24th Sunday of the year 22

 24th  SUNDAY, 11 SEPTEMBER 2022: Exodus 32. 7-11, 13-14; 1 Timothy 1. 12-17; Luke 15. 1-32

Thrust: Not bent in sin but repent!

Indicative: Repentance is the underlying call in all three readings. God is still willing to forgive us so that we renew life

1. We have 3 images and stories in the gospel passage. They are namely, the lost sheep, the lost coin, and the lost son. There are two aspects common in all these parables. One is the "lost" aspect, the "prodigality" on one hand. The second, on the other hand, is the spirit of condescension, search, and the joy of finding the lost and the celebration of the occasion.

2. The fact of loss pertains to human nature and the fact of merciful search pertains to God. All of us are imperfect, vulnerable, and prone to fall and be lost. We must be aware of this. This can teach and instill in us a deep sense of inadequacy and humility. This guards us against an undue sense of self-sufficiency and arrogance. This dispels our false airs and keeps our feet to the ground.

3. How sad it is that some are so blind to their human fragility, and do not accept their fallibility! They rate themselves perfect and infallible. They behave very self-righteously and arrogantly. They become so hypocritical.

4. On the other hand, there is the indulgent mercy of God. In his mercy, He overlooks, condones, and forgives our wayward tendency to be lost and to get deviated. How comforting and elevating it is! He does not abandon us to our fate, does not judge and condemn us nor does He penalize us!

5. This sublime divine exuberance should not make us lenient and self-indulgent. Often this trust in God's mercy makes some take for granted His grace and become easy-going. But instead, it should make us more responsible to live up to the gift of His mercy. It should make us more determined and committed to merit His mercy, to keep up His trust in us to change. We must deeply nurture a genuine sense of repentance. We must spare no efforts to be converted and live a renewed life.

6. Certainly it is a grave mistake that today some take God's mercy too lightly as if God is bound to forgive us and so there is no worry about our sinfulness and sinful actions. For sure, it is good to be very positive and optimistic about God's love and mercy. For sure, it is helpful to be trustful in His not condemning us. 

7. But at the same time, this should not make us neglect our essential duty to repent and renew. Certainly, God is like the prodigal son's condescending father. He patiently awaits the prodigal son's return. He mercifully reconciles him to himself. And he restores him to his lost dignity. But we should also remember the initiative and change of heart on the part of the prodigal son.

7. Our prodigality should never be a cause of leniency and indulgence toward our fallenness. It should neither be a cause of negligence nor mediocrity toward God's benevolence. Our fragility and weakness is not a point of arrival that takes advantage of God's bounty.

 

Imperative: Conversion is a point of departure that gratefully seeks His mercy, humbly surrenders to Him, and assiduously strives to change.

(REFLECTION 2)

Focus: Our fallenness should not make us accustomed to sin but eager and surrendered to God to seek His mercy

1. The story of the prodigal son is very familiar to all. So there is also the tendency to take it for granted. First of all, it is not a mere story of an individual, of the past. Rather, it is the story of each of us and is a present, ongoing story. It reflects everyone in our basic human fragility, frailty, and vulnerability, as well as the capacity for nobility to rise above. There is an inherent tendency to be prodigal, but also a strong drive for renewal as well.

2. Thus we can trace two movements in this whole journey of the prodigal son: a downward movement leading to ruin, and an upward movement leading to restoration.  The downward sliding is due to human weakness. This always surrounds us and waits to pounce upon us to strike us down. But the upward soaring is due to the divine benevolence and strength. This also super-abounds in us and shields us and lifts us up. The prodigal son’s fall and rise symbolize our fallibility and conversion.  His restoration confirms God’s mercy and forgiveness. There is an indulgent and positively prodigal generosity of the Father, symbolized in the father in the gospel.

3. The prodigal son's story makes us very clear that true repentance is possible, deep, and durable, only when there is authentic anguish at causing immense pain to the Father. Awareness, acceptance, and encounter of human fragility and divine nobility will result in human repentance, divine forgiveness, and regaining of the lost human dignity.

4. Now coming on to both the movements, the whole story can be presented in a series of alphabet R: the downward comprises Resent, Refuse, Reject and Ruin, and the Upward comprises Reflect, Remind, Recall, Realise, Repent, Resolve, Rise, Return, Rekindle, Reconcile, Reunite, Regain and Rejoice

5.  In the downward movement, we see that the prodigal son resents any good, any advice, admonition, and guidance that is proposed to him. He refuses to take heed and make amends. He rejects all the dignity, freedom, the closeness of being the son to the father in the house. Thus he opts to ruin himself, by dissociating and distancing himself from the house and the father. 

6. This ruinous condition can be amply clarified by reflecting a little in detail on his “piggy” situation: in his pathetic and deplorable condition of misery, he is not only among the pigs, not only works with and for them, but also becomes one of them; he becomes like them, and no different from the pig. 

7. It is worthwhile for us to see how this piggy situation prevails over us as well. For we too embody the same qualities of a pig: dirty, smelly, noisy, lazy, does not realize the value of what is valuable, is led by the mob mentality, stubborn, aggressive and reactionary, quarrelsome and fighting, always stoops down, unsteady running after any pig, and swallowing anything indiscriminately. 

8. How often do we dirty and soil ourselves, with unclean thoughts, words, and actions? How often do we spread around foul smell through our ill-placed words and deviated motivations? How much do we resent silence and interiorisation, eager to be noisy, and also intimidate and bulldoze others by big mouth and damaging speech? How often we are so slothful, and thereby neglect our duties, and also obligations and promptings of charity? How often we are negligent and indifferent toward what is sacred and precious? How often do we become so impulsive and indecisive, easily misled and carried away by the mob mentality? How often we are adamant and obstinate, sticking to our own ideas and opinions, refusing to be flexible and accommodative? How often we are resentful and violent in our attitude and approach? How eager we are often to react and get into conflict? How often do we stoop down so low and below, remaining earth-bound, succumbing to lesser urges and interests? How much we can be so unstable and unfaithful in our relationships and friendships, being flirting and frivolous? How often do we willingly devour so indiscriminately and unwisely, any rubbish and harmful that is present and presented to us? Is this not the “pig” nature in us?

9. The story of the prodigal son becomes a worthwhile and memorable one, because he does not stop with the downward movement, but sets upon the upward movement. He reflects on his piggy situation. He reminds himself of his past good times. He recalls the past glory in contrast to the present misery, the past abundance in contrast to the present scarcity, the past freedom in contrast to the present slavery, the past dignity in contrast to the present ignominy, the past closeness with the father in contrast to the present distance. He clearly realizes that he has made the greatest blunder. He deeply repents, being pierced in the deepest recesses of his heart, that he “broke his father’s heart”, “sinned against his father and the heavens”, and that he is “no longer worthy to be the father’s son”, and so deserves “only to be counted among the father’s many servants”. He resolves to make repairs. He rises, not only physically but also from his fallen condition. He returns to the father, retracing his steps to where he came from, and being directed back to the father. He meanwhile rekindles within that lost fire of love for the father. He gets reconciled with his father. He is reunited with him concretely and directly. He is restored to his original dignity and relationship and thus he regains what was lost. All this results in true rejoicing and celebration.

Direction: Can we too make this upward journey? How long do we want to be content with the ruinous downward journey, stooping to sin and steeped into it? Can we raise ourselves and rise up and regain our lost dignity and communion?