March 30, 2025
During the season of Lent we have the opportunity to review our walk, God our father is always waiting for us, if we deviate, if we stray from his plan or his project, for God it is never too late, he is waiting.
On this fourth Sunday of Lent, Jesus speaks to us through the parable of the Prodigal son. In this parable there are three characters: the father represents God, the older son represents the Pharisee and the younger son represents the sinner, the human being.
The father fulfilled the desire of the younger son by delivering the inheritance he asked for, God does not deny, he allows what a son decides. The squandering of his father’s inheritance, led him to be left with nothing, he had to find a way to defend himself, to work in the time of crisis; but the younger son recognizes the mistake, and makes him decide to return to the father, recognizing that he has sinned, so he must ask to be forgiven and that he no longer deserves to be a son, but as an employee, this means that he recognizes that he has made a mistake, humility is the virtue that allows us to recognize our mistakes.
In this time of Lent, it is a propitious time to review our life, how are we walking, what do we ask the father? We must recognize that we will experience God’s mercy and forgiveness when we humbly approach Him and ask for forgiveness.
In the parable, we find the contradiction between the two brothers, but the father’s plan is to save the one who walked away, this is God’s will for mankind, to wait, to wait for us to come to our senses and return to the beginning, to trust in the goodness of the one who gives us tenderness, which is received if one returns with humility, God receives us with open arms.
When returning to the Father, we find the feeling that is the fruit of love, the son who had gone away, he did not go out to look for him, but he was waiting for him, it is not the indifference of a demanding father, to ask for an account or to ignore him, on the contrary, when he realized the arrival, he was happy, he welcomed him, he manifests his affection, he embraces him as a father, he celebrates his return, he dresses him with new clothes, he puts him a ring and new sandals, all this has its meaning, because that son who was lost, has returned to life. He receives him in this way as a gesture of his love, mercy and forgiveness. The attitude of the Father, shows mercy to the one who recognizes his sin, today we are also invited to review our life, recognize our faults and return to the Father, the gospel reminds us of the opportunity to recognize our sin and ask for forgiveness, trusting in the mercy of our good father and mother God who is love.
Through the parable, Jesus illuminates our walk, invites us to see our life, how we act, to recognize the love of God through the people who are close to us, who surround us, the example of the son who made a mistake, but who went back, invites us to see our action, if we move away from what God expects from us, we must recognize our fault, return and ask for forgiveness. Let us be certain that God is always waiting for us with His arms outstretched, ready to forgive us, because He is mercy. Let us ask God to show us the route that returns us to his presence.
Sister Juliana Gómez Par
Community of Lancetillo, Guatemala
Province of St. Martin de Porres
