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Luke, 79, XV, 11-32.

11 A certain man had two sons; 12 And the youngest of them said to his father: Father! give me the next one to me part of the estate. AND father divided the estate for them.

13 After a few days younger son Having collected everything, he went to the far side and there he squandered his property, living dissolutely.

14 And when he had spent all his time, there came a great famine in that country, and he began to be in need; 15 And he went and accosted one of the inhabitants of that country, and he sent him into his fields to feed pigs; 16 And he was glad to fill his belly with the horns that the pigs ate, but no one gave it to him.

17 And when he came to himself, he said, “How many of my father’s hired servants have bread to spare, but I am dying of hunger; 18 I will get up and go to my father and say to him: Father! I have sinned against heaven and before you 19 and am no longer worthy to be called your son; accept me as one of your hired servants.

20 He got up and went to his father. And while he was still far away, his father saw him and had compassion; and, running, fell on his neck and kissed him.

21 The son said to him: Father! I have sinned against heaven and before you and am no longer worthy to be called your son.

22 And the father said to his servants, Bring best clothes and clothe him, and put a ring on his hand and sandals on his feet; 23 And bring the fatted calf, and kill it; Let's eat and have fun! 24 For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found. And they started having fun.

25 And his eldest son was in the field; and returning, when he approached the house, he heard singing and rejoicing; 26 And calling one of the servants, he asked, “What is this?”

27 He said to him, “Your brother has come, and your father has killed the fatted calf, because he received it healthy.”

28 He became angry and did not want to go in. His father came out and called him.

29 But he answered his father: Behold, I have served you for so many years and have never violated your command, but you never gave me even a kid so that I could have fun with my friends; 30 And when this son of yours, who had wasted his wealth with harlots, came, you killed the fatted calf for him.

31 He said to him: My son! You are always with me, and all that is mine is yours, 32 and in this we had to rejoice and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and has come to life, he was lost and is found.

Interpretation of the Parable of the Prodigal Son

In the parable of the prodigal son, the Lord compares God’s joy over the sinner’s repentance to the joy of a loving father, to whom his prodigal son returned (vv. 11-32).

A certain man had two sons: God is represented under the image of this man; two sons are sinners and imaginary righteous people - scribes and Pharisees. The younger one, apparently already of age, but, of course, still inexperienced and frivolous, asks to be allocated the due part of his father’s estate, according to the law of Moses (Deut. 21:17), a third part, while the older brother received two thirds .

Upon receiving the estate, the youngest son had a desire to live in freedom, of his own free will, and he went to a distant country, where he squandered the received estate, living fornication. So a person, endowed by God with spiritual and physical gifts, feeling an attraction to sin, begins to be burdened by the Divine law, rejects life according to the will of God, indulges in lawlessness, and in spiritual and physical debauchery squanders all the gifts that God has endowed him with.

“A great famine has come” - this is how God often sends external disasters to a sinner who has gone too far in his sinful life in order to make him come to his senses. These external disasters are both God’s punishment and God’s call to repentance.

“Tending pigs” is the most humiliating occupation for a true Jew, for the Jewish law abhorred the pig, as an unclean animal. Thus, a sinner, when he becomes attached to some object through which he satisfies his sinful passion, often brings himself to the most humiliating state. No one even gave him horns - these are the fruits of a tree growing in Syria and Asia Minor, which are used to feed pigs. This indicates the extremely distressed state of the sinner. And now he “comes to his senses.”

“Having come to my senses” is an extremely expressive turn of phrase. Just as a sick person, recovering from a serious illness accompanied by loss of consciousness, comes to his senses, so a sinner, completely engulfed in sin, can be likened to such a sick person who has lost consciousness, for he is no longer aware of the requirements of the law of God and his conscience seems to freeze in him. The grave consequences of sin, combined with external disasters, finally force him to wake up: as he wakes up, he comes to his senses from his previous unconscious state, and sober consciousness returns to him: he begins to see and understand all the misery of his condition, and is looking for a way out of him.

“I will get up and go to my father” is the sinner’s determination to leave sin and repent. “Those who have sinned into heaven,” i.e. before the holy dwelling place of God and pure sinless spirits, “and before you” with disdain for loving father, “and your son is no longer worthy to be named” is an expression of deep humility and consciousness of his unworthiness, which always accompanies the sincere repentance of a sinner.

