Fifteen years ago I was scheduled to preach on the weekend following September 11. On Thursday of that week my pastor asked if I wanted him to take my place. I said no and hold him I had been revising my homily. By the way, today’s readings are the very same readings as 15 years ago.
I guess it was understandable that I focused on loss—the anger, the sadness, the loss of innocence, the loss of so much life and the nation in mourning. It was and still is painful. What got me through that weekend and those Masses was the opportunity, actually the grace, of baptizing two cousins born just a week apart—Isabella and Matthew. In the midst of a nation in mourning, two sisters brought their families together with a profound sense of hope and love. Fifteen years later, those kids are now teenagers and maybe only vaguely aware of the significance of 911.
At that time, I could not image that in our frail human condition God might call us a “stiff-necked” people. But, like the people of Israel in the first reading, we do lose faith—so easily and so quickly. Remember, how we all gathered in our churches, mosques and synagogues? Remember how so many people sought out hope and comfort from God in the days after 911. Yet, where are all those people now? Like the Israelites who were given another chance, if we are capable of getting past the losses in our lives that unfortunately can often define who we are, we also receive a second chance- each and every time we go to Mass.
We lose our way and often our temper. We lose heart; we lose face; we can lose our minds. We suffer the loss of those we cherish to physical separations, divorce and, even, death. We lose our hope, our strength, our health. We have lost our national innocence. And, in the final hour, we lose our lives. But whether it is a lost sheep, a coin, a prodigal child, or even you and I–God’s heart longs for the lost.
In the second reading, Paul acknowledges who he was before his conversion. But there is hope. Jesus has come to save sinners. Paul is given another chance. We see that God continues to work in our lives, forgiving us even when we sin repeatedly, even when we lose heart. Jesus never gives up on us.
In the Gospel, Luke’s parables are told in the context of Jesus sitting around the table with tax collectors and sinners, all eager to hear what Jesus has to say. But, there, standing off to the side are the scribes and Pharisees who are questioning the authenticity of Jesus’ message. The stories Jesus tells are directed to the scribes and Pharisees– the good religious people, and to each of us.
The first part, the parables of the lost sheep and the lost coin challenge the Pharisees value system. They challenge our value system. After all, isn’t easier to focus on serving the needs of an entire group than one demanding individual; isn’t the safety of the entire group more important than one person? People, this very moment, are putting themselves in harm’s way to find and save just one person. We have witnessed this recently in Syria, in Italy, and in Louisiana
Then, the parable of the prodigal son—you know it well! What do we feel as we hear this story? Who are you routing for? There are three characters whose actions we must reflect on if we are to understand what mercy and forgiveness are all about. What I am going to offer may be a very different interpretation than you may have heard in the past, but bear with me for a moment.
The father: he has broken with Jewish law and gave away the inheritance that is due the older son and when the younger son returns, gives him still more. We have trouble with the father who is so foolish accepting the wayward son back, throwing a party for him creating more dissension in the family. The forgiveness of the father is incredible. Beyond anything rational or expected.
The younger son: we are annoyed with him. He comes home only when he is hungry and has lost everything. He is still using his father. The younger son is a public sinner. He broke faith with his father, with his religion, with the Jewish people and with his God. He has rejected everything. If he comes back, he knows he will face a crowd, the insults, stoning, perhaps even death for his behavior. Yet, in his own way, he was seeking mercy—he was seeking forgiveness.
The older son: The elder son was to inherit it all and then decide how to divide it with his brother. In exchange for this privilege under Jewish law it was his responsibility to act as the reconciler and the go-between for the father and the children. The older son is a sinner too, but in a more private secret way. The only difference between the two brothers is that the elder son assesses his own behavior positively and forgets what he himself has done wrong. It was his responsibility to go after his younger brother and not let something like this happen, not let his father be humiliated. His younger brother was lost. He did nothing. He lost faith as quickly as his younger brother did. But he is given another chance. He is invited into the banquet. The invitation to healing and forgiveness is still there. We aren’t told what the older son does. It is left to us to finish the story. What would you have done?
So, we stand here today as the older brother does—maybe still angry, hurt, frustrated by the events that took place 15 years ago and the events that are still taking place around the world and in our streets. Like the scribes and Pharisees, we can become suspicious, afraid of what is going on around us. A commentator 15 years ago put it well when she said, “courage is fear that has said its prayers.”
As we near the end of the Holy Year of Mercy, it is important to note that today’s gospel is specifically referred to in the Bull of Indiction establishing the Extraordinary Year of Mercy. As Pope Francis reminds us of the themes of mercy and forgiveness, he also reminds us that God never gives up until he has forgiven the wrong and overcome rejection with compassion and mercy, Francis goes on to say, “We know these well, the lost sheep, the lost coin and the father with two sons. In these parables, God is always presented as full of joy, especially when he pardons. In them we find the core of the Gospel and of our faith, because mercy is presented as a force that overcomes everything- filling the heart with love and bringing consolation through pardon.”
I find great comfort in Pope Francis’ words as we gather as one family in this Eucharistic sacrifice. We have another chance. It is all about forgiveness and the way into the Kingdom of God. The father lives it; the younger son gets it; the older son is offered it. It is not about vengeance and retribution. It is about forgiveness and hope. It is about rejoicing in one life saved, even it is our own. And, it is about what we pray in Jesus’ prayer– “forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us”