Ordinary Time

1) Opening prayer

Father,

through the obedience of Jesus,

Your servant and Your Son,

You raised a fallen world.

Free us from sin

and bring us the joy that lasts for ever.

We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son,

who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit,

one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

2) Gospel Reading - Matthew 10:1-7

Jesus summoned his Twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits to drive them out and to cure every disease and every illness. The names of the Twelve Apostles are these: first, Simon called Peter, and his brother Andrew; James, the son of Zebedee, and his brother John; Philip and Bartholomew, Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James, the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddeus; Simon the Cananean, and Judas Iscariot who betrayed Jesus. Jesus sent out these Twelve after instructing them thus, “Do not go into pagan territory or enter a Samaritan town. Go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. As you go, make this proclamation: ‘The Kingdom of heaven is at hand.’”

3) Reflection

• The second great Discourse: The Discourse of the Mission begins in chapter 10 of the Gospel of Matthew.  Matthew organizes his Gospel as a new edition of the Law of God or like a new “Pentateuch” with its five books.  For this reason his Gospel presents five great discourses or teachings of Jesus followed by a narrative part, in which he describes the way in which Jesus puts into practice what He had taught in the discourses.  The following is the outline:

Introduction: the birth and preparation of the Messiah (Mt 1 to 4)

a) Sermon on the Mount: the entrance door into the Kingdom (Mt 5 to 7)

Narrative Mt 8 and 9

b) Discourse on the Mission: how to proclaim and spread the Kingdom (Mt 10)

Narrative Mt 11 and 12

c) Discourse on the Parables: The mystery of the Kingdom present in life (Mt 13)

Narrative Mt 14 to 17

d) Discourse on the Community: the new way of living together in the Kingdom (Mt  18)

Narrative 19 to 23

e) Discourse on the future coming of the Kingdom: the utopia which sustains hope (Mt 24 and 25)

Conclusion: Passion, death and Resurrection (Mt 26 to 28)

• Today’s Gospel presents to us the beginning of the Discourse on the Mission in which the accent is placed on three aspects: (a) the call of the disciples (Mt 10:1); (b) the list of the names of the twelve Apostles who will be the recipients of the Discourse on the Mission (Mt 10:2-4); (c) the sending out of the twelve (Mt 10:5-7).

• Matthew 10:1: The call of the twelve disciples. Matthew had already spoken about the call of the disciples (Mt 4:18-22; 9:9).  Here, at the beginning of the Discourse on the Mission, he presents a summary: “He summoned His twelve disciples, and gave them authority over unclean spirits with power to drive them out and to cure all kinds of diseases and all kinds of illness.” The task, or the mission, of the disciple is to follow Jesus, the Master, forming community with Him and carrying out the same mission of Jesus: to drive out unclean spirits, to cure all sorts of diseases and all sorts of illness.  In Mark’s Gospel they receive the same two-fold mission, formulated with other words: Jesus constituted the group of twelve to remain with Him and to send them out to preach and cast out devils” (Mk 3:14-15). 1) To be with Him, that is to form a community, in which Jesus is the center.  2)To preach and to be able to cast out devils, that is, to announce the Good News and to conquer the force of evil which destroys the life of the people and alienates people.  Luke says that Jesus prayed the whole night, and the following day He called the disciples.  He prayed to God so as to know whom to choose (Lk 6:12-13).

• Matthew 10:2-4: The list of the names of the Twelve Apostles. A good number of these names come from the Old Testament.  For example, Simon is the name of one of the sons of the Patriarch Jacob (Gen 29:33). James is the same as Jacob (Gen 25:26). Judas is the name of another son of Jacob (Gen 35:23). Matthew also had the name of Levi (Mk 2:14), who was another son of Jacob (Gen 35:23). Of the Twelve Apostles seven have a name which comes from the time of the Patriarchs.  Two are called Simon; two are called James; two are called Judas; one Levi!  Only one has a Greek name: Philip. This reveals the people’s desire to start history again from the beginning! Perhaps it is good to think about the names which are given today to  children when they are born, because each one of us is called by God by his/her name.  

• Matthew 10:5-7: The sending out or the mission of the twelve apostles to the lost sheep of Israel.  After having given the list of the names of the twelve, Jesus sends them out with the following command: “Do not make your way to gentile territory, and do not enter any Samaritan town. Go instead to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. And as you go, proclaim that the Kingdom of Heaven is close at hand.”  In this one command there is a three-fold insistence on showing that the preference of the mission is for the house of Israel: (1) Do not go among the gentiles, (2) do not enter into the towns of the Samaritans, (3) rather go to the lost sheep of Israel. Here appears a response to the doubt of the first Christians concerning opening up to pagans. Paul, who strongly affirmed the openness to the gentiles, agrees in saying that the Good News of Jesus should first be announced to the Jews and then to the gentiles (Rm 9:1-11, 36; cf. Acts 1:8; 11:3; 13:46; 15:1, 5, 23-29). But then, in the same Gospel of Matthew, in the conversation of Jesus with the Canaanite woman,  openness to the gentiles will occur (Mt 15:21-29).

• The sending out of the Apostles to all peoples. After the Resurrection of Jesus, there are several episodes on the sending out of the Apostles not only to the Jews, but to all peoples. In Matthew: “Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit and teaching them to observe everything which I have commanded.  And I will be with you until the end of time” (Mt 28:19-20). In Mark: “Go to the entire world, proclaim the Good News to all creatures. Those who will believe and will be baptized will be saved; those who will not believe will be condemned” (Mk 16:15). In Luke: "So it is written that the Christ would suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, and that in His name, repentance for the forgiveness of sins would be preached to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem. You are witnesses to this” (Lk 24:46-48; Acts 1:8) John summarizes all in one sentence: “As the Father has sent Me, so I also send you!”  (Jn 20:21).

4) Personal questions

• Have you ever thought about the meaning of your name? Have you asked your parents why they gave you the name that you have? Do you like your name?

• How has your name influenced who you have become and how your life was formed?

• Jesus calls the disciples. His call has a two-fold purpose: to form a community and to go on mission.  How do I live this two-fold purpose in my life?

5) Concluding Prayer

Seek Yahweh and His strength,

tirelessly seek His presence!

Remember the marvels He has done, His wonders,

the judgments He has spoken. (Ps 105:4-5)

The parable of Lazarus and the rich man

Between the two only a closed door

Luke 16: 19-31 

1. Opening prayer

Lord Jesus, send Your Spirit to help us to read the scriptures with the same mind that You read them to the disciples on the way to Emmaus. In the light of the Word, written in the Bible, You helped them to discover the presence of God in the disturbing events of Your sentence and death.