“Make me as one of your hired servants” - an expression of deep love for the home and blood of the father and agreement at least on the most harsh conditions to be received into the father's house. All further depictions of events are aimed at emphasizing the boundlessness of God’s love for the repentant sinner, Divine forgiveness and the joy that happens, according to Christ’s words, in heaven for the only sinner who repents (Luke 15:7).

The elder father, seeing his returning son from afar and not yet knowing anything about his inner mood, runs to meet him, hugs and kisses him, not allowing him to finish his repentant words, orders him to be put on shoes and dressed, instead of rags, in the best clothes and organizes a home feast in honor of his return. All these are human-like features of how, out of love for a repentant sinner, the Lord mercifully accepts his repentance and rewards him with new spiritual benefits and gifts, in return for those he lost through sin.

“Be dead and come to life” - a sinner alienated from God is the same as dead, for the true life of a person depends only on the source of life - God: the sinner’s turning to God is therefore presented as a resurrection from the dead.

The elder brother, angry with his father for showing mercy to his younger brother, is a living image of the scribes and Pharisees, proud in their outward appearance of exact and strict fulfillment of the law, but in their souls cold and heartless in relation to their brothers, boasting of fulfilling the will of God, but not wanting to have communication with repentant tax collectors and sinners. Just as the elder brother “was angry and did not want to hear,” so the supposed exact fulfillers of the law, the Pharisees, were angry with the Lord Jesus Christ because He entered into close communication with repentant sinners. Instead of sympathizing with his brother and father, the older brother begins to show off his merits; he does not even want to call his brother “brother,” but contemptuously says: “this son is yours.”

“You are always with me and all that is mine is yours” - this indicates that the Pharisees, in whose hands the law is, can always have access to God and spiritual blessings, but cannot earn the favor of the Heavenly Father with such a perverted and cruel spiritual and moral mood.

history of the holiday

The establishment of the week of the Prodigal Son dates back to ancient Christian times. Except church charter, its antiquity is evidenced by the fathers and writers of the Church of the 4th and 5th centuries, who spoke during this week, such as St. Chrysostom, Augustine, Asterius, Bishop of Amasia, and others. In the 8th century, Joseph the Studite wrote a canon for the week about the prodigal son, now sung by the Church on this week.

Interpretations and sayings of the holy fathers:

• Until death comes, until the doors are closed, until the opportunity to enter is taken away, until horror attacks the universe, until the light fades..., ask, sinner, bounty from the Lord (St. Ephraim the Syrian).
• Even if we are hated by God for our sins, we will be loved again for our repentance (St. Neil of Sinai).
• Cry over sin, so that you do not cry about punishment, be justified before the Judge before you appear before the judgment seat... Repentance opens heaven to a person, it elevates him to paradise, it defeats the devil.
• There is no sin, no matter how great, that overcomes God’s love for mankind if at the appropriate time we repent and ask for forgiveness.
• Great is the power of repentance if it makes us as pure as snow and white as a wave, even if sin has previously stained our souls (St. John Chrysostom).
• Whether you are in your father’s house, don’t rush out to freedom. Do you see how it ended? similar experience! If you ran away and are wasting your time, stop quickly. If you have squandered everything and are in poverty, decide to return as soon as possible, and return. All the indulgence, the old love and contentment awaits you there. The last step is the most necessary. But there is no point in expanding on him. Everything is said briefly and clearly. Come to your senses, decide to return, get up and hurry to the Father. His arms are open and ready to receive you (St. Theophan the Recluse).

Features of the service of the week (week) about the prodigal son

1) At Matins on the Sunday of the Prodigal Son and then on the Sunday of Meat and Cheese, after singing the polyelean psalms (134 and 135) “Praise the name of the Lord” and “Confess the Lord,” Psalm 136 is also sung: “On the rivers of Babylon ..." "with red Alleluia." This psalm awakens sinners who are in captivity to sin and the devil to realize their miserable, sinful state, like the Jews who realized their bitter situation in captivity in Babylon and subsequently repented. Then the Sunday troparia are sung - “The Council of Angels...”.

