Saying God bless you after a sneeze

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Paul_theApostle

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I read this -

The custom of saying “God bless you” after a sneeze was begun literally as a blessing. Pope Gregory the Great (540-604 AD) ascended to the Papacy just in time for the start of the plague (his successor succumbed to it). Gregory (who also invented the ever-popular Gregorian chant) called for litanies, processions and unceasing prayer for God’s help and intercession. Columns marched through the streets chanting, “Kyrie Eleison” (Greek for “Lord have mercy”). When someone sneezed, they were immediately blessed (“God bless you!”) in the hope that they would not subsequently develop the plague. All that prayer apparently worked, judging by how quickly the plague of 590 AD diminished.
Since the plague is gone do we have to say nowdays Bless you or God bless when someone sneezes?

Do you guys say Bless you to people or do u say nothing ?after a sneeze
 
Well, saying “God Bless You” or “Bless you” is a form of common courtesy now, isn’t it?
 
I thought it was a blessing for people who were ill, especially when deaths due to colds/plagues/etc. were not uncommon.
 
OP do you have a source for that story? it’s a nice story but not all languages say God bless you - in German it’s Gesundheit - health. Sneezing is not one of the recognised symptoms of either bubonic or pneumonic plague.

Most non-Christian cultures also have a form of blessing for when someone sneezes: for example in Turkish (I have a Turkish uncle), one says Live long! and the sneezer replies, may you live to see it!

Pliny the elder,writing in AD77 in his Natural History asks “why do we salute a person when he sneezes?” and Hindus and Buddhists have a blessing for when someone sneezes
 
Nigel7 said:
I heard long ago that it was because people used to think that a sneeze was your soul escaping from your body, so people would say “God bless you!” to get your soul back into your body.

http://gracelefay.files.wordpress.com/2012/03/sneeze.jpg

BLESS YOU!! 🙂
Click to expand...
OMG I can’t believe I’m seeing this photo. Around 40-45 years ago, I used to look up “sneeze” in the World Book Encyclopedia, and this photo was in it! 🙂

Thanks for bringing back great memories!

Alan
 
St Gregory is a Benedictine (and wrote the biography of St Benedict).

Sorry, just had to get that in.😃
 
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