[lit-ideas] Re: "Bless you": a performative?
- From: "Mike Geary" <atlas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: <lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Thu, 5 Aug 2004 19:49:40 -0500
> JulieReneB@xxxxxxx writes:
> Interesting, the emphasis in Christianity on God blessing
> people and the emphasis in Judaism on people blessing God. Actually I
> think it's
> more an acknowledgement -- "I recognize that you are a Blessed
One"....but
> that's not how much rabbinic commentary talks about it.
Actually, I think it's all mumbo-jumbo. Word magic less the magic. "Blood
you!" Speranza would have us saying. Meaning, I guess: "Come a little bit
closer, cause you my kind of Sacrifice. So naive and gullible." But what
does bless MEAN? And don't tell me "blood". Judging from the way it's
used, I'd guess that a blessing is a temporary, proctective force field that
magically surrounds one like an invisible aura and fends off all evil. As
much as I'd like to believe in such, alas, how many spear-weilding native
warriors, protected by a high priest's blessing, must be ripped apart by
bullets before they understand the goddamn blessing doesn't work?
We're all just spear-wielding native warriors, you know, fighing ignorance
and fear and dying fast.
Mike Geary
Memphis
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