Go bless yourself
Today a man stopped me on the street and told me that he was down on his luck, living in the park across from my apartment. He asked if I had any “scraps” or “pennies,” and I lied and told him that I couldn’t help him out. He looked me straight in the eye and with great intensity said “God bless you, man. God bless you.” Was he trying to make me feel guilty, or to make me fear God’s wrath? He didn’t succeed either way, but I have noticed that whenever I do give someone a handout, they tend to say something along the lines of “thank you” with a smile; I only receive the stone-faced “God bless you” when I do not give. Can “God bless you” sometimes mean “fuck you?” I find that pretty interesting.
3 Comments
July 28th, 2008 at 11:18 am
Haha, I think it can. We used to joke in the military that the way we said “sir” to some people was a lot like the way we would say “asshole.”
July 28th, 2008 at 5:53 pm
Was he sincere or snearing?
I’d like to think he wasn’t trying to do anything other than bless you.
“The New Testament commands Christians to bless and not to curse.”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blessing
July 28th, 2008 at 11:14 pm
I think it could very well be a guilting tactic, conscious or not. I’ve heard “God bless you” from many people in that type of situation as well, whether I give or not. I’ve heard it in other situations, probably more sincerely, but perhaps not as often.
(PS: I really like the huge font in the comment form. So easy to read, and it also gives a sense of, “Please don’t write a novel in my comments.”
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