Last Sunday presents the Parable of the Prodigal Son; many call it the parable of divine mercy. The Gospel today; carries the same theme where we draw closer to the heart of the mystery of mercy. Jesus shows mercy in action with the story of the woman caught in adultery.

1. In the story of the prodigal son, the father condemned not the returning son who asks for forgiveness. And when the older son arrives, the father tries to convince and win his heart to extend mercy towards the younger brother.

Lk 15:1-3, 11-32

The Gospel today is about the Parable of the Prodigal Son. In the parable, a father had two sons, and the younger claims his inheritance in advance. But know that in Jewish custom, the first-born by right inherits most of the wealth.

The older son - based on the cultural standard at that time pictures an ideal son. He is obedient and works hard even if he is guaranteed a double share of the inheritance. But he shall acknowledge the first son by giving him a double portion of all that he owns; for he is the first-fruits of his strength, the right of the first-born is his. (Dt. 21:17).

The action of the younger son appears selfish and insulting to the father. When he asks for an early distribution of inheritance, he insults and disrespects his honor and authority. His desire for independence dishonors and neglects the needs of the aging father.

After receiving his share, he proceeds to squander everything on a life of debauchery in another country. The parable shows a sad reality; from the same root, the two sons grew to be different in their values and the direction of their life. Many families, like soil, from the same dirt, grow fruits of every kind.

Scriptures provide us with hundreds of proofs that God’s mercy knows no bounds. In the New Testament, the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross and His resurrection makes evident His love and power over sin and death. The forgiveness of sins is possible through the Paschal Mystery and the mediation of the Church. Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain are retained (Jn. 20:23). God forgives sins, and He never tires forgiving sins. But it is in the sacrament of reconciliation that He forgives sins, and He completely blots out all our offenses. Jesus is the Divine Mercy; through the absolution, the priest gives in the Sacrament of Penance - restores the penitent to the grace to act with charity, and grow in love with Him.

In the Old Testament, many consider Abraham as the Father of Faith. The first reading narrates the story of God choosing Abram, later to Abraham, and the promise God made to provide him and his descendants both progeny and land. Although childless and now over seventy-five years old, Abraham responds with great faith because this is how he built his friendship with God. God establishes a covenant with Abraham, whose descendants would be as numerous as the number of stars in the sky. Despite being without a child at that time, Abraham believed. The faith of Abraham is the faith we received as his spiritual descendants.