For 22 March 2025, Saturday of the 2nd week of Lent, based on Luke 15:1-3,11-32
A reading from the Holy Gospel according to Luke, (Lk 15, 1-3, 11-32)
Now all the tax collectors and sinners were coming near to listen to Jesus. And the Pharisees and the scribes were grumbling and saying, “This fellow welcomes sinners and eats with them.” So he told them this parable: “There was a man who had two sons. The younger of them said to his father, ‘Father, give me the share of the property that will belong to me.’ So he divided his property between them. A few days later the younger son gathered all he had and travelled to a distant country, and there he squandered his property in dissolute living. When he had spent everything, a severe famine took place throughout that country, and he began to be in need. So he went and hired himself out to one of the citizens of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed the pigs. He would gladly have filled himself with the pods that the pigs were eating; and no one gave him anything. But when he came to himself he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired hands have bread enough and to spare, but here I am dying of hunger! I will get up and go to my father, and I will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you; I am no longer worthy to be called your son; treat me like one of your hired hands.”’ So he set off and went to his father. But while he was still far off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion; he ran and put his arms around him and kissed him. Then the son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you; I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’ 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.
“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.’” The Word of the Lord.
When preparing for this reflection inspired by today’s gospel selection, the first three verses caught my attention. They are Luke’s introduction to three parables that speak of loss, search and joy. The first one speaks of the lost sheep, the second of the lost coin, and the third one is that of the lost son, which we just read. This introduction sheds a light on who is Jesus, and who we are; why he told these three parables and the message he wants to transmit to us all, even today. Let us hear this introduction again.
”Now all the tax collectors and sinners were coming near to listen to him. And the Pharisees and the scribes were grumbling and saying, “This fellow welcomes sinners and eats with them”.
Here Luke presents us with the persons, Jesus refers to in the parables. They are: Jesus, the tax Collectors and sinners, and the Scribes and Pharisees.
Who is Jesus? He is the preacher, of course, but to the Pharisees, he is the “fellow who welcomes sinners and eats with them. For them, he who welcomes sinners, is a sinner, so they were always tormenting Jesus in their effort to silence him. Commenting on this introduction by Luke, St. Ambrose said: “Because the frailty of man can not keep a firm step in so slippery a world, the good Physician has shown you a remedy even after falling; the merciful Judge has not denied the hope of pardon… so he drew near him all the publicans. So for Ambrose, Jesus is the Good Physician and the Merciful Judge and he calls the sinners to him. When once the “Pharisees and their scribes complained to the disciples, saying “Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?” Jesus answered them “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick; I have come to call not the righteous but sinners to repentance” (Lk 5, 32).
Who were the tax collectors and the sinners? According to the Pharisees, they were the ‘bad guys’ for Tax Collectors worked for the Romans, and sinners do not live according to the Law, and were not doing God’s will. So these had to be avoided. Jesus thought otherwise, for he is the Good Physician and the Merciful Judge. For Jesus sinners were the lost son. Jesus said: “I am the Good Shepherd… And I lay down my life for the sheep”. He did!
Who were the Pharisees and the Scribes? They used to present themselves as the ‘good guys’ for they lived ‘according to the Law’. Jesus challenged them saying: “Go and learn what this means, ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice’”(Matthew 9, 13). The Pharisees and the Scribes were not the ‘good guys’, … not all of them, of course, but those who wanted to get rid of Jesus and they did not stop until they saw him nailed to a cross. These too were the lost son. However, they did not realise they were! They killed Jesus but He rose from the dead and is still alive.
Who are we? During the Jubilee year of Mercy, Pope Francis said: “By making Himself one of us, the Lord Jesus not only takes on the human condition, but also raises us up to the possibility of being Children of God. By His death and resurrection, Jesus Christ, the blameless Lamb, conquered death and sin to free us all from their dominion. He is the Lamb that was sacrificed for us, so that we can receive a new life made up of forgiveness, love and joy. These three words are beautiful: forgiveness, love and joy. All those he called he also redeemed, freed and saved. Certainly, it is true that life puts us to the test, and at times we suffer for this. However, in these moments we are invited to turn our gaze to the crucified Jesus who suffers for us and with us, as sure proof that God does not abandon us..
We frequently confess that we are sinners and think that we are bad. I think that we should stay among the “lost and found”, people who are good and bad in different moments of their lives. For Jesus we are important, precious, indeed! He never tires to come to us, searching for us until we let him find us. We are his sons ‘good or bad guys’ that we can be. We are worth all the trouble Jesus faces in his effort to guide us to the feast he lovingly prepared for us all, be we the ‘bad’ son who wanted to be his own master and abandoned his father, but then returned home, or the ‘good’ son who saw himself working like a slave for his father and was angry and grumbling for, he said, he never received a gift so he could celebrate with friends.
Let us reflect on the Father’s answer: “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.”… “I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance”.
Let us accept Christ’s invitation: “Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light (Mt 11, 28-30). Yes, come to me, all of you!
Scripture passage from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright 1989, 1993, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
About Costantino Mamo, OP
Cost is a friar of the province of Malta and is currently serving as a missionary in Durrës, Albania. More information can be found at his homepage at http://costmamo.blogspot.com/.
