Homily 4th Sunday of Lent - March 27, 2022

 Today's readings can be found here.

            It doesn’t seem fair, does it?  Put yourself in the older brother’s shoes.  He was the responsible one.  He did everything his father asked of him, never once disobeying an order.  He followed all the rules.  His younger brother, on the other hand, was the wild one.  His brother insulted the family by asking for his inheritance while his father was still alive.  Basically, his brother considered his father and the family dead to him.  He then goes and blows his inheritance on nothing of value.

            Then, out of the blue, this younger brother comes back home.  And instead of punishing him, his father throws a celebration using the best food they have available to them!  He, on the other hand, never got anything from his father.  Not even a goat to share with his friends!  Who wouldn’t be angry about this situation?  How could his father so easily forgive his younger brother after everything he’d done?

            While that might seem unfair, I think we need to look a little more closely at the older brother.  We tend to focus on the younger brother as he seems to be the central character in the parable.  But remember who Jesus was addressing the parable to: the scribes and Pharisees.  These were the people that were upset with Jesus for welcoming sinners and eating with them.  What we know of the older brother comes through in the few sentences he speaks to his father.  First, he states he’s served and obeyed his father for many years.  He followed the rules, did what was expected of him.  But why did he do it?  He complains he was never given even a young goat to feast with his friends.  Why is that important?  The older brother wanted to show off to his friends.  He wanted to be able to tell them “Look what a good son I am!  My father even gave me this goat to share with you!  Look how blessed I am!”  His display of anger over the fatted calf shows his self righteousness.

              Additionally, the older brother is resentful that his younger brother is treated with compassion.  He probably wants his younger brother punished for what he’d done.  He certainly doesn’t consider his brother family any longer.  He doesn’t say “But when my brother returns”.  Instead, he says “When your son returns”.  As if there’s no relationship between them any longer.  His brother is an outsider to him.  The scribes and Pharisees take the same attitude towards sinners and tax collectors.  They were Jewish people.  But they broke the rules and were no longer considered worthy to be part of Jewish community life.  The scribes and Pharisees likely wanted these sinners and tax collectors to go through some rigorous process to try and earn the forgiveness of the community before being allowed back in.  There were conditions involved in being allowed back in.

            The father in the parable, like God, doesn’t work that way.  He sees his son coming from far off, as if he’d been looking and waiting for him.  When he sees him, he’s filled with compassion.  The father recognizes his son is truly repentant and doesn’t even allow him to finish his prepared speech.  The father forgives his son first and then restores him to his place in the family.  The father is so overjoyed at the return of his son that he shares his joy with everyone.

            Lent is a time for repentance and conversion of heart.  The root of the word conversion means to “turn around”.  We’re called to turn around our thinking and focus more on God.  Are there people in our lives we have trouble forgiving?  Are we placing some condition on being reconciled with someone?  Are we angry with someone over some insult or grievance like the older brother in the parable?

            God is always looking for us to repent and return to Him.  When we repent of our sins, God runs toward us with overflowing joy.  The older brother in the parable did not want to let go of his anger and resentment towards his brother.  How can we turn around our hearts and act like the father in the parable, being more compassionate and forgiving, without conditions?  How can we too be joyful for others when they’ve been forgiven?