From Fr. Angelo
Prodigal Son or Elder Son?
As we approach Great Lent, the Church prepares us by placing specific Gospel readings before us with themes of repentance, forgiveness, and love. The Triodion period will begin with the Publican and the Pharisee, with the following Sunday the parable of the Prodigal Son.
The story of the Prodigal Son offers to us three significant characters Father, Prodigal Son, and Eldest Son, each one essential to understanding three vital aspects of our Christian faith. This story presents two sons, each of which has fallen into sin and the loving father who deals with each of them with compassion, love, and mercy. We are tempted to read this story as an allegory but by doing so we miss a vital piece of this story if we disconnect it from the context of Luke’s Gospel.
Just prior to Jesus relating the story of the Prodigal Son He is having a meal with sinners and tax collectors, which led the Pharisees and the scribes to grumble saying…