3-Mar-2013
Dear Friend, All of us have the experience of losing something and the joy sometimes of finding what we had lost. A few of us may even have the experience of being lost and finding our way again! Ted Turner infamously once said, "Christianity is for losers!" Christians think this is good news! Because Christianity is for those who have lost hope, pride, position, wealth, health and life! It is for those who have lost everything and found themselves, as a result of God's tender mercies. Have a 'lost and found' weekend! Fr. Jude Sunday Reflections: Fourth Sunday of Lent: "He was lost and now found! Thanks to God! " 10-Mar-2013 Readings: Joshua 5: 9-122 Cor. 5: 17-21Luke 15: 1-3, 11-32 During the forty years Israel spent in the desert and her entry into the Promised Land, her life was semi-nomadic, she could not depend on herds or crop, her existence depended on what God provided in the desert. A new era began once they had entered the Promised Land. The transition began with the Passover of Egypt. Now that their journey was complete the Israelites celebrate the Passover anew and the feast of the unleavened bread accompanying it. The manna that sustained them during the journey ceased to be available to them. Like the Israelites, we, the people of God begin with the Passover and will end with the Passover commemorating God's loving compassion and care for us sinners. Forgive and be forgiven Some time ago a woman wrote a letter to Ann Landers describing the terrible relationship that once existed between her and her brother. It took the death of their father to get her to forgive him and to treat him as a brother again. Some time after their reconciliation, her brother had a heart attack and died in her arms. She ends her letter with this moving paragraph. "I am grateful for the years we had together, but I could scream when I think of all the years we missed because we were too bull-headed and short sighted to try to get along. Now he is gone and I am heartsick." Today's readings are an invitation to review the relationships in our lives and to bring them into line with Jesus' teachings. Mark Link in 'Sunday Homilies' In today's gospel of the prodigal son the first thing in the gospel is the younger son cutting off his relationship with his loving father. Asking for his share of the inheritance before his father is dead is something that is unheard of in that culture. The son is basically saying that he wishes his father was dead or considered him as already dead. He wanted to leave his father's house and go see the world, eat, drink and be merry. He made his choice of death in the world instead of life in his father's house. The father gave him more than he deserved and he left home and messed up his life. The world mistreated him and left him lonely starving and longing for his father's house. He decided to go back and ask his father's forgiveness. His father was waiting for his return and even before he could ask for forgiveness he is forgiven. The prodigal son on his return home received the robe, ring, sandals and a feast! These four are signs of acceptance -clothing, status, dignity and celebration. All is forgiven! The story of the prodigal son is a story of re-establishing ties once again. Every time we read this story of the prodigal son we can never exhaust its profound revelation of God's love for us and renewed by our belief in the unfathomable mercy and boundless love of God. It is of God's very nature to be merciful, forgiving and ever loving. Forgiveness, it is said, is man's deepest need and God's highest achievement. Inability to forgive The singing career of Grammy award winner Marvin Gaye ended in tragedy on April 1, 1983. He was shot to death by his own father. Gaye's close friend David Ritz wrote Gaye's biography a year later. He called it Divided Soul. Gaye was indeed a divided soul. He was part artist and part entertainer, part sinner and part saint, part macho man and part gentleman. Gaye's childhood was tormented by cruelty inflicted upon him by his father. Commenting on the effect this had on Gaye, Ritz says of his friend: "He really believed in Jesus a lot, but he could never apply the teaching of Jesus on forgiveness to his own father. In the end it destroyed them both." That story of an unforgiving father and son contrasts sharply with the story of the forgiving father and son, which Jesus tells in today's gospel. And the contrast between the two stories spotlights a growing problem in modern society. It is the inability or unwillingness of people to forgive one another. Mark Link in 'Sunday Homilies' Joy of being forgiven In his memoirs, Mahatma Gandhi, the father of the Indian nation, humbly and frankly acknowledges that, when he was fifteen, he stole a little piece of gold from his brother. A few days later, he felt very guilty and decided to come clean by confessing to his father. So he took a paper, admitted his fault, sincerely asked his father for forgiveness and promised never to repeat the offence. Taking that note to the bedroom of his father, the young Gandhi found him ill in bed. Very timidly he handed the note to his father without saying a word. His father sat up in bed and began reading the note. As he read it, the senior Gandhi was so deeply moved by the honesty, sincerity and courage of his son that tears began to stream