WEBVTT 00:00:00.650 --> 00:00:03.350 In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and 00:00:03.350 --> 00:00:10.810 of the Holy Spirit, Amen. More than one commentator 00:00:10.810 --> 00:00:16.789 on this marvelous and incredible story has said 00:00:16.789 --> 00:00:20.890 that, it's a bit of a hyperbole, but there's 00:00:20.890 --> 00:00:23.149 some truth there, that if the scriptures were 00:00:23.149 --> 00:00:27.129 lost, which is not possible, being the most published 00:00:27.129 --> 00:00:32.289 document, in all the world, in all ages, but 00:00:32.289 --> 00:00:34.329 if the scriptures were lost, this marvelous, 00:00:34.490 --> 00:00:39.789 moving, always relevant, universally relevant 00:00:39.789 --> 00:00:43.850 parable told by Jesus would be enough to fill 00:00:43.850 --> 00:00:46.990 in, to tell us what we need to know about God, 00:00:47.149 --> 00:00:51.549 about our true home in paradise, about what we've 00:00:51.549 --> 00:00:56.789 lost, about ourselves, about sin, the fall of 00:00:56.789 --> 00:01:00.509 Adam and Eve in the garden. the knowledge of 00:01:00.509 --> 00:01:03.969 God's loving presence, about repentance, about 00:01:03.969 --> 00:01:08.129 healing, and about envy. Of course, that's an 00:01:08.129 --> 00:01:12.489 exaggeration, but there's truth there. What a 00:01:12.489 --> 00:01:15.909 story. And to whom was our Savior speaking when 00:01:15.909 --> 00:01:18.709 he told this parable? What do you imagine? Where 00:01:18.709 --> 00:01:23.530 was he? St. Luke records for us this. He says 00:01:23.530 --> 00:01:28.280 that the tax collectors and the sinners were 00:01:28.280 --> 00:01:33.180 all drawing near to hear him. And the Pharisees 00:01:33.180 --> 00:01:40.120 and the scribes grumbled, saying, This man receives 00:01:40.120 --> 00:01:44.340 sinners and eats with them. In other words, he's 00:01:44.340 --> 00:01:49.299 defiling himself. So our Savior addresses this 00:01:49.299 --> 00:01:54.659 parable and two others, the lost coin, the lost 00:01:54.659 --> 00:02:01.099 sheep, the lost son. On the one hand, he addresses 00:02:01.099 --> 00:02:04.980 it to those who are proud, who are judgmental, 00:02:04.980 --> 00:02:08.900 who can't rejoice over the one sinner that repents 00:02:08.900 --> 00:02:12.199 because that sinner is so bad he ought to be 00:02:12.199 --> 00:02:17.840 cut off. There's your older brother. There's 00:02:17.840 --> 00:02:21.360 the Pharisees, always doing their duty but with 00:02:21.360 --> 00:02:26.460 no love. And on the other hand, Jesus is speaking. 00:02:27.229 --> 00:02:31.110 to those sinners who come to him to repent, turn 00:02:31.110 --> 00:02:34.409 to him to begin a new way. In the church, we 00:02:34.409 --> 00:02:37.750 come as we are, but then we change. We are transformed. 00:02:38.210 --> 00:02:41.310 We are given grace to be different, to have a 00:02:41.310 --> 00:02:44.370 new way of life. This is what the word repentance 00:02:44.370 --> 00:02:48.830 means, to turn our heart to a different direction. 00:02:49.030 --> 00:02:54.849 Not our feelings, our heart, our minds, our whole 00:02:54.849 --> 00:02:59.430 life. Repentance is not guilt, and guilt is not 00:02:59.430 --> 00:03:02.569 repentance. This parable of the prodigal son 00:03:02.569 --> 00:03:04.930 might be called the parable of the two sons and 00:03:04.930 --> 00:03:09.430 the compassionate father, the humble father, 00:03:09.610 --> 00:03:16.550 who does what no self -respecting elder of the 00:03:16.550 --> 00:03:22.750 time would do. He ran out to his son, seeing 00:03:22.750 --> 00:03:27.389 him from afar, and embraced him. and kissed him. 00:03:28.370 --> 00:03:31.389 So we could call this parable the parable of 00:03:31.389 --> 00:03:34.969 the loving father about his love, his mercy, 00:03:35.050 --> 00:03:37.750 his patience, his generosity, his respect for 00:03:37.750 --> 00:03:43.110 our freedom and the watchfulness that he has 00:03:43.110 --> 00:03:47.509 over us. I don't want to ruin this story for 00:03:47.509 --> 00:03:51.610 you by going on and on and trying to explain 00:03:51.610 --> 00:03:56.789 every detail. Let me limit myself to what I can 00:03:56.789 --> 00:04:02.349 understand and just share that. We can imagine 00:04:02.349 --> 00:04:06.150 that this son thought himself something special, 00:04:06.270 --> 00:04:12.229 a prodigy. And therefore, he felt too constrained 00:04:12.229 --> 00:04:17.370 in his father's house. So he asked, he demanded 00:04:17.370 --> 00:04:21.149 the inheritance from his father. Would you go 00:04:21.149 --> 00:04:25.560 to your father? To say, give me my inheritance 00:04:25.560 --> 00:04:30.220 now? No, because we don't receive an inheritance 00:04:30.220 --> 00:04:34.779 until they pass away. So it's like saying to 00:04:34.779 --> 00:04:38.779 his father, I just want what you have. I don't 00:04:38.779 --> 00:04:44.040 care about you. You're dead to me. Give me the 00:04:44.040 --> 00:04:46.819 portion, the property, the substance, all that 00:04:46.819 --> 00:04:49.800 you have that is due to me. Upon your death, 00:04:49.879 --> 00:04:54.550 I want it now. This conforms well to the myths 00:04:54.550 --> 00:04:57.209 of our modern culture, that everything around 00:04:57.209 --> 00:05:00.009 us is extreme consumerism, isn't it? We're told 00:05:00.009 --> 00:05:03.110 to nurture a sense that every purchase, every 00:05:03.110 --> 00:05:05.709 choice, every feeling we have, every decision 00:05:05.709 --> 00:05:11.310 is shaping our happiness, creating our destiny. 00:05:12.149 --> 00:05:15.509 And we curate, some of us, an image on social 00:05:15.509 --> 00:05:21.050 media which is absolute fiction. Jesus tells... 00:05:21.480 --> 00:05:25.500 us that this young man went into a far country 00:05:25.500 --> 00:05:28.339 he found himself far from God obviously that's 00:05:28.339 --> 00:05:32.519 what it's telling us and the man was hungry after 00:05:32.519 --> 00:05:36.879 he squandered everything he had did you hear 00:05:36.879 --> 00:05:41.000 what Saint Paul wrote to the Corinthians all 00:05:41.000 --> 00:05:43.040 things are lawful but not all things are good 00:05:43.040 --> 00:05:45.699 I don't want to be brought under the power of 00:05:45.699 --> 00:05:50.269 any of that I want to be free This man was not 00:05:50.269 --> 00:05:53.149 free. He squandered everything thinking he would 00:05:53.149 --> 00:05:55.750 enjoy... Have you ever... Well, I won't go into 00:05:55.750 --> 00:05:58.610 that. His heart, his belly was empty, but his 00:05:58.610 --> 00:06:01.750 heart was full. His heart was full of terrible 00:06:01.750 --> 00:06:07.050 things, loneliness, anxiety, and fear. He was 00:06:07.050 --> 00:06:11.290 taking care of pigs, living with them in a pig 00:06:11.290 --> 00:06:14.069 pen. He didn't go into the house and have a shower 00:06:14.069 --> 00:06:17.920 and sit down at the master's table. He was living 00:06:17.920 --> 00:06:21.420 with the animals. It's the saddest, most tragic 00:06:21.420 --> 00:06:24.819 thing. We've seen it. I've seen it. Sometimes 00:06:24.819 --> 00:06:29.139 in ourselves. For a human being who is not