Why censor God?

God and damn, two simple words that are not very offensive or crude when used by themselves but when combined into one word and said on the air it becomes "offensive" and is censored. If that wasn't strange enough, when they censor the word it is not damn that is cut out, it is god. Therefore when the word comes on the air it is ***damn. The first time I ever noticed this happening was when I was much younger, only 8 or 9. I remember thinking how dumb it seemed that they would censor the word god but leave damn in. Now that I'm 10 years older I still feel the same way about it. While there has never been any official report on why this word is censored this way it is usually attributed to religion and not wanting to offend anyone because the word God is involved.

This is not the only instance of censorship that has to do with religion and seems overly strict, another example being when TBS censors the line "you're my savior, man, my own personal Jesus Christ" from The Matrix. There are also more extreme examples too, one being how in middle eastern countries you cannot produce any imitations or pictures of the prophet Muhammad and you risk severe punishment if you do so. I find it absurd that laws and regulations go to such great lengths to almost prevent the mention of religious figures unless it is in the utmost respect and proper situations. There are channels that cut out whole parts of movies if it makes fun of a religious figure in a bad light, or sometimes if it makes any mention of a religious figure at all. This is dangerous that religion is becoming more and more sheltered in media which could lead to more power and manipulation by religious figures and religious organizations. While it may not seem like a big idea now and could even be considered pretty "***damn" funny, the censorship of small things like that could lead down a dangerous and slippery slope.