The parable of the Prodigal Son is a story about a father's love and sibling rivalry. It is possibly better named the parable of the lost son because it is intended to go along with both the parable of the lost sheep and the lost coin

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Emily Olson

McConnell

Theo 180

Paper #2: The Prodigal Son

                     

        Jesus often taught in parables. These parables often involved fictional characters and were told in a purely allegorical way. His idea was that by telling the people a story, they would be able to relate and understand his teachings better. In this way, a parable can be defined as a fictional story bearing a concealed significance. One of these parables is the parable of the Prodigal Son.

        The parable of the Prodigal Son is a story about a father’s love and sibling rivalry. It is possibly better named the parable of the lost son because it is intended to go along with both the parable of the lost sheep and the lost coin. It begins with the youngest son asking his father for his share of the estate. The father splits up the property between his two sons. The youngest one continues to sell and squander all of his wealth. Famine spread and the boy was forced to become a slave feeding pigs in a field. Eventually the boy realizes that being a slave for his father would be better that the life he was living. He decides to go home and ask for a job from his father. When his father sees him, however, he rejoices and warmly welcomes his son back. He calls his servants to bring him a robe, ring, and sandals. He also called for the fattened calf to be killed and a feast prepared. The older son, upon hearing this, became very angry with his father. He couldn’t understand why, when he had slaved away for his father throughout the entire time, his father could throw a feast for a son that had disobeyed him. His father responded to this by saying, “you are always with me, and everything I have is yours. But we had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.”

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        The term prodigal can be defined as “rashly or wastefully extravagant.” Another definition is “giving or given in abundance.” The son is prodigal in wasting away his father’s property. It also could be called the prodigal father because of he gives in abundance to his son. The entire parable can be found in Luke 15:11-32. This twenty two verse allegory is the longest of Jesus’ parables. It was believed to have been written around 85 CE, but could have been anywhere from five to fifteen years earlier or five to ten years later.

        As was stated earlier, this parable was ...

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