March 29: Preparing to Celebrate Sunday’s Mass

There are times when we begin to read a passage from the Bible and we think, “Oh, I know this story already” or “I’ve heard this a thousand times.” What is tempting at a moment like that is to close our minds or hearts and think that the passage has nothing new to say to us. This is especially true when we hear, “There was a man who had two sons....” (Luke 15, 11-32)

While we have grown accustomed to calling that passage “The Parable of the Prodigal Son,” the clear protagonist of the parable is the father of those two sons. Twice he repeats his cry of joy: “This son of mine was dead and has come back to life; he was lost and is found.” This cry reveals what is in the father’s heart: he is not worried about his own dignity or honor, nor how his son has treated him. He does not use the language of morality. He only thinks about his son’s recovery: his precious son isn’t dead after all, but is restored to life.

Before coming to Mass this weekend, be sure to note how the story describes in detail the meeting of the father with this son who had abandoned house and home. Even when the returning son was still far off, the father spotted him, recognized him, and was moved deep down in his heart. His part in the story indicates that it is only the heavenly Father’s kindness and compassion that can save us. God moves first because it is only God who truly sees us and understands us so fully. If you find this hard to believe, look at who does the running. It is not the homecoming son – it is the father who runs to him and who reaches out in welcome. This part of the passage has been rendered elsewhere, “He caught him by the neck and kept kissing him.” 

Jesus is telling us that God is like that: running with open arms to welcome those who come back. Are we prepared to be encountered by God in this very way at Mass this weekend? Do we trust that when we ask for His mercy He is already waiting for us, before we can say a word, ready to embrace us with His tender mercy?