Thus, the cross that seemed to be the end of all hope became for them the source of life and of resurrection. 

Create silence in us so that we may listen to Your voice in creation and in  the scriptures, in events and in people, above all in the poor and suffering. May Your word guide us so that we too, like the two disciples on the way to Emmaus, may experience the force of Your resurrection and witness to others that You are alive in our midst as source of fraternity, justice and peace. We ask this of You, Jesus, son of Mary, who revealed the Father to us and sent us Your Spirit. Amen. 

2. Reading

a) A key to the reading:

In this 26^th Sunday of Ordinary Time, the Liturgy places before us the parable of the poor Lazarus, sitting before the door of the rich man. This parable is a faithful mirror, in which is mirrored not only the situation of the society at the time of Jesus, but also our society of the XXI century. The parable is a strong and radical denunciation of this situation, because it clearly indicates that God’s way is contrary to that. In the parable there are three persons: the poor man, the rich man and Father Abraham. The poor man has a name, but does not speak. He hardly exists. His only friends are the little dogs which lick his wounds. The rich man does not have a name, but speaks always and insists. He wants to be right, but he does not succeed. Father Abraham is the father of both of them, and loves both, and he calls the rich man who is in hell, but he does not succeed in making the rich man change his opinion and experience conversion. During the reading try to be very attentive to the conversation of the rich man with Father Abraham, to the arguments of the rich man and to the arguments of Father Abraham.

b) A division of the text to help in the reading:

Luke 16:19-21: The situation of both in this life.

Luke 16:22: The situation of both in the other life.

Luke 16:23-26: The first conversation between the rich man and Abraham.

Luke 16:27-29: The second conversation between the rich man and Abraham.

Luke 16:30-31: The third conversation between the rich man and Abraham.

c) Text:

Jesus said to the Pharisees: "There was a rich man who dressed in purple garments and fine linen and dined sumptuously each day. And lying at his door was a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores, who would gladly have eaten his fill of the scraps that fell from the rich man's table. Dogs even used to come and lick his sores. When the poor man died, he was carried away by angels to the bosom of Abraham. The rich man also died and was buried, and from the netherworld, where he was in torment, he raised his eyes and saw Abraham far off and Lazarus at his side. And he cried out, 'Father Abraham, have pity on me. Send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am suffering torment in these flames.' Abraham replied, 'My child, remember that you received what was good during your lifetime while Lazarus likewise received what was bad; but now he is comforted here, whereas you are tormented. Moreover, between us and you a great chasm is established to prevent anyone from crossing who might wish to go from our side to yours or from your side to ours.' He said, 'Then I beg you, father, send him to my father's house, for I have five brothers, so that he may warn them, lest they too come to this place of torment.' But Abraham replied, 'They have Moses and the prophets. Let them listen to them.' He said, 'Oh no, father Abraham, but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.' Then Abraham said, 'If they will not listen to Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded if someone should rise from the dead.'"

3. A moment of prayerful silence

that the Word of God may penetrate and enlighten our life. 

4. Some questions

to help us in our personal reflection.

a) Which point of the text pleased you most and what struck you most? Why?

b) Compare the situation of the poor man and of the rich man before and after death. What is their situation before death? What changes in the situation of the poor man and of the rich man after death?

c) What separates the poor man from the rich man before death? What separates the rich man from the poor man after death?

d) In the conversation between the rich man and Father Abraham, what does the rich man ask and what is Abraham’s response?

e) In this parable, the situation changes only after death. Would it be that Jesus wants to tell us that during life the poor have to bear everything in order to be able then to merit Heaven? What do you think?

f) There are some people who, like the rich man of the parable, expect miracles in order to be able to believe in God. But God asks us to believe in Moses and in the prophets. And I, toward which side does my heart tend: toward the miracle or toward the Word of God?

g) How do I treat the poor? For me, do they have a name? 

5. For those who wish to deepen more into the theme

a) Context:

i) In the Gospel of Luke, from Chapter 9 (Lk 9:51), we are accompanying Jesus on His journey toward Jerusalem. Here in chapters 15 and 16, as to say, we reach the summit, the center of the journey, from where it is possible to see the road that has already been covered and that which still has to be covered. Or, that is, that on the summit of the hill, or in the center of the Gospel, we perceive with greater clarity the two principal themes which go through the Gospel of Luke, from beginning to end. In chapter 15, the parable of the father with his two sons reveals to us the tenderness and the mercy of God who accepts all. Now chapter 16 presents to us the parable of the poor Lazarus to reveal the attitude that we should have before the problem of poverty and of social injustice.

ii) Every time that Jesus has something important to communicate, He narrates or tells a parable; He creates a story which mirrors the reality of the people. Thus, during the reflection on visible reality, He leads those who listen to discover the invisible appeals of God, present in life. A parable is made to make people think and reflect. This is why it is important to be attentive even to small details. In the parable on which we are meditating, there are three persons: Lazarus, the poor man, the only one who does not speak; the rich man without a name, who speaks to ask for favors; Father Abraham, who, in the parable, represents the thought of God. The rich man without a name represents the dominating ideology of the government of the time. Lazarus represents the excruciating cry of the poor at the time of Jesus, of the time of Luke and of all times.

b) Commentary on the text:

Luke 16:19-21: The situation of the rich man and of the poor man.

Here we have the two extremes of society: on the one hand, the aggressive richness; on the other, the poor without any resources, without any rights, covered with ulcers and wounds, impure, with nobody to accept him, to receive him, except the little dogs which lick his wounds. What separates both of them is only a door: the closed door of the house of the rich man. On his part there is no acceptance, no pity for the problem of the poor man who is before his door. But in the parable, the poor man has a name, while the rich man does not. The name of the poor man is Lazarus, which means God helps. 

Through the poor God helps, the rich and the rich man could have his name written in the Book of Life. The rich man does not accept to be helped by the poor man, because he continues to keep the door closed. This beginning of the parable, which describes the situation, is a faithful mirror of what happens in the time of Jesus and of Luke. It is also the mirror of what happens today!

Luke 16:22: The change revealed by the truth which was hidden. 

“Now it happened that the poor man died and was carried away by the angels into Abraham’s embrace. The rich man also died and was buried”. In the parable, the poor man dies before the rich man. This is a warning for the rich. Up to the time when the poor man was before the door, alive, it is still possible for the rich man to be saved. But after the poor man dies,  the rich man also dies. Today, millions of poor people die, victims of the geopolitics of the rich countries. 

