nothing religious and anyone can say it..p.s i dont believe in god..so anything that fits that? my friend doesnt believe in god and when someone sneezes, she says "go to hell" as a joke (not to offend anyone) and i dont feel comfortable saying "god bless you, or bless you or gesundheit...
2007-04-30 16:47:19 · 18 answers · asked by Anonymous in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
Someone told me once that people used to believe that you had demons if you sneezed, so they said God Bless you.
So I guess if you don't believe in God, you don't have to worry about being polite, since there is no right or wrong, so don't say anything.
{S}
2007-04-30 16:56:55 · answer #1 · answered by squeezy 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It was an old saying and tail that a person's heart would stop when they sneezed unless you said God bless you, which would keep their heart beating. It is also a opportunity to express Love and Kindness to another person.
You can always say, "bless you" or "Health be with you".
"Love be with you" would be a positive thing to say.
Interesting that you do not believe in God yet you wish to be Loving with your kind gesture. Where does your Love and kindness come from? Saying Go to hell expresses the opposite of Heaven, so I'm thinking you would be best not to say anything at all.
I don't because I have never seen anyone's heart stop when I didn't say God Bless You! But I encourage Love, so even if you don't have God, I'm sure the person you express your kindness to would feel blessed by you saying something kind. It's OK, God does not mind you blessing people. Some clear night go out and look at the stars and ask yourself how they got there. It was not you that blessed us with creation. This is not a lecture, only another point of view if you have not made up your mind.
Rev. TomCat
2007-05-01 00:04:01 · answer #2 · answered by Rev. TomCat 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Do you pass comment when someone coughs?
or when they yawn?
or when they break wind?
or when their knees pop if they bend down?
Just because people have a mouth, doesn't mean they have to have words coming out of it at every given opportunity.
There's no reason to say anything at all.
In any place outside the home or church, "bless you" is not an appropriate thing to be saying to others.
I find it quite offensive when someone says "bless you" after I sneeze, if people want to be blessed, they can go to the appropriate church and be blessed at their own free will, rather than having someone force their own outdated religious beliefs onto others who ....... let's face it, really don't want you to say anything at all.
2007-05-01 00:11:17 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Gesundheit means "Good health" in German. No God necessarily involved.
My friend and I use the "X bless you" format, but replace a different god for each sneeze. "Horus bless you." "Ahura Mazda bless you." The loser is the first person to repeat a god's name.
2007-04-30 23:53:00 · answer #4 · answered by Doc Occam 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I was talking around this topic earlier today with a coworker. She is atheist and sneezes at least 6 times per day. I'm at the desk next to her so we are always talking and I always say, "Bless you." I know she expects this, because sometimes when I miss saying it, she still says "thank you." So, today, she sneezed and I said, "Bless you." Then, I thought for a moment and said, "Wait, who am I telling to bless you?" She replied that she just thought of it as a courtesy. She added that friend of hers used to say, "Dog bless you."
"Go to hell" - I'll have to try that one tomorrow. :-)
2007-04-30 23:55:42 · answer #5 · answered by ducky0501 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
"Bless You" is not necessarily a religious blessing. You can be a "blessing" to some one by just doing them a kindness with nothing to do with religion. It is nothing but courtesy or good manners to "bless" someone when they sneeze.
Your friend is what we used to call a "wiseacre" in polite company and in a little rougher crowd a wise something-else. Saying go-to-hell is little less than disrespectful and just indicates your friend's sophomoric attitude.
2007-05-01 00:18:14 · answer #6 · answered by Chaplain John 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Gesundheit. It means "good health" in German and pretty much everyone in America knows why you're saying it.
2007-04-30 23:52:08 · answer #7 · answered by Muffie 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I don't believe in god and I still say "bless you" ... probably for the same reason that I command god to damn the bed frame every time I stub my toe on it ...
2007-04-30 23:50:01 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
You have bad manners.
2007-04-30 23:55:15 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
you don't need to feel uncomfortable saying gesungheit.. it basically means health or be healthy... you say it because you hope they're not sick
you don't really have to say anything, especailly if you're not religious...
2007-04-30 23:59:18 · answer #10 · answered by blackcat3556 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