Some Sundays just stand out as terrific. Today was one of them. We have wonderful Sunday School teachers in our ward, Boubacar and Vania, and they instructed us today to look at the parable of the prodigal son in a different light. Boubacar reminded us (well, in my case, taught me) that "prodigal" doesn't mean "returned from far off," but "wasteful," which makes the father's response to his son's return all the more interesting. Rather than demoting his child to the level of servant for having squandered his inheritance, the father races to greet his son while he is yet afar off and clothes him in the robes of nobility. He then kills the fatted calf and invites all around to celebrate that his son has returned to him.
At this point in the lesson, a brother behind us spoke up and made a comment that astounded me. The son had wasted his inheritance, he said, but the father welcomed him back as an honored child and a member of the family. In essence, is appears that the son's inheritance was "infinite." As we continued to read, the elder son's jealousy and his father's reaction reinforced this comment. The elder son balks at the celebration of the younger son's return and refuses to go inside with his father, complaining that his obedience and service has never merited a fatted calf or a feast. The father gently reminds his child, "Son, thou art ever with me, and all that I have is thine" (Luke 15:31). Even though the younger son has been forgiven, the elder son's blessing is not diminished - like his brother, he too has an "infinite inheritance."
Boubacar shared with us that in his culture (he grew up Muslim in Guinea), a relative's success is not celebrated ("Look at my cousin! He is so successful!") but rather envied ("He didn't get there by himself. Someone helped him. In fact, I'm going to harm him or his kids so that I feel better about myself"). I smiled to myself - it's not just in your culture, Boubacar, but in my culture too that success and happiness is considered a zero-sum game. I grew up thinking that someone else's success somehow meant that I had failed, that someone else's good grades or friendships or opportunities meant there was less for me to have and enjoy. Once I learned about the restored gospel of Jesus Christ I realized how untrue that is. We truly do have an infinite inheritance from our Father in Heaven, and because of the Atonement of Jesus Christ, the blessings and happiness available to us really are without limit!
About Us
- Katie (and Ken) Baldwin
- OR, United States
- I am a graduate of the American Studies and Spanish programs of Brigham Young University, a lover of all things Humanities, and with weaknesses for naughty junk food, 1990s romantic comedies, beautiful clothes/shoes/makeup, and Halloween. I like to daydream about being a professor, an archaeologist, an FBI agent, or an actress. I also love my three adorable nieces. Kenny is a BYU graduate of the Engineering and Business schools who dreams of becoming a police officer. He loves everything motorcycle and guitar, baseball, basketball, and snowboarding, and would never say no to Italian food or clothes shopping. He loves horror films, watching food shows on the Travel Channel, and cop shows, all of which have led to some exciting adventures for us! We are members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, served missions in NYC (me) and northern California (Ken), and love the Gospel and our family and friends.
1 comment:
Jim and I learned so much teaching that lesson as well. We didn't know the definition of prodigal either. It also made us stop and think seriously about how we know that someone else's success doesn't diminish ours, but as imperfect humans, there are times when it seems to, and we really tried to emphasize that in our lesson - that it is "normal" to feel that, but to please remember that it is not reality! A wonderful story, and a valuable lesson.
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