The poor man dies and is carried away by the angels into Abraham’s embrace. The embrace of Abraham is the source of life, from where is born the People of God. Lazarus, the poor man, belongs to the People of God, forms part of the People of Abraham , from which he is excluded because he was at the door of the rich man. The rich man, who thinks that he is a son of Abraham , also dies and is buried. But he does not go toward the embrace of Abraham, because he is not a son of Abraham!

The introduction of the parable ends here. Now begins the revelation of its meaning, through three conversations between the rich man and Father Abraham.

Luke 16:23-26: The first conversation between the rich man without a name and Father Abraham.

The parable is like a window which Jesus opens for us on the other side of life, the side of God. It is not a question of Heaven. It is a question of the true side of life discovered only by faith and that the rich man, without faith, does not perceive. The dominating ideology prevents him from discovering it. And it is only in the light of death that the ideology disintegrates in the mind of the rich man, and that the true value of life appears to him. On God’s part, without the ideology and the deceiving propaganda of the government, their luck will be changed: The rich man suffers, the poor man is happy. The rich man, in seeing Lazarus in Abraham’s embrace asks that Lazarus give some relief to his suffering. In the light of death, the rich man discovers that Lazarus is his only possible benefactor. But now it is too late! The rich man without a name is a Jew (or Christian), is “pious”, knows Abraham, and calls him Father. Abraham responds and calls him son. That means, in reality, this word of Abraham is addressed to the rich who are alive. In so far as being alive, they also have the possibility of becoming sons of Abraham, if they open the door to Lazarus, to the poor man, to the only one who in God’s name can help them. For the rich man, closed up in his suffering, salvation consisted of a drop of water which Lazarus could give him. In reality, for the rich man, salvation does not consist in Lazarus giving him a drop of water to refresh his tongue, but rather, that he himself, the rich man, open the closed door of his house and enters into contact with the poor man. It is only in this way that it will be possible to overcome the great abyss which separates him.

In Abraham’s response, the truth of the four curses appears before the rich man: (Lk 6: 24-26).

But alas for you who are rich: 

you are having your consolation now.

Alas for you who have plenty to eat now: 

you shall go hungry. 

Alas for you who are laughing now: 

you shall mourn and weep.

Alas for you when everyone speaks well of you! 

This was the way their ancestors treated the false prophets.

Luke 16:27-29: The second conversation between the rich man and Abraham

The rich man insists, “Father, I beg you then to send Lazarus to my father’s house, since I have five brothers!” The rich man does not want his brothers to suffer the same torment. “Send Lazarus!” Lazarus, the poor man, is the only true intermediary between God and the rich. But the rich man, during his life was not concerned for the poor Lazarus. He is concerned about himself and his brothers. He was never concerned about the poor! It is like the older son of the “Parable of the Father with two sons” (Lk 15:25-30). The older one wanted to have a feast with his friends, and not with his brother who had been lost. Abraham’s response is clear: “They have Moses and the prophets; let them listen to them!” They have the bible! The rich man had the bible. He knew it even by heart. But he never became aware that the bible had something to do with the poor who were at his door. The key to understanding the meaning of the bible and of salvation is poor Lazarus, sitting at the door of the rich man!

c) Extending the information:

Because of the unjust social context at the time of Jesus:

In the year 64 B.C. the Romans invaded Palestine and imposed upon the people a very heavy tax. The scholars estimate that more or less half of the family income was destined to pay the taxes, the taxes of the Roman government. Besides, Rome made a geopolitical reorganization in the region. Before the Roman invasion, the whole region, from Tyre to Sidon up to the frontier with Egypt, was governed by the Asmonei, the prolongation of the Maccabees. After the invasion, only three regions remained under the government of the Jews: Judea, Pereira and Galilee. In order to be able to maintain the control on dominated peoples with a minimum of sacrifice and at their own expense, the Romans were the Sadducees, the elders, some publicans and some of the priests. Thus, all this change brought about by the Roman invasion caused almost all the Jews who were living in the other territories of that region to migrate toward Judea and Galilee. The consequence of this: the population was doubled in Judea and in Galilee and the family income diminished by half. The result: on the one hand, progressive impoverishment, unemployment, begging, extreme poverty; on the other, exaggerated enrichment of the local population, supported by the Romans. The faithful picture of this situation is expressed in the parable of  poor Lazarus and of the rich man who had no pity.

Final Reflection around the parable

The rich man who has everything and who closes himself up in himself, loses God, loses the richness, loses life, loses himself, loses his name, loses everything. The poor man who has nothing, has God, gains life, has a name, gains everything. The poor man is Lazarus; he is “God helps”. God comes to us in the person of the poor man sitting at our door, to help us overcome the insurmountable abyss created by the rich who have no heart. Lazarus is also Jesus, the poor Messiah and servant, who was not accepted, but whose death radically changed all things. And in the light of the death of the poor man, everything changes.

The place of torment is the situation of the people without God. Even if the rich man thinks that he has a religion and faith, he does not know how to be with God because he does not open the door to the poor man, as Zacchaeus did (Lk 19:1-10). 

6. Prayer of a Psalm

Psalm 15 (14): Yahweh, who can find a home in Your tent?

Yahweh, who can find a home in Your tent, 

who can dwell on Your holy mountain?

Whoever lives blamelessly, 

who acts uprightly, 

who speaks the truth from the heart,

who keeps the tongue under control, 

who does not wrong a comrade, 

who casts no discredit on a neighbor,

who looks with scorn on the vile, 

but honors those who fear Yahweh, 

who stands by an oath at any cost,

who asks no interest on loans, 

who takes no bribe to harm the innocent. 

No one who so acts can ever be shaken. 

7. Final Prayer

Lord Jesus, we thank You for the word that has enabled us to understand better the will of the Father. May Your Spirit enlighten our actions and grant us the strength to practice what Your Word has revealed to us. May we, like Mary, Your mother, not only listen to but also practice the Word. You live and reign with the Father in the unity of the Holy Spirit forever and ever. Amen.

 The parable of the unfaithful steward

Fidelity to God as the only Lord

Luke 16:1-13

1. Opening prayer

Lord, my Father, today I bring before You my weakness, my shame, my distance from You; I no longer hide my dishonesty and infidelity, because You know and see everything, in depth, with the eyes of Your love and compassion.

I ask You, good Doctor, pour on my wound the balm of Your Word, of Your voice which speaks to me, calls me and teaches me. Do not take away Your gift, who is the Holy Spirit: allow Him to breathe on me, as a breath of life, from the four winds; that He envelops me as a tongue of fire and inundates me as water of salvation; send Him to me from Your holy Heaven, as the dove of truth, to announce, today also, that You are and that You wait for me, that You take me with You, after all, as on the first day, when You shaped me and created and called me. 

