4th Sunday of Lent – March 06, 2016

Roy Angell once told a beautiful story about a widow during the First World War who lost her only son and her husband. One night while this woman's grief was so terribly severe, she had a dream. An angel stood before her and said, "You might have your son back again for ten minutes. What ten minutes would you choose? Would you have him back as a little baby, a dirty-faced little boy, a schoolboy just starting to school, a student just completing high school, or as the young soldier who marched off so bravely to war?" The mother thought a few minutes and then, in her dream, told the angel she would choose none of those times. "Let me have him back," she said, "when as a little boy, in a moment of anger, he doubled up his fists and shook them at me and said, ’I hate you! I hate you!''   Continuing to address the angel, she said: "In a little while his anger subsided and he came back to me, his dirty little face stained with tears, and put his arms around me.  He said,  ‘Momma, I'm sorry I was so naughty. I promise never to be bad again and I love you with all my heart.’ Let me have him back then," the mother sobbed. "I never loved him more than at that moment when he changed his attitude and came back to me." Jesus said that this is how God feels about each of us.

Introduction: The fourth Sunday of Lent marks the midpoint in the Lenten preparation for Easter.  Traditionally, it is called Laetare Sunday (Rejoice Sunday). This Sunday is set aside for us to recall God’s graciousness and to rejoice because of it.  In many ways we have been dead, but through God’s grace we have come to life again; we have been lost, but have now been found.  We have every reason to rejoice.  Hence, each of the three readings characterizes one of the many facets of Easter joy.  In the first reading, the Chosen People of God are portrayed as celebrating, for the first time in their own land, the feast of their freedom.  Their joy is one of promises fulfilled.  The refrain of today’s Responsorial Psalm might be used as a response to all three readings: “Taste and see the goodness of the Lord.”  The second reading joyfully proclaims the effect of Jesus’ saving act as the reconciliation of all peoples to the Father.  In the Gospel, the joy is that of a young son’s “coming home” and rediscovering a father’s forgiving and gratuitous love.  It is also the story of a loving and forgiving father who celebrates the return of his prodigal son by throwing a big party in his honor, a banquet celebrating the reconciliation of the son with his father, his family, his community and his God.  It is really the Parable of the Forgiving Father, the story of Divine love and mercy for us sinners, a love that is almost beyond belief.  The common theme of joy resulting from reconciliation with God and other human beings is announced to all of us present in this church – an assembly of sinful people, ready to receive God's forgiveness and His Personal Presence as a forgiving God in the Holy Eucharist.

The first reading (Joshua 5:9, 10-12) gives the story of the reconciliation of God’s Chosen People with their God at Gilgal (within the eastern limits of Jericho), by means of a Passover meal, which made use of grain that had grown Promised Land.  For forty years in the desert, they had rebelled again and again against God, and against the leadership of Moses.   Nevertheless, God had forgiven them every time they repented.  Finally, He had brought them to the Promised Land.  In thanksgiving, they celebrated the Passover, asking Yahweh’s forgiveness, just as they had begun their journey out of Egypt with the first Passover sacrifice and meal.  Joshua’s story is particularly pertinent to the Israelites who were taken to Babylon as slaves in 587 BC.  It reminded them that the same God who had brought their ancestors from Egypt to the Promised Land would be merciful to them and forgive their sins of infidelity, provided they repented and were reconciled with Him.  The people were to believe that, as God had responded positively to their repentant ancestors in the past, He would also hear their penitent cries, forgive them once again and keep all His ancient promises.  Lent is a time for us to "pass over," from the world of injustice we have created to a world of reconciliation.  It is our time to turn hatred to love, conflict to peace, death to eternal life.

