The parable of the Prodigal Son needs no in depth explanation. It speaks for itself and reminds us that forgiveness doesn’t always come easy. The parable is a brief snapshot of a broken family coming together and rejoicing that a lost son has come home.

The father is overjoyed and readily forgives his errant son of his bad behavior. His brother, on the other hand, is furious that his careless and uncaring brother is so easily forgiven by their father. I think that every family has grappled with some family crisis along these lines. The beauty of this parable is that it leaves us to wonder what happens next. The core teaching of the parable is forgiveness, but there is much more to it than that and that is…what’s left up to us.

Forgiveness has to be followed by profound discussions about trust, integrity and responsibility. Such discussions, no doubt, took place between the father and the two sons the next day, but it is up to us to fill in the blanks as it pertains to our own experience of forgiveness.