By: Rev. Dr. Ted Sauter
LaBelle is small Ol’ Florida town located on the Caloosahatchee River. It is about an hour west of Lake Okeechobee and an hour east of Ft. Myers. For nearly a century the town was famous for two things. One of LaBelle’s claims to glory was and continues to be the annual Swamp Cabbage Festival where you can celebrate the official state tree by eating it. The Sabal Palm is a traditional food of the Seminole Tribe, and it can be prepared in several ways.
The second LaBelle landmark was a restaurant, now closed. Two sisters developed the establishment and named it after themselves. People came from all over to dine at this quaint restaurant. Flora & Ella’s always had fabulous baked cream pies, most of which were piled high with six inches of meringue. A large sign reminded you as you entered the restaurant: “Life is short, so eat dessert first.”
The restaurant offered many traditional Southern dishes. You could order fried catfish, fried chicken, fried green tomatoes, chicken fried steak, and fried pork chops.
My personal favorite dish was a meal of black-eyed peas, rice, onions and ham. It was served along with collard greens and cornbread. The creatively printed menu described the dish as “Well, shut my mouth; this the best Hoppin’ John you’ll ever eat.”
I’ve never forgotten this catchy and somewhat crude phrase “well, shut my mouth.” Worst and perhaps rather insulting is another Southern slang phrase, “well, shut your mouth.”
Nevertheless, maybe these phrases are sage advice. Maybe all of us should say a little less.
We live in a time when too many people say – or more often write, text, email, publish, or print – too much which is negative, harmful, demeaning, foolish, ignorant, and frequently not factually accurate. The problem today is not with someone occasionally repeating a playful old slang phrase (which is now deemed “politically incorrect”). The problem is that too many people are showing less self-control, and are reacting with intentionally insulting and even violent verbiage. Literally, people are killing each other with thoughtless words.
How should a Christian act in our age of mass communication? Sadly, it seems to me that we live in a time of mass confusion, emotional overreaction, and anger.
Next Sunday I will reflect on the observations in the book of James. The title of the sermon is “Well, Shut My Mouth.” I pray it might be helpful to lowering the level of heated discourse in our society.
Blessings!
Ted