2. Reading

a) To insert the passage in its context:

This evangelical pericope belongs to the great section of the narration of Luke which includes the long journey of Jesus towards Jerusalem; it opens in Lk 9:51 to end in Lk 19:27. This section, in turn, is subdivided into three parts, as three stages in the journey of Jesus, each one of which is introduced by an annotation almost like a repetition: “Jesus resolutely turned His face towards Jerusalem” (9:51); “Through towns and villages He went teaching, making His way to Jerusalem” (13:22); “…on the way to Jerusalem He was traveling in the borderlands of Samaria and Galilee” (17:11); to reach the conclusion in 19:28: “When He had said this He went on ahead, going up to Jerusalem”, when Jesus enters the city.

We find ourselves in the second part, from Lk 13:22 to 17:10 which includes diverse teachings, which Jesus offers to His interlocutors: the crowds, the Pharisees, the scribes, and the disciples. In this unity, Jesus enters into dialogue with His disciples and offers them a parable to indicate which is the correct use of the goods of this world and how our own life should be wisely administered, inserted in a filial relation with God. Then follow three “sayings” or secondary applications of the same parable in diverse situations, which help the disciples to make space for the new life in the Spirit, which the Father offers them.

b) To help in the reading of the passage:

vv. 1-8: Jesus tells the parable of the wise and shrewd steward: a man, accused of his excessive greed, which has become unbearable, who finds himself in a decisive and difficult moment in his life, but who succeeds in using all his human resources to turn to good his clamorous failure. Just like this son of the world has known how to discern his own interests, so also the children of light have to learn to discern the will of love and the gift of their Father, to live like Him.

v. 9: Jesus makes us understand that also dishonest and unjust richness, which is that of this world, if used for the good, as a gift, leads to salvation.

vv. 10-12: Jesus explains that the goods of this world are not to be demonized, but rather are to be understood for the value which they have. They are said to be “minimum”, they are “the little” of our life, but we are called to administer them faithfully and attentively, because they are a means to enter into communion with the brothers and sisters and therefore, with the Father.

v. 13: Jesus offers a fundamental teaching: there is only one and unique end in our life and this is God, the Lord. To seek to serve any other reality means to become slaves, to bind ourselves to deceit and to die even now.

c) The text:

Jesus said to his disciples, "A rich man had a steward who was reported to him for squandering his property. He summoned him and said, 'What is this I hear about you? Prepare a full account of your stewardship, because you can no longer be my steward.' The steward said to himself, 'What shall I do, now that my master is taking the position of steward away from me? I am not strong enough to dig and I am ashamed to beg. I know what I shall do so that, when I am removed from the stewardship, they may welcome me into their homes.' He called in his master's debtors one by one. To the first he said, 'How much do you owe my master?' He replied, 'One hundred measures of olive oil.' He said to him, 'Here is your promissory note. Sit down and quickly write one for fifty.' Then to another the steward said, 'And you, how much do you owe?' He replied, 'One hundred kors of wheat.' The steward said to him, 'Here is your promissory note; write one for eighty.' And the master commended that dishonest steward for acting prudently. "For the children of this world are more prudent in dealing with their own generation than are the children of light. I tell you, make friends for yourselves with dishonest wealth, so that when it fails, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings. The person who is trustworthy in very small matters is also trustworthy in great ones; and the person who is dishonest in very small matters is also dishonest in great ones. If, therefore, you are not trustworthy with dishonest wealth, who will trust you with true wealth? If you are not trustworthy with what belongs to another, who will give you what is yours? No servant can serve two masters. He will either hate one and love the other, or be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and mammon."

3. A moment of prayerful silence

I accept the silence of this moment, of this sacred time of encounter with Him. I who am poor, without money, without possessions, without house and without my own strength, because nothing comes from me, but everything comes from Him. It is His. I allow myself to be taken in by His richness of compassion and of mercy. 

4. Some Questions

a) Like any Christian I am also an “administrator” of the Lord, the rich man of our existence, the only one who possesses goods and riches. What is it that regulates my thoughts daily and, consequently, my daily choices, my actions, my relations?

b) Life, goods, the gifts which my Father has given me, these infinite riches, which are worth more than any other thing in the world, am I wasting them, am I throwing them away like pearls to the pigs? 

c) The unfaithful steward, but wise and shrewd, suddenly changes his life, changes relations, calculations, thoughts. Today is a new day. It is the beginning of a new life, regulated according to the logic of remission, of pardon, of distribution: do I know that true wisdom is hidden in mercy? 

d) “Either you will love one or will love the other…” Whose servant do I want to be? In whose house do I want to live? Together with whom do I want to live my life? 

5. A key for reading

* “Who is the steward of the Lord?

Luke, in the parable, uses the term “administrator or steward” or “administration” seven times, and thus it becomes the key word of the passage and of the message that the Lord wants to give me. Then, I try to look in scripture for some traces, or a light which will help me to understand better and to verify the administration that the Lord has entrusted to me in my life.

This reality is repeated in the Old Testament several times , especially referring to the royal richness or to the richness of the city or of the empires: in the Book of  Chronicles, for example, it is spoken about the administrators of King David (1 Chr 27:31; 28:1) and the meeting of administrators of the kings and the princes also in the Book of Esther (3:9), Daniel (2:49; 6:4) and Tobit (1:22). It is a totally worldly administration, linked to possessions, to money, to wealth, to power; therefore, bound to a negative reality, such as accumulation, usurpation, violence. It is, in one word, an administration which ends, which is short-lived and deceitful, no matter if it is recognized that this is also, in a certain way, necessary for the good functioning of society. The negative aspects, or the positive, come from their use and not from the objects themselves.

The New Testament, on the other hand, immediately introduces me into a diverse dimension, higher, because it concerns the things of the spirit, of the soul, those things which do not end, do not change with the change of time and of people. Saint Paul says, “Each one should consider himself as Christ’s servant, stewards entrusted with the mysteries of God. In such a matter, what is expected of stewards is that each one should be found trustworthy” (1Cor 4,1 ff), and in Peter: “Each one of you has received a special grace, so, like good stewards responsible for all these varied graces of God, put it at the service of others” (1 Pet 4:10). Therefore, I understand that I am also an administrator of the mysteries and of the grace of God, through the simple and poor instrument, which is my own life; in it I am called to be faithful and good. But this adjective “good”, is the same which John uses referring to the Shepherd, to Jesus: “kalòs” that is, beautiful and good. Why? Simply, because He offers His life to the Father for the sheep. This is the unique, true administration which is entrusted to me in this world, for the future world.

