A delicate question

In my posting about different greetings in German, I skipped (on purpose, I admit) one pestering question: Is Grüß Gott a religious phrase? You might wonder: Do people expect that particular salutation, or do they despise it – either way because of their beliefs? Do I make a statement about myself by using or avoiding it?

To cut a long story short: No. In the regions where it is commonly used, it is the general standard and does not relate to personal belief.

However, such hesitations are not unjustified. Many German native speakers unacquainted with that phrase ask similar questions, and may come to the wrong conclusions as well. After all, Gott is mentioned very explicitly here. So the religious reference is easily suspected, even though the connection is a bit unclear: The sentence is indeed a rudiment of an old blessing. But archaic usage of the word grüßen and shortening over centuries have rendered it incomprehensible. It is not possible to make sense of the phrase based on contemporary grammar and vocabulary. So it is not too far fetched if Northern Germans think they are asked to pass on your greetings to higher levels …

So if you really, really need a pretext to start a conversation on religious matters, it might do. But actually it’s just something people say.