The Wisdom of the Prodigal Son

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."'

Our unlikely hero in this story, the Prodigal Son, displays a bit of wisdom that we never give him credit for. He knows that without a doubt not only he would be allowed back, he also knew without a doubt that he would be fed.  He had this faith based on his identity.  He was, after all, still a son to his father.  He knew that being the son would trump his bad behavior and he would receive a welcome.  Now, he was not sure what type of welcome he would receive, because after all, he did squander half of the wealth that his father had spent his life accumulating so while he knew he would be accepted, he was not sure how loving his reception would be.  He had that base covered as well.  He would play the humility card and ask to be treated not as a son but as a hired worker.  This plea was designed to melt the heart of a cross but still loving father.  We know the end of the story.  The boy's plan works and not only does he get to eat, he is accepted back as his father's son again.

This story is about me and you. All of us are in some ways like the prodigal son.  We go off on our own and walking under our own power we follow our eyes, ears, nose, and our sense of touch into places and situations that are not good for us.  We experience there what we wanted to experience and then comes the downside of the escapade, we are broken, we are humble, and we have squandered our inheritance for something that vanishes like smoke.  Some of us never recover. Some of us stay in the strange alien land far too long because we are afraid of the reception we might get if we returned home again.  We must set aside these concerns and remember that the Father is waiting and watching and will welcome us back the moment we acknowledge where we have been and what we have done.  Forgiveness is as close as the door of the confessional room in your church.  

You say that you confess your sins directly to Jesus and get forgiveness that way.  I am sure that forgiveness is there for you but the way Jesus wants us to do it is through the Church and through the priest who sits in Persona Christi.  It is not the priest that forgives sins, it is Christ working through the priest who distributes pardon and clemency no matter what the sin, no matter how serious the offense.  

What is it you fear about this wonderful sacrament of reconciliation?  Do you fear it because it has been so very long since you have approached the font of mercy that flows from the Sacred Heart of Jesus?  God does not live in time.  God lives in love which is ageless.  Approach without fear.  Are you afraid what your priest will think of you if you confess your sins to him?  Your priest, even if he is your twin brother, will not remember nor hold anything you say in the confessional against you.  God will not be surprised by what you confess, He knows everything that you have ever done and His hope is that you realize what you have done, accept His pardon and His graces and to start over again as one in His adopted family.   You say that you confess the same sin over and over again and you find this embarrassing?  Well, what do you want, forgiveness or a new sin to commit? Confessing repeat patterns of sin will obtain for you not condemnation but more graces to fight off the temptation the next time it occurs. 

Please, in this Lenten season, take stock of yourself.  Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to you the sins you have locked away and forgotten about and approach the sacrament with joy because you were once lost and now you are found. 

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And now a word from our sponsor, The Poor Souls in Purgatory.

Purgatory is a real place and many are those that inhabit it.  They need our prayers and our sacrifices.  Please pray for the Poor Souls as part of your Lenten journey.  It will mean so much to them. 

POPE FRANCIS ON PRAYING FOR THE SOULS IN PURGATORY

Pope Francis teaches that:

Even now we experience a communion between the Church on earth and the Church in heaven through our union with those who have died. The souls in heaven assist us with their prayers, while we assist the souls in purgatory through our good works, prayer, and participation in the Eucharist. As members of the Church then, the distinction is not between who has died and who is living, but rather who is in Christ and who is not …

There is a deep and indissoluble bond between those who are still pilgrims in this world — us — and those who have crossed the threshold of death and entered eternity. All baptized persons here on earth, the souls in Purgatory and all the blessed who are already in Paradise make one great Family. This communion between earth and heaven is realized especially in intercessory prayer.

TEACHINGS OF POPE ST. JOHN PAUL II ON THE SOULS IN PURGATORY

Pope St. John Paul II also encouraged prayers for the dead:

Joined to the merits of the saints, our fraternal prayer comes to the aid of those who await the beatific vision. Intercession for the dead, just as the life of those living according to the divine commandments, obtains the merits that serve the full attainment of salvation. It is an expression of the fraternal charity of the one family of God, by which “we are faithful to the Church’s deepest vocation” (Lumen Gentium, n. 51): “to save souls who will love God eternally” (Thérèse of Lisieux, Prayers, 6; cf. Manuscript A 77rº). For the souls in purgatory, waiting for eternal happiness and for meeting the Beloved is a source of suffering, because of the punishment due to sin which separates them from God. But there is also the certitude that once the time of purification is over, the soul will go to meet the One it desires (cf. Ps 42; 62) …

I encourage Catholics to pray fervently for the dead, for their family members and for all our brothers and sisters who have died, that they may obtain the remission of the punishments due to their sins and may hear the Lord’s call: “Come, O my dear soul, to eternal repose in the arms of my goodness, which has prepared eternal delights for you” (Francis de Sales, Introduction to the Devout Life, 17, 4)”

TEN WAYS TO PRAY FOR THE HOLY SOULS IN PURGATORY

It is appropriate to commemorate All Souls Day by praying for those who have gone before us in faith. Here are ten ways we can pray for our deceased friends and relatives, and for all our brothers and sisters who have died in Christ.

1. Pray the Novena to the Holy Souls by St. Alphonsus Liguori.
    
2. Offer up your Holy Communions for the souls in purgatory.
    
3. Have Masses said for your departed loved ones, especially on the anniversary of his or her death.
    
4. Pray the Divine Mercy Chaplet for the intention of the Holy Souls.
    
5. Eucharistic Adoration: visit the Blessed Sacrament to make acts of reparation to the Sacred Heart of Jesus on behalf of those in purgatory.
    
6. Sacrifices: practice small acts of self-denial throughout your day and offer these penances up for the poor souls.
    
7. Give alms: The giving of material assistance to the poor has always been considered a penance that can be offered for the Holy Souls. “For almsgiving saves from death, and purges all sin” (Tobit 12:9).
    
8. Ask for the intercession of saints who were known to be great friends of the Holy Souls during their lifetime to join you in prayer for the faithful departed: St. Nicholas of Tolentino, St. Gertrude the Great, St. Catherine of Genoa, St. Padre Pio, St. Philip Neri, St. John Macías, St. Faustina Kowalska, St. Joseph, Our Lady, and others.
    
9. When passing by a cemetery: Pray the short Eternal Rest prayer: “Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord. And let the perpetual light shine upon them. And may the souls of all the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen.”
    
10. Pray to earn indulgences for the holy souls:  On all the days from November 1 to November 8, a plenary indulgence, applicable only to the Poor Souls, is granted to those who visit a cemetery and pray, even if only mentally, for the departed (standard requirements for indulgences apply*). Partial indulgences are granted to those who recite Lauds or Vespers of the Office of the Dead, and to those who recite the prayer, “Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord and let perpetual light shine upon them. May they rest in peace”.