THE PRODIGAL SON
Cornelius Afebu Omonokhua
A clear study and meditation on
the 15th chapter of the gospel of Luke presents dialogue in
different forms. Dialogue leads to choices whether good or bad. The people of
Etsako have a saying that “if you do not allow a child to make a choice, the
child will develop swollen cheeks”. Very often, one thinks that what one has
not acquired is a piece of gold. Insatiability of human wants perhaps led Adam
Smith to develop the economic theories of scale of preference and opportunity
cost. Freedom to choose may lead to healing, reconciliation and salvation.
However, making a wrong choice can lead to pains and misery.
In the story of the prodigal son,
we can identify intra-personal dialogue in the life of the prodigal son, the
father and the elder brother of the prodigal son. The characters are not given
proper names because the parable applies to the generic person. In the same
parable, we discover intra-personal dialogue, inter-personal dialogue and
intra-family dialogue in the prodigal son, the Father and the elder brother. In
the parable, we observe that “there was a man who had two sons.
The younger one said to his father, ‘Father, give me my share
of the estate.’ So he divided his property between them” (Luke 15, 11-12).
In some cultures
in Africa, the properties of the father were entrusted to the first son. It was
presumed that the first son would take up the responsibilities of the younger
ones. Perhaps this was also the practise in the Palestinian world and the
prodigal son did not trust the elder brother. It is also possible to postulate
that the prodigal son wanted the father dead or was feeling insecure should the
father die. Whatever may be the reason, the fact remains that the prodigal son
made a demand. In this first episode of the dialogue, the father did not offer
any counsel as regards the implications and unforeseen consequences of the
demand of the younger son. As it were, the father simply obliged him. It
appears that the father knows the children very well and trusted that the prodigal
son may one day come to his senses so he divided his property between them
(Luke 15, 12).
Here is the action and
consequences of the prodigal son in the gospel of Luke. “Not
long after that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant
country and there squandered his wealth in wild living. After
he had spent everything, there was a severe famine in that whole country, and
he began to be in need. So he went and hired himself out
to a citizen of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed pigs. He longed to fill his stomach with the pods that the pigs were
eating, but no one gave him anything ((Luke 15, 13-16).
Suffering can
lead to introspection, self discovery,
examination of conscience and self awareness. Intra-personal dialogue is a process of
personal debriefing. It takes a good heart and a well train conscience to
rediscover the self in humility. Now, here is the intra-personal dialogue of
the prodigal son when he came to his senses: “How many of my father’s hired
servants have food to spare, and here I am starving to death!” He takes a
decision: “I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I
have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called
your son; make me like one of your hired servants. So he got up and went to his
father” (Luke 15, 17-18).
It is difficult
for parents to erase their children completely from their minds. It appears
that the father was praying and longing to see the prodigal son back again.
This is reflected in the way and manner he received the prodigal son back home.
“But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with
compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed
him.” Immediately, the decision, sincerity and openness is captured in the
following inter-personal dialogue between father and son. “The son said to him,
‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to
be called your son.’
The father was
not interested in too much talk because he could have perceived the honesty of
the son. “But the father said to his servants, ‘Quick! Bring
the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his
feet. 23 Bring
the fattened calf and kill it. Let’s have a feast and celebrate. For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is
found.’ So they began to celebrate (Luke 15, 19-24). It is interesting that the
father did not scold the prodigal son. He did not disown the boy. Here the
lesson is that the human person is more important than any material
acquisition. The father ignored all forms of jurisprudence. He allowed love to
take the place of law. The return of the son was not the time to apportion
blames; it was the time to celebrate.
This celebration
could not bring perfect peace without the bigger picture of the family. There
was need for intra-community dialogue to ensure that every body accepts the
peace initiative. This brings us to the reaction of the elder son who was out
in the field. “When he came near the house, he heard music and dancing. So he called one of the servants and asked him what
was going on. ‘Your brother has come,’ he replied, ‘and
your father has killed the fattened calf because he has him back safe and
sound.’ “The elder brother became angry and refused to go in. So his father
went out and pleaded with him. But he answered his
father, ‘Look! All these years I’ve been slaving for you and never disobeyed
your orders. Yet you never gave me even a young goat so I could celebrate with
my friends. But when this son of yours who has
squandered your property with prostitutes comes home, you kill the fattened
calf for him!’ “‘My son,’ the father said, ‘you are always
with me, and everything I have is yours. 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’” (Luke 15, 25-32)
Interesting, can we say here that
the elder brother was jealous? While his father operated on the principle of
mercy, the son demanded justice. Perhaps he had a legal mind and wants the
prodigal son punished for his crime. In this parable, we can locate the cross
in the way and manner God loves his creatures. If God were to mark our guilt,
no one would survive. Here we can also reflect on the attitude of God’s
children according to the religious traditions. The first son could be the Jews
while the prodigal son could be the Gentiles. In the contemporary world
however, this parable could apply to the Christian tradition that emphasizes
mercy over and above justice whereas some other religious traditions emphasize
justice thereby promoting vengeance and self defence.
For Christ, God requires mercy
and not sacrifice. Therefore, our interior conversion through intra-personal
dialogue is enough to restore the sinner to the love of the Creator. The
repentance of the prodigal son in a distanced country was enough to win back
his father’s love. The
father gave the prodigal son “shoes”, a sign of acceptance as a son
and not a hired servant. He was given a “robe”, a sign that he remains a
precious son. He was given a “ring”, a sign of royalty and
freedom.
This act of love, mercy and
compassion of God was demonstrated by Jesus when he protected the woman caught
in adultery against the crowd who wanted to stone her. According to Dr. Kenneth Bailey
who lived and taught in the Middle East for over 40 years, Jesus’ costly
demonstration of unexpected love has the power to change the heart forever. Can
we locate the action of the Federal government of Nigeria in the state pardon
granted to some Nigerians who have been accused of corruption in the context of
the prodigal son? Could it be true that this people granted pardon have come to
their senses and have resolved to be better citizens of Nigeria with a sincere
change of attitude? While some people clamour for the law to take its course,
we may still remember the saying of William Shakespeare that “there is no act
to find the mind construction on the face”.
No comments:
Post a Comment