……from your Pastor’s Desk
Today’s Gospel is the story of the Prodigal Son. We all know it. Maybe we’ve all been that child one time or another.
I doubt any of us would want to be judged by one incident or one ‘part’ of our lives ruled by bad decisions.
However, we must not gloss over or deny them either. We need to learn from not only our mistakes, but also the mistakes of others.
Mistakes: We ALL make them.
We are told time and again to be ‘forgiving’. And ‘that’ we should be. However, when we see a person that is in the ‘throes’ of sin – we need to be real about it. And, also acknowledge that that is not all there is to that person. They started out well. Babies don’t sin. They were once the ‘apple’ of their mother’s and father’s eye.
We must also look to their future, that is, if repentant – what that person could become. A restored child of God – seeking God’s Will and not their own. Building up the Kingdom, rather than tearing it down – person by person.
So, let’s be real – evil does exist in the world. And some people have invited it into their lives. But that doesn’t mean it has to stay there.
In following the Lord’s way of being Loving and Forgiving, we can be merciful, as God our Father is merciful. We can help them ‘return home’ and be the best they can be, again.
Father Ron
