Yesterday we saw that the prodigal son had asked for, and indeed received, the blessing of his inheritance, even though this thoughtless and selfish son was both dishonoring and shaming his father. But Jesus said in St. John Chapter 14:13 "Whatever you ask in My Name, that I will do for you." So when this younger son ask his father for his birth right, the father gave it to him, just as he had asked. And this son took the blessings, the wealth, his father had given him and went to a foreign land, where, we are told, the son engaged in "prodigal" living.
One definition of the word "prodigal" is "spending wealth or resources freely and recklessly; wastefully extravagant." We are also told that the son went to a "far land" or in some versions of the Bible, a foreign land. But wherever the prodigal son went, it was apparently not so far from his home that word of his way of life did not reach his family, as we will see later. But here is an interesting detail. The prodigal son lived his wasteful, extravagant lifestyle for several years, until two things happened. First he ran out of money. But, no sooner had he run out of money than a famine struck the land. So, he could turn to his friends for food, right? Wrong! It turned out that this young man, shunned and forgotten by his fair-weather friends, was in danger of starving to death. What could be worse for this young man than starving to death?
It happened that things COULD get worse. The prodigal son could not find any means to support himself, so in desperation he hired himself out to a landowner. Guess where the son, a Hebrew, was assigned to work. In fact, he was assigned by this rich man to work caring for swine. In the Hebrew culture, swine were unclean and were not to be eaten or even touched. But this was the only way the young man could survive, so he cared for the swine. And, he noticed that he was barely given enough food to eat, while the swine were well-fed...by him! The Good Shepherd tells us that here, at this low point, the prodigal son "came to himself." It is usually when we are down at a low point that we come to our senses, as it were. The young man, Jesus says, wished he could eat the very food the pigs received, but he was not even allowed to do that. Then the prodigal son came up with a plan.
The prodigal son knew that he had done wrong, both in the way of life in which he had lately indulged, and in the way he had dishonored his father, and squandered the great gifts his father had given him. The young son had done a stupid thing, but he was not a stupid person. So he realized he needed to return to his father, even though it would be in a state of shame and humiliation. The young man even rehearsed what he would say to his father when he returned. The Good Shepherd tells us that the prodigal son decided he would say, "Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you, and I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Make me like one of your hired servants.” (St. Luke 15:18-19)
I would like to point out that the speech this young man devised for his father consisted of three elements. First, the son confessed that he had sinned against heaven and before his father. Second, the son expressed his self-judgment that he was no longer worthy to be called his father's son. Finally, the son expressed his desire to return to the father's care as a HIRED SERVANT, not as a son. So, when the prodigal son finally reached his father's land, he planned to say these three things to his father. The prodigal son appeared certain of two things: one, he was no longer his father's son; and two, his father MIGHT be kind enough to let him stay and work the land, BUT ONLY as a SERVANT.
Next time: The father sees his son coming from afar.
One definition of the word "prodigal" is "spending wealth or resources freely and recklessly; wastefully extravagant." We are also told that the son went to a "far land" or in some versions of the Bible, a foreign land. But wherever the prodigal son went, it was apparently not so far from his home that word of his way of life did not reach his family, as we will see later. But here is an interesting detail. The prodigal son lived his wasteful, extravagant lifestyle for several years, until two things happened. First he ran out of money. But, no sooner had he run out of money than a famine struck the land. So, he could turn to his friends for food, right? Wrong! It turned out that this young man, shunned and forgotten by his fair-weather friends, was in danger of starving to death. What could be worse for this young man than starving to death?
It happened that things COULD get worse. The prodigal son could not find any means to support himself, so in desperation he hired himself out to a landowner. Guess where the son, a Hebrew, was assigned to work. In fact, he was assigned by this rich man to work caring for swine. In the Hebrew culture, swine were unclean and were not to be eaten or even touched. But this was the only way the young man could survive, so he cared for the swine. And, he noticed that he was barely given enough food to eat, while the swine were well-fed...by him! The Good Shepherd tells us that here, at this low point, the prodigal son "came to himself." It is usually when we are down at a low point that we come to our senses, as it were. The young man, Jesus says, wished he could eat the very food the pigs received, but he was not even allowed to do that. Then the prodigal son came up with a plan.
The prodigal son knew that he had done wrong, both in the way of life in which he had lately indulged, and in the way he had dishonored his father, and squandered the great gifts his father had given him. The young son had done a stupid thing, but he was not a stupid person. So he realized he needed to return to his father, even though it would be in a state of shame and humiliation. The young man even rehearsed what he would say to his father when he returned. The Good Shepherd tells us that the prodigal son decided he would say, "Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you, and I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Make me like one of your hired servants.” (St. Luke 15:18-19)
I would like to point out that the speech this young man devised for his father consisted of three elements. First, the son confessed that he had sinned against heaven and before his father. Second, the son expressed his self-judgment that he was no longer worthy to be called his father's son. Finally, the son expressed his desire to return to the father's care as a HIRED SERVANT, not as a son. So, when the prodigal son finally reached his father's land, he planned to say these three things to his father. The prodigal son appeared certain of two things: one, he was no longer his father's son; and two, his father MIGHT be kind enough to let him stay and work the land, BUT ONLY as a SERVANT.
Next time: The father sees his son coming from afar.
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