PRIEST On this Home Mission Sunday we have the joy of celebrating the forgiving heart of God. The great parable of the Prodigal Son is given only in Luke’s Gospel – the Evangelist of Mercy. But this parable carries insight into the very heart of God, a heart constantly open to forgive us no matter what, a heart ever on the watch for our homecoming, ever straining and yearning to see our return. This Gospel inspires us to be a community of God’s heart, always seeking out the lost and bringing them home to their Father and our Father! Let us then open our hearts not only to receive His mercy, but also to offer this great mercy and forgiveness to those who have hurt us.
READER When we do not trust the constant forgiveness of God,
When we doubt His unconditional acceptance of us
LORD HAVE MERCY
When we will not forgive others who have us hurt,
When we will not fling wide open the gates of God’s Mercy
When we are not Ambassadors of Reconciliation
CHRIST HAVE MERCY
When despite the forgiveness God freely gives us
we will not forgive ourselves
When we cling onto guilt and refuse to be healed
LORD HAVE MERCY
PRIEST May the God who is Prodigal in His Mercy forgive us
May Jesus, the Elder Brother, carry us home to our Father;
May the Holy Spirit grant us the Joy of being reconciled
And bring all the world to everlasting life
AMEN!