It is not, as Thomas Fleming says in his February Perspective, a “temptation” to “construct the Kingdom of God in the here and now.” This is, for Christians, a command by our Lord who taught us, in His prayer, that His Kingdom come will be done, on earth, as it is in Heaven.

        —John Lofton
Laurel, MD

Mr. Fleming Replies:

John Lofton’s Bible has a different Lord’s prayer from mine, which reads “Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” Textual problems aside. Brother Lofton apparently believes that to pray for the accomplishment of the Lord’s will is the same thing as taking personal responsibility for it. On this construction, we should forcibly convert heathens, kill homosexuals, and enforce all Old Testament laws, whether the affected population is Jewish, Christian, or pagan.