| "Did you know that there are catfish so large down by the dam, divers refuse to go down there? They say they can eat a man!" I heard this story for the first time, when we were living in Quincy, Illinois. The specific location was at the Quincy Soybean loading facility where they loaded the barges with soybeans. The explanation for why the catfish are so large there is that they feed on the soybeans spilled into the water. You've probably heard the same giant catfish story about lakes and rivers around here.
David Lusk wrote this about “giant catfish stories”: “I discovered recently that every lake that has a fish in it has such a story. The tale is called a ‘F.O. A. F’ story. A ‘F.O.A.F’ is a story we are just sure is true. We didn't see it first hand, but we heard it from a ‘Friend of A Friend.’ ‘F.O.A.F.’ stories make the rounds for years, changing just a bit in every generation.”
There is something in our sinful nature which just loves to pass on stories told to us by someone whom we assume is reliable. We especially like to pass on gossip, especially about someone we don’t like. It has been said: "The more interesting the gossip, the more likely it is to be untrue and the faster it travels."
The Bible warns us about the gossiping tongue: “The tongue is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole person, sets the whole course of his life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell. . . . With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men who have been made in God's likeness.” [James 3:6, 9]
In the Eighth Commandment (the Ninth for many protestants), God forbids the passing on of “F.O. A. F.” gossip and slander: “You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.” Dr. Martin Luther explains this commandment: “We should fear and love God so that we do not tell lies about our neighbor, betray him, slander him or hurt his reputation, but defend him, speak well of him, and explain everything in the kindest way!”
May each of us, by the power of the Holy Spirit through Word and Sacrament, never pass on “F. O. A. F.” gossip and always speak words about others which are pleasing to God. When we do pass on a "F. O. A. F." story, and we all do at times, the good news is that there is forgiveness through Jesus Christ: through His perfect life, death and resurrection.
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