The Gospel reading is taken from: Luke 15:11-20
11 Jesus continued: "There was a man who had two sons.
12 The younger one said to his Father, ’Father, give me my share of the estate.’ So he divided his property between them.
13 "Not long after that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living.
14 After he had spent everything, there was a severe famine in that whole country, and he began to be in need.
15 So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed pigs.
16 He longed to fill his stomach with the pods that the pigs were eating, but no one gave him anything.
17 "When he came to his senses, he said, ’How many of my Father’s hired men have food to spare, and here I am starving to death!
18 I will set out and go back to my Father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you.
19 I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired men.’
20 So he got up and went to his Father.
But when he was still a long way off, his Father saw him and ran to him and fell on his neck - and smacked him round the ear and said: "Where the devil do you think have you been?"
The son said to him, ’Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me as one of your hired servants"
And the Father replied: "Too true my son, too true. I suppose you think you can waltz back here without as so much as "by your leave" and con me with your dramatic speech.
Do you think this is "Little House on the Prairie?" Or do you think I was born yesterday? No my son, you’ll work for me cleaning out the toilets, until your earn back the squandered fortune that you have lost.
And the son said dismally: “So does that mean that there is no chance of lots of presents, instant forgiveness and a large celebratory meal involving the fatted calf, or any thing like that?"
"In your dreams, my son" replied the Father, “In your dreams”.
And the Father took the prodigal by the same ear that he had previously smacked and hauled him off to the farm.
And lo, the fatted calf saw them approaching from a long way off - and summing up the situation perfectly - threw a big party.
And the fatted calf’s family and guests rejoiced and did a bit of disco dancing. They mooed sarcastically over the fence as the prodigal passed by.
And as evening fell, the prodigal’s elder brother heard the distant sounds of his brother cleaning out the toilets. He strolled out after supper holding a large brandy and lit an enormous cigar.
He stretched luxuriously, picked his teeth, looked down and said: "Evening Rambo, I see you’ve returned. How do you like your rapid progress from affluent to effluent?"
And the prodigal looked up and said "You can put me down with your clever barb, you smug self righteous hypocrite. We’ll get even one day”
And the elder brother departed feeling really quite satisfied with himself.
And the prodigal found his Father and said to him:
“All these years - when I was off in a far off country - this smug, self centred, hypocritical brother of mine must have caused you to gnash your teeth every day. How come he gets all the perks like the brandy, cigars and such - while I have to clean out the toilets?"
The Father replied: "Your brother is indeed boring but he does as he’s told. Get on with your work and think yourself lucky."
And as the Father departed, the prodigal said to himself:
“Blow this for a lark. I wish I hadn’t come home now. I am just as hungry and twice as guilty and four times as smelly.
When I get my day off - I know where I’ll go - it’s a day out to the pigs!!”
(adapted with appreciation from “The Heart of the Family by Adrian Plass)
When I first heard Adrian Plass read this story at the Anglican Evangelical Conference, I could not believe it.
He stood up and started reading the story of the Prodigal Son from the King James version – and I thought –BORING - until he came to the doctored ending.
And in fact this is a sanitised version of Adrian Pass’s Prodigal Son, but it sums up the ending that Jesus’ Hearers WOULD HAVE expected to hear.
But we know the true story of Jesus’ Prodigal Son.
The Father throws his arms round the prodigal’s neck in delight, when his son returns to him.
He welcomes him home with open arms - throws a party and kills the fatted calf to celebrate.
And the story ends with the elder brother going off in a sulk, because he thinks he’s been hard done by, because the Father has forgiven the prodigal son.
The story of the Prodigal Son is so well known to us that we miss the fact that to Jesus hearers it was both shocking and countercultural.
Why?
There are at least three reasons
1. The first reason: Agreeing to split the property would have been out of the question
The first shock of the parable to a Jewish audience would have been the foolishness of the Father agreeing to the Prodigal’s demand to split the family fortune before the Father died.
It has been suggested that the prodigal’s request would have been tantamount to telling the Father that he wished him dead.
And the Father’s reaction in giving the son his inheritance was simply - contrary to conventional Jewish wisdom.
For example in the apocryphal book of Sirach, we read,
"To son or wife, to brother or friend, do not give power over yourself as long as you live, and do not give your property to another in case you change your mind and must ask for it…...
For it is better that your children should ask from you than you should look to the hand of your children." (Sirach 33:20 &22)
Nevertheless, in Jesus parable the Father grants the son’s request.
And in this we see a picture of God letting us sinners go our own way.
2. The second reason that the story would have been shocking was the Father’s reaction to the prodigal’s return.
The second shock of the parable to the Jewish audience was the reaction of the Father when he saw his prodigal coming home.
No self respecting Father would have run to greet a wayward son.
It was too undignified for the head of the family to do that.
The Father’s action broke all Middle Eastern protocol.
But - as is often the case in Jesus’ parables - the twist in the story makes the point.
The Father is so pleased and thrilled to see his prodigal return that he doesn’t care how undignified it looks. He literally “drapes himself on the neck of the prodigal”.
And this links in well with Jesus’ teaching that
“there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner that repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent. (Luke 15:7)
3. The third reason that the story would have been shocking: Forgiveness was, to the Jewish mind, unthinkable.
It would have been a shock to the Jewish listeners that the Father would have simply forgiven the son.
Indeed what was even more unlikely was that
the Father would have rewarded the prodigal by throwing a feast!!
But our ways are not God’s ways. As St Paul put it:
25For the foolishness of God is wiser than man’s wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than man’s strength. (1 Cor 1:25)
Jesus’ point is that we should NOT dwell on past sins but by repenting we look forward to the future.
For repentance - turning from our sin to God - is the key to unlock the gates to eternal life. (see James 5:20)
St Paul tells us that “God demonstrated his love towards us that while we were sinners Christ died for.” (Rom 5:8)
And so what should our response be?
God’s grace is unconditional but he requires us to respond.
When the woman - who was caught in the act of adultery - was brought to Jesus for stoning in John 8:1-12, Jesus did not condemn her.
But He did add a rider: "Go and sin no more"
When we receive the grace of God, we are called, in love to respond and to turn away from sin and follow Christ
Jesus in John 8:12 said: “I am the light of the world. He who follows me shall not walk in darkness but shall have the light of life"
As we follow Christ, people will see Christ in us and so be attracted to Jesus, the light of the world.
After all isn’t that our mission as the Church?
As St Francis of Assisi is reported to have said:
”Preach the Gospel at all times – and use words occasionally where necessary.”
Let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works and glorify your Father who is in heaven.
