Model of the Penitent

The Prodigal Son
is the model for today's penitent

Without a trace of weakness or imprudence, the father in the parable of the Prodigal Son gives his sons a part of their inheritance. The younger son had requested that this be done; and when he had received his share, he set out for another country. There he squandered his wealth. When a famine struck this land, there was nothing for him to do other than to tend swine. Among the Jews this was the most ignoble occupation a man could have. These swine were fed the fruit of the carob tree, which was a pod so unpleasant to taste that even the poorest of people would not eat them; yet this boy had so little to eat that he would gladly have eaten what the swine ate, if the keepers had allowed it.
The boy repented of all that he had done and started for home, where he intended to ask his father's forgiveness and for a place among the hired servants. The Gospel gives ample detail of the warm welcome the boy received and the signs of honor that were given to him.
If it should ever be our misfortune to take our substance, the gifts of God in our nature and through His grace, and go to a place far from God, into the state of serious sin, we have the word of God that He is anxious to welcome us home and to make us His well-beloved sons. He will clothe us once again with innocence through Confession and Holy Communion.

". . . this my son was dead, and has come to life again"
Luke 15:24

All saints are penitents; all saints have shown great contrition for whatever sins they have ever committed. But some saints are well known precisely for having abandoned a life of sin and dedicated themselves to God.
saint augustine (354-430) was born in Tagaste, near Algiers, of a pagan father, who received Baptism only on his deathbed, and a holy mother, Monica. This saintly mother instructed her son in the fundamentals of religion, but he lost his faith and began a life of serious sin before the time when he would have been baptized. Throughout his many years of sin, Monica prayed for Augustine; finally, in 386, he found his faith again and received Baptism from Saint Ambrose on Holy Saturday, 387. Augustine dedicated the remainder of his life to God. As a priest and as Bishop of Hippo in North Africa, he wrote and preached extensively. He earned both eminent sanctity and the reputation of being one of the greatest Doctors of Christianity.
saint margaret of cortona (1247-1297) was a native of Laviano in Tuscany. She lost her mother in death when she was seven, and her unsympathetic stepmother deprived her of a mother's love and of religious training. When she was eighteen a young nobleman promised to marry her, but kept her instead as his mistress for nine years, giving her a son, but never marrying her. One day she came upon the body of her murdered lover; the shock of it turned her to God. She traveled to Cortona and placed herself under the direction of the Franciscans. The remainder of her life was one of penance and virtuous living. She died in Cortona with the happiness of having converted many sinners to God.