* What is the shrewdness of the administrator of the Lord?

The passage says that the master praises his dishonest steward, because he acted with “astuteness” and he repeats the word “shrewd”, a bit later. Perhaps a more correct translation could be “sage”, that is “wise”, or “prudent”. It is a wisdom that results from an attentive, deep thinking, from reflection, from study and the application of the mind, of affection for something which is of great interest. As an adjective this term is found, for example, in Mt 7:24, where true wisdom is shown of the man who builds his house on rock and not on sand, that is, the man who bases his existence on the word of the Lord or also in Mt 25, where he says that the virgins who had the oil for their lamps were wise, so that they will not be taken over by darkness, but who know how to wait always with invincible, incorruptible love, for their Spouse and Lord, when he returns. Therefore, this steward is wise and prudent, not because he takes advantage of others, but because he has known how to regulate and transform his life according to the measure and the form of the life of his Lord: he has committed himself totally, with his whole being, mind, heart, will, desire in imitating the one he serves.

* Dishonesty and injustice

Another word which is repeated many times is “dishonest”, “dishonesty”; the steward is said to be dishonest and thus also rich in injustice. Dishonesty is a characteristic which can corrode the being, in big things, in the great, but also in the small. The Greek text does not precisely use the word “dishonest”, but the “administrator or steward of injustice”, “richness of injustice”, and “unjust in the minimum”, “unjust in much”. Injustice is a bad distribution, not impartial or just, not balanced; it lacks harmony, it lacks a center which will attract all energy, all care and intent to itself; it causes fractures, wounds, pain over pain, accumulation on one side and lack of all on the other. All of us, in some way, come into contact, with the reality of injustice, because it belongs to this world. And we feel dragged on one and other side; we lose harmony, balance and beauty; and we cannot deny it because it is like that. The Gospel precisely condemns this strong lack of harmony, which is accumulation, to keep things aside, to increase them continually, possession and it shows us the way to obtain healing, which is a gift or giving, sharing, to give with an open heart, with mercy, like the Father does with us, without getting tired, without becoming less or poor.

* And, what is mammon?

The word mammon appears in the whole Bible, in this chapter of Luke in (vv. 9,11, and 13) and in Mt 6:24. It is a Semitic term which corresponds to “riches”, “possession”, “gain”, but it becomes almost the personification of the god-money which men serve very foolishly, slaves of that “unquenchable greed, which is idolatry” (Col 3:5). Here everything becomes clear; it is full light. Now, I know well which is the question which I still have, after the encounter with this Word of the Lord: “I, whom do I want to serve?” The choice is only one, unique, and concrete. I keep in my heart this colossal, marvelous and sweet verb, the verb “to serve” and I ponder it, and I draw from it all the substance of truth which it contains. The words of Joshua to the people come to my mind: “If serving Yahweh seems a bad thing to you, today you must make up your minds whom you do mean to serve!” (Josh 24:15). I know that I am unjust, that I am an unfaithful administrator, foolish. I know that I have nothing, but today I choose, with everything that I am , to serve the Lord. (cf. Acts 20:19; I Thess 1:9; Gal 1:10; Rom 12:11). 

6. A Moment of Prayer: Psalm 49

Reflection of Wisdom on the heart 

which finds its riches in the presence of God

 Blessed are you who are poor: 

the kingdom of God is yours.

Hear this, all nations, listen, all who dwell on earth,

people high and low, rich and poor alike!

My lips have wisdom to utter, 

my heart good sense to whisper.

I listen carefully to a proverb; 

I set my riddle to the music of the harp. 

Why should I be afraid in times of trouble? 

Malice dogs me and hems me in.

They trust in their wealth, 

and boast of the profusion of their riches.

But no one can ever redeem himself 

or pay his own ransom to God,

the price for himself is too high; it can never be

that he will live on for ever 

and avoid the sight of the abyss. 

For he will see the wise also die 

no less than the fool and the brute, 

and leave their wealth behind for others.

In prosperity people lose their good sense, 

they become no better than dumb animals.

But my soul God will ransom from the clutches of Sheol, 

and will snatch me up. 

Do not be overawed when someone gets rich, 

and lives in ever greater splendor;

when he dies he will take nothing with him, 

his wealth will not go down with him.

Though he pampered himself while he lived

- and people praise you for looking after yourself -

he will go to join the ranks of his ancestors, 

who will never again see the light. 

“God wants a gratuitous love, that is, a pure love…God fills the hearts, not the strongbox or coffer. What are riches good for if your heart is empty?” (St. Augustine). 

7. Closing Prayer

Lord, thank You for this time spent with You, listening to Your voice which spoke to me with love and infinite mercy; I feel that my life is healed only when I remain with You, in You, when I allow You to take me. You have taken in Your hands my greed, which renders me dry and arid, which closes me up, and makes me sad and leaves me alone; You have taken my insatiable avarice, which fills me with emptiness and pain; You have accepted and taken upon Yourself my ambiguity and infidelity, my tired and awkward limping. Lord, I am happy when I open myself to You and show You all my wounds! Thank You for the balm of Your Word and of Your silence. Thank You for the breath of Your Spirit, which takes away the bad breath of evil, of the enemy. 

Lord, I have robbed.  I know it.  I have taken away what was not mine. I have buried it, I have wasted it; from now on I want to begin to return, to give back, I want to live my life as a gift always multiplied and shared among many. My life is a small thing, but in Your hands it will become barrels of oil, measures of grain, consolation and food for my brothers and sisters.

Lord, I have no other words to say before such great and overflowing love. That is why I do only one thing: I open the doors of the heart and with a smile, I will accept all those whom You will send to me… (Acts 28:30).

 The parables of the lost things

Meeting God in life

Luke 15:1-32

1. Opening prayer

Lord Jesus, send Your Spirit to help us to read the scriptures with the same mind that You read them to the disciples on the way to Emmaus. In the light of the Word, written in the bible, You helped them to discover the presence of God in the disturbing events of Your sentence and death. Thus, the cross that seemed to be the end of all hope became for them the source of life and of resurrection. 

Create silence in us so that we may listen to Your voice in creation and in the scriptures, in events and in people, above all in the poor and suffering. May Your word guide us so that we too, like the two disciples on the way to Emmaus, may experience the force of Your resurrection and witness to others that You are alive in our midst as source of fraternity, justice and peace. We ask this of You, Jesus, son of Mary, who revealed the Father to us and sent us Your Spirit. Amen. 