In the second reading (II Cor. 5: 17-21) St. Paul emphasizes the uniqueness of every individual in the Corinthian community – "Whoever is in Christ is a new creation!"  Then he explains “the ministry of reconciliation” he had received from Christ and exercised among them, as the continuation both  of Yahweh’s ministry and of the reconciliation that occurred in Temple worship.  He tells the Corinthian converts that they are a new creation, made so through the blood of Christ.  It is the shedding of Christ’s blood that has reconciled them with God and made them righteous.  So they have reason to rejoice.  Paul further reminds the faithful at Corinth that the apostles are ambassadors of Christ, announcing this reconciliation, which God offers to all humanity through Jesus Christ.   Hence, he appealed to the Corinthians to be reconciled to God and to one another, thus sharing in God’s plan of salvation.  The Apostle believes that God is constantly reconciling everyone to Himself.  Like the Corinthians, we have been made a new creation and we have been given many second chances.  Hence, it is also our ministry to proclaim that reconciliation by being reconciled with those around us unconditionally, with no strings attached.

Exegesis: The significance of the parable: The parable of the prodigal son is called "the greatest short story in the world" (Charles Dickens), "the gospel of the gospels", “the gospel of the outcasts," and the "parable of the prodigal father."  The world famous portrait of the “Return of the Prodigal Son” by the 17th century Dutch artist Rembrandt (now at the Hermitage museum in Russia), Balanchine’s famous choreography of this parable, the Russian composer Prokofiev’s suite based on the Prodigal Son, and numerous other artistic works around the world depicting this theme, demonstrate the lingering impact of this parable on human hearts down through the centuries.  Acknowledging the allegation that he mingled with the sinners, Jesus outlines the three aspects or dimensions of repentance, by presenting three characters in this parable: 1) the repentant younger son, 2) the forgiving father and 3) the self-justifying elder son.

The repenting son:  He began by wanting freedom from his father.  Hence, he forced his father to give him his right to one-third of his father’s property (as stipulated in Deuteronomy 21:17).  The son then sold his property and traveled to a far-off city where he realized all his wild dreams of a carefree life.  Finally, bankrupt, abandoned by his “friends,” and faced with a local famine, he was forced to take up the job of feeding pigs – a job forbidden to the Jews.  At last, awakened by his sufferings, he gathered enough courage to return to his father and confess his sin, thus becoming the model for repentant sinners.  He resolved to become a "hired servant" of his family, thereby regaining a measure of honor and independence, but with a social status matching his guilt and failure.  Moreover, he would be able to take care of his father for as long as the father lived.

The prodigal father: The father in the story represents God the Father.  He promptly gave a share of his property to his younger son, bid him a tearful farewell and waited daily for his return.  Finally, when the boy returned in rags, confessing his sins, the father promptly forgave him, kissed him on the cheeks, and healed the broken relationship between them.  He ordered a bath for his son, gave him new garments (a sign of honor) and a golden signet ring (sign of authority and trust).  By ordering sandals for the   feet of his son, the father signaled his reacceptance as his son.  The killing of the fatted calf, specially raised for the Passover feast, meant that the entire village was invited for the grand party given in the returned son’s honor.  When the elder brother refused to join in the party, the father went out to beg him to be reconciled with his younger brother and to share in the father’s joy.  He assured the elder son of his continuing love and of the son’s secure inheritance and place in the family by saying, “All I have is yours.”  Thus, the father symbolizes the loving and unconditionally forgiving Heavenly Father who is excessive, extravagant and generous with His forgiveness and mercy.  Just like his heavenly Father, Jesus, too, squanders his love on those who need it most.  Although the story of the prodigal son is often given as an example of repentance, it is actually the story of how God forgives and heals the repentant sinner.  Like God, the father in the parable was ready to forgive both of his "sinful" sons even before they repented. St. Thomas Aquinas explains that God already forgives us as soon as we repent, even before we go to confession or perform any penance.  The forgiveness the father offers in the parable parallels the forgiveness God offers in real life.  That is why Jesus in the Gospels frequently describes God more like a defense attorney than a prosecuting attorney.           

The self-justifying elder son: He represents the self-righteous Pharisees.  The elder son had no feelings of sympathy for his brother.  He played the part of a dutiful son, but his heart was not in it.  He was resentful, bitter and angry.  He was so jealous of his younger brother that he never wanted to see him again.  He leveled a series of allegations against his prodigal brother, whom he viewed as a rival.  Instead of honoring his father by joining him in accepting his brother and playing an appropriate role at the meal, the elder son publicly insulted and humiliated his father (vv. 28-30).  Jesus includes this character in the story to represent the scribes and Pharisees who began to complain, saying, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.”  We are not told how the elder son responded to his father’s plea, or to his father’s assurances of continued love, place and inheritance (“All I have is yours”).  Perhaps that is because Jesus meant the scribes and Pharisees to see that their own final response to the Father’s love in sending Jesus had yet to be made, and that they still had time to “return home” to their Father in welcoming Him.           

