Googledotman Posted September 26, 2008 Share Posted September 26, 2008 Posters of teh forums, As ex-christians, many of you have brought some baggage from your old christian ways, from a fear of hell to the promise of a better afterlife. Some of you however, had brought other habits such as saying, "God bless you," and "Amen" amongst other Christian sayings. So my question to you is do you still use these or other Christian sayings? Some say that if you do, you will be making people believe that you believe something you do not, or if you don't you may end up opening a floodgate for persecution or hostility. Be sure to include how others have reacted. In my case, I once bowed my head and said Amen during a prayer, and was insulted for being a backslider. Similarly, I have said "Oh my god!" when watching something on TV and got the response, "Why are you calling on someone you don't believe in?" Both times, I even began to question my non-belief and appeared to be a poor of heart christian. What about you? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Legion Posted September 26, 2008 Share Posted September 26, 2008 I still say "bless you" if someone sneezes. Seems pretty harmless to me. I also say "bless your heart" in a number of situations, some serious, some not so serious. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
white_raven23 Posted September 26, 2008 Share Posted September 26, 2008 Bless you! Is very innocent whe you think about it. After all.....if all you say is Bless You without tacking God on the front of the phrase... you could mean anybody!! People just assume God is doing the blessing....but you didn't SAY 'God Bless You'.....You just said 'Bless You'. For all someone else knows, you are referring to your cats, a chair, or (sacrilige) just your deity-free self! Amen is Egyptian in origin I believe. The christians stole it. Just like they stole winter solstice celebration, and lots of other practices as they couldn't come up with original ideas even back then. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ouroboros Posted September 26, 2008 Share Posted September 26, 2008 I have no problem with those phrases at all. Just like LR I use "bless you" when someone sneezes, or sometimes I say "salud" or "gesundheit". I even use terms like "amen to that", and "my gosh!" and so on. Este es no problema, señor. If someone say they going to pray for me, I say thank you. Easy as apple pie. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spiderwire Posted September 26, 2008 Share Posted September 26, 2008 Never used either before, no use to use them now. It's not even a blip on my radar screen if someone else uses them unless... they're emphasising the words and are obviously using them to demonstrate or call attention to their Christianity. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mwc Posted September 26, 2008 Share Posted September 26, 2008 I'd rather say say nothing or something like "gesundheit" than something silly like "bless you" in some attempt to stop a disease or to keep a person's soul from leaking out of them (or an evil spirit from getting up inside them). I know, I don't have to believe it, but I'm aware of these things surrounding the phrase so I feel stupid uttering it (I may as well join a prayer circle for the company by extension of the "I don't have to believe what I'm saying" logic). Looks like the wiki has a whole page on "bless you." Seems most people say something to the effect of "good health" but the US appears to "bless you" like the superstitious retards we are. Amen simply means "so be it" (in Hebrew) or "truly" (more modern) and goes back further to the god "Amen" (or Amun as in Amun-Re). I get a kick out of people invoking the name of the Egyptian god of air (later I believe he became associated with the "ba" or something that would be the like "breath of life" that got blown up Adam's clay nostrils). mwc Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Super Moderator florduh Posted September 26, 2008 Super Moderator Share Posted September 26, 2008 I am inclined to blurt out "Jesus Christ!" when the occasion calls for it. The old lady where I used to work would say, "Call somebody who knows you!" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Legion Posted September 26, 2008 Share Posted September 26, 2008 Bless y'alls heathen hearts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff H Posted September 26, 2008 Share Posted September 26, 2008 Bless y'alls heathen hearts. Amen to that Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ouroboros Posted September 26, 2008 Share Posted September 26, 2008 Halleberry! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Legion Posted September 26, 2008 Share Posted September 26, 2008 Bless y'alls heathen hearts. Amen to that Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crazycatlady Posted September 26, 2008 Share Posted September 26, 2008 I still say bless you all the time -- it's habit and I usually mean "may your god/dess(es)/FMS bless you." I don't really have occasion to say amen much anymore. Sometimes, I'll say "almond" just to be silly. Now that I no longer believe in god, I take great delight in breaking the second commandment (the one about no OMG, is the second, right?), something I NEVER did while Catholic... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hereticzero Posted September 26, 2008 Share Posted September 26, 2008 It's flattering when I'm talking ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thurisaz Posted September 26, 2008 Share Posted September 26, 2008 What about you? I have managed to switch quite well from jebus cult phrases to phrases referring either to heathenry in general or to my faith specifically... not all of them meant seriously. "God bless you" "Which god?" "Amen" Well, no specific reaction from me. I rarely hear the word in any conversation so... And instead of "Oh my god" I now tend to say "Oh gods!"... with the occasional interesting conversation starting from there. Yeah I know. Fortunately there are very few morontheists in my immediate surroundings. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