2) Singing at Matins after the 50th Psalm of the penitential troparions: “Open the doors of repentance for me...”.

3) Reading at the liturgy: Apostle - Corinth., credit. 135, Gospel – from Luke, count. 79.

4) The week (Sunday) about the prodigal son includes a week (under the same name), which, as already indicated, is continuous (the abolition of fasting on Wednesday and Friday), Communicated: “Praise the Lord from heaven...”.

Sermon by Patriarch Kirill per week (week) on the prodigal son

Sermons for the Week (week) about the Prodigal Son

Metropolitan Sourozhsky Anthony about the parable of the prodigal son.

Metropolitan Anthony of Sourozh about the parable of the prodigal son.

Protopresbyter Alexander Schmemann about the parable of the prodigal son.

Priest Philip Parfenov about the parable of the prodigal son.

Protodeacon Andrey Kuraev. Parable of the Prodigal Son

Poems about the parable of the prodigal son

About the Prodigal Son

My father and brother are my family.
Our home is both holy and abundant.
I don't know sickness or tears
And the external enemy is powerless for us,
But there's something foreign in me:
The desire to live in a foreign country.

Forgetting that only after being orphaned,
I can inherit the estate
He asked the Father, despising his shame,
Took a part without blessing
He left immediately. And the path was easy for me
A cross of four roads.

For insolence, forefather Adam
He was expelled from paradise with a curse.
Nobody chased me. I myself
Indulging my pride,
Left the house. Farewell, Father.
And brother. For them I became a dead man.

To me God is pagan Baal,
Wine, libertines, vices...
I tasted everything I wanted,
Forgetting about times and deadlines.
But famine fell on that land
And I have experienced poverty.

So, I am God's prodigal son,
In unbelief, in feasts and quarrels,
Having squandered the inheritance, alone
Herding pigs. In sins and punishments
I live. Horns are my food
And there are never enough of them.

Everyone left me at once.
In a hungry year, a stranger is not needed.
By the lonely fire
I'm preparing my sad dinner.
Night is coming. And with her
The reproaches of my conscience.

What to do? Who will give me advice?
There is no oblivion in a decayed tent,
No sleep. Dawn is not coming
And there is no hope of salvation.
And my hungry blood hears
Only the squealing of pigs and the howling of wolves.

And in the Father’s house everyone is fed:
Shepherd, singer, minister, warrior...
Father will not forgive betrayal.
I am not worthy to be called a son.
I will say in my repentance:
“Father, hire me.”

I bow to my father, but big brother!
How can I bear his contempt?
Servants' reproaches, if back
Will I come? Let me have enough humility
On the eve of a new path
Find the determination in yourself

Turn the tide of life,
Walk from drain to source,
The worlds mysterious essence
Feel it again in the blink of an eye,
Fall to your knees by the porch,
Wait in tears for your father's mercy.

Morning comes, I must
Today main choice do:
Should I return to the Fatherland?
Or to the death of soul and body
Stay? God, give me some sense!
I'm coming. Have mercy and accept.

Dust, headwind, home is far away
And my legs are filled with heaviness,
Gullies, holes across,
Secret roads are open,
The climb is rocky and steep,
And the sinners are calling back.

The former path was long for me.
The rich, proud man went to destruction...
Enough strength to turn.
Pig faces are looking after me...
I go home with trepidation
Unhappy, poor, but alive.

What can I say in excuse!
I am guilty to my father and heaven.
Having bought debauchery for grace,
He no longer deserves to be a son.
I will tell the Father, cursing my sin:
Take him as a slave. I'm sorry.

The sultry day clouds my vision,
People I meet laugh at me at night
In face. Exile and shame
They prophesy with evil joy.
But here are the birthplaces.
Here I must come down from the cross.

I see our house. He's rich
And holy, and exudes goodness.
My brother didn’t come out to meet me.
But, God, who is meeting me!
The wanderings have come to an end:
He himself hurries to me. Father.

I cried out: “Father! I was weak
I was in the dark, on my deathbed,
Like a pathetic and worthless slave
All before You, here I am, O God!
Like a slave, without a home, without relatives.
I pray in tears: Don’t drive me away.”

