Put Up, or Shut Up by Sal Moriarty

A real Christian is one who can give his pet parrot to the town gossip. Billy Graham

Hypocrisy is the outward acknowledgment of inward shame. Norm MacDonald

Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven. Matthew 5:16 (KJV)

A couple of weeks back, I had lunch at a restaurant in Beaumont. Like most eating establishments, there were big screen TVs everywhere. While waiting, I glanced up at one of the TVs – a sports talk show. I didn't pay much attention, until I saw the word sh*t pop up on the screen in big white letters. It was used in a question about an NFL player. I glanced around the establishment, and there it was, hanging above the heads of southeast Texans as they casually experienced family dining.

I am not a Christian. I have no religion, though one could argue whatever you spend most of your time doing, or thinking about, is your religion. In the Bible, God said to have no other gods before Him. Man, if that be true, a lot of folks are in real trouble (looking at you, Cowboys fans), but I digress.

I mention my lack of religion only to make clear I do not object to the word sh*t being displayed in a family restaurant for religious reasons. I object to the word being displayed in a family restaurant because it's just another example of lowest-common-denominator garbage being thrown in our faces, on a daily basis. Some seem to take great pride in being inarticulate.

Without fail, during my morning and evening commutes, I see bumper stickers utilizing the f-word to denigrate others; some show stick figures mounting the words “your feelings” or “it” (yeah, you get it). It is not uncommon to see them at red lights, beside school buses.

I overheard a conversation recently, again, while at lunch, with grown men calling one of the presidential candidates a word I'm hesitant to even imply on a family-friendly platform, but it rhymes with runt. Not that long ago, some upstanding Christian would have spoken up – maybe someone from the same table. I, a heathen, leaned over, and asked politely, if they'd watch their language. I was told, not so politely, to f*ck off.

The funny thing? I can assure you, those same vulgarians would have wanted to fight had I challenged the idea of America being a Christian nation. It's a head-scratcher, and absolutely hilarious.

If my late mother, who died in 2022, had been in the restaurant noted above, there would have been a meeting with the manager. She would have pointed out, on biblical grounds, why it was inappropriate (an oft misused word, but not here) for such programming to be in the view of children, or just people who should have a reasonable expectation of dining out without having to shield the eyes of their kids (if such people still exist). My mother could be a handful, but she stood up for what she believed, and she was a Christian, not a CINO. (Christian in Name Only)

A recent study from Pew Research found that 28% of Americans now identify as Nones. Not nuns, but Nones. These are people who identify as atheist, agnostic or those who simply have no religious associations at all. The group makes up a larger percentage of American adults than Catholics or evangelical Protestants. And we're growing.

Why is that? I suspect many Nones, at some point, simply realized there were no Road to Damascus moments in their lives, just lots of people telling them what they should believe. It happens the world over. Religious affiliations are largely accidents of birth.

But the Nones are watching, too. It's simple. Do the purported followers of Jesus do as He commanded? The stuff He required is tough: love your enemies, turn the other cheek, give no thought for tomorrow, give wealth to the poor, and follow him. It's a hard road. Being a true Christian, I would argue, is like being in the Special Forces of religion. Narrow is the way that leads to life, and few find it (yet everyone assumes they will).

Most of the people I grew up around in southeast Texas were Christians, probably close to one hundred percent. I was skeptical of their beliefs even back then, but they were different. They would not have tolerated without protest, bumper stickers with words and images befitting the pages of Hustler magazine. Anyone dropping an f-bomb in a family restaurant would have had to justify their lack of class, manners and basic intelligence. Period.

I like Christians who practice what they preach. Good folk. You can trust them to watch your place, and pick up your mail, while on vacation. For CINO, the question is an easy one. Do you believe? Really believe. Because as my life winds down, my challenge for you is to either do what Jesus told you to do or shut up about Him altogether.

It's getting old.