2. Reading

a) A key to the reading:

Today’s Gospel gives us three parables to help us consider in depth our image of God. The image that a person has of God influences greatly his or her way of thinking and acting. For instance, the image of God as a severe judge frightens the person and renders that person too submissive and passive or rebellious and riotous. The image of God as patriarch or boss, was and is still used to legitimize relationships of power and dominion, in society and in the Church, in the family as well as in the community. In Jesus’ days, the idea that people had of God was of someone distant, severe, a judge who threatened with punishment. Jesus reveals a new image of God: God as Father, full of kindness for all and each one individually. This is what these thr ee parables want to communicate to us.

As you read, try to pause on each detail and, above all, let the words penetrate and challenge you. Try to discover what they have in common and try to compare this with your image of God. Only then, try to analyze the details of each parable: attitudes, actions, words, place, atmosphere, etc.

c) A division of the text to assist with the reading:

Luke 15:1-3: The key to the meaning of the three parables.

Luke 15:4-7: In the first parable, you are invited to find the lost sheep.

Luke 15:8-10: In the second parable, the woman tries to find the lost coin.

Luke 15:11-32: In the third parable, the father tries to find his lost son.

Luke 15:11-13: The decision of the younger son.

Luke 15:14-19: The frustration of the younger son and the will to go back to the father’s house.

Luke 15:20-24: The father’s joy in finding his younger son again.

Luke 15:25-28^b:The older son’s reaction.

Luke 15:28^a-30: The father’s attitude towards his older son and the son’s reply.

Luke 15:31-32: The father’s final reply.

c) Text:

Tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to listen to Jesus, but the Pharisees and scribes began to complain, saying, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.” So to them he addressed this parable. “What man among you having a hundred sheep and losing one of them would not leave the ninety-nine in the desert and go after the lost one until he finds it? And when he does find it, he sets it on his shoulders with great joy and, upon his arrival home, he calls together his friends and neighbors and says to them, ‘Rejoice with me because I have found my lost sheep.’ I tell you, in just the same way there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous people who have no need of repentance. “Or what woman having ten coins and losing one would not light a lamp and sweep the house, searching carefully until she finds it? And when she does find it, she calls together her friends and neighbors and says to them, ‘Rejoice with me because I have found the coin that I lost.’ In just the same way, I tell you, there will be rejoicing among the angels of God over one sinner who repents.” Then he said, “A man had two sons, and the younger son said to his father, ‘Father give me the share of your estate that should come to me.’ So the father divided the property between them. After a few days, the younger son collected all his belongings and set off to a distant country where he squandered his inheritance on a life of dissipation. When he had freely spent everything, a severe famine struck that country, and he found himself in dire need. So he hired himself out to one of the local citizens who sent him to his farm to tend the swine. And he longed to eat his fill of the pods on which the swine fed, but nobody gave him any. Coming to his senses he thought, ‘How many of my father’s hired workers have more than enough food to eat, but here am I, dying from hunger. I shall get up and go to my father and I shall say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I no longer deserve to be called your son; treat me as you would treat one of your hired workers.”’ So he got up and went back to his father. While he was still a long way off, his father caught sight of him, and was filled with compassion. He ran to his son, embraced him and kissed him. His son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you; I no longer deserve to be called your son.’ But his father ordered his servants, ‘Quickly bring the finest robe and put it on him; put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. Take the fattened calf and slaughter it. Then let us celebrate with a feast, because this son of mine was dead, and has come to life again; he was lost, and has been found.’ Then the celebration began. Now the older son had been out in the field and, on his way back, as he neared the house, he heard the sound of music and dancing. He called one of the servants and asked what this might mean. The servant said to him, ‘Your brother has returned and your father has slaughtered the fattened calf because he has him back safe and sound.’ He became angry, and when he refused to enter the house, his father came out and pleaded with him. He said to his father in reply, ‘Look, all these years I served you and not once did I disobey your orders; yet you never gave me even a young goat to feast on with my friends. But when your son returns, who swallowed up your property with prostitutes, for him you slaughter the fattened calf.’ He said to him, ‘My son, you are here with me always; everything I have is yours. But now we must celebrate and rejoice, because your brother was dead and has come to life again; he was lost and has been found.’”

3. A moment of prayerful silence

that the Word of God may penetrate and enlighten our life. 

4. Some questions

to help us in our personal reflection.

a) What pleased or struck you most in the three parables? Why?

b) What is the main point of the parable of the lost sheep?

c) What is the main point of the parable of the lost coin?

d) What is the younger son’s attitude and what image does he have of his father?

e) What is the older son’s attitude and what image does he have of his father?

f) What is the father’s attitude towards each of his sons? 

g) Do I identify with the younger or the older son? Why?

h) What do these three parables share in common?

i) Does our community reveal to others this love of God as Father that is full of kindness? 

5. For those who wish to go deeper into the theme

a) The context then and now:

The 15^th chapter of Luke’s Gospel holds a central place in Jesus’ long journey to Jerusalem. This journey begins in Luke 9:51 and ends in Luke 19:29. The 15^th chapter is like the top of the hill from which we can see the journey already traveled and the rest of the journey to come. It is the chapter of God’s warm kindness and mercy, themes that are Luke’s main concern. The communities must be a revelation of the face of this God for humanity. 

We have three parables here. Jesus’ parables have a precise purpose. These short stories taken from real life try to lead the listeners to reflect on their own life and discover there a particular aspect of God’s presence. In the parables there are two types of stories of life. Some stories are not normal and are not usual occurrences in daily life. For instance, the father’s goodness towards his younger son is not usual. Generally, fathers act much more severely towards children who behave like the younger son in the parable. Other stories are normal and are usual events in daily life, for instance the attitude of the woman who sweeps the house to look for the lost coin. As we shall see, these are different ways of urging people to think about life and about the presence of God in life.

b) A commentary on the text:

Luke 15:1-2: The key to the meaning of the three parables.

The three parables in chapter 15 are preceded by this information: "The tax collectors and sinners, however, were all crowding round to listen to Him, and the Pharisees and scribes complained saying, ‘This man welcomes sinners and eats with them!’" (Lk 15:1). On the one hand there are the sinners and publicans, on the other the Pharisees and scribes, and between the two groups stands Jesus. This was also happening in the 80’s when Luke was writing his Gospel. The pagans approached the communities, wanting to join and take part. Many of the brothers complained, saying that to welcome a pagan was against Jesus’ teaching. The parables helped them discern. In the three parables we notice the same concern: to show what must be done to regain what was lost: the lost sheep (Lk 15:4-7), the lost coin (Lk 15:8-10), the two lost sons (Lk 15:11-32).

