The Everyday Club

2/18/12     Don,   about 35
After a week of experimenting with using Jesus' parables as a way to initiate witnessing conversations, I have been surprised by two things. 1.) The willingness and openess of almost every person I have approached to share their opinions about a biblical parable, and 2.) The inability of almost every person I've talked to see the spiritual meaning conveyed in the parable. I used the Parable of the Talents and most of the 15 people I talked to had never heard it before. I'm reminded we live in an increasingly biblically illiterate culture. This morning I met Don, a new guy at my workout gym, and after some conversation I explained what I am doing and he agreed to give his opinions about the parable. He thought the master in the parable represented greedy bankers, and the parable in general is a commentary on greed in society. When asked if he thought the master would fit his ideas about God, he disagreed. "God wouldn't be so greedy, and he wouldn't punish the unproductive servant." This led to a much longer conversation about God, and left a lot of room for more conversations with Don in the future.