Behold, the scales have fallen from my eyes,
The hearing has returned. And the essence of the world
I felt it. And God's voice:
"Do not make yourself an idol!"
I hear it again. And it opened again
That God is Grace and Love.

...Feast in the house. I have been forgiven by the Father
The ring on the finger is a symbol of power,
Shoed, dressed and anointed,
Taurus is stabbed. Fruits, sweets,
Friends, contentment and comfort,
Everyone is having fun and singing.

The elder brother comes from the field.
And, seeing joyful faces,
I asked the servant what he was happy about,
I found out the answer, and great anger
Hugged him. Won't come here
And asks the Father's judgment:

“I am always obedient,
I didn’t even take a kid for my friend...
And this one, who knows no shame,
Your son came with an empty knapsack,
With his lips he spoke a lie!
And You invite him to the feast!”

The fruits of your labor
You are proud and seek justice.
But above all judgment
Love and Grace always stand!
Don't judge anyone:
No servants, no brother!”

My father and brother are my family.
I'm in the house. Strength returned.
I know my calling:
Serve the Father until the grave
Pray until I die
About fallen sinners in the world.

Leonid Alekseevich

Art based on the parable of the Prodigal Son

The parable of the Prodigal Son is one of the most frequently depicted in art. gospel parables. Its plot usually includes the following scenes: the prodigal son receives his share of the inheritance; he leaves home; he feasts with courtesans at an inn; they drive him away when he runs out of money; he tends pigs; he returns home and repents to his Father.

Click on the image to view gallery

Gerrit van Honthorst. Prodigal son. 1622

The expulsion of the prodigal son. Bartolomeo Murillo. 1660

Then, having come to his senses, he remembered his father, repented of his action and thought: “How many hired servants (workers) of my father eat bread in abundance, and I am dying of hunger! I will get up, go to my father, and say to him: “Father! I have sinned against heaven and before you, and am no longer worthy to be called your son; accept me as one of your hired servants."

Return of the Prodigal Son. Bartolomeo Murillo. 1667-1670

Prodigal son. James Tissot

Return of the Prodigal Son. Liz Swindle. 2005

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Return of the Prodigal Son

Images: Open Sources

Jesus told another parable to the people: “A certain man had two sons, and the younger of them said to his father: “Father! give me the next part of the estate." And the father divided the estate between them. After a few days, the younger son, having collected everything, went to a far side and there squandered his estate, living dissolutely. When he had spent everything, a great famine arose in that country, and he began to be in need, and he went and pestered one of the inhabitants of that country, and he sent him to his fields to feed pigs: and he was glad to fill his belly with the horns that the pigs ate, but no one gave it to him. said: “How many of my father’s hired servants have bread to spare, but I am dying of hunger; I will get up, go to my father and say to him: Father! I have sinned against heaven and before you and am no longer worthy to be called your son; accept me as one of your hired servants." He stood up and went to his father."
LUKE 15:11-19

Christ continued the parable of the prodigal son: “And while he was still far away, his father saw him and took pity; and he ran, fell on his neck and kissed him. The son said to him: “Father! I have sinned against heaven and before you and am no longer worthy to be called your son." And the father said to his servants: "Bring the best clothes and dress him, and put a ring on his hand and shoes on his feet; and bring the fatted calf and slaughter it: let us eat and be merry! For this son of mine was dead and is alive, he was lost and is found." And they began to have fun. His eldest son was in the field; and, returning, when he approached the house, he heard singing and rejoicing; and, calling one of the servants, he asked: " What is this?" He said to him: "Your brother came, and your father killed the fatted calf, because he received it healthy." He became angry and did not want to go in. His father came out and called him. But he answered his father : “Behold, I have served you for so many years and have never violated your orders, but you never gave me even a kid so that I could have fun with my friends; and when this son of yours, who squandered his wealth with harlots, came, you killed the fatted calf for him." He said to him: "My son! You are always with me, and all that is mine is yours, and it was necessary to rejoice and be glad that this brother of yours was dead and is alive, was lost and is found." With this parable, Jesus once again showed with what joy and forgiveness the Heavenly Father accepts every sinner coming to Him with a repentant heart.
LUKE 15:20-32

