Fr Paul Gooley reads from the Gospel of Luke (15: 1-10), in which Jesus tells the parables of the lost sheep and the lost coin and says, ‘there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents’.

Today’s gospel gives us two parables on forgiveness.

These two parables begin a whole section of Luke’s Gospel which has been called ‘the Gospel of the Outcast’ because of the frequency of call to several kinds of outcasts.

First comes the story of the lost sheep, which is also found in Matthew. In the chapter on the community Matthew is emphasising the obligation of everyone to care for each other. But Luke, however, puts the whole emphasis on the joy in heaven at the return of the sinner. But this sense of joy also brings a certain lack of balance. Is it wise for the shepherd to leave the 99 sheep to predators and thieves while he goes scouring the rocky ravines for one lost one?

Then, to this parable, Luke adds the parable of a woman looking for her lost coin. He is always careful to show that women have an equal part in the Kingdom with men. In this case we can picture the woman sweeping out the dusty dirt floor of a windowless low-lit room. But again, there is this lack of balance because the party for the neighbours will cost more than the single coin recovered.

It is worth noting that in both cases the initiative to find what was lost comes from the shepherd and the housewife respectively.

In closing, Fr Paul asks us to reflect, Is God’s unconditional love and forgiveness missing from my life at the moment?