par4dcourse Posted September 26, 2008 Share Posted September 26, 2008 They're both just idiomatic phrases. Meaningless the vast majority of the time. With all that's happening in the world, a sneeze and a bless you isn't going to make or break my day. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chefranden Posted September 26, 2008 Share Posted September 26, 2008 Posters of teh forums, As ex-christians, many of you have brought some baggage from your old christian ways, from a fear of hell to the promise of a better afterlife. Some of you however, had brought other habits such as saying, "God bless you," and "Amen" amongst other Christian sayings... OH MY GOD, I can't believe you let this bother you. On a more serious note, say what you like. That is part of being free. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Super Moderator buffettphan Posted September 26, 2008 Super Moderator Share Posted September 26, 2008 Sometimes when people sneeze, especially if I know the sneezer is a fundy-xtian, I'll say, "Whoa! What a sneeze! You didn't sneeze your brain out, didya?" Just one of my little ways of coping with the buybull belt idiots who surround me..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neon Genesis Posted September 26, 2008 Share Posted September 26, 2008 When people sneeze, I ask them if somebody is talking about them behind their backs, which is a superstition in Japan that if you sneeze once, somebody is talking about you behind your back, and if you sneeze twice, that means somebody is bad mouthing you. But then, I used this saying even when I was a Christian. Sometimes I'll say amen when somebody says something blasphemous about religion that I agree with, but I'm usually just doing it to be silly then. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thackerie Posted September 26, 2008 Share Posted September 26, 2008 Bless you! Is very innocent whe you think about it. After all.....if all you say is Bless You without tacking God on the front of the phrase... you could mean anybody!! People just assume God is doing the blessing....but you didn't SAY 'God Bless You'.....You just said 'Bless You'. For all someone else knows, you are referring to your cats, a chair, or (sacrilige) just your deity-free self! ... Yep, I always say "Bless You," without reference to a god, when someone sneezes close to me. I can still muster a hearty "Goddammit" when the situation calls for it even though I don't believe in a god. I don't see that as hypocritical. It's just a figure of speech. For example, when someone is angry and shouts "Shit," they're not really calling for someone to produce defecation; or if the angry person shouts, "Fuck You!," that doesn't mean he or she wants to have sexual intercourse with the object of the epithet (well, not usually). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xequar Posted September 26, 2008 Share Posted September 26, 2008 I just treat those things like figures of speech and completely ignore the origins of those statements, kind of like how the word "lunatic" has lost its original flavor. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Etchison Posted September 26, 2008 Share Posted September 26, 2008 I try not to get too hung up on language, but at the same time I like my language to reflect how I believe. I do say "bless you" when people sneeze, but only out of politeness. And since I don't say "GOD bless you" it's not really in contradiction to how I believe. I will say and write "Hallelujah" but almost exclusively out of sarcasm. I say "Praise Jesus" sarcastically too. When people serve me a plate of cheese, I say "Praise Cheeses." Usually get a chuckle. "Amen" is not a theistic word at all. It just means "So be it." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Super Moderator buffettphan Posted September 26, 2008 Super Moderator Share Posted September 26, 2008 I always thought the sneezer should be the one saying "Pardon Me" (for spraying germs all over the friggin place!) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LastKing Posted September 27, 2008 Share Posted September 27, 2008 Posters of teh forums, As ex-christians, many of you have brought some baggage from your old christian ways, from a fear of hell to the promise of a better afterlife. Some of you however, had brought other habits such as saying, "God bless you," and "Amen" amongst other Christian sayings. So my question to you is do you still use these or other Christian sayings? Some say that if you do, you will be making people believe that you believe something you do not, or if you don't you may end up opening a floodgate for persecution or hostility. Be sure to include how others have reacted. In my case, I once bowed my head and said Amen during a prayer, and was insulted for being a backslider. Similarly, I have said "Oh my god!" when watching something on TV and got the response, "Why are you calling on someone you don't believe in?" Both times, I even began to question my non-belief and appeared to be a poor of heart christian. What about you? Its never bother me. I hear non-religous people say things like that all the time. Its just a figure of speech. It sounds better then an angostic like me saying somthing like this. Guy sneezes "I'm not sure if there is a God or not but if there is may he belss you, if not, oh well, but if you ask me I think its inpossibal to know" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amethyst Posted September 27, 2008 Share Posted September 27, 2008 I say Gesundheit when people sneeze, but then I've always said it. (It means health, btw). I find it annoying only when people say "bless you" aggressively as opposed to just saying it normally (you know the types). Amen irritates me more. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brick Posted September 29, 2008 Share Posted September 29, 2008 I have been heard to say,"Why start now?" in answer to ppl who bless me following a sneeze. It bothers me when they do it, but thats my little coping mechanism. I still swear with religeon, I must admit. 'god damn' this and 'jesus christ' that, you know, that kind thing. I know I probably shouldn't since its pointless and non-representational but, oh well, that may be the one part of the programming I can't undo. Oh ya, and for me its 'gesundheit' without fail. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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