Life messages: 1) We need to accept the fact that we are all prodigal children who have squandered our Father’s inheritance.  There is a spiritual famine even in countries with a booming economy.  Because of this spiritual famine, we resemble the younger son who lived with pigs.  Examples of this spiritual famine can be seen in drug and alcohol abuse, fraud and theft in the workplace, murders, abortions and violence, premarital sex, marital infidelity and priestly infidelity, as well as in hostility between people.  Sometimes this "spiritual famine” exists in our own families.  That is why we condemn some of our family members to “survival-level” existence, and even contribute to the death of some of them, by refusing to associate with them.  Let us accept the fact that we have been squandering God’s abundant blessings not only in our country and in our families, but also in our personal lives.

2) Lent is a time to "pass over," from a world of sin to a world of reconciliation. The story of the prodigal son asks each of us an important question: Will you accept the Father's   forgiveness and partake of the banquet, or will you remain outside?  Lent is a time to transform hatred into love, conflict into peace, death into eternal life.  The message of Lent, therefore, as St. Paul tells us, is:  “We implore you, in Christ’s name: be reconciled to God."  The first step, of course, is to do as the younger son did: "When he came to himself, he said: 'I will break away and return to my father, and say to him, "Father, I have sinned against you."'" At every Mass, we come to our loving Heavenly Father’s house as prodigal children.  We begin the Mass acknowledging that we have sinned and have closed our hearts to God’s perfect love: ("I no longer deserve to be called your child, so do with me as you will"). Next, we listen to the Word that heals our broken and imperfect relationships with God ("say the Word and I shall be healed").  In the Offertory, we offer ourselves back to the Father, and this is the moment of our surrendering our sinful lives to God our Father.  At the consecration, we hear God’s invitation through Jesus: “… this is My Body, which will be given up for you... this is the chalice  of My Blood … which will be poured out for you…” (=”All I have is yours”). In Holy Communion, we participate in the feast of reconciliation of the Holy Eucharist, the gift of unity with God and with His whole family, thus restoring a fully loving, give-and-take relationship with Him and His family of our fellow-human beings.  Let us come to the house of God as often as we can, be reconciled with God, our forgiving Father, asking His pardon and forgiveness, and enjoy God’s banquet of reconciliation and acceptance from the altar, prepared for us, the returned prodigal sons and daughters.

           3) We need to accept the loving offer of our Heavenly Father: “All I have is yours”.   

The woods are lovely, dark and deep.
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep.
(Robert Frost in “Stopping By Woods On A Snowy Evening”)

            Faraway hills and forest look green; there are many attractions in life; there are many voices saying to us, "Follow me,” or "Follow your desires and you will find happiness."  But the best and the only real offer of lasting happiness is from God our Father, “All I have is yours."  God our Heavenly Father is outside the door waiting for us to open it to Him.  For the remainder of Lent let us try to make every effort to answer that invitation from our Heavenly Father, “All I have is yours." Each Lent offers us sinners a chance to return home with a confession of sins, where we will find welcome and open-armed love.  Such a confession will enable us to hasten toward Easter with the eagerness of Faith and love, and it will make possible the rejoicing which today’s liturgy assures us in our Lord’s words: "There is more joy in Heaven over the one sinner who does penance than over the ninety-nine just who do not need penance."

        Grandpa and his granddaughter were out for a walk one day when Grandpa realized they had walked a whole lot farther than their normal walks. He asked his granddaughter, "Do you know here we are?" The girl said, "No!" "Do you know how to get home?" Again the girl said, "No!" Then Grandpa asked, "If you don't know where you are or how to get home, does that mean you’re lost?" The girl said, "No, Grandpa! How can I be lost if I'm with you?

(Source: Homilies of Fr. Tony Kadavil)

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