Atheist Quandary for Some?

[Typhlochactas]

The meaning behind scripture.

I'd trust a rabbi's interpretation before I'd trust a Christian priest's interpretation.

I don't have a priest, and my pastor was teaching from the New Testament.

[Seshephe]

I bet it would annoy me (though probably not offend me, depending on how the phrase was used)

I don't live in an English speaking country though...
I can't even of the top of my head think of any common Swedish saying
that is obviously Christian....
I mean, I'm sure they exist but....

[Nationalist State of Knox]

Some of us really don't care where phrasing comes from. Others are anal-retentive and refuse to use anything associated with Christians. I'm an etymology buff and I tend to saver even the most archaic phrases as something delightful.

I seldom use archaisms.

Also, most of these phrases can only be applied in English, for example "Bless you" in German is "Gesundheit", which means health.

[Of the Free Socialist Territories]

Some of us really don't care where phrasing comes from. Others are anal-retentive and refuse to use anything associated with Christians. I'm an etymology buff and I tend to saver even the most archaic phrases as something delightful.

I seldom use archaisms.

Also, most of these phrases can only be applied in English, for example "Bless you" in German is "Gesundheit", which means health.

*whispers*

I said that on page 1. You just got ninja'd.

[Manahakatouki]

Not at all. I find nothing wrong with being told "bless you" or anything else...

Of course, I'm the first one to question how silly it is to continue stating it, but I still find nothing wrong with it...

[Fartsniffage]

As do I.

There is no fate but what you make.

Close, close, but somehow not quite satisfactory. How about ... the chance you take is equal to the fate you make ... no, no ... the love you take is equal to the love you make ... better, but still ... oh! "And in the end, the love you take is equal to the love you make."

Ah, pop philosophy, how I love ya.

I sometimes carve it into picnic benches.

[A Beautiful Line]

I regularly use "Oh God",as a way of expressing that something is bad. It's annoys me as a habit, but I don't usually even notice myself saying it.

[Veceria]

Bless you? Much easier here in Austria. We just say 'Gesundheit', that's quite belief-neutral. Although, my grandma used 'Höff da gott' sometimes, which means 'May god help you'.

[AiliailiA]

Quandary is a pretty word. Not quite as good as quartz which has a z in it, but quandary has a y and that's good too.

I'm rather atheist, but I'm not bothered by such turns of phrase when used face to face. I go with the intent not the literal meaning. I use "bless you" and "curse you" myself though I don't really believe there is such a "spiritual" thing as a blessing or a curse. I even say "God bless you" sometimes, if I think the G-word will give a little extra leverage to my expression of good will.

All such terms are better avoided in writing though.

[Free Soviets]

there is exactly one proper sneeze response for an atheist:
'demons be gone!'
{at least one hand must be raised and directed at the sneezer, with palm turned up towards the heavens}

[AiliailiA]

Garlic works too.

1 small clove garlic (sliced very fine)
1 teaspoon honey
juice of 1/4 lemon (or small lime)
1 cup boiling water.
a few leaves of mint, fresh, chopped fine (optional)

If sneezing persists, see your doctor.

[Fartsniffage]

Garlic works too.

1 small clove garlic (sliced very fine)
1 teaspoon honey
juice of 1/4 lemon (or small lime)
1 cup boiling water.
a few leaves of mint, fresh, chopped fine (optional)

If sneezing persists, see your doctor.

You left out the whiskey.

[Xathranaar]

Garlic works too.

1 small clove garlic (sliced very fine)
1 teaspoon honey
juice of 1/4 lemon (or small lime)
1 cup boiling water.
a few leaves of mint, fresh, chopped fine (optional)

If sneezing persists, see your doctor.

You left out the whiskey.

Everything is better with whiskey.

... well, maybe not tequila.

[Atheimsa]

Just take it in the spirit in which it was offered.

I mean, I'm a fairly strong atheist, and I still say "god knows" sometimes; by which I mean to say that I think nobody knows. And, although I'm prone to gazunteights being brought up in a German community, I still occasionally spill out the odd "bless you."

This stuff is habitual, and most people don't intend a religious connotation by way of it.

That said, I have run across a fair number of passive-aggressive assholes, who seem hellbent on using these idioms to try and make me uncomfortable. I find a simple, "cthulhu fhtagn" or "ia dagon!" works wonders in these situations. Alternatively, by vectron!