Parables of God's Mercy

Chapter 71
LUKE 15:1-16:13
When the scribes and pharisees complained that Jesus consorted with sinners, He told them these parables, illustrating His love and compassion:
"What man of you having a hundred sheep, and losing one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the desert, and go after that which is lost, until he finds it? And when he has found it, he lays it upon his shoulders rejoicing. And on com­ing home he calls together his friends and neighbors, saying to them, 'Rejoice with me, because I have found my sheep that was lost.' I say to you that, even so, there will be joy in heaven over one sinner who repents, more than over ninety-nine just who have no need of repentance.
"Or what woman, having ten drachmas, if she loses one drachma, does not light a lamp and sweep the house and search carefully until she finds it? And when she has found it, she calls together her friends and neighbors, saying 'Rejoice with me, for I have found the drachma that I had lost.' Even so, I say to you, there will be joy among the angels of God over one sinner who repents."
Finally, He told them the parable of a prodigal son:
"A certain man had two sons. And the younger of them said to his father, 'Father, give me the share of the property that falls to me.' And he divided his means between them.
"And not many days later, the younger son gathered up all his wealth, and took his journey into a far country; and there he squandered his fortune in loose living. And after he had spent all, there came a grievous famine over that country, and he began himself to suffer want. And he went and joined one of the citizens of that country, who sent him to his farm to feed swine. And he longed to fill himself with the pods that the swine were eating, but no one offered to give them to him.
"But when he came to himself, he said, 'How many hired men in my father's house have bread in abundance, while I am perishing here with hunger! I will get up and go to my father, and will say to him, Father, I have sinned against heaven and before thee. I am no longer worthy to be called thy son; make me as one of thy hired men.' And he arose and went to his father.
"But while he was yet a long way off, his father saw him and was moved with compassion, and ran and fell upon his neck and kissed him. And the son said to him, 'Father, I have sinned against heaven and before thee. I am no longer worthy to be called thy son.' But the father said to his servants, 'Fetch quickly the best robe and put it on him, and give him a ring for his finger and sandals for his feet; and bring out the fat­tened calf and kill it, and let us eat and make merry; because this my son was dead, and has come to life again; he was lost, and is found.' And they began to make merry.
"Now his elder son was in the field; and as he came and drew near to the house, he heard music and dancing. And calling one of the servants he inquired what this meant. And he said to him, Thy brother has come, and thy father has killed the fattened calf, because he has got him back safe.' But he was angered and would not go in.
"His father, therefore, came out and began to entreat him. But he answered and said to his father, 'Behold, these many years I have been serving thee, and have never transgressed one of thy commands; and yet thou has never given me a kid that I might make merry with my friends. But when this son comes, who has devoured his means with harlots, thou hast killed for him the fattened calf.'
"But he said to him, 'Son, thou art always with me, and all that is mine is thine; but we were bound to make merry and rejoice, for this thy brother was dead, and has come to life; he was lost, and is found.' "
When He was alone with the disciples, He related another parable, concerning the proper use of material wealth.
"There was a certain rich man who had a steward, who was reported to him as squandering his possessions. And he called him and said to him, 'What is this I hear of thee? Make an ac­counting of thy stewardship, for thou canst be steward no longer.'
"And the steward said within himself, 'What shall I do, see­ing that my master is taking away the stewardship from me? To dig I am not able; to beg I am ashamed. I know what I shall do, that when I am removed from my stewardship they may receive me into their houses.' And he summoned each of his master's debtors and said to the first, 'How much dost thou owe my master?' And he said, 'A hundred jars of oil.' He said to him, 'Take thy bond and sit down at once and write fifty.' Then he said to another, 'How much dost thou owe?' He said, 'A hundred kors of wheat.' He said to him, 'Take thy bond and write eighty.'
"And the master commended the unjust steward, in that he had acted prudently; for the children of this world, in relation to their own generation, are more prudent than the children of the light. And I say to you, make friends for yourselves with the mammon of wickedness, so that when you fail they may receive you into the everlasting dwellings. He who is faithful in a very little thing is faithful also in much; and he who is unjust in a very little thing is unjust also in much. Therefore, if in the case of the wicked mammon you have not proved faithful, who will entrust to you what is true? And if in the case of what belongs to another you have not proved faithful, who will give you what is your own? No servant can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will stand by the one and despise the other. You can­not serve God and mammon."

All of these parables teach the unwearying solicitude of God for man's salvation. He Who is the Giver of eternal life appreciates its loss more than any creature ever can, and hence is eager to help man achieve this goal until the will is sealed in death and can no longer choose. In this life, pardon for our sins and eternal life can always be ob­tained. There is no reason ever to despair. Have I a firm grasp of this important truth?

Jesus Enters Perea

Chapter 70
MATT. 10:37-39; 19:1-2; MARK l0:1; LUKE 14:1-35; JOHN 10:40-42
Having crossed the jordan, Jesus traveled north through Perea. He seems to have spent some time in Bethany, the most notable of the Perean towns, and He tarried for a while in the Jordan Valley near Salim, where John the Baptist had bap­tized. He preached as He journeyed; and the sick were brought to Him, and He healed them. The people remarked, with re­gard to these miracles, that John himself had performed no miraculous works, but that what he had told them of Jesus was indeed true. And many who saw and heard Jesus believed in Him.

