society make them,however, difficult to accept. When a sprawling food market is justminutes away by foot, and fewer by car, "Give us our daily bread"resists a literal interpretation. Nevertheless, despite the difficultchoices of re-ordering priorities and re-building the marco-structure ofa lifestyle -- which are often necessary for entering the Kingdom ofHeaven -- tremendous liberty and privilege accrue to those who makethem. They may confidently pursue a life full of assisting those inneed: feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, educating the unlearned,visiting those in prison and hospital, caring for the forgotten, andpraying for the sick. Such a program can be pursued without thefinancial backing of a charitable organization or church. It requiresonly the vision, tenacity and fortitude to pray "Give me this day mydaily bread!" ________________*Note the Parable of the Spoiled Son in Joseph Frankovic's "The Power ofParables," Jerusalem Perspective 48 (Jul.-Sept. 1995), p. 11, and BradYoung's Jesus and His Jewish Parables (Tulsa, OK: Gospel ResearchFoundation, 1989), pp. 86-88.**Compare Matthew 6:11 to its Lukan parallel: "Give us each day ourdaily bread." Apparently, even Luke struggled with the radicalimplications of Jesus' instructions to pray "Give us this day our dailybread." See David Flusser, "Hillel and Jesus: Two Ways ofSelf-Awareness" in _Hillel and Jesus: Comparisons of Two Major ReligiousLeaders_, eds. James Charlesworth and Loren Johns (Minneapolis, MN:Fortress Press, 1997), p. 72.***This remark is based upon the portrait of Jesus that emerges from theSynoptic Gospels. A different portrait of Jesus' attitude toward Torahemerges from John's Gospel. (Compare Jn. 5:10; 8:17; 9:14.)...
