The History Behind "God Bless You!"

Have you ever wondered why we always follow a sneeze with the phrase "God Bless You?" Did you ever wonder why we say it or where the phrase came from? There are several explanations to help us understand where this phrase came from and why we say it. Read on to find out why!

"God Bless You" is a common English expression as well as a socially obligated response. "God Bless You" is something that we think of as polite to say after someone sneezes, even if we don't know them. Did you ever wonder how and why this phrase came about?

The practice or tradition of blessing a sneeze dates back to 77AD. The custom originally began as an actual blessing by Pope Gregory in 590AD. An outbreak of the bubonic plague was closing in on Rome and sneezing was thought to be an early symptom. Saying "God Bless You" was thought to be a common halt to the disease.

Another explanation behind saying "God Bless You" when someone sneezes, is that legend has it that your heart stops every time you sneeze. Saying "God Bless You" was supposed to ensure that you would continue living and your heart would continue beating.

Another legend explaining the phrase "God Bless You" was that people believed that your soul could be thrown from your body when you sneeze. It was believed that sneezing opened up your body to invasion by the devil or evil spirits. Another thought was that sneezing was the bodies' effort to force out invading evil spirits.

Lastly, many people used to believe that sneezing was a sign that God would answer your prayers or that sneezing was an omen of good fortune or good luck. The phrase "God Bless You" was recognition of that luck.

In my opinion, in this day in age, we say "God Bless You" for a couple of reasons. Sneezing is a sign of sickness, so we bless those that sneeze in hopes of their wellness. These days, sneezing is used as a reminder for us to tell those around us we care about them and want God to be with them.

You may have noticed that many people do not say "God Bless You" but say "Bless You". This may be because of the religious differences between people and that it is much more politically correct by not distinguishing who is "blessing" you.