Fr. Francois Noha
In the missal, the introduction on the fourth Sunday reveals to us that “it is part of human nature that we cannot go on being penitent for a long time, or we sink into a settled and insincere gloom rather than working at the definite and active spiritual exercise called penance”. The fourth Sunday of Lent encourages us Christian penitents to rejoice because the Lord God is reconciling us to Himself. All the readings and efforts are directed to the final Goal: “God has reconciled the world to himself through the Passion, Death, and Resurrection of his Son Jesus Christ. The Gospel passage called by some people “the prodigal son” and by others “the forgiving father” guides the reflection and gives us the material for meditation. This is a story of a family in which we have four main characters: the father, the younger son, the elder son, and the father’s employees. In this parable the mother neither appears nor does she exist.
The story turns around the vision of the first three characters concerning their relationship to one another. The father considers his sons as his own siblings and sharers of all his possessions For this reason, everything that belongs to him belongs to every other member of the family that is his two sons. The younger son would like to own his propriety and be free from the father. He has the impression that his father’s presence suffocates him. His freedom can be expressed only in the absence of his father. Looking at this attitude with African lenses, we can say that the younger son wants his father’s death because the culture in most African traditions forbids the child to ask for inheritance as long as the father lives. Until his father dies then can he claim any inheritance from him. The elder son views himself as one of his father’s workers and his father is his boss. This is the reason why the elder son works so hard and in a fearful manner otherwise his father may sack him as one of his workers. In this scenario that follows, the younger son takes the initiative to depart from his father and brother and get his share of the father’s wealth. The experience of straying from his father reveals to him the truth about the relationship his father has with his workers on one side, and on the other side, his sons among which himself. In his adventure, he lost everything even his savings. He lost his status as son. He discovers that other bosses treat badly their workers while his father does treat them better. As an employee, he is valued less than an animal. He underwent the process of repentance and conversion (metanoia). A transformation which led him to reconsider his father’s home as a place where even workers are well treated and have enough food to eat. So, having betrayed his father, he takes courage to return to his father and wants to join the status a worker and not anymore that of a son. In fact, the journey led him to understand that other people did consider him as a person since even the food for pigs is not given to him to eat. He is valued less than a pig. The meeting between the younger son and the father shows three important facts. First, the father has always and continues to love and value his son as his own child. He celebrates his rebirth. “Let’s make a feast for him”. The father forgives him and reintroduces him into the family. Second, the elder son was angry at his father and he, too, needed forgiveness. At the same time, he was jealous of his younger brother. Third, all the sons misunderstood their father who loves them so much. From this text, some lessons emerge. God the father is neither a boss nor a stifling presence for us his sons and daughters. Everything that belongs to him belongs to his children and he gives it free of charge. He is open to forgive our faults as he did to the prodigal son. However, he received it after confessing his sins. The reconciliation process brings joy to the whole family which is reborn from misunderstanding of each other and straying of some members. The fourth Sunday of Lent calls us to rejoice, “laetare”. Are you the youngerson or the elder one, God tells you the same thing: “Everything that is mine is yours. Rejoice with me because your brother was lost and he was found.”
In the missal, the introduction on the fourth Sunday reveals to us that “it is part of human nature that we cannot go on being penitent for a long time, or we sink into a settled and insincere gloom rather than working at the definite and active spiritual exercise called penance”. The fourth Sunday of Lent encourages us Christian penitents to rejoice because the Lord God is reconciling us to Himself. All the readings and efforts are directed to the final Goal: “God has reconciled the world to himself through the Passion, Death, and Resurrection of his Son Jesus Christ. The Gospel passage called by some people “the prodigal son” and by others “the forgiving father” guides the reflection and gives us the material for meditation. This is a story of a family in which we have four main characters: the father, the younger son, the elder son, and the father’s employees. In this parable the mother neither appears nor does she exist.
The story turns around the vision of the first three characters concerning their relationship to one another. The father considers his sons as his own siblings and sharers of all his possessions For this reason, everything that belongs to him belongs to every other member of the family that is his two sons. The younger son would like to own his propriety and be free from the father. He has the impression that his father’s presence suffocates him. His freedom can be expressed only in the absence of his father. Looking at this attitude with African lenses, we can say that the younger son wants his father’s death because the culture in most African traditions forbids the child to ask for inheritance as long as the father lives. Until his father dies then can he claim any inheritance from him. The elder son views himself as one of his father’s workers and his father is his boss. This is the reason why the elder son works so hard and in a fearful manner otherwise his father may sack him as one of his workers. In this scenario that follows, the younger son takes the initiative to depart from his father and brother and get his share of the father’s wealth. The experience of straying from his father reveals to him the truth about the relationship his father has with his workers on one side, and on the other side, his sons among which himself. In his adventure, he lost everything even his savings. He lost his status as son. He discovers that other bosses treat badly their workers while his father does treat them better. As an employee, he is valued less than an animal. He underwent the process of repentance and conversion (metanoia). A transformation which led him to reconsider his father’s home as a place where even workers are well treated and have enough food to eat. So, having betrayed his father, he takes courage to return to his father and wants to join the status a worker and not anymore that of a son. In fact, the journey led him to understand that other people did consider him as a person since even the food for pigs is not given to him to eat. He is valued less than a pig. The meeting between the younger son and the father shows three important facts. First, the father has always and continues to love and value his son as his own child. He celebrates his rebirth. “Let’s make a feast for him”. The father forgives him and reintroduces him into the family. Second, the elder son was angry at his father and he, too, needed forgiveness. At the same time, he was jealous of his younger brother. Third, all the sons misunderstood their father who loves them so much. From this text, some lessons emerge. God the father is neither a boss nor a stifling presence for us his sons and daughters. Everything that belongs to him belongs to his children and he gives it free of charge. He is open to forgive our faults as he did to the prodigal son. However, he received it after confessing his sins. The reconciliation process brings joy to the whole family which is reborn from misunderstanding of each other and straying of some members. The fourth Sunday of Lent calls us to rejoice, “laetare”. Are you the youngerson or the elder one, God tells you the same thing: “Everything that is mine is yours. Rejoice with me because your brother was lost and he was found.”