“…(he) went to his father. But while he was still far off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion; he ran and put his arms around him and kissed him.” (Luke 15:20)
A text came to me early one morning from a former parishioner. He was a young adult in the 1990’s. I knew him and his family well. I married him and his wife years later. Since then he and his wife have had two sons. He was, for want of a better word, desperate. “How do I relate to my prodigal son?” was his message.
We talked on the phone. My friend’s son was raised in the family that regards all people as beloved children of God, and within a church with the same message. But after he became a Marine, he had become aligned with Trump. His son was often desperate for money and my friend had refused to pay toward his huge truck which his prodigal son had purchased when he didn’t have a job. So he didn’t talk much to his father. Sometimes he talked to or texted his mother.
“How do I stay in relationship with my son?” After we talked, I realized my friend is the prodigal father. Prodigal means to give in abundance, lavishly. As long as my friend believes his son is “prodigal,” it means that my friend has an open and accepting place in his heart for him, making him prodigal as well. He longs for when they can talk, be much closer to each other, and be a whole family again.
I always imagined the father in the Lucan story went out to his mailbox each day at the end of the lane (I know, they didn’t have mailboxes) and looked both ways down the road to see if his son was coming home…until one day, he came home. The father put his arms around him and hugged him, unconditionally welcoming him into the family.
My friend, the prodigal father, is longing for his prodigal son to come home. May it be so.
Prayer: Prodigal God, give us your prodigious heart to love unconditionally those in our lives that are so hard to love, to forgive, accept, and to bring to our table of forgiveness. Amen
Sally Dyck