning Vancouver service. To that end I have often heard it said that “cleanliness is next to godliness” and I am not quite sure what this phrase means. First of all, if cleanliness “is next to” godliness then what occupies the space of godliness. Does the phrase imply that godliness occupies the next space on a continuum of cleanliness such that “filthiness” is all the way on the left and “godliness” is all the way on the right and “cleanliness” is right next to “godliness”? If that were the case then godliness and filthiness would be degrees of the same thing. If true, what might that thing be?

This line of speculation borders on blasphemy. For one thing “godliness” with a lower case “g” is a quality and not a god in and of itself. Accordingly, to use the word “godliness” with a lower case “g” suggests a possibility of there being more than one god. If on the other hand we were to spell “godliness” with a capital “G” then it could be interpreted as implying that the one true God exists on a continuum with “filthiness”. Of course this will not do by and standards of decency.

It goes without saying that no house cleaning Vancouver service wants to be associated with blasphemy. Even if their personal beliefs on the matter were neutral it is quite probable that the personal beliefs of many of their customers are not neutral. Accordingly, said service would do well for themselves not to use the phrase “cleanliness is next to godliness” except within the privacy of their cleaning service headquarters safely out of earshot of any of their potential customers.