In Reply to: Re: Reality Check? posted by CB on May 03, 2006 at 18:10:40:
Actually, I think the point of the parable is lost when the hermaneutic leaves out the part about the faithful son who resents the father's treatment of the returning prodigal.
I think the teaching is not simply about how much God loves the sinner, but asks the righteous how much do you love those who have strayed from the path of righteousness?
In the hermanuetic you shared, there is an implicit assumption that the young woman strayed from the path of righteousness. Why? Because she was taught right from wrong at church and by her old-fashioned parents?
In my first reaction to the hermaneutic, I did not automatically assume that the young woman had any awareness of her inheritance or that she knew she had a path of righteousness that proceeded from her relationship with her father.
So that's why it didn't work for me. Now see, if I hadn't over-analyzed your original post, I wouldn't have pulled out my old study Bible to take a good look at things. You gotta admit, that's not such a bad outcome.