Luke 15:3-7: In the first parable you are invited to recover the lost sheep. 

Jesus speaks to His listeners: “If one of you has a hundred sheep…”. He says “one of you”. This means that you are challenged! You, he, she, all of us are challenged! We are asked to challenge ourselves with the strange and unlikely story of the parable. Jesus asks, “Which one of you with a hundred sheep, if he lost one, would fail to leave the ninety-nine in the desert and go after the missing one till he found it?” What is your answer to Jesus’ question? The way the question is put, we understand that Jesus thinks the answer must be positive. But will it be so? Will it be positive? Would you run the risk of losing ninety-nine sheep in order to find the lost one? I hear a different reply in my heart: “I am very sorry, but I cannot do this. It would be silly to leave the ninety-nine sheep in the desert to find the lost one!” But God’s love is above all normal rules of behavior. Only God can do such a crazy thing, so strange, so out of the normal behavior of human beings. The background to this parable is the criticism of the scribes and Pharisees against Jesus (Lk 15:2). They considered themselves to be perfect and despised others, accusing them of being sinners. Jesus says: “I tell you, there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner repenting than over ninety-nine upright people who have no need of repentance”. In another place he says: “Tax collectors and prostitutes are making their way into the kingdom of God before you!” (Mt 21:31) According to Jesus, God is happier with the repentance of one sinner than with ninety-nine Pharisees and scribes. God is happier with the repentance of one atheist who never goes to church than with ninety-nine who consider themselves practicing and faithful Catholics and who despise atheists and prostitutes. This different image of God that Jesus presents to the doctors, Pharisees and all of us is quite disturbing!

Luke 15:8-10: In the second parable, the woman looks for the lost coin. 

This parable is different. The short story of the lost coin alludes to the normal behavior of poor women who do not have much money. The woman in the parable has only ten silver coins. In those days, a drachma was worth a day’s labor. For poor women, ten drachmas was a lot of money! That is why, if they lost one coin, they would look for it and sweep the whole house till they found it. When they did find it, they would be immensely happy. The woman in the parable talks to her neighbors: “Rejoice with me! I have found the drachma I had lost!” Poor people who were listening to the story would have said: “That’s right! That’s what we do at home! When we find the lost coin our joy is great!” Well, as comprehensible as the great as the joy of poor women is when they find the lost coin, much greater is God’s joy over one sinner who repents!

Luke 15:11-32: In the 3^rd parable, the father tries to meet again his two lost sons.

This parable is well known. It reminds us of things that happen in life as well as of other things that do not happen. The traditional title is “The Prodigal Son”. In fact, the parable does not speak only of the younger son, but describes the attitude of both sons, emphasizing the father’s effort to recover his two lost sons. The fact that Luke places this parable in the central chapter of his Gospel, tells us how important it is for the interpretation of the whole message contained in Luke’s Gospel.

Luke 15:11-13: The younger son’s decision.

A man had two sons. The younger son asks for his share of the inheritance. The father shares everything between them. Both the older son and the younger son receive their share. Inheriting something is no personal merit. It is a free gift. God’s bequest is shared as gifts with all human beings, Jews and pagans, Christians and non-Christians. All have some share in the Father’s bequest. Not all look after their share in the same way. Thus, the younger son goes off a long way and squanders his share by living a dissipated life and forgetting his father. There is no mention yet of the older son who also received his share. Later, we shall know that he goes on staying at home, carrying on his life as usual and working in the fields. In Luke’s time, the older son represented the communities that came from Judaism; the younger son represented communities that came from paganism. Today, who is the younger and who the older son? Or may be both exist in each one of us?

Luke 15:14-19: The frustration of the younger son and the decision to go back to the father’s house.

The need for food causes the younger son to lose his freedom and become a slave, looking after pigs. He is treated even worse than the pigs. This was this situation of millions of slaves in the Roman Empire in Luke’s day. This situation reminds the younger son of his father’s house: “How many of my father’s hired men have all the food they want and more, and here am I dying of hunger!” He sees his life for what it is and decides to go home. He even prepares his speech to his father: “I will leave this place and go to my father and say: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you; I no longer deserve to be called your son; treat me as one of your hired men!” A hired hand does what he is told, follows the law of servitude. The younger son wanted to follow the law, as the Pharisees and scribes wished to do in Jesus’ time (Lk 15:1). This is what the Pharisee missionaries imposed on the pagans they converted to the God of Abraham (Mt 23:15). In Luke’s time, Christians who came from Judaism wanted Christians who were converted from paganism to submit to the yoke of the law (Acts 15:1ff).

Luke 15:20-24: The father’s joy at seeing the younger son.

The parable says that the younger son was still a long way off from the house, but the father saw him, ran to him and kissed him tenderly. Jesus gives the impression that the father had been waiting all the time at the window, looking at the road, trying to see whether his son would appear on the road! To our way of feeling and thinking, the father’s joy seems to be overdone. He will not let his son finish his prepared speech. He does not listen! The father does not want his son to become a slave. He wants him to be a son! This is the great Good News that Jesus brings! A new robe, new sandals, a ring for his finger, a lamb, a feast! In this great joy at the meeting, Jesus gives us a glimpse of the father’s great sorrow at the loss of his son. God was very sad and now people begin to be aware of this when they see the father’s great joy at seeing his son once more! This joy is shared with all at the feast that the father orders to prepare.

Luke 15:25-28^b: The older son’s reaction.

The older son comes back from work in the fields and sees that there is a feast in the house. He does not go in. He wants to know what is going on. When he is informed of the reason for the feast, he feels very angry and will not go in. Closed in on himself, he only thinks of his rights. He does not approve of the feast and cannot understand his hather’s joy. This implies that he did not know his father well, even though they lived in the same house. Had he known his father, he would have been aware of the father’s great sorrow at the loss of the younger son and he would have understood his joy at his return. Anyone who is too concerned with observing the law of God runs the risk of forgetting God himself! The younger son, even though he was away from home, seems to know his father better than the older son who lived with him in the same house! Thus the younger son has the courage to go back to the father’s house, while the older son no longer wants to go into his father’s house! The older son does not want to be a brother, is not aware that without him, the father will lose his joy because he, too, is his son as is the younger son!

Luke 15:28^a-30: The father’s attitude towards his older son, and the older son’s reply. 

