The Sneeze

"Aaachooo!"
"God bless you."

That little exchange should be familiar to all of us - but why?

It's always seemed so silly to me. So silly in fact, that I finally, eventually, gave up saying anything at all in response to someone's sneeze. I mean, what's the point? Especially with the seriousness of the words we use in response to such an obviously insignificant bodily function.

In giving up this silly "blessing", though, I started feeling obligated to make sure I, now, at least, always offered an "apology" for my own sneeze. I guess I felt the need to be polite on at least one end of this unusual interruption.

So, pondering all of this has begged the question: if a blessing is offered for a sneeze, is an apology for the sneeze still required? Or does the sneezed-on's blessing excuse the sneezer from having to offer an apology? In other words, does the blessing excuse the apology?

What do you think? How do you play the game? Leave your answer as a comment.

(When I sneeze, I even wait to see if they'll proffer a blessing before I offer an apology. If they say something in response to my sneeze, then I feel released from having to say anything in return.)