You mean gesundheit by any chance ? I pprefer to change the rare occasion of gods or whatever to 'the force' (like by the force is an exlamation used in the gffa

[Thespinia]

Nope, I really don't have any problem with them. I take the Dawkins approach to them: they are an accepted part of the English language, they are beautifully worded and they make life that bit more colourful. It'd be like cutting out Shakespeare. Besides, most idioms are used so often people don't know their origins anymore, and thus can't truly be using them in a religious context.

[Swith Witherward]

Background: I was having a chat with one of my Christian friends last night when she sneezed several times in a row. My response was "ah, that's a sneeze" each time. I'm not prone to saying "God bless you" or "bless you". That lead to a curious conversation about "bible sayings" and Christian phrasing that are still in use today.

You have a problem, perhaps, with "your good health!" or "Gesundheit?"

"Ah, that's a sneeze" sounds like you think the person who sneezed or the others around him are too stupid to recognize what it is.

Danke . I never thought of "gesundheit". I haven't heard German in so long that I'd forgotten all about "health!"

Jen's sneezes are those cute, high pitched squeaks that leave everyone wondering if a mouse has spontaneously combusted somewhere close by. I guess I've fallen into the habit of responding ah-thatsa-sneeze in response.

[The Blaatschapen]

My question (to my fellow atheists) is: as someone who does not embrace Christianity or believe in the Abrahamic God... how do you navigate around phrases associated with biblical passages or Christian beliefs? Do "Christian-oriented idioms" offend you? Do you feel that biblical-based expressions should not be used in secular context (non-Christian literature, displays, as advertisement, etc)?

Most do not bother me, except for "God zij met ons" (god be with us) which is written on the sides of some of the dutch euro coins. It really depends on context. I'd rather use the side of the coin to get a cool sponsoring deal in the first place, let the christians pay for that spot, or have it replaced with "coca cola zij met ons" (guess what that means)

There might be some other state authored ones, those are the ones that bother me, since religion should be seperated from government.

[Bralia]

I only really care about the overtly religious sayings like "Bless you" and "Prayers be with you" and that such. I've been conditioned for ages not to say "Bless you". It just doesn't feel right for me, an atheist, to be saying such a thing. As for "Prayers be with you", or any variations on that, I see the phrase as completely useless and it annoys me when other people say it. Being atheist, I view prayer as one of the most useless things to do on the planet. There are far more productive ways of wishing a person well than praying for them.

[Orcoa]

There's only so much luck to go around. Gotta hold on to what you got.

Truly, the luck shortage has affected us all.

Tell me about...Never go to a casino with old Orcoa

[Nationalist State of Knox]

I seldom use archaisms.

Also, most of these phrases can only be applied in English, for example "Bless you" in German is "Gesundheit", which means health.

*whispers*

I said that on page 1. You just got ninja'd.

Many people have said it actually. I'm more displeased because nobody noticed my witty self-contradiction in the first sentence. Still, most people here probably haven't even heard of the word in question, with their 'American English'.

[Aleckandor]

I am a Christian myself, so it doesn't bother me at all. Unless there was sarcasm involved.

[New Rogernomics]

Depends, if someone blames something as an 'act of god' (especially a natural disaster) I get rather testy; considering it is arguing the victims deserved their fate, and even worse that it was sanctioned by a theistic deity.

'Thank god' or 'Bless you' I use all the time and I don't think of god or religion when I say them; they are meaningless utterances because there is no evidence that the deities and supernatural forces exist. These religious phrases require that the premise that their religion is correct; to be true, if it is false (as I hold) it is just someone speaking gobbledygook.

[Neutraligon]

Depends, if someone blames something as an 'act of god' (especially a natural disaster) I get rather testy; considering it is arguing the victims deserved their fate, and even worse that it was sanctioned by a theistic deity.

'Thank god' or 'Bless you' I use all the time and I don't think of god or religion when I say them; they are meaningless utterances because there is no evidence that the deities and supernatural forces exist. These religious phrases require that the premise that their religion is correct; to be true, if it is false (as I hold) it is just someone speaking gobbledygook.

I would say they have meaning, but that the meaning is no longer religious. Thank god no longer literally means thank god, instead it is an utterance of relief.

[Samuraikoku]

Not a problem. The Emperor protects.

[Menassa]

I absolutely hate that we have to use words and phrases from the christian bible such phrases are super annoying:

In the beginning Gen. 1:1

earth Gen 1:1

Then Gen1:29

and assorted common words and phrases.