Having recently brought my family into the light (I dislike the co-opting of "coming out") with our Atheism, my daughter asked me what she is supposed to say when someone sneezes. Never having been a fan of "Bless you" or any other benedictions, we have started using "Fahrvergnügen" when someone sneezes. I previously used the exhortation from The Exorcist of "the power of Christ compels you," but that got some nasty looks. Just wondering what other people are saying.
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Gesundheit
Good luck.
When I sneeze, I wait for people to say "bless you", to say right after "in your face".
They have 2 types of expressions, one is surprise and laughter, the other is weird expression and a bit angry.
I laugh at both expressions lol
These days, I say nothing at all.
Actually, the origin of the "blessing" goes back to the time of the Bubonic Plague. A sneeze was the first sign you'd contracted it. I don't know where I got that bit of info. Probably Go-Ogled it.
Usually nothing the first sneeze, then "damn it!" second sneeze and "god damn it" third sneeze.
gesundheit
"Trap those germs in a tissue!"
Somehow I've never understood why people feel prompted, if not responsible, for saying anything when someone sneezes. I've never, ever said anything - and on occasion someone has criticized me for it. It is of no benefit to say something after a sneeze. I prefer no one comment on my sneezes at all. I especially hate it when a stranger says something, and then I feel like I'm supposed to thank them for blessing me or they'll think me rude. When I was a kid I would sometimes even try to hold in sneezes, especially in a classroom, to avoid drawing attention to myself.
I never understood why some people think that atheists are not supposed to use the language as it is, as if we are supposed to invent a new language. Religion, superstition, mythology, etc., are built into language, traditions and culture.
I don't believe in Greek Mythology, but I can enjoy stories about it. If I talk about "the Achilles heal" of something, it doesn't mean I worships Zeus or believe that the Greek Gods ever existed. The same goes for use of words like "mentor", "nemesis" or "phobia" that originate from Greek mythology.
If I say, "God only knows what they were thinking.", it doesn't mean I believe in the existence of such a god.
Religious people use words and phrases like "knock on wood", and that probably doesn't mean that they believe that tree nymphs can be summoned to invoke protection of our luck when having tempted faith.
But maybe we SHOULD make up new phrases for all the religious phrases that probably assists indoctrination.
I love 'Gesundheit!' mostly because in German it literally means "Be healthy!"
Not sure why people tend to think that histamines causing an allergic reaction to irritants qualifies one for a 'blessing' honestly.
I'm a fan of the Seinfeld approach....."You're so good looking".
When I saw this thread I had to chuckle. I've had this discussion with my husband and children recently. If I sneeze one of them will say "bless you" and I'm supposed to say thank you. However I don't, and if someone else sneezes I just ignore it. They've all asked me why I and said it's because I'm an atheist, nothing is going to bless me, and I don't know why anything has to be said when someone sneezes. Funnily enough the whole family is atheist!
I just say bless you. Because I'm not afraid of words and they have no more power than you give them. I'm not so insecure in my stance that using a phrase that is vaguely tied to religion is off limits for me. I see no reason to change my habits just because religious people have the same habit. Honestly, even when said to the religious, do they actually think, "oh, she's asked the creator of the universe to watch over me in my time of ailment." I don't think so. For atheists and theists alike, most of the time, bless you means nothing more than "oh, you've sneezed."
I couldn't agree more with ex-christian_atheist. I always say "bless you" when a person sneezes, it just seems poliite. I like to use the word "bless", and I am not ready to sign that word off to the religious exclusively.
Furthermore, if I am being honest..... I probably don't plan on quitting using the names of deities in vain, in times of frustration or exasperation. It seems hypocritical to me to quit using a term like "bless you" in a time of courtesy, and continue to drop GDs when I am angry.
I say a rousing "SALUTE." ( luck and health) But I totally agree with the post Connor made. Why must anyone feel obligated to say anything just because someone sneezes?? Sneezing is a natural human bodily reaction. It is to the point that if you don't say anything, it is kind of awkward. Just what in the world is "bless you" supposed to mean, anyway??? Does that mean God will "touch" you so you don't get sick...or so you won't ever sneeze again?? And then, if you do get sick, and/or sneeze again, does that mean the "bless" didn't work?? Or are you just a "sinner" who "deserves" to get sick?? Makes no sense!!
Just another thought...if we're going to "bless" bodily functions, what about farts...what do we say to that?!
Well, my family usually says, "Damn, Owen! What the hell did you eat?"
Owen is, of course, the dog.
This made me laugh this morning as I was browsing around.. I normally say, " I wish I could do that"..
Na zdrowie.
While you will never catch me saying "god bless you", I do still say bless you out of habit. I'm aware of the history of the phrase, and while I do believe the concept of blessing someone every time they sneeze is quite silly, I also think it is harmless to say. I could just start saying alternative sayings instead of bless you, but I see no reason to put so much effort into changing a habit that is so ingrained into me, especially such a harmless one. However, while thinking about it now, it seems like a good idea to have my future children say "geshundheit", because if I could have chosen for myself, I probably would rather say the one without theistic undertones.
"If you do that with your eyes open they'll pop outta yer head!"
"When you're taking a leak and you do that does your stream stop too?"
"Do you have these convulsions often?"
From some of my ethnic mixes: Salud! / Alla salute! / Gesundheit!
@mariheathen
Yup salud (health/be healthy in spanish) is pretty straightforward for me, still use bless you in english though.
It would be kinda tricky to replace i guess... Since the origin of the custom is probably linked to some myth. We also need to consider how "young" modern medicine is and how pretty much anything you cought had the potential to kill you. So maybe "bless you" is equal to "don't die" in this case, so maybe you could go with that.
Dog bless you, if I know the person and they have a sense of humor. Bob bless you is another one - thank you Douglas Adams. I say nothing at all if I don't know the person. If they think I'm rude they can suck it.
Of course some people are just batshit crazy.
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Bless you. It's tradition. It's custom. I call the grains we eat "cereal" even though I know no one who believes in the goddess Ceres. It's a vestige, something left over from an earlier time. It does no harm, and is an abbreviated version of "I hope you feel better".
I also like to listen to Bach, even though most of the music he wrote was for Christian church services. I thought about bringing up Christmas carols last month, because I play them during the season because they're pretty. I play the songs about Santa too, and not because I believe in Santa.
If it disturbs a person to say "bless you", fine. Please let's not get into litmus tests. It's one of the things I dislike about group membership, when it starts to get down to proofs one belongs.
Lately, I just say " May the Force be with You" . I am a 50 year old man who works IT Support who wears a different Star Wars or scifi shirt to work everyday. If I said anything different in response to a sneeze, they would be surprised. To me, MTFBWY is a message of goodwill, so it works for me.
I like that. I may honor you in the future by using that one.
My family's german a few generations back... so it's gesundheit.
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