Not far from Jerusalem there was a village called Bethany. Lazarus and his sisters Martha and Mary lived there. They were friends of Jesus. One day, while in a secluded place with His disciples, Jesus received sad news. The sick man’s sisters sent him to tell him: “Lord, behold, the one you love is sick.” Jesus, having heard this, said: “This illness is not for death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God may be glorified through it.” Then He stayed two more days in the place where He was and went to Bethany, knowing that Lazarus had already died. Many Jews came to the sisters and consoled them in their grief over their dead brother. Martha saw Jesus and said to Him: “Lord, if You were here, my brother would not have died. But even now I know that whatever You ask of God, God will give you.” Jesus answered: “Your brother will rise again... I am the resurrection and the life; whoever believes in Me, even if he dies, will live. And everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die. Do you believe this?” Martha said: “Yes, Lord! I believe that You are the Christ, the Son of God, coming into the world.” Then she went and called her sister Mary. When Jesus saw the weeping Mary and the weeping Jews who came with her, He Himself was grieved in spirit and said: “Where have you laid him?” They answered him: “Lord! Come and see.” Jesus came to the cave where Lazarus was buried. (In that country at that time people were usually buried in a cave, rolling a stone to the entrance). Jesus ordered the stone to be rolled away, but Martha said that Lazarus had been in the tomb for four days. Jesus answered her: “Did I not tell you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God?” When the stone was rolled away, Jesus raised his eyes to heaven and said: “Father, I thank You that You heard Me... I knew that You would always hear Me...” Having said this. He called in a loud voice: “Lazarus! come out!” And the dead man came out, wrapped hand and foot in burial cloths...” Many Jews who saw this miracle believed in Him, but the Pharisees and high priests gathered a council to discuss how to kill Jesus .
JOHN 11:1-50

The content of the parable told by Jesus Christ about the prodigal son:

The father had two sons. The younger wanted to take his share of the parental property without waiting for an inheritance. The father granted his wish by immediately giving away all the property that the younger son would receive later.

Having left for foreign lands, the young man squandered his share on empty amusements. Famine began in the country, the young man was left without a roof over his head, without a piece of bread, without money. Out of desperation, he hired out to herd pigs - an occupation that in those years was considered worthy of completely degenerate people.

The shepherd was paid so little that he was simply dying of hunger; he even agreed to eat their food with the pigs. But this was not available to him. Then the youngest son remembered his father, how well even the last slaves lived there. He decided to ask his parent for forgiveness for his behavior, to ask him to accept him as a simple worker, so as not to let him die of hunger. Having made up his mind, the young man hit the road.

The father noticed his son approaching from a distance and ran towards him. He hugged and kissed the dirty, barefoot, emaciated traveler and recognized him as his child. The young man asked to be forgiven for his past deeds and to be placed with slaves, since he had lost the right to be called a son and had squandered his share of the inheritance.

The father said he was glad to see the return of his son, who was thought dead and missing. He ordered that he be dressed in the best shoes and clothes, put a signet ring on his finger, ordered that a fat calf be slaughtered, and that everyone feast and have fun, rejoicing at the return of the prodigal son.

The eldest heir was working in the field at that time, and when he saw with what honor the father was receiving his younger brother, resentment and envy kindled in his heart. He began to reproach his father for never treating him with such love and generosity, even though he worked and always obeyed and obeyed the will of his parent.

He could not sincerely rejoice at the return of his brother; moreover, he does not recognize his brother as his equal, believing that the younger one deserved such a fate by his behavior. The eldest son could not understand his father’s words that one should rejoice and love a person who came to his senses, admitted he was wrong, repented, which means he should be forgiven.

What does the parable say?

The parable of the prodigal son is a story about sin and repentance. Everyone interprets history in their own way, but everyone agrees that the father of sons is almighty god who always loves his children. No matter what sins people commit, God always accepts their repentance, always forgives sinners, loves them like parents love their children.

What did the youngest child do?

