Luke, Chapter 15

In answer to those who criticized Jesus because He was seen fraternizing with sinners, He relates the parable of the two sons, recorded in chapter fifteen of Luke’s gospel. I say the parable of the two sons because this extraordinary story is commonly referred to as the parable of only one son; namely, the prodigal son. But there are two sons in the story. The younger son’s vice was to squander his inheritance on loose living; the older son’s vice was withholding forgiveness on account of the younger son’s weakness. Which of these two sons, do you think, committed the greatest sin?

This parable could just as well be called the parable of the prodigal father, if by prodigal we mean lavish rather than wasteful. The father in the story represents God’s generosity or lavishness towards both his sons who were the objects of his unconditional forgiveness.

The younger son lost everything he had through irresponsible and dissolute living. Yet, the father received him back, unconditionally, after he repented of his former life-style. The older son, on the other hand, would not forgive his younger brother for his sinful past. The gospel says that the older son “became angry” and “refused to enter the house” even when “his father came out and pleaded with him” to join in the festivities, celebrating the younger son’s return.

What then are we to make of this parable about the father and his two sons?
Remember this parable was addressed by Jesus to the self-righteous Pharisees and Scribes who were critical of him for fraternizing with sinners. The two sons represent two types of sinners: those, like the younger son (the majority of people) who fall from grace through human weakness; and those, like the older son (self-righteous people) who also fall from grace because they think they are without sin.

It is natural for people to interpret this parable as referring only to the younger son because of its emotional appeal to our need for  reconciliation with the father, in spite of human weakness. This, of course, is commendable but is not the whole story. What of the older son who was angry and jealous of the younger son and refused to be reconciled with him?

The younger son in the parable, who repented of his sins, was reconciled. The older son, who could not bring himself to forgive the younger son, was not reconciled. The older son’s self-righteous behavior reminds me of the behavior of the Pharisee vis-à-vis the publican who was praying in the temple (Luke 18: 9-14 ). The Pharisee, who thought he was without sin, condemned the publican in the temple who, humbly, confessed his sin.

The Lord reserves the harshest criticism for self-righteous people, saying that “tax collectors and prostitutes” will enter heaven before them. He regards self-righteousness as greater than sins of the flesh because it is a sin of pride that corrupts the spiritual life within. In Luke, chapter 15, we are confronted with the human weakness of the younger son who repented, and the self-righteousness of the older son who could not repent.

Fr. Hugh Duffy