The Return of the Prodigal Son
Henry J. M. Nouwen sat before Rembrandt’s “The Return of the Prodigal Son”, in the Hermitage in Saint Petersburg, Russia, and gained new insight into the story told in Luke 15:20-24.
Nouwen sees the return of the prodigal son as a story of homecoming – perhaps one better described as the return to the loving father than as the return of the prodigal son.
Nouwen’s many insights into this story include the fascinating observation that in first century Israel, the natural expectation was that sons grow up to become fathers. Even prodigal sons can grow up to become loving fathers and, when they do, they come ever closer to the image of God.
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