Why are we blessing people who sneeze and where does this custom come from?
為什麼我們要祝福打噴嚏的人，這種風俗是從哪裡來的？
New Words
practice美 ['præktɪs] n.慣例
superstition美 [,supɚ'stɪʃən] n. 迷信
expel美 [ɪk'spɛl] vt. 驅逐；開除
remedy美 ['rɛmədi] vt. 補救；治療；糾正
potential美 [pə'tɛnʃl] n.可能性；
sneezer ['sni:zə] n. 打噴嚏者；鼻子
plague美 [pleɡ] n. 瘟疫；災禍；
（以上單詞釋義及音標來自有道詞典）
The practice of blessing someone after a sneeze is probably as old as the first century. The origin of the practice is most likely rooted in superstition:
打噴嚏後祝福某人的習俗很古老，可以追溯到一世紀。這種做法的起源很可能是源於迷信：
Some thought that sneezing was expelling the holy spirit from their body, and the only way to remedy this was to bless the person who sneezed so God would forgive them.
一些人認為打噴嚏會將他們身上的聖靈驅逐，而唯一的補救辦法是祝福打了噴嚏的人，這樣上帝才會原諒他們。
Others believed that it was actually evil spirits leaving the body, which had the potential to endanger others once they were out in the open. The blessing was to protect those around the sneezers.
另外一些人認為，這實際上是惡魔離開了身體，一旦暴露在外，就有可能危及他人。祝福是為了保護打噴嚏者周圍的人。
There was once a school of thought that people actually DIED for a brief moment when they sneezed.
也曾有一派認為，人在打噴嚏那一瞬間其實是「死了」。
During a plague that occurred in Italy in AD 590, sneezing was, or was thought to be, a sign that someone was getting sick with the plague. There is a legend that Pope Gregory I commanded that, any time a sneeze was heard, the sneezer was to be blessed by saying, 「God bless you,」 as protection against the plague.
公元590年，在義大利發生了一場瘟疫。打噴嚏或被認為是感染瘟疫的跡象。傳說，教皇格列高利一世命令，為防瘟疫，在任何時候聽到有人打噴嚏，都要祝福打噴嚏的人並說：「上帝保佑你。」
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