Ex 32:7-11, 13-14; 1 Tim 1:12-17; Lk 15:1-32
After going through the
story of the Prodigal Son, a Sunday school teacher asked the kids, “At the end
of the story who is it that ended up in the worst situation?” One of the kids
stood up and said, “The fatted cow!” (by Ernest Munachi Ezeogu)
The popular “Parable of the Prodigal
Son” has three main characters, namely: the younger son, the father and the
elder brother.
The younger son was a volatile, easily
bored, ready-to-try-everything teenager. He seemed to be unhappy in his
father’s house. He asked for his inheritance while his father was still active
and healthy. Commentators would say that the son’s demand was equivalent to
wishing his father were dead. Worst of all, the shameless son went abroad and
wasted his bequest in loose living.
The younger son represents every sinner.
In sin we squander our human and divine birthright. Sin promises a life of happiness, excitement
and fulfillment, but in the end what we get out of it is misery, wretchedness
and a loss of personal dignity. The good thing is that no matter how deeply we
sink into sin there is always a pending invitation for us to return to our
Father’s house where genuine freedom and satisfaction are found.
Then, there was the loving father. After
the son demanded to have his share of the inheritance at an inopportune time,
the father gave in, of course with so much pain in his heart. He loved his son
and wanted to keep him in his house. Actually, he had all the right to deny his
son’s demand, but he chose not to impose his love. While the son squandered all
his money in dissolute living, this father constantly waited for him to come
back. The gospel says that “While he (the prodigal son) was still a long way
off, his father caught sight of him, and was filled with compassion. He ran to
his son, embraced him and kissed him.” It is easy to imagine that the father
had spent so many hours outside his house, patiently waiting for the shadow of
his son. Thus, when he finally saw him from a distance he forgot his dignity as
a father. He ran to his son – something unthinkable for a Jewish father to do.
He forgot about his own pain, he forgot about the humiliation his son had
caused him.
The son must have worried on the way
home. What was he going to say his father? What if his family would refuse to
accept him back? He rehearsed his opening words, trying to sound humble and
truly repentant: “Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I no
longer deserve to be called your son; treat me as you would treat one of your
hired workers.” He knew that he was a sinner; he could only beg for mercy and
forgiveness.
But the father had none of these. No
words were needed, no explanations. The father understood the pain, the
humiliation, and the shame in coming home. He embraced his son with love,
kisses him again and again. And that was not all. He restored his son’s dignity
– the best robe (sign of honor) was put on him, the ring (symbol of the
authority of his father) was inserted on his finger, sandals were put on his
feet (he was not treated as a slave for slaves wear no sandals), and the
fattened calf was slaughtered (sign of joy and feasting). A commentator noted
that killing a calf, not just a goat or a sheep, meant that the entire village
was invited to share in the joy of having back a long lost son.
Such is the Father in Heaven that Jesus
wishes all disciples to know. God loves us so much and he wants us to respond
to that love freely. Freedom is God’s greatest gift to the human person, a sign
of his love. We are always free to love him back or reject him. God is a Loving
Father who keeps on waiting for his lost children. He is one who runs out to
receive us, one who cares only for our return. He is one who gives a lavish
feast when he gets us back. Many people are not too familiar with this kind of
God. Many would imagine a God who is slow to understand, unforgiving and
vengeful.
Finally, there was the elder son being
introduced towards the end of the story. He was proud that he had never strayed
or sinned like his younger brother. He had been faithful in serving his father
and he thought he deserved all the rewards. However, he clearly lacked a
forgiving heart. In fact, he was sorry that his brother had come home. He
represents the self-righteous Pharisees who would rather see a sinner condemned
than saved. The attitude of the older brother showed that his years of
obedience to his father had been years of grim duty and not of loving service.
His manner was one of arrogance. He could not accept his repentant brother, and
he only referred to him as “This son of yours . . .”
Sometimes, we are like this unforgiving
son, we are self-righteous and easy to find fault in others. Every so often, we
are judgmental and quick to condemn. Somebody said that when God looks at us,
he covers one eye so that he will not see the negative parts in us. The problem
with us is that when we look at other people, we open wide our eyes and we even
have magnifying glasses to see the negative sides of others.
At the end of the story who is it that
ended up in the worst situation? Not the fatted cow but the older brother –
because he was self-righteous, proud and unforgiving.