22 Mar 2025
0 CommentsThe Good and the Bad
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A reading from the Holy Gospel according to Luke, (Lk 15, 1-3, 11-32)
Now all the tax collectors and sinners were coming near to listen to Jesus. And the Pharisees and the scribes were grumbling and saying, “This fellow welcomes sinners and eats with them.” So he told them this parable: “There was a man who had two sons. The younger of them said to his father, ‘Father, give me the share of the property that will belong to me.’ So he divided his property between them. A few days later the younger son gathered all he had and travelled to a distant country, and there he squandered his property in dissolute living. When he had spent everything, a severe famine took place throughout that country, and he began to be in need. So he went and hired himself out to one of the citizens of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed the pigs. He would gladly have filled himself with the pods that the pigs were eating; and no one gave him anything. But when he came to himself he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired hands have bread enough and to spare, but here I am dying of hunger! I will get up and go to my father, and I will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you; I am no longer worthy to be called your son; treat me like one of your hired hands.”’ So he set off and went to his father. But while he was still far off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion; he ran and put his arms around him and kissed him. Then the son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you; I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’ 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.
“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.’” The Word of the Lord.
When preparing for this reflection inspired by today’s gospel selection, the first three verses caught my attention. They are Luke’s introduction to three parables that speak of loss, search and joy. The first one speaks of the lost sheep, the second of the lost coin, and the third one is that of the lost son, which we just read. This introduction sheds a light on who is Jesus, and who we are; why he told these three parables and the message he wants to transmit to us all, even today. Let us hear this introduction again.
”Now all the tax collectors and sinners were coming near to listen to him. And the Pharisees and the scribes were grumbling and saying, “This fellow welcomes sinners and eats with them”.
Here Luke presents us with the persons, Jesus refers to in the parables. They are: Jesus, the tax Collectors and sinners, and the Scribes and Pharisees.
Who is Jesus? He is the preacher, of course, but to the Pharisees, he is the “fellow who welcomes sinners and eats with them. For them, he who welcomes sinners, is a sinner, so they were always tormenting Jesus in their effort to silence him. Commenting on this introduction by Luke, St. Ambrose said: “Because the frailty of man can not keep a firm step in so slippery a world, the good Physician has shown you a remedy even after falling; the merciful Judge has not denied the hope of pardon… so he drew near him all the publicans. So for Ambrose, Jesus is the Good Physician and the Merciful Judge and he calls the sinners to him. When once the “Pharisees and their scribes complained to the disciples, saying “Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?” Jesus answered them “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick; I have come to call not the righteous but sinners to repentance” (Lk 5, 32).
Who were the tax collectors and the sinners? According to the Pharisees, they were the ‘bad guys’ for Tax Collectors worked for the Romans, and sinners do not live according to the Law, and were not doing God’s will. So these had to be avoided. Jesus thought otherwise, for he is the Good Physician and the Merciful Judge. For Jesus sinners were the lost son. Jesus said: “I am the Good Shepherd… And I lay down my life for the sheep”. He did!
Who were the Pharisees and the Scribes? They used to present themselves as the ‘good guys’ for they lived ‘according to the Law’. Jesus challenged them saying: “Go and learn what this means, ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice’”(Matthew 9, 13). The Pharisees and the Scribes were not the ‘good guys’, … not all of them, of course, but those who wanted to get rid of Jesus and they did not stop until they saw him nailed to a cross. These too were the lost son. However, they did not realise they were! They killed Jesus but He rose from the dead and is still alive.
Who are we? During the Jubilee year of Mercy, Pope Francis said: “By making Himself one of us, the Lord Jesus not only takes on the human condition, but also raises us up to the possibility of being Children of God. By His death and resurrection, Jesus Christ, the blameless Lamb, conquered death and sin to free us all from their dominion. He is the Lamb that was sacrificed for us, so that we can receive a new life made up of forgiveness, love and joy. These three words are beautiful: forgiveness, love and joy. All those he called he also redeemed, freed and saved. Certainly, it is true that life puts us to the test, and at times we suffer for this. However, in these moments we are invited to turn our gaze to the crucified Jesus who suffers for us and with us, as sure proof that God does not abandon us..
We frequently confess that we are sinners and think that we are bad. I think that we should stay among the “lost and found”, people who are good and bad in different moments of their lives. For Jesus we are important, precious, indeed! He never tires to come to us, searching for us until we let him find us. We are his sons ‘good or bad guys’ that we can be. We are worth all the trouble Jesus faces in his effort to guide us to the feast he lovingly prepared for us all, be we the ‘bad’ son who wanted to be his own master and abandoned his father, but then returned home, or the ‘good’ son who saw himself working like a slave for his father and was angry and grumbling for, he said, he never received a gift so he could celebrate with friends.
Let us reflect on the Father’s answer: “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.”… “I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance”.
Let us accept Christ’s invitation: “Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light (Mt 11, 28-30). Yes, come to me, all of you!
Scripture passage from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright 1989, 1993, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
About Costantino Mamo, OP
Cost is a friar of the province of Malta and is currently serving as a missionary in Durrës, Albania. More information can be found at his homepage at http://costmamo.blogspot.com/.