LENT IV

Luke 15:1–3,11b–32

All the tax collectors and sinners were coming near to listen to Jesus. And the Pharisees and the scribes were grumbling and saying, “This fellow welcomes sinners and eats with them.” So Jesus told them this parable: “There was a man who had two sons. The younger of them said to his father, ‘Father, give me the share of the property that will belong to me.’ So he divided his property between them. A few days later the younger son gathered all he had and traveled to a distant country, and there he squandered his property in dissolute living.

When he had spent everything, a severe famine took place throughout that country, and he began to be in need. So he went and hired himself out to one of the citizens of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed the pigs. He would gladly have filled himself with the pods that the pigs were eating; and no one gave him anything.

But when he came to himself he said, 'How many of my father's hired hands have bread enough and to spare, but here I am dying of hunger! I will get up and go to my father, and I will say to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you; I am no longer worthy to be called your son; treat me like one of your hired hands.’ So he set off and went to his father.

But while he was still far off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion; he ran and put his arms around him and kissed him. Then the son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you; I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’ But the father said to his slaves, ‘Quickly, bring out a robe–the best one–and put it on him; put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. And get the fatted calf and kill it, and let us eat and celebrate; for this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found!’ And they began to celebrate.

Now his elder son was in the field; and when he came and approached the house, he heard music and dancing. He called one of the slaves and asked what was going on. The slave replied, ‘Your brother has come, and your father has killed the fatted calf, because he has got him back safe and sound.’ Then the elder son became angry and refused to go in.

His father came out and began to plead with him. But he answered his father, ‘Listen! For all these years I have been working like a slave for you, and I have never disobeyed your command; yet you have never given me even a young goat so that I might celebrate with my friends. But when this son of yours came back, who has devoured your property with prostitutes, you killed the fatted calf for him!’

Then the father said to him, ‘Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours. But we had to celebrate and rejoice, because this brother of yours was dead and has come to life; he was lost and has been found.’”

Reflection by Christina Honchell

I have known these three guys for as long as I can remember, much as I know the characters in my favorite fairy tales. The images were set in early Sunday School: I known what they are wearing, what the layout of the house looks like, know in detail the pig farm up on a plateau, and the long road home down a gentle hill dotted with wildflowers. I can see the big, flashy ruby ring that the father places on the young son’s hand, I can hear the music and catch a glimpse of the dancing at that party that went on till dawn (and it looks just like one of my parents’ swinging 60’s cocktail parties). Following on the heels of two shorter, metaphorical tales of sheep and coins, this novella of a gospel drama is rich and provocative, personal and relational, Jesus at his story-telling best.

Everyone in this story is prodigal: extravagant, extreme, archetypal. I have been both sons, and I long to be the father.

The younger son is clueless, impulsive, insensitive to the impact he has on his family. I was that kid in my own rebellious years. And like him, I was blessed to have a safety net and the privilege to make some really bad decisions – and to still be welcomed home. Like him, I have been haunted by the sense that I have disappointed my family and let that embarrassment keep me separated, to my own detriment.

But I have spent much more of my life in the skin of the older brother, soured by his resentments and haunted by his questions: Doesn’t loyalty count for anything? Why should I bother to work hard? Where is the justice? Wanting to yell out in my best 3-year-old whine: “It isn’t fair!!” I can’t count how many times I shut myself out of a celebration over some slight, perceived or real – I have walked out of family dinners and parties, I have pouted and given in to the worst kind of envy. Like the Pharisees who worried about Jesus eating with sinners, the ones to whom Jesus told this story, I have been caught up in the nonsense of following rules and missing grace. This loving parent tells him (and me)“everything I have is yours,” and everything isn’t enough.

The true prodigal in this story is the father – his love, his generosity and forgiveness are unlimited and beyond measure. The father extends himself to both sons: The younger son can’t even get out the lame story that he crafted to win forgiveness before the father grabs him, kisses his neck and brings him home; the father leaves the house to beg the sulker to come to the party. The genius of this story is that it gave me my first image of God, as generous parent beyond my dreams – a good argument for making this the first Bible story you teach your kids. God is wildly inclusive, full of open invitation and forgiveness.

My Lenten practice this year is generosity. I’ve decided to take on the spiritual practice of giving the benefit of the doubt: that car that cut me off on my way home from work – maybe it was a scared father racing his sick child to the hospital; the phone company guy who came two hours late for our appointment – maybe he was helping someone whose phone is literally their lifeline. Baby steps, I know, but they take me down the road toward prodigal mercy. God is calling us to live in celebration, without envy, to love and forgive in ways that make no sense.

During the Week

Try on each of the three characters in the story – how have you:
a) Separated yourself from loved ones because of your perceived inadequacies?
b) Acted out of resentment toward those who showed generosity to others; felt cheated, the victim of unfairness?
c) Shown extreme generosity and unconditional love toward someone who feels unloved or unworthy?

How would you finish the story – does the older son join the party? What happens the next
morning?

For further reading: Henri Nouwen wrote a wonderful meditation on this gospel story, "The Return of the Prodigal Son, A Homecoming Story," based on his love of Rembrandt’s painting of the same name.