In other commentaries that I have read or heard on the Gospel of the Prodigal Son there were three basic directions that were taken by the sermons or reflections. Some gave the reflection from the perspective of God the Father, others from the Prodigal Son and still others from the “faithful” son.
My goal today is to give the reflection from all three perspectives in the light of Micah our first reading.
“Who is there like you, the God who removes guilt and pardons sin for the reminant of his inheritance;Who does not persist in anger forever,but instead delights in mercy, And will again have compassion on us,treading underfoot our iniquities? You will cast into the depths of the sea all our sins;You will show faithfulness to Jacob,and loyalty to Abraham,As you have sworn to our ancestors from days of old.”
Micah 7:18-20
We can never hope to fully understand the mind of God but Micah give us a glimpse when we look at the parable of the Prodigal Son.
Our inheritance We have the faithfulness of Jacob and the loyalty given to Abraham. According to Romans 8:14-17 we are children of God and are joint heirs with Christ. Still there is no way that the money or wasted life that the prodigal son spent would be given back to him because it was water under the bridge. When we sin we are separated from God. However all is not lost. This prodigal son was remorseful and came back to his father’s house. What was given back to this son was the removal of guilt and the authority as His child. The father said, “Quickly, bring the finest robe and put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet.” When a Pope dies one of the first thing that is done is to destroy his ring which is a symbol of his authority. Traditionally the ring has a special papal insignia.The ring when used on a document with melted wax leaves an impression of the ring and is unique. This has been done by Kings and Queens for ages. No other ring is has their particular impression or seal. The authority of the document is official. The loving father can remove the guilt and cast into the depths of the sea all our sins. No one can give back to us the time we are separated from God but a repentant souls can be reinstated as His child.
Clemency God’s nature is to be merciful. He delights in clemency. The father in the parable is so happy that he said let us celebrate with a feast, because the son of mine was dead and has come to life again; he was lost and has been found. The operative words here are let us celebrate. Every time we come back to God heaven throws a party. Hopefully all of us each day examine our consciences and if nothing else say that we could have done this or that better. If we struggle with the same sin every time we go to confession, that does not make us unrepentant, necessarily, unless we have planned to do the same thing over again next week. God made us and knows how we struggle sometimes. Jesus was human and in the first Sunday of Lent was tempted by the Devil and the thing that I remember is that the Devil left for a time. That means he came back which tells me that even thought Jesus was God that His human side was subject to temptation.However, never give up hope that with God you can overcome anything. This is a happy time for God when we return. We need to be merciful as our Heavenly Father is merciful to other and ourselves.
Faithfulness My son, you are here with me always. Face it we all sin. We are all the prodigal and we are all the “good” son. I do not live in a glass house so I can not throw stones. We need to rejoice when others especially relatives who make in our mind the wrong choices and see them and in them an opportunity for repentance. Because we are told to love one another we should pray and encourage all those who need it.
Last night my wife and I had a party to celebrate Saint Patrick’s Day. We had a few friends over with dinner and modest libation. My wife is 99% Irish so I do not stand a chance by not celebrating even thought I am only 9% . Tonight I also plan on celebrating because this afternoon, I will be going to confession. Let the party begin both in heaven and on earth. If you are not planning to go think of the party that you will have missed. Reconsider come join the party.The reading for this day is meant to remind us of the joy our return to God’s graces will bring to us and all of heaven.
God Bless You !
Bob Burford
Readings – Micah 7:14-15, 18-20; Psalm 103: 1-2,3-4, 9-10, 11-12; Luke 15: 1-3, 11-32
