"Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you."
Sunday Scriptures: http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/030616-fourth-sunday-lent.cfm
Jos 5: 9A, 10-12
2 Cor 5: 17-21
Lk 15: 1-3, 11-32
There is a
very good reason the Church has named our sacrament of forgiveness, the
“Sacrament of Reconciliation.” Most normally, we say “I’m going to confession” or “Father,
can you hear my confession?” or “What
time are confessions?” There’s nothing wrong with asking a question that
way about this sacrament and any priest or regular Catholic would know what you mean.
However, I
don’t think most of us priests are normally asked, “Father, what time is reconciliation?” My answer to that question
would be, “All the time!”
Our second
reading this Sunday and the stunning Gospel story which Jesus tells, reveals
the very essence not only of that sacrament but the very heart of God and the
Gospel which Jesus preached. Paul,
speaking to his Christian converts at Corinth reminds them: “Whoever is in Christ Jesus is a new
creation; the old things have passed away; behold new things have come . . .
Christ has given us the ministry of reconciliation . . .” (2 Cor 5: 17-18).
Paul gives
us a theological explanation. As a people, baptized into Christ, in the name of
the Trinity, we are changed, different, and called to a certain behavior and
way of life because of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. We are
called to build bridges, as God has done for us between himself and humanity,
which is one image of reconciliation.. So this whole ministry of reconciliation
has something to do with becoming better and not going back. Reconciliation is
a process of conversion and the great sacrament of healing, or confession, invites
us to walk into that process before a merciful God.
This leads
to our Gospel from Luke 15 which makes that process a deeply personal one. For
me, and I know for many, many more the story of the “Prodigal Son” or the
“Forgiving Father” or any other variation on that title you may want to offer,
is not only a brilliant cast of characters but deeply moving on a faith
level. It is rich with character
development and questions our own view of God and our ultimate response to
God’s almost over the top mercy.
As a
story, it is open ended as many of the parables of Jesus’ were. Jesus deliberately, I suspect, left the end
hanging with the Father’s challenging statement to the jealous older brother: “My son . . . everything I have is yours. But
now we must celebrate and rejoice, because your brother was dead and has come
to life again; he was lost and has been found.” (Lk 15: 32). How the older son reacted to this statement is left unanswered. Did he come around and join the party? Did he walk away in disgust? Did he also ask his Father to forgive him for
his petty jealousy? It invites us to our own self examination.
Further, the
setting in which Jesus told this story is significant to our
understanding. Luke reminds us: “Tax collectors and sinners were all drawing
near to listen to Jesus, but the Pharisees and scribes began to complain,
saying ‘This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.’” (Lk 15: 1). Jesus
was constantly berated for his association with the undesirables. And among his worst critics were, of course,
those so hardened in their own self-righteousness, that they had closed their
minds to God’s mercy.
Regardless,
Jesus invites specifically this crowd, who are invited to see themselves in the
older son, to open their hearts and minds. It invites every one of us to ask
ourselves the same question about which of the two sons do I find in
myself. The answer for most of us is
that I see both sons in me.
One could
easily write an entire book on the layers of meaning in this rich parable as
others have done but for us this weekend, and in this Jubilee Year of Mercy,
its lesson is fundamental. That our God
is like the Father in the story who waits for us to come home with open arms.
He longs for our return with love and mercy, not searing judgment and
condemnation. A love beyond solely human love.
It’s most
shocking for me that the son was so selfish and brazen as to ask his father for
his inheritance long before his father was ready to pass on. Even more startling is that the father gave
it to him! The son goes off and does
everything he can to shame his reputation, his family name and his own father. Finally,
in desperation, having reached the ultimate bottom with nowhere else to turn,
he plans his return to the same father he had so appallingly treated and beg
for forgiveness.
I’d like
to imagine that Jesus paused here for a moment and looked intently at the crowd
around him to see what was on their face.
He could have allowed a moment of dead silence. What will the father do
and say to his irresponsible son? Did the most critical among them begin to
break down?
Then our
Lord continues with the most unanticipated reaction of the father: “While he (the son) was still a long way off,
his father caught sign of him, and was filled with compassion. He ran to his
son, embraced him and kissed him.” Without a word from the father in the
story, Jesus proclaims what God is like and how he desires that we come home
and remain in the family.
The son
pleads for mercy in the midst of this overwhelming act of reconciliation and
is swept up in his father’s joy. With
robes and rings and a party to boot he finds himself back in the good graces
of his family. Then, the elder son
appears and throws a wet towel on the festivities. “I’ve been
the good and obedient son. Am I not the
responsible and respectful “apple of your eye?” He doesn’t even name his
brother but refers to him as “your son.” What’s with this party? You never did that for me!
He is so
blinded by jealousy, competition, and his own sense of his goodness, that he
misses the point of what his father is like.
So, the father reminds him of how generous and fair he has always
been. Yet, more importantly at this
moment to celebrate the new life his younger brother has found: “He was dead and has come to life again.”
Then the
story ends. Again, I imagine Jesus
looked more intently than before at his listeners who likely were stunned by
the father’s behavior. Hopefully,
though, also moved so deeply that they saw themselves in the two sons and in
particular the most stubborn among them began to soften their own pride which
blinded them to see the expansive nature of God.
Are we
moved in the same way? We should be
indeed. Does it seem too good to be
true? Is God really this blind to our
sin? Yes and no perhaps.
The father
forgave because the younger son had “come
to his senses.” The boy took responsibility for his impulsive behavior and
returned to his father, who waited for but did not go in search of, his son. The
father well knew the mess his son created but patiently with love and hope
waited for that moment of personal realization – then welcomed his son home
with rejoicing.
Where am I
in this story? How willing am I to “come
to my senses?” What will be the key that will change me? Here, the story doesn’t end for us; it only
begins. We are all called to become not
either son but to be more like the father. If we can, a new life can begin for us.
We find it
in the sacrament of reconciliation, the holy Eucharist, the scriptures, our
shared faith and prayer. But we must become the father in our daily encounter
with each other.
O God, who through your Word
reconcile the human race to yourself in a wonderful way,
grant, we pray,
that with prompt devotion and eager faith
the Christian people may hasten
toward the solemn celebrations to come.
(Opening Prayer for Mass)
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