One Sabbath day when Jesus was a dinner guest in the house of a Pharisee leader, there happened to be a man pres­ent who was afflicted with dropsy, an abnormal accumulation of fluid in the tissues, with resultant swellings. Jesus observed the man's plight, and knowing the lawyers and Pharisees were watching to catch Him in some breach of the Law, He said to these hypocritical rigorists:
"Is it lawful to cure on the Sabbath?"
When they did not answer, He healed the man and dis­missed him. Then He said:
"Which of you shall have an ass or an ox fall into a pit, and will not immediately draw him up on the Sabbath?"
Jesus had put this same question to the Pharisees in Galilee, when He cured the man with the withered hand. And now, as then, they remained silent.
Noticing the concern of the guests about getting the more honorable places at the table, Jesus said:
"When thou art invited to a wedding feast, do not recline in the first place, lest perhaps one more distinguished than thou have been invited by him, and he who invited thee and him come and say to thee, 'Make room for this man'; and then thou begin with shame to take the last place. But when thou art invited, go and recline in the last place; that when he who invited thee comes in, he may say to thee, 'Friend, go up higher!' Then thou wilt be honored in the presence of all who are at table with thee. For everyone who exalts himself shall be humbled, and he who humbles himself shall be exalted."
Continuing in the same vein, Jesus said to His host, the Pharisee leader:
"When thou givest a dinner or a supper, do not invite thy friends, or thy brethren, or thy relatives, or thy rich neighbors, lest perhaps they also invite thee in return, and a recompense be made to thee. But when thou givest a feast, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind; and blessed shalt thou be, because they have nothing to repay thee with; for thou shalt be repaid at the resurrection of the just."
Taking up this reference to the "resurrection of the just," one of the other guests who were at the table with Jesus re­marked to Him:
"Blessed is he who shall feast in the kingdom of God."
And Jesus replied with another parable, showing that the Jews, the first invited to enter His kingdom, had rejected His invitation and would be replaced by others:
"A certain man gave a great supper, and he invited many. And he sent his servant at supper time to tell those invited to come, for everything is now ready. And they all with one ac­cord began to excuse themselves. The first said to him, 'I have bought a farm, and I must go out and see it; I pray thee hold me excused.' And another said, 'I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I am on my way to try them; I pray thee hold me excused.' And another said, 'I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come.'
"And the servant returned, and reported these things to his master. Then the master of the house was angry and said to his servant, 'Go out quickly into the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in here the poor, and the crippled, and the blind, and the lame.' And the servant said, 'Sir, thy order has been carried out, and still there is room.' Then the master said to the servant, 'Go out into the highways and hedges, and make them come in, so that my house may be filled. For I tell you that none of those who were invited shall taste of my supper.' "
On one occasion, when large crowds were following Jesus, He turned to the people and said:
"If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother, and wife and children, and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be My disciple. And he who does not carry his cross and follow Me, cannot be My disciple.
"For which of you, wishing to build a tower, does not sit down first and calculate the outlays that are necessary, whether he has the means to complete it? Lest, after he has laid the foundation and is not able to finish, all who behold begin to mock him, saying, 'This man began to build and was not able to finish!'
"Or what king setting out to engage in battle with another king, does not sit down first and consider whether he is able with ten thousand men to meet him who with twenty thousand is coming against him? Or else, whilst the other is yet at a dis­tance, he sends a delegation and asks the terms of peace. So, therefore, every one of you who does not renounce all that he possesses, cannot be My disciple.
"Salt is good; but if even the salt loses its strength, what shall it be seasoned with? It is fit neither for the land nor for the manure heap, but must be thrown out. He who has ears to hear, let him hear."

All men love self too much. All our life long we must fight against this tendency to seek always our own good, our own material ad­vantage and comfort. In struggling for this conquest over self-interest, we may some­times deceive ourselves as to our motives; even when we ex­amine and assess our actions, the motive of self-love may be behind them and may make their real purpose difficult to dis­cern. Even my attempt to humble myself before my fellowmen "by taking the last place" could be motivated by the hope that their attention would be arrested and that subsequently I would be still more honored. Do I really scrutinize the mo­tives behind my actions?