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Good morning.Ìý I’m forever losing things - keys, gloves, umbrellas and, on one memorable occasion, my way back to the holiday apartment in Venice. It’s a universal human experience and I think that’s why stories about lostness stick with us. Three of the most memorable parables told by Jesus live on because the situations described - a lost sheep, a lost coin, and a lost son -Ìý are so recognisable.

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The story of the Lost Son introduces us to two sons, the younger of whom demands his inheritance. On receiving his share, he leaves and squanders it, eventually finding himself hungry and alone in a far country. He returns home, hoping for forgiveness. Meanwhile, his older brother has faithfully worked for his father and fully expects that everything will be one day be his.

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As the younger son trudges back towards the house, his father catches sight of him and runs to welcome the prodigal, showering him with gifts and ordering that a banquet be prepared.

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But the story doesn’t end there.Ìý

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The older brother is bitterly angry, and the parable concludes with his father pleading with him to join the party.

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‘But we had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’

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We are left wondering if the older son relented and joined in, or if he refused to see his father’s point of view. We don’t know if the brothers were reconciled. We may even ask which of the two was ‘lost’ - the one who owned his mistakes and was welcomed back, or the one who seethed with resentment.

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It’s a story that makes me ponder, and leaves me thankful for the love of a heavenly father who welcomes the prodigals and the faithful equally.

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Heavenly Father, Thank you that you love us regardless of how we have responded to your generosity towards us. Forgive us any resentment we hold towards other people. Let us live at peace. Amen.

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