Lenten Moments of Mercy: Fourth Sunday of Lent

Fourth Sunday of Lent   God longs for us to return to him.

Scripture “So if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation: everything old has passed away; see, everything has become new!” 2 Corinthians 5:17 Reflection What does it mean to be a new creation in Christ? How do we know when everything has become new? The parable of the forgiving father and his two sons (Luke 15:11‒32) gives us a way of exploring these questions. This is a very familiar story. At the demand of the younger son, the father divided his property between his two sons. The younger son took his inheritance and left for foreign lands, where he squandered his fortune. Reduced to abject poverty, he found a job feeding pigs, which was a disgrace to his religious upbringing. The son finally came to his senses and returned home to his father, who rushed to embrace him. Overjoyed at seeing the son he had thought was lost, the father gave him a ring and planned a celebration. When the older son came in from the fields, he heard the celebration and became furious. He refused to enter the house and join the celebration. The father went out to meet him and listened to his complaints. The older son told his father that he had always acted honorably and served him faithfully, but was now made to feel lower than a slave. The father told his older son he could have had anything he wanted had he asked. The older son will continue to feel offended, perhaps for his whole life, for he could not celebrate the grace of mercy his father offers. So which of the two sons celebrated the new creation offered by Jesus Christ? Paradoxically, it was the wastrel son who had come home repenting for having left his father’s house and losing everything he had. And the older son—the “perfect” son—the one who thought he had done everything right by staying home and never disobeying his father’s orders—stayed out in the cold. He refused to repent, and stood in judgment of his father’s mercy. Image: Rembrandt van Rijn, The Return of the Prodigal Son

Pope Francis “Every person’s life, the life of every man and woman who has the courage to draw near to the Lord, will discover the joy of God’s celebration.” Morning Meditation, 28 March 2014 Lenten Action ► Read what Pope Francis has said about the Parable of the Merciful Father. ► Reflect on this Sunday’s Gospel with Arts & Faith: Lent and the Sunday Connection. Prayer Lord, let us be among those who seek you so you may deliver us from our fears.

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