Coming Home

 Today’s Gospel (Luke 15:11-32) is a gift from our Lord that paints a picture, an “icon”, of how much the Father truly loves us.

Stop for a moment and think of that love shown for you from your parents.  Some of us still live within that love.  Some of us had that love from one or the other parent for far too short a time.  Some of us have lived to ripe old ages and can now experience that love only in memories.

I fall into this later category.  The memories of packing up the old station wagon with five kids for a four hour trip, pretty much every second week remain with us.  That task might seem daunting, but there was never any reservation about making that trip leaving Friday night and returning after Church on Sunday.  It was always worth it to feel the warmth of the embraces when we arrived, the love in the conversation while we were there.  And it was well worth the education—mom and dad never stopped being teachers to us.

As we read today’s parable of the Prodigal, we can imagine in his mind the thoughts present as he left the Father.  “I’m going to go out and conquer the world!”, only to have this untamed bravado quickly quashed by the real world. 

It was not just that he didn’t prosper, the Prodigal allowed the temptations of the world to lay hold of him, to entice him into great sin, to sap all the positives taught to him by his Father and cause him to wallow in the mud with common swine, to literally come to a point of starvation as he fed animals that the Jews saw as unclean.

It was this complete collapse of the world around him that brought the Prodigal to that place where he finally could find true repentance.  And so he commits to “going home” - not to a Father any longer, for he sees himself as totally unworthy to be called by that title after how he has chosen to live away from that love.  He now looks to his Father as an employer—one who won’t have him feeding pigs, but who in return will treat him with some level of dignity.  He asks to be a servant of one whom he knows has respect even for those  who are His servants!

But the Father has other plans!  The Father is not caught off guard by the Prodigal’s return.  He is watching, waiting for him to come home.  And when His son does return, He allows him only enough time to offer his message of repentance, but the Father stops the son’s discourse short, not allowing him to ask to become a servant.  What do we find in the Father’s demeanor? 

First:  He’s My son!  Second:  I love him unconditionally.  Third: I prove that love with my running to meet him.  Fourth: I prove that love by embracing him.  Fifth:  I prove that love by kissing him.

When I go back to those long four hour drives, I’m reminded of the warmth of each and every arrival.  Both father and mother came out to meet us.  There were hugs exchanged between two parents and all seven of us exiting the car.  And it all ended with kisses all around before entering the house to celebrate.  There was no fatted calf, but there was feasting and much joy.

Today’s Parable is our Lord’s way of showing us truly how much the Father loves us.  In this world, a parent’s love is perhaps as close we can get to that of our heavenly Father.  And if we still (years later) can feel that parental love, the hugs, the kisses, and if all those memories are as vivid as they are, memories gifted by imperfect human love, how much more intense, more glorious, more wonderful is the love that our Lord shows us to be the definition of who the Father really is?

Let us all begin to prepare our repentant message to Him.  Lord knows we’re all on the path to meet Him soon.  All of us are on our way home.  And He, with all love, is waiting.