A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke (Lk 15:1-3, 11-32)
The father said to him, “My son, you are here with me always; 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.”
In the Parable of the Prodigal Son, Jesus responds to the Pharisees in a way that is relevant for all of us. As the passage begins, the Pharisees criticize Jesus because of the tax collectors and sinners who are drawn to him and listen to him. In the parable, the son demands his inheritance and then squanders it within days, living loosely and sinfully. After spending all he has, a severe famine strikes and the son finds employment tending swine. Far from home and at last coming to his senses, the son says to himself: “I shall get up and go to my father and I shall say to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you.'” While the son is a long way off from his house, the father sees him and runs out to meet him and embraces and kisses him. Then they begin celebrating with a feast. The older son, disturbed by what this might mean, questions his father. The mercy the father shows for both sons is just and proportional. So it is with God: his mercy is inexhaustible and available to all who humbly seek him and repent.
God, this message is meant for all; it is a universal call to repentance, not for the sake of wallowing in weakness but to see and experience the mercy you extend to all. Help me see that this story is meant for all but also your word speaking to me personally. The prodigal son recognizes wrongdoing and the need to return home to the father; the father forgives the son and celebrates his return in the joy of reconciliation. Thank you, Father, for your mercy; in your mercy restore me!
From the responsorial psalm: “He will not always chide, nor does he keep his wrath forever. Not according to our sins does he deal with us, nor does he requite us according to our crimes. The Lord is kind and merciful.”
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.