In today’s parable Jesus speaks about the relationship of the Father with two sons, one would say always yes to the father and the other would say very often no to the father. We experience similar behaviour in our daily life. Some people say always yes to every request and try to please others; but in reality they do not do according to their promises. We can not trust such people.
In the gospel of Luke we read a similar parable of two sons: the story of the younger son and the elder son of the loving father.
There are people who are not able to say no to any request. They burden themselves and others. It belongs to being human that we have to say sometimes no to certain things and certain persons. For many people this is not an easy thing to learn. There are many professionally written books on the theme how to say no and where one should say no in order to protect oneself and others.
In today’s parable it is not the story of people who have not learnt to say no, but about people whom we can trust and who are reliable. It deals with the readiness to do the duty and to fulfill the will of the father in which one says immediately yes and inspire others, but do not keep their words and the other who says no to the requests due to different reasons, but regret about its words and decisions and then do the duties and fulfil the will of its dear ones or authorities.
We experience it in our daily life in the family or in the place of work. This parable of two sons give the message that that it is not words but actions that count. To promote the community and to strengthen relationships we should prove ourselves through our deeds.
This is compared to our relationship with God. Jesus means that the one who said no to the father and later regretted and followed the will of the father is better that the other who said yes and did not follow the father. Those who speak and behave well as opportunists are not acceptable for God. God counts the act, not the pleasing words.
Through this parable Jesus tells the Jews that the so called sinners and the marginalised are seen better before God than the Pharisees and Sadducees.
Jesus tells them directly that the sinners have more chance to enter the kingdom of God than the Pharisees and Sadducees. That was a shock for the leaders of the Jewish community that the sinners, tax collectors and the prostitutes would enter the kingdom of God. Jesus made accusations against the leaders of the people of God. But they did not want to tolerate this way of saying. They were ready even to remove Jesus from the face of the world.
I conclude today’s sermon with a small story. Once a man found his pants three centimetre longer as he needed. So he said his wife to shorten it by three centimetres. But she was not in a good mood and replied him with the words: „I have no time today“. Then he turned to his mother in law who is living with them and asked her a favour. The mother in law said sorry and requested him friendly not to disturb her for such silly things. Finally he asked her daughter to shorten her pants for three centimetre. The daughter excused him saying that she is going out to meet her friend. The man got angry and threw the pants on the sofa and said that the family should not expect him back before midnight and went out. Later the wife was guilty. She took the pants from the sofa and shortened it three centimetre and left back to the sofa. Two hours later the mother in law found the pants on the sofa and felt guilty and shortened it three centimetre and left back to the sofa. Late night as the daughter saw the pants on the sofa as the father left it, she felt sad about her ungrateful behaviour and shortened the pants three centimetres and put back to the sofa. We can imagine how happy the man would be as he sees his pants shortened as all the three regretted and fulfilled the wish of the man. (Willy Hoffsümmer, Kurzgeschichten 1, Mainz 13. Aufl. 1992.)
Fr. Joseph Pandiappallil MCBS