from his eyes. This so touched the son that he burst into tears as well. Instinctively both father and son wrapped their arms around each other and wordlessly shared their mutual admiration and joy. This notable experience made such an impact on Gandhi that years later he would say, "Only the person who has experienced this kind of forgiving love can know what it is." -This precisely is what happened when the repentant prodigal son returned home. Such is God's merciful forgiveness and benevolent love for all who resolutely turn over a new leaf. James Valladares in 'Your Words O Lord, are Spirit and they are life.' Get Jesus in place A father wanted to read the paper but was being bothered by his little daughter, Susie. Finally, he took a sheet out of his magazine, on which was printed the map of the world. Tearing it into small pieces, he gave it to Susie and said, "Go into the other room and see if you can put this together." After a few minutes, Susie returned and handed him the map correctly fitted together. The father was very surprised and asked how she had finished so quickly "Oh," she said, "on the other side of the paper is a picture of Jesus. When I got Jesus in His place, then the world came out all right." Tomin Thomas in 'Spice up your homilies' Getting lost or coming back Mutiny on the Bounty is one of the most adventurous maritime episodes in history. Captain Bligh sailed in the ship to Tahiti in search of breadfruit plant for the West Indies. He was proud and ruthless, and many of his crew was against him. While returning from Tahiti, most of the sailors rebelled against him and a mutiny broke out. The captain and 17 of his sympathizers were forced into a small boat and were left on the high seas. The mutineers, 15 of them with the ship Bounty went to Tahiti. Gathering with them some men, women and children, they reached a small island called Pitcairn in the Pacific Ocean between New Zealand and South America. Afraid that they might be found out if they had the ship, they saved whatever they could carry and burnt the ship. This group of undesirables perpetuated their evil lives of drinking, revelry and murder. Within ten years of their landing on this island only one survived. His name was John Adams, and he was no better than the rest who died. However, he had to take on the responsibility of the Island folk. One day as he was checking the goods salvaged from the ship before it was burnt, he found an old Bible. Though he was not interested in it, it was the only book on the island, and he began reading it. The word of God began to work on him, and eventually he changed his life. He built a school cum church and began to lead the children in Christian experience. For years the only book they had was the Bible. Years later, a strong community was formed on this island. The warm and pleasant behaviour of the people on this Island attracted the ships sailing through the Pacific. In 1980 when a census was taken, all the inhabitants on the island were Christians. -Turning away from God had brought them destruction and death, returning to the Lord had brought them joy, life and blessedness. John Rose in 'John's Sunday Homilies' Prodigal Father Matt Houston is a television program about a wealthy Texan now turned private investigator. In its premiere showing it gave some background to Matt Houston's life. His mother died giving birth to him. His father was so depressed that he gave up Matt for adoption to his closest friend. The father then drifted away, eventually becoming an alcoholic and a criminal. Many years later he finds out that Matt's life is being threatened because of a case he is working on. So the father returns to warn him. As the story unfolds, their true relationship is revealed. At first Matt refuses to accept his real father. But when the father steps in front of a bullet aimed for his son, Matt's eyes are opened and he realizes how much his father loves him. The story ends with the father dying in his son's arms -forgiven by his son Matt and embraced in love. This television story is really an adaptation of today's gospel parable, except that the roles are reversed. In the gospel story told by Jesus it was a son who went away and wasted his life, only to return and be forgiven by his father. In the Matt Houston story it was the father who went away and wasted his life, only to return and be reconciled with his son. Both versions show us what a magnificent love there is between parents and children, and, consequently, how boundless God's love is for us. In his book Rediscovering the Parables, Joachim Jeremias says that the Prodigal Son story tells us with impressive simplicity what God is like - a God of incredible goodness, grace and mercy. Albert Cylwicki in 'His Word Resounds' We may give up but God does not give up on us! He always forgives! Fr. Jude Botelho [email protected] PS. The stories, incidents and anecdotes used in the reflections have been collected over the years from books as well as from sources over the net and from e-mails received. Every effort is made to acknowledge authors whenever possible. If you send in stories or illustrations I would be grateful if you could quote the source as well so that they can be acknowledged if used in these reflections. These reflections are also available on my web site www.netforlife.net Thank you.
