Homily 24th Sunday Year C: We have a Loving Father

Homily for 24^th Sunday of Ordinary Time Year C 2016

Exodus 32:7-11,13-14; 1 Timothy 1:12-17; Luke 15:1-32

Introduction

Six months ago, during the Mass of the Fourth Sunday of Lent, we read the same gospel that we have just heard, the three parables about the lost sheep, the lost coin, and the prodigal son.

·        During Lent this gospel was given to encourage us on our penitential journey, assuring us that our penance and conversion would be rewarded with God’s forgiveness and pardon.

·        The same gospel is now proposed for us, to remind us of God’s mercy. 

·        During Lent, these parables inspired us to sing the popular hymn "Amazing Grace" and say "I once was lost, but now I am found."

·        Today, these same parable might inspire us to sing another hymn, which says: "There's a wideness in God's mercy like the wideness of the sea; there's a kindness in his justice, which is more than liberty."

Scripture and Theology

And so, we can reflect on the wideness God's mercy in two ways: first there is the mercy of forgiveness and second the mercy of concern.

Do you remember when as a teenager perhaps you stayed out late at night past the curfew your parents had set for you?  Perhaps you came home terrified at the punishment you would receive.  But when you arrived home, not only did your parents forgive you, they had stayed up late waiting for you, after calling all your friends' parents, concerned about your safety and welfare.

The gospel also shows us that God is merciful, not only because he forgives the sinner, but also because he cares about the sinner's welfare.  And Jesus teaches the message by telling three parables, because each parable speaks to a different audience about who God is.

The first parable of the Good Shepherd or the Lost Sheep was particularly suited to men who were shepherds.  They would understand immediately what looking for a lost sheep entailed: walking for many miles under the blazing sun in very dry conditions; slipping and sliding down on rocks; stumbling upon wild animals or ruthless rustlers.  And so when they heard Jesus suggest that God is this relentless shepherd, going to such great lengths to save a lost sheep, they understood the tremendous love God has for sinners and the lengths to which he goes to secure the sinner’s return.

The second parable of the Responsible Housewife or Lost Coin was most suited to women who at that time controlled the household check-book.  Every woman in the crowd would at once understand the desperation at the loss of the coin and the energy needed to find it.  Every woman in the audience would know how she would have to tear the house apart in a frantic search for the coin, which might mean the difference between the family having food for the day and going to bed hungry.  Hearing that God is like this woman, who goes to all these lengths to find a lost coin, they understood the tremendous love that God has for sinners and the lengths he goes to reclaim a sinner.

We are probably most familiar with the third parable, commonly called the Parable of the Prodigal Son, because it speaks to the children.  But a more accurate title should be, the Parable of the Loving Father.  You see, the father in that parable was loving, not just to the younger son, but to the older son as well.

·        We heard that "While he [the younger son] was still a long way off, his father caught sight of him, and was filled with compassion. He ran to his son, embraced him and kissed him."  Like the parent who waits up at night for the wayward teenager to return home, the father in the parable, and God our Father is anxiously waiting for the sinner to return to him.  Even better, when the son returned, the Father decked him out in the finest clothing and jewellery and ordered a festival in his honour with the fattened calf as the main entré.

·        As for the older son, the one who refused to come in and join the feast, we heard that the father went out there to seek him and plead with him, because this son too was lost, he was filled with envy and perhaps a little anger at his father.  That is why the Father tells him: "My son, you are here with me always; everything I have is yours."

And so, the message of all three parables is this: God the Father that Jesus has come to reveal does not only forgive sinners who come back to him; he is also anxiously waiting for their return and often goes out to seek them.  The Pharisees and scribes especially needed to hear this message, because as we heard at the beginning of the gospel, they were complaining that Jesus was spending way too much time with tax collectors and sinners.  They said: “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.”

Christian Life

We too need to hear this message, not only for ourselves but for others.  That is why since he became pope, Pope Francis has made God's mercy a central plank of his teaching.  He continues to teach us that yes, like any good parent, our God is demanding; he wants us to obey his laws.  But again like any good parent he knows that sometimes we fail.  And if we return to him in sorrow and contrition, especially when we want to renew our lives, he will gladly have us back.

One of the ways the Pope has propagated this message is by calling this Jubilee Year of Mercy, whose many activities should help us experience God's mercy.  One of these activities is confession.  Pope Francis has invited us to go confession more frequently and share in God's mercy.  Here in New Orleans, our Archbishop has asked parishes and priests to provide confession throughout the Archdiocese always, but in a special way this coming Wednesday, the Feast of the Holy Cross.  We all need to experience this mercy of God, so that we can then go and share it with others.

Conclusion

Let us not let this Jubilee Year of Mercy go by without leaving an impact on us.  May our reflection on these parables and our own participation in confession, help us to realize more and more of God's mercy.

When at last we return to God, we shall experience the fullness of his mercy, when he will say to us: “Let us celebrate with a feast, because this son of mine, this daughter of mine, was dead, and has come to life again; he was lost, and has been found.”