just 00:06:29.139 --> 00:06:33.480 an ordinary animal, but created in the image 00:06:33.480 --> 00:06:37.439 and likeness of God himself, created to be the 00:06:37.439 --> 00:06:43.319 temple of the Holy Spirit in our bodies, to devolve 00:06:43.319 --> 00:06:48.759 like swine, Not resembling his father, but resembling 00:06:48.759 --> 00:06:54.160 the pig. It's profoundly tragic to lose communion 00:06:54.160 --> 00:06:59.220 with God. We hear this parable two weeks before 00:06:59.220 --> 00:07:05.579 Lent for a number of reasons. It follows, naturally, 00:07:05.720 --> 00:07:09.540 the parable of the publican and the Pharisee. 00:07:10.259 --> 00:07:13.259 For many reasons, one of which is to beware of 00:07:13.259 --> 00:07:20.120 pride over others. like the older brother. In 00:07:20.120 --> 00:07:26.300 Lent, the danger is not that we will fail at 00:07:26.300 --> 00:07:30.160 prayer, fasting, and works of mercy. We will 00:07:30.160 --> 00:07:33.480 certainly fail at that, and part of Lent is... 00:07:33.689 --> 00:07:36.209 constructed so that we do fail at that and gain 00:07:36.209 --> 00:07:39.209 a little humility. The danger in Lent is that 00:07:39.209 --> 00:07:42.029 we will be prideful about the little bit of praying, 00:07:42.230 --> 00:07:45.810 the fasting, the alms and church going that we 00:07:45.810 --> 00:07:48.949 do, and we will look down on other people. That's 00:07:48.949 --> 00:07:53.050 the danger in Lent. That's why it's related to 00:07:53.050 --> 00:07:57.569 the publican and the Pharisee who was critical 00:07:57.569 --> 00:08:02.699 of those who are repenting. who had a moralistic 00:08:02.699 --> 00:08:08.759 religion, refusing to rejoice. But thou didst 00:08:08.759 --> 00:08:12.439 come to save sinners, O Lord, we say, of whom 00:08:12.439 --> 00:08:19.620 I am first. Our goal in Lent is hopefully to 00:08:19.620 --> 00:08:23.779 believe that that is true, that God came to save 00:08:23.779 --> 00:08:30.069 sinners of whom I am first. Secondly, this parable 00:08:30.069 --> 00:08:35.470 tells us something about repentance. No matter 00:08:35.470 --> 00:08:39.769 how far a person is from God, no matter how far, 00:08:39.909 --> 00:08:42.350 no matter what terrible sins a person has fallen 00:08:42.350 --> 00:08:49.110 into, repentance, restoration, healing are possible. 00:08:49.960 --> 00:08:52.419 How did it begin for the young man? He came to 00:08:52.419 --> 00:08:55.480 himself. He says, what am I doing here? I had 00:08:55.480 --> 00:08:58.059 enough in my father's house. Why am I here? He 00:08:58.059 --> 00:09:01.120 came to himself. And then what did he do? He 00:09:01.120 --> 00:09:05.299 said, I know. I will go to my father and say, 00:09:05.419 --> 00:09:09.559 I'm no longer worthy to be your son. You see, 00:09:09.620 --> 00:09:13.049 we think sometimes God owes us. But this man 00:09:13.049 --> 00:09:15.870 had it right. He didn't blame anybody for his 00:09:15.870 --> 00:09:18.669 situation, and he didn't even say, I want to 00:09:18.669 --> 00:09:22.129 be restored as your son, nor to say, I just want 00:09:22.129 --> 00:09:24.370 to be a servant, because a servant lives in the 00:09:24.370 --> 00:09:28.389 house. A hired servant. He could be dismissed 00:09:28.389 --> 00:09:33.850 any time. And he came to himself, and he arose. 