From the parable it follows that the youngest son represents youth devoid of knowledge. Young people want to get everything at once, they want freedom from responsibilities. They do not listen to what older, experienced people tell them. Young people believe that they can do anything, that they can make their way into the ranks with their talent. They look down on old people, considering them outdated. It is not for nothing that pride is considered a sin that destroys a person’s life, especially in youth. Moving away from God the Father, people give themselves into the hands of the devil.

Not understanding that it is better to be under the protection and patronage of God, people move away from Him “to foreign lands,” where they indulge in sinful pastimes, wasting their talents and strength in vain. A person considers the gift of God to be his personal property and wants to dispose of it at his own discretion. But when people, forgetting about the Almighty, indulge only in idle affairs, they destroy their soul, depriving it of purity and spiritual food. Having been fed up, they feel spiritual hunger, not knowing what else to do with themselves.

How did the elder react to his brother’s repentance?

Interpretation of the role of the eldest son. An obedient young man always fulfills his father’s will, lives strictly according to the laws, and considers himself a righteous man. But his soul is dead - he has forgotten how to have compassion for others, putting his “merits” in serving God above others. The same sin of pride, arrogance. In addition - envy.

At the call of the father, rejoice along with the others that the repentant sinner has returned younger brother, the elder expresses his grievances and complaints to the parent. Pointing out that his father’s son is no longer his brother, who is to blame for his own fate. He does not understand why the parent so joyfully accepts the return of a repentant sinner. Considering himself a righteous person, he does not see his shortcomings, his sin. Like the scribes and Pharisees, who talk about their service to God, in fact they do not love others “as themselves,” violating God’s main commandment.

What is the meaning of this story

The young man, having gone through suffering and hardship, understands his mistakes, humbles his pride, first hiring himself for the most menial, shameful work, and later comes to repentance. The parable of the prodigal son teaches that repentance comes through material deprivation and spiritual suffering.

You can read the parable several times, discovering a new interpretation of its meaning. The youngest son, being away from God, was insane. And when he came to his senses, he assessed his current state, and realized how low he had fallen. When he was next to his Father, he was fed, clothed, and shod. However, he did not notice these God's blessings, believing that he would receive much more in a foreign country. There will be no moralizing, he will be able to achieve success and wealth with his mind.

The foreign side is associated with distance from God. Without faith, a person dies and loses his soul. Was dead and came back alive - the father rejoices in repentance youngest child. Now there is hope that the son understood and felt how wrong he was when he renounced God.

Interpretation of the parable about good intentions, which only bring benefits when they are fulfilled. The young man decided that he would go to ask for forgiveness from his parent, and without delay, he fulfilled his intention. You can mentally imagine hundreds of times how good deeds will be done, but not do them, remaining an empty dreamer.

God the Father sees people striving for Him and is always the first to show His forgiveness. As in the parable: clean son’s clothes, comfortable shoes to walk the life path of salvation of the soul, your Father’s love. The fattened calf, which is slaughtered for the holiday of the return of the son, symbolizes the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, who, by the will of the Heavenly Father, gave himself to the executioners in order to atone for the sins of all mankind.

Each of the living people was on the path of the youngest son from Christ's parable. You should know that this path leads to the death of the soul. But Our Merciful Father will always accept the sincere repentance of His lost children.

Publicans and sinners came to Jesus Christ to listen to Him. Proud Pharisees and scribes, teachers Jewish people, they grumbled at Jesus Christ for this and said: “He receives sinners and eats with them.”

To this, Jesus Christ spoke several parables in which he showed that God accepts every repentant sinner with joy and love. Here is one of them:

One man had two sons. The youngest of them said to his father: “Father! give me the portion of the estate due to me.” The father fulfilled his request. After a few days, the youngest son, having collected everything, went to a distant country and there, living dissolutely, squandered all his property. When he had lived through everything, a great famine arose in that country, and he began to be in need. And he went and joined (that is, joined) one of the inhabitants of that country; and he sent him to his fields to feed pigs. From hunger, he would be glad to eat the horns that the pigs ate; but no one gave it to him.

Then, having come to his senses, he remembered his father, repented of his action and thought: “How many hired servants (workers) of my father eat bread in abundance, and I am dying of hunger! I will get up, go to my father, and say to him: “Father! I have sinned against heaven and before you, and am no longer worthy to be called your son; accept me as one of your hired servants."

