Today is the Fourth Sunday in Lent, also called Laetare Sunday – the mid-point of the Lenten season. Just think, in three short weeks, we will be celebrating Easter! Today we take a small break from our Lenten observances to rejoice in the love and mercy of our Heavenly Father. We use the color rose to distinguish this Sunday from the rest of them in Lent.

How fitting is it that we heard the readings that were proclaimed on this special Sunday. They show us the love, mercy and generosity of God.

In our first reading, the Israelites are in Canaan celebrating their first Passover in the Promised Land. This event marks a new beginning for them and shows God’s faithfulness. He fulfilled His promise to bring them to a land flowing with milk and honey. It was not an easy journey, but it stands as a powerful reminder of God’s constant care for all his children.

Today’s Gospel is the famous parable about the Prodigal Son. Prodigal as an adjective is defined as “spending or using large amounts of money, time, and energy, especially in a way that is not very wise”.

How many movies have you seen that have a similar story line to the Prodigal Son? There are many. It’s a story filled with betrayal, envy, pride, and selfishness. But there is also humility, compassion, forgiveness and love.

Here is a well-to-do family with two boys; one appears to be a loyal son, the other not happy where he lives. Maybe it is a small town, and he wants to desperately get out of that town and see what else the world has to offer. He sees no future by staying where he is.

So, selfishly he asks his father for his share of his inheritance. The son is too impatient and uncaring to wait until his father’s death to receive that inheritance. After the father gives his son what he asks for, the son turns his back to his family, especially his father, he leaves the little town behind and soon finds out what the world is like. He spends or loses all his money and has nothing to show for it. Now broke and desperate for food, he works in one of the most demeaning jobs there is: feeding pigs.

After some soul searching, he realizes what he must do: go home, ask his father for forgiveness and hope he will welcome him back, even if he must be a servant and not his son.  

The reason Jesus told this story was not to focus on the two sons, but rather on the father and his response. Jesus was trying to convey to the people the infinite love God our Father has for each of us.

Now, we can’t ignore the actions of the two sons. Both strayed from the love of the father. The older son, who obeyed his father, seemed to do so because that’s what he should do. But he felt cheated when the father gave a big party for his younger son who returned home. His view of the relationship with his father was more transactional than one of mutual love. He takes pride in his loyalty to his father but is envious when his brother receives a great gift and attention from the father. 

God is the giver of all graces and gifts. Everything we have is from Him. Even the freedom to turn away from him. Yes, God wants us to love him, but God will never force us, because that is not love. It is more like an obligation.

When we do stray from Him, we have faith that God will welcome us back with open arms. As St. Paul tells the people of Corinth, “All of this is from God, who has reconciled us to himself through Christ and given us the ministry of reconciliation.” (2 Cor. 5:18)

God does not abandon us, he is constantly waiting for us to return to Him and when we do, He runs out to greet us, welcoming us back home.

For the rest of Lent, take time to reflect on where you are in your life and your relationship with God. When you feel like the younger son, wanting freedom to go our own way or envious like the older son, stop and remember the incredible gifts you have received from God.

As St. Paul wrote, be “reconciled to God” which you can do through the Sacrament of Reconciliation. Graciously receive the gifts Gods wants to give you and then… give them away to others. When you do, His gifts will only increase in you and you will move closer to a more loving and meaningful relationship with the God who loves you more than you can imagine and wants you to live with Him in the Promised Land.