in certain situations, i feel like i have to say bless you, or I would seem to be very rood.
2007-02-16 04:27:46 · 25 answers · asked by Anonymous in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
that's "rude" hehe
2007-02-16 04:40:12 · update #1
I don't. It is usually 'get away from me'.
2007-02-16 04:30:15 · answer #1 · answered by ndmagicman 7 · 1⤊ 2⤋
Good question. I'm not an atheist but wanted to comment on Derek's answer about Demons not coming out of peoples noses. If you don't believe in anything, how can you believe in Demons? Any by the way, when you sneeze, they say your heart stops for a brief millisecond and that is the time a demon can possess you. That is why most people say Bless You.
2007-02-16 12:34:37 · answer #2 · answered by lilith663 6 · 0⤊ 1⤋
I say Gesundheit, but that's because I live in Germany, and I didn't know before that this word has made it into the English language. Unlike some people wrote here it has no religious or spiritual meaning at all, it simply means "health". So when you say Gesundheit it just means you wish the person who has sneezed health. So it's perfect for atheists.
2007-02-16 13:46:55 · answer #3 · answered by Elly 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Interesting that you should use the spelling "rood," which is the medieval English word for 'cross."
I'm an agnostic who grew up in the United States and became accustomed to saying "Bless you," when people sneeze. It seems to have, for me, no real religious content, but rather a cultural habit.
2007-02-16 12:35:22 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 1⤋
No, I say gesundheit, which literally means: May your soul stay within you.
Or I say nothing.
The the superstition of saying gesundheit or bless you came from the old wives tale: When you sneeze, your soul is trying to leave your body.
2007-02-16 12:48:39 · answer #5 · answered by Nepetarias 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I say bless you after someone sneezes because I was raised to believe that is the polite thing to do.
2007-02-16 12:31:24 · answer #6 · answered by genaddt 7 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Well I'm more of a "gesundheit" man myself. Even though I think it translates to the same thing, it keeps the english word "bless" and the awkwardness of that out of the equation.
2007-02-16 12:31:15 · answer #7 · answered by Mike K 5 · 0⤊ 1⤋
My understanding is that "Bless You," originated from the thought that when you sneeze you are vulnerable, and evil spirits may fly up your nose. I think saying "bless you" is more about etiquette than religion or belief in god.
2007-02-16 12:36:30 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 1⤋
Words are cheap. They are ok to use as you see fit. Any religious connotations are meaningless to an atheist so there is no special significance to saying "god bless you" etc. We can say it for the hell of it.
2007-02-16 12:36:55 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 1⤋
"Bless You" has no connection with God. It is purely a simple expression saying, "Wow that was crazy loud, I hope you are going to be ok after a sneeze like that!"
2007-02-16 12:32:10 · answer #10 · answered by DEWCOM 2 · 1⤊ 2⤋
Bless you or gesundheit. Saying bless you doesn't make me religious any more than saying gesundheit makes me German.
2007-02-16 12:36:13 · answer #11 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 1⤋