The father goes out of the house and begs his older son to go in. The son replies, “Look, all these years I have slaved for you and never once disobeyed your orders, yet you never offered so much as a kid for me to celebrate with my friends. But, for this son of yours, when he comes back after swallowing up your property – he and his women – you kill the calf we had been fattening!" The older son glories in his observance: “I have never once disobeyed your orders!” He too wants a feast and joy, but only with his friends. Not with his brother, not with his father. He does not mention his brother as such, he does not call him brother, but “this your son”, as if he were no longer his brother. It is he, the older brother, who speaks of prostitutes. It is his malice that interprets thus the life of his younger brother. How often does the older brother misinterpret his younger brother’s life! How often do Catholics misinterpret the life of others! The father’s attitude is different. He goes out of the house for both sons. He welcomes the younger brother, but does not want to lose the older brother. Both are part of the family. The one must not exclude the other!

Luke 15:31-32: The father’s final reply

Just as the father pays no attention to the arguments presented by the younger son, so also he pays no attention to the older son’s arguments and says to him, "My son, you are with me always and all I have is yours. But it was only right we should celebrate and rejoice, because your brother here was dead and has come to life; he was lost and is found!" Could it be that the older son was really aware of being always with the father and to find in his presence the cause of rejoicing? The father’s expression, “All I have is yours,” also includes the younger son who has come back! The older son has no right to make distinctions. If he wishes to be his father’s son, then he will have to accept him as he is not as he would like the father to be! The parable does not give us  the older son’s final answer. This concerns us, because we are all older brothers!

c) Further information:

The two economies: the Father’s House and the Master’s House

This parable is known as that of the prodigal son, and this implies the economic side of things. Prodigal means someone who spends freely, even though this is a secondary detail in the parable. Really, the main point of the text is found in the fact that the follower of Jesus will one day have to make a choice: the choice between the Father’s House or the system of sharing the master’s house or the system of accumulation.

The parable begins with a young man who asks the father to give him his share of the inheritance because he wants to leave home (Lk 15:12). To leave the father’s house requires that the person have the one thing the world readily accepts: money. Without money the young man could not face the world. But the young man was not mature enough to administer the money and goes on a life of debauchery (Lk 15:13). To make things worse, when he had spent all his money, he goes through difficult economic times, which, in biblical language, are always described by the word “hunger”. In the biblical world, famine exists when the economic structure has collapsed. So also the young man begins to be in need (Lk 15:14).

Difficulties faced generate maturity. The young man sees that he still needs money to survive in this world. So, for the first time in his life, he seeks employment (Lk 15:15). Thus he goes to the Master’s House who sends him to look after pigs. He is very hungry, his wages are not sufficient and he tries to satisfy his hunger by eating the food given to the pigs (Lk 15:16). Meanwhile, in the master’s house things are not so simple: the pigs’ food is for the pigs. The worker must eat from the wages he gets for his service. Thus the master’s concern is not his worker’s hunger but to fatten the pigs. The young man discovers that in the master’s house food is denied, not shared, not even the food given to the pigs. Each for himself!

From his experience in the master’s house, the young man begins to compare his present situation with that in his father’s house. In his father’s house the workers are not hungry because the bread is shared with all the workers. In the father’s house no one remains without food, not even the workers! The young man then decides to go back to his father’s house. Now he is sufficiently mature to know that he cannot be considered as son, so he asks his father for employment. In the father’s house the workers are not hungry because the bread is shared.

There are those who think that the son goes back because he is hungry. If so, his return would be opportunism. It is not this, but a choice for a particular kind of house. In the master’s house, nothing is shared, not even the pigs’ food. In the father’s house, no one is hungry because the mission of the father’s house is to “fill the hungry with good things” (Lk 1:53). Sharing is the thing that keeps hunger away in the father’s house. But the young man discovers this only because he is hungry in the master’s house. Comparing the two models, the young man makes his choice: he prefers to be a worker in the father’s house, a place of sharing, a place where no one goes hungry and all are satisfied. So he goes back to the father’s house asking to be one of the workers (Lk 15:17-20).

By putting this reflection at the heart of his Gospel, Luke is warning the Christian communities that are organizing themselves in the particular economic system of the Roman Empire. This system is symbolized in the parable by the master’s house, where pigs get more attention than workers, or, where investment is worth more than work. In the father’s house, or in the house of Christians, this system cannot rule. Christians must concentrate their lives on sharing their goods. The sharing of goods means breaking with the imperial system of domination. It means breaking with the master’s house. In the Acts of the Apostles we see that one of the beautiful characteristics of the Christian community lies in the sharing of goods (Acts 2:44-45; 3:6; 4:32-37).

Luke wants to remind us that the greatest sign of the Kingdom is the common table in the Father’s House, where there is room for all and where the bread is shared with all. To live in the Father’s House means to share everything at the common table of the community. No one may be excluded from this table. We are all called to share. As we are constantly reminded in our celebrations: no one is so poor that he or she cannot share something. And no one is so rich that he or she may not have something to receive. The common table is built on sharing by all. Thus the feast in the Father’s House will be eternal.

The three parables have something in common: joy and the feast. Anyone who experiences the free and surprising entrance of the love of God in his or her life will rejoice and will want to communicate this joy to others. God’s saving action is source of joy: “Rejoice with me!” (Lk 15:6.9) It is from this experience of God’s gratuity that the sense of feasting and joy is born (Lk 15:32). At the end of the parable, the father asks all to be joyful and to celebrate. The joy seems to be dampened by the older son who does not want to go in. He wants the right to celebrate only with his friends and does not want to celebrate with the other members of his human family. He represents those who consider themselves just and think that they do not need conversion. 

6. Praying a Psalm

Psalm 63(62): Your love is more than life 

God, You are my God, I pine for You; 

my heart thirsts for You, my body longs for You, 

as a land parched, dreary and waterless.

Thus I have gazed on You in the sanctuary, 

seeing Your power and Your glory.

Better Your faithful love than life itself; 

my lips will praise You.

Thus I will bless You all my life, 

in Your name lift up my hands.

All my longings fulfilled as with fat and rich foods, 

a song of joy on my lips and praise in my mouth.

On my bed when I think of You, 

I muse on You in the watches of the night,

for You have always been my help; 

in the shadow of Your wings I rejoice;

my heart clings to You, 

Your right hand supports me.

May those who are hounding me to death 

go down to the depths of the earth,

given over to the blade of the sword, 

and left as food for jackals.

Then the king shall rejoice in God, 

all who swear by him shall gain recognition, 

for the mouths of liars shall be silenced. 

7. Final Prayer

Lord Jesus, we thank You for the word that has enabled us to understand better the will of the Father. May your Spirit enlighten our actions and grant us the strength to practice what Your Word has revealed to us. May we, like Mary, Your mother, not only listen to but also practice the Word. You live and reign with the Father in the unity of the Holy Spirit forever and ever. Amen.