THE LOST SONS

24th Sunday of Ordinary Time C September 11, 2022 Luke 15, 1-32 Thisjust might the greatest story ever told. The prodigal son, everyone knows the story, short concise, a good moral, but unfortunately … no happy ending. We always put the emphasis on the younger brother, the prodigal. He is the one that the story is named after, he’s the one who gets more lines and all the attention and the fiesta. No wonder the older brother was mad. But you know what? The two brothers might have been different, but really deep down there is no difference, it is the same story. One father with two sons, and the older son was probably more lost than the younger. Jesus is telling this parable to the older sons, the scribes and the pharisees who are lost in their own way. To be honest most of us look more like the older son, we are after all here in Church at 7:00 AM on a Sunday morning. The stay-at-home elder son was more lost, because he didn’t know that he was lost. He didn’t see his dad as a dad, but rather as a slave master. “I slaved all these years for you.” The father didn’t want a slave, he wanted a son. The dad had plenty of hired hands, but he only had two sons The dad didn’t want someone to milk the cows or weed the fields, the dad wanted his sons to come into the banquet. We have three parables today, and they all tell the same story. The shepherd, the woman the father they are all the same person. They are God, and what does God want? God wants us to come into the festival. He doesn’t tire of looking for the lost sheep, the lost coin, or the lost son, both of them and tries to bring them into the festival. I try to imagine myself like the father. I don’t have any kids so it might be a bit hard. But I think any parent would be glad to have their kid back, a son who is lost but why not a bit of punishment? It says the father saw his son a long way off and what did the father do? It says he ran to greet him with open arms. If I was the dad, sure I would be glad to have my son back, but I wouldn’t run out to him. He had wasted ½ of my fortune. No, I would wait at the door, not with my arms open, by with my arms crossed. Give him a good tongue lashing, make sure that he was sorry, and not just hungry. But no, the father runs out to him. He welcomes him in and throws the party. But what does the father do with the older son? He does the exact same thing. He goes out to his son and welcomes him into the fiesta. Well, once again, I would treat the older son the same way. He doesn’t want to come in! No problem, let him throw his fit. He can stay out and miss out on the party. But no, the father treats the older son just like the younger son. He goes out to him it says he pleaded with him. Come into the festival. The father treats both sons the same way. He goes out to them, more than anything God wants us to enter the fiesta. Like I said the story doesn’t have a happy ending. Rather it is a cliff hanger. The story ends with the older son outside. We don’t know if he came in or if he stayed out. That is because we must finish the story. We are the sons; we are the daughters. God wants us to come in and he doesn’t care who we are or what we have done. God comes out to welcome us in. The decision is ours. Are we going to come in or not? Hopefully we will enter the banquet. Hopefully nothing will keep us out. Not shame because of our sins, or anger because of jealousy that God’s love is for all. The father is out waiting for us. Let us accept the invitation, let us come into the banquet.