So he did. He got up and went home to his father. And when he was still far away, his father saw him and took pity on him. The father himself ran towards his son, fell on his neck, and kissed him.

The son began to say: “Father! I have sinned against heaven and before you, and I am no longer worthy to be called your son."

And the father said to his servants: “Bring the best clothes and dress him; give him a ring on his hand and shoes on his feet; and kill the fatted calf; Let's eat and have fun! Because this son of mine was dead and is alive again; was lost and is found.” And they started having fun.

The eldest son was returning from the field at that time. Hearing singing and rejoicing in the house, he called one of the servants and asked: “What is this?”

The servant said to him: “Your brother has come; and your father killed the fatted calf, because he saw it healthy.”

The eldest son became angry and did not want to enter the house. His father came out to him and called him.

But he answered his father: “Behold, I have served you for so many years and have never transgressed (violated) your orders; but you never gave me a kid so that I could have fun with my friends. And when this son of yours came, having wasted his wealth wantonly, you killed the fatted calf for him.”

The father said to him: “My son! you are always with me, and everything that is mine is yours. And you also had to rejoice and be glad because your brother was dead and has come to life; was lost and is found.”

In this parable, the father means God, and the prodigal son means a repentant sinner. Every person who with his soul moves away from God and gives himself over to self-will is like the prodigal son. sinful life; with his sins he destroys his soul and all the gifts (life, health, strength, abilities) that he received from God. When the sinner, having come to his senses, brings sincere repentance to God, with humility and with hope for His mercy, then the Lord, as a merciful Father, rejoices with His angels at the sinner’s conversion, forgives him all his iniquities (sins), no matter how great they may be, and returns to him His mercies and gifts.

With the story of his eldest son, the Savior teaches that every Christian believer should with all his heart desire the salvation of everyone, rejoice at the conversion of sinners, and not envy God's love towards them and not consider themselves worthy of God’s mercies any more than those who turn to God from their previous lawless life.

NOTE: See the Gospel of Luke ().

Without exaggeration, the parable of the prodigal son can be called one of the most famous gospel tales. Based on its plot, paintings are painted and statues are created, it is remembered in films on biblical themes... Even in the speech of a person far from religion, no, no, it will slip through: “Oh, you prodigal son!” Furthermore, there is a day during which the words of the parable are repeated in all Orthodox churches peace. What kind of story is this?

A story of fall, repentance and forgiving love

Let us briefly recall the essence of the Gospel story.

One father had two sons. Each of the children hoped to eventually receive his share of the inheritance; however, the younger one found it offensive to wait for the death of his parent in order to gain, as they would say now, financial independence. He went to his father and asked to allocate the part of the farm that was allotted to him immediately, and having received it, he soon sold it and went to foreign lands in search of a wild life.

Having squandered his fortune, the guy fell into deep poverty and was forced to take on the most menial labor, just so as not to die of hunger. After pushing around in a foreign land for some time, the young man decided to return to his native land, apologize for his mistakes and ask to return to his parents’ home. At least as a hired worker! But the father, exhausted by anxiety for his foolish son, did not even listen to his repentant speeches - he immediately ordered the servants to dress and put on shoes for the unlucky traveler and organize a festival in his honor.

What happened made everyone happy except the young man’s brother, who remained at home all this time, obediently fulfilling his filial duty. Confident that he had become a victim of injustice, he began to blame his parent - they say, how can this be? I work tirelessly, and I don’t deserve a holiday, similar to that What kind of honor did this worthless reveler receive?!

The eldest son could not rejoice at the return of his brother...

“You are always with me,” he heard in response. - “And everything that’s mine is yours. But your brother was dead and lost, but now he is alive and found. How can I not be happy?

What does the parable of the prodigal son teach? It will be easier to answer this question if we take a closer look at each of the images depicted in it.

Father

It seems that many will guess that under the guise of the father in this story the Lord himself appears, always ready to forgive and accept his children - if only they want to come. And they will be right.

