Reflection - 32

Luke 13 :- 6 - 9

I would love to connect this parable with a sweet and short story that touched me....

A father who had just brought a brand new car. He was evidently pleased and proud to have such a beautiful vehicle. Sometime later, he was looking through the window of his house, and he saw his young son playfully scratching on the car with a stone and peeling the paint. The man got angry. He rushed to his son, remove the stone from his hand and violently beat upon his little fingers till they were bleeding and broken.

Later he came to realise that what he was doing, he rushed his son to the hospital. The boy was taken to the operation theatre. There was no way to save the fingers of his child. They had to be removed. His son was wheeled out of the room after surgery. And the first words he said to his father in a state of realization were, “Daddy, I'm sorry I damaged your car”. After that he added “Daddy when will my fingers grow...?” this was emotionally too much for the father to handle. He went out and killed himself.

This incident was obviously quite shocking. It is because of the anger of the father, he did not give a second chance to his son, and he cruelly smashed his fingers. The worst thing is that he did not give himself a second chance.  He killed himself because of his guilt.     

Through the parable of the fig tree we can see that the owner gave a second chance to the fig tree by the request of the vine dresser. So the point of reflection should be we giving a second chance to others as well as ourselves ...not like the father in the story...

We are inflexible and rigid with our thoughts that baffles our mind from a second chance to others as well as ourselves.

We are built up with many strict rules, and make others to follow it, which may be right or wrong, and are quite in tolerant to forgive, for any deviation, from these rules. Keeping these strict rules in our heart, we sometimes forget the heart, which has love, mercy and compassion towards others.

So my dear brothers even Jesus did give a second chance to everyone even the one who crucified him...                         SO WHY CANT WE??

Bro. Kuriakose Paddikkan