I Will Arise and Go Home.

Luke 15: 1-32 (Below is an excerpt from the whole Gospel for Sunday)

But the father said to his slaves, “Quickly, bring out a robe—the best one—and put it on him; put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. And get the fatted calf and kill it, and let us eat and celebrate; for this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found!” And they began to celebrate.

25 ‘Now his elder son was in the field; and when he came and approached the house, he heard music and dancing. He called one of the slaves and asked what was going on. He replied, “Your brother has come, and your father has killed the fatted calf, because he has got him back safe and sound.” Then he became angry and refused to go in. His father came out and began to plead with him. But he answered his father, “Listen! For all these years I have been working like a slave for you, and I have never disobeyed your command; yet you have never given me even a young goat so that I might celebrate with my friends. But when this son of yours came back, who has devoured your property with prostitutes, you killed the fatted calf for him!” Then the father said to him, “Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours. But we had to celebrate and rejoice, because this brother of yours was dead and has come to life; he was lost and has been found.” ’

This gospel is one that emphasizes the supremely generous nature of our God and of the Son who came to heal lost sinners and bring them out of the cold darkness into the warm light of home.  But what does this scripture have to say to the vast majority who have remained committed to the faith and have never even considered tossing it aside for the emptiness of living solely for the gratification of self? I would be quite surprised if any of us are guilty of underlying feelings of resentment toward those who have chosen to return to the church or toward those adults who are received with such joy into the Church on the greatest Feast day of the year. It would seem that most of us fall into a category somewhere in between the prodigal son and the surly, resentful older son.

Still, there have probably been many times when each of us have felt a little left out of God's attentions. It really is difficult to see someone else experiencing God's grace and blessings when all you have been experiencing is dryness, pain and struggle for a long time.

The word prodigal means "recklessly spending resources; wastefully extravagant" and when we hear the word, it naturally brings to mind the younger son wasting his whole inheritance on transient pleasure in questionable company. But could not the older son have been prodigal as well?

That's certainly not how we would define him in the context of this parable but when I read that Gospel and hear his resentment and observe his reaction to his Father's joyful generosity, I have to conclude that this older son was also prodigal and that he, too, had a problem with being wasteful with the resources he had available to him. His waste was different than his younger brother's obvious and measurable waste. It was more subtle and harder to identify because it was disguised within surface obedience to the rules and conformity to expected behavior. Did the elder son stay at home and work hard because he loved his Father, had a close Father/son relationship and enjoyed spending time with his Father or was it because he had his sights on his inheritance - his reward.

What did he waste? What were the resources he squandered away? He wasted a chance to experience love. He squandered away the opportunity for close relationship. He threw away the wisdom that comes from listening to and learning from someone older and more experienced. He misused time that could have been spent discovering the joy that can easily be found in sharing a simple meal or singing a psalm together. It was all there for him in the moment but he wasted those moments. Even when he was terribly upset with his father, he did not seek his father out to discuss it with him. Instead, he asked the servants what was going on. His father actually came to him to find out why he was upset. Even at that point he did not realize that he was so loved by his father that his father went out of his way to seek him out. All the older son could see was the injustice of so much love being lavished on his younger brother. 

It's easy to look at that older brother and dislike him but, as it is with most hearts that are wounded, there is more to the wound than what we can see on the surface. It would be easy to point a finger and exclaim, "For shame! You wasted your opportunity to experience and appreciate your father's love that was with you all that time and then you begrudge your brother your father’s love and forgiveness." In pointing that finger, we would completely miss a poignant lesson in what happens when we take for granted or stop being mindful of all that is already ours.

Mary Chapin Carpenter wrote a song called, “Jubilee”. Whether she realized it or not, it’s a Kingdom Song and I have pulled out a few verses that speak to me of the place we elder sisters and brothers often find ourselves when, without meaning to, we lose sight of all that is already ours.

“I can tell by the way you’re searching

For something you can’t even name,

That you haven’t been able

To come to the table,

Simply glad that you came.

I can tell by the way you’re standing

With your eyes filling with tears

That it’s habit alone

Keeps you turning for home

Even though your home is right here,

Where the people who love you are gathered

Under the wise blessing* Tree

May we all be considered

And straight on delivered

Down to the Jubilee.”

The older brother is all of us who have ever lapsed, without meaning to, into doing all the right things, having all the right perspectives, praying all the right prayers but forgetting that there is more to the spiritual life than just right actions. It is a right heart in the right place.  It is a Kingdom mystery that as God’s people we are on our way Home while at the same time we already are Home. We are a pilgrim people who travel well when we stay and dwell with God. Not just near him. With him. God has no distant relatives.

I have this image of an immense bulletin board somewhere in the universe. On it is pinned a note:

“Your Father called. It’s time to go home.”


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*The word actually written is 'wishing' - wise wishing tree. In this context, the word 'blessing' seems more apt and brings to mind the Tree of Life. Apologies to M.C.C.