Imagine! After all, the young man’s father was probably quite offended by his son’s unreasonable behavior. Upset by his long absence. Perhaps he was annoyed at the loss of half of his fortune, which he could have mentioned at least in passing and reproached the offspring who showed up on the doorstep: they say, he squandered on his drinking friends what I had earned through years of honest labor!.. But the parent had no thought of scolding.

The joy at the return of the prodigal son was so great that the house immediately threw a huge feast! And, of course, the first to be seated at the table was the washed, dressed and shod tramp, who showed up under his stepfather’s roof almost naked. The gesture, by the way, is symbolic: having ordered to find shoes for his son, the father accepted him into the house with his previous rights, although the young man agreed to the role of a simple worker, who was not entitled to shoes.

For a father there was no greater joy than to see his child alive and unharmed

If earthly father did this for his reveler son, and easily, without anger in his soul, then will the Heavenly Father really not accept a repentant sinner? Let him do a lot of mischief, waste the great gifts given to him - time, strength, spiritual purity - let him upset and anger the Father more than once... One has only to realize his fall, be imbued with the desire to change his life, come to the threshold God's temple with your head down - and they will hear you. For those who truly love us will not turn away from us.

It is not without reason that Jesus himself, in his conversations with his disciples, says that in heaven one repentant sinner is more welcome than 99 righteous people.

Prodigal son

Actually, why is the son called prodigal? Because he led a dissolute lifestyle away from his father’s house? Not really. If you turn to expert linguists, they will tell you: the word that was used to designate a foolish young man in church books, can be translated not only as “dissolute” or “wasteful”, but also as “lost”, “perished”, “Lost”.

The repentant sinner is the same prodigal son who returned home

A son is lost, perishing in a foreign land in pursuit of pleasure. Lost is the one who walked away from God and His love in search of a life not burdened by daily work on his soul... And the one who managed to wake up one day and, looking soberly at himself from the outside, find the strength to take the path of correction, is found. Saved. Returned to the parental roof, where you can forget the hardships you have experienced, heal your sin-weary soul and truly be resurrected...

Even the meaning of the phraseological unit “prodigal son” contains a note of positivity. When we use it in everyday speech, we usually mean someone who has lost his way, left family, friends or a close-knit team. But at the same time, we often seem to imply that the “free tramp” may come to his senses and return. How could it be otherwise, after all soul mate, not a stranger!

righteous son

Reading biblical parable about the prodigal son, we traditionally focus on the key characters: the wandering boy and his parent. Meanwhile, the second offspring is a curious figure!

How can one not recall the arrogant righteous Pharisee and the repentant publican!

How does the Gospel portray him? An honest guy who meekly worked in his father’s fields and vineyards, while his brother was happily wasting his share of the inheritance in distant lands... It seems that the eldest son had reasons to grumble at the sight of the rejoicing that arose in the house because of his careless offspring. After all, after what was created, to an honest man and calling him a brother was inappropriate!

But if you look at history from a different angle, the picture changes.

If the legend shows us a sinner under the guise of the prodigal son, then his righteous brother is a man who lives strictly according to the commandments of God. A regular churchgoer. Observing fasts. Knowing by heart the prayers and where, when, and in what order they should be read. AND…

...And he who does not have the strength in his soul to rejoice for his resurrected - read, churched, reunited with God - brother. Alas, the righteousness of such people is based not on love, but on selfishness: look, Lord, how diligently I serve you, I try, I fulfill every letter of your commandments! You won’t put me, who is thoroughly pious, on the same level as a sinner, at whom I don’t even hesitate to snort contemptuously on occasion: let him know his place, unworthy...

Another common symbol of sinful man is the lost sheep.

In a word, the parable gives everyone something to think about. For sinners - to gain hope for salvation by remembering the mercy of God. For the righteous - to test the soul for pride. This year, February 24, the second preparatory week before Lent, is dedicated to the memory of the prodigal son. Let's try to spend this day usefully and, if not eradicate unkind impulses in our soul, then at least realize them, and having realized them, take the first step towards eradicating our shortcomings.

Video: Parable of the Prodigal Son

For the little ones – and for adults who prefer to perceive visual information – we suggest watching a cartoon from the channel “Orthodoxy in Details”...

...And a wonderful video from MYDROSTVEKOV

Video: Return of the Prodigal Son