“Not long after that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living. After he had spent everything, there was a severe famine in that whole country, and he began to be in need. So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed pigs. He longed to fill his stomach with the pods that the pigs were eating, but no one gave him anything.” (Luke 15:13-16)

“Why did this young man in the Parable of the Prodigal Son become hungry?” A university professor asked this question to his students here in the U.S. [Note: No, I don’t think this is crucial to understanding the parable, and I actually think focusing on such details hurts understanding.] The students here in the U.S. knew the right answer: He was hungry because he had squandered all of his wealth.

The professor then traveled to the ex-Soviet Union to teach a class. While there, he had the opportunity to ask his students the same question. Once again the response was almost unanimous. But the answer was different. These students knew the right answer: He was hungry because there was a severe famine.

The same professor also traveled to Africa and had the same opportunity. As in the other two cases, the students were generally in agreement with each other. They knew why the young man was hungry: No one would give him any food. He had left the area where God’s people were and lived among people who would not help him.

Feel free to think about your own answer to this question, but also take time to recognize one thing: like it or not, our culture influences the way we see things, even “obvious things” from the Bible. Can you think of other possible examples?