Joshua 5:9-12 / 2 Cor 5:17-21 / Luke 15:1-3, 11-32
One of the saddest things to see is how terribly destructive war can be. It is said that war is hell and truly it is.
The social and economic infrastructure of a country which took months or years to build are reduced to debris and rubble in just minutes.
In Russia's invasion of Ukraine, there are graphic pictures of devastation. Homes were destroyed and needless to say, the numerous losses of human lives add on to the tragedies of war.
All that destruction, all that tragedy, is totally unnecessary and the fact is that nothing good can ever come out of a war.
But the evil, destructive and tragic effects of war is only a reflection of the dark and sinful side of humanity and the human person.
In the letter of James (4:1-2), he asked this question: Where do all these fights and quarrels among you come from? (The answer) Don't they come from your desires that are fighting within you? You desire something but cannot have it, so you quarrel and fight and even kill to get what you want.
In the violence and hostility that we see in the world, isn't it clear that St. James have pointed out the obvious, and that this evil desire is in us.
We all want to live good lives and be at peace, and we try hard to live virtuous and upright lives.
But in that moment of foolishness and giving in to our sinful desires, we fall into sin and it could be just one sin after another.
In other words, it is difficult to be good but it is so easy to turn bad quickly and end up being a wretched state.
In the gospel parable, the youngest son asked his father for the share of his inheritance.
He was not evil, but for whatever reason, he gave in to his desires, and then he went off to a distant country where he squandered his money on a life of debauchery.
And then misfortune came, one after another, till he had nothing to eat. It was then that he came to his senses and he remembered how kindly his father treated the servants.
In coming to his senses, that youngest son saw the goodness of his father and he decided to make the long journey back to his father and ask for forgiveness.
This parable reminds us that even for those who have gone down the wrong and sinful path, there is still hope that they will come to their senses and repent.
And we pray that in this season of Lent, we will come to our senses and see that the wrong we do is just a smaller scale of the wars and destruction in the world.
May we come to our senses and see that on the Cross, Jesus has shed His blood to save us, and that there should be no more shedding of blood, whether literally or figuratively.
May we come to see that what we really want is peace and reconciliation, what we want is forgiveness and healing.
We want peace in the world, we want peace for ourselves. Let peace begin with us. Let peace begin with you and me.