Homily 

Fourth Sunday of Lent (C)

March 18, 2007

by Reverend Deacon Lawrence A. St. Onge

If we live in true harmony with the teachings of Christ, we may soon hear ourselves saying, “Lord, You’ve made my life for all eternity.”

The words of the Gospels truly give us a portrait of Jesus as our Supreme Master Teacher. In Matthew’s gospel we read, “The crowds were astonished at His teachings for He taught as one who had authority.”

In today’s gospel, we have the words of Jesus that teach us how to understand what our life is truly all about. In the very familiar parable of the prodigal son we learn that life in Christ is a life of mercy. “Blessed are the merciful, because they shall obtain mercy,” says scripture. Mercy is not the least of the beatitudes. In other words, the parable of the prodigal son teaches us how to love.

The parable is a story about a man who had two sons. The younger of the two takes off with what was to be his share of the family inheritance. He then proceeds to squander it on a life of debauchery. Eventually, however, he gets to a point where he is living, literally, like a pig in a pigpen.

The older brother, on the other hand, stays with the father and is loyal to him. Then, the wayward, sleazy brother decides to return home. The gospel tells us that “His father saw him and was moved with pity. He ran to the boy, embraced him and kissed him.”  The father not only takes him back unconditionally, but also throws a big party in his honor.

If we were to be truly honest with ourselves, many would be inclined to agree with the older brother when he grumbles about the red carpet treatment the father gives to the younger brother. But, if we do so, then we are failing to catch even a glimpse of life in Christ, as a life of mercy. 

In today’s parable, the younger son eventually comes to the realization that he must make a change in his life or die. This is insight on his part, not repentance. His hope is just to get accepted back as a hired hand. Amazingly, without any repentance or even an explanation, this renegade son is accepted back by his father, and almost elevated to the status of a king (i.e. a robe, ring, sandals and a fatted calf). Why? Because he was lost and has been found.

The elder son is also lost, but for different reasons. His relationship to his father is strained not because he is a rebel, but because he has never lived life. He has wanted to earn what cannot be earned. He has been invited into the party, but refuses to go. What he most desperately wants is being offered to him as grace, but his anger prevents him from seeing it.

Forgiveness and reconciliation are gifts we all desire and sometimes desperately so. The good news is that these are the very gifts God offers us if only we are willing to accept them.

There is a story – a modern day parable of the Last Judgment – where there are two lines of people standing before the gates of heaven waiting for the Lord to come and receive them. The Line on the right is comprised of all those who had truly kept the Commandments, obeyed the rules of the Church, went to church regularly, gave alms, confessed their sins, and generally thought of themselves as good and righteous people.

When they looked across at the Line on the left, they saw the opposite: people who had been known for their sins, those who did not go to church, who were involved in decadent activities and had even cheated a few people in their lifetime. Those on the right looked at those on the left and said: “We tried to warn you, but you wouldn’t listen, now it’s too late! You should have listened and turned your lives around.”

Just then the Lord came through the gates and the people in the line on the right began to move forward. The Lord held up his hand and motioned for them to stop and wait as he turned to those in the other line and said: “Please, come in, I’m delighted to see you.”

Those in the line told to wait were simply shocked. They began to complain and said, “Well, I never! What kind of place is this? How dare he let them in!” And, in that moment, those in the line on the right were condemned!

We have all heard it said many times that we have to “forgive and forget.” Although “forgetting” may not always be easy or possible, on the other hand, by God’s grace, “forgiveness” is a free act of our will. It is a choice we make to go beyond the hurt we have experienced and not allow it to dominate our relationship with another person or to determine the future. It is in fact, an act of courage and hope for the future. It is an act of love.

We find that hope in each of today’s readings. In the first reading, the Lord said to Joshua, “Today I have removed the reproach of Egypt from you.” In other words, no longer would God’s people be punished for their sins, but instead, would eat of the fruit of the promised land, and once again would celebrate the Passover meal. In the last verse of the Responsorial Psalm we read the encouraging words: “When the afflicted man called out, the Lord heard, and from all his distress he saved him.” And even more encouraging are the words of St. Paul in the second reading: “God, in Christ, was reconciling the world to himself, not counting men’s trespasses against them.” To be reconciled with God means to be in harmony with him, to be one with God. 

And finally, with respect to today’s gospel, T.W. Mason once observed that this parable “lays down the fundamental principle of God’s relation to sinners; that God loves the sinner while he is still a sinner, before he repents, and somehow, it is this divine love that makes the sinner’s repentance possible.”

Therefore, whether we may identify with the sinful younger son or the sinful elder brother, this parable assures us of the Father’s love and forgiveness and that a homecoming (eternity with God in heaven) is always there and waiting for us if we repent, if we forgive, if we love. It is our choice to make.