00:09:36.809 --> 00:09:42.299 He did not. He did not think magically, I'm going 00:09:42.299 --> 00:09:45.700 to be transported right back. No, he knew the 00:09:45.700 --> 00:09:49.840 journey was beginning. And that's what repentance 00:09:49.840 --> 00:09:54.039 is. It's a journey. It begins. Lent is this way. 00:09:58.679 --> 00:10:05.039 God waits for us. He loves us. He runs to meet 00:10:05.039 --> 00:10:08.580 us. This is the meaning of the incarnation. His 00:10:08.580 --> 00:10:11.120 death. and resurrection. This is the meaning 00:10:11.120 --> 00:10:14.659 of Pentecost. This is the meaning of every single 00:10:14.659 --> 00:10:21.879 divine liturgy, that God is with us. And so we 00:10:21.879 --> 00:10:25.139 may not be living in a pig pen in a swinish way 00:10:25.139 --> 00:10:30.620 of life, but just like I know you're not, glory 00:10:30.620 --> 00:10:33.679 to God for that. I thank him that each one of 00:10:33.679 --> 00:10:36.899 you is being guided by your conscience. But just 00:10:36.899 --> 00:10:40.679 as the prodigal son's substance was wasted, it 00:10:40.679 --> 00:10:45.779 says in the gospel, so we waste. So we waste 00:10:45.779 --> 00:10:51.740 that precious gift in our heart. And we're fragmented. 00:10:51.779 --> 00:10:56.159 We're broken. We can't pray. We have thoughts 00:10:56.159 --> 00:10:59.480 and anxieties. And we need to be brought back 00:10:59.480 --> 00:11:05.669 to Christ too. Finally, We have this parable 00:11:05.669 --> 00:11:09.090 each year to reset our thinking that a relationship 00:11:09.090 --> 00:11:12.590 with God is not about moralism. It's not about 00:11:12.590 --> 00:11:15.789 perfectionism. It's not merely about breaking 00:11:15.789 --> 00:11:18.450 God's laws. We keep those laws because those 00:11:18.450 --> 00:11:25.450 laws are about true life. It's about God's love. 00:11:25.649 --> 00:11:29.669 It's about a relationship. The position of the 00:11:29.669 --> 00:11:34.049 scriptures is not that we are born bad. They're 00:11:34.049 --> 00:11:37.669 bad people. And we sort of work our way up and 00:11:37.669 --> 00:11:40.950 become good people and earn our way to heaven. 00:11:41.029 --> 00:11:43.149 That's not the scriptures. The perspective of 00:11:43.149 --> 00:11:46.490 the scriptures, starting with Genesis, is that 00:11:46.490 --> 00:11:53.590 God gave us everything. And we, every single 00:11:53.590 --> 00:12:00.929 day, we squander it. We have it all and we lose 00:12:00.929 --> 00:12:04.450 it. Now we are on the road back, brothers and 00:12:04.450 --> 00:12:07.750 sisters, not to feeling self -righteous, but 00:12:07.750 --> 00:12:10.950 to feeling humble and to being sanctified. I 00:12:10.950 --> 00:12:14.330 will leave you with these amazing words of Elder 00:12:14.330 --> 00:12:19.429 Emilio Nos, the great elder of Mount Athos who 00:12:19.429 --> 00:12:24.509 died in 2019. He says, God stoops down to his 00:12:24.509 --> 00:12:28.950 people. All that the scriptures say about God's 00:12:28.950 --> 00:12:33.039 walking, descending, bending down, being with, 00:12:33.159 --> 00:12:35.399 helping, bringing to birth, caring, and so on, 00:12:35.440 --> 00:12:38.899 are simply different ways of describing God's 00:12:38.899 --> 00:12:42.539 gracious condescension. Because man will not 00:12:42.539 --> 00:12:45.559 bow down to God. God, in his infinite humility, 00:12:45.879 --> 00:12:49.559 bowed down to man. On the night he was betrayed, 00:12:49.860 --> 00:12:52.799 Christ set aside his garments and stooped down 00:12:52.799 --> 00:12:55.460 to wash the feet of a man that would deny him 00:12:55.460 --> 00:12:58.759 three times. That's how God was with the people 00:12:58.759 --> 00:13:02.360 of Israel. That's how he is with everyone. To 00:13:02.360 --> 00:13:05.220 our Lord be glory now and ever, to ages of ages.