Journey to Pascha Series - Lesson #2: Triodion Week 2: The Prodigal Son Returns

 

Journey to Pascha 2025: Themes by Week

Triodion Weeks:

1. Triodion Week 1 - Publican and the Pharisee (Fast Free)
   Epistle: 2 Timothy 3:10-15
   Gospel: Luke 18:10-14
   Theme: Show compassion on the poor and yourself. Trust in God and not your deeds. Ask for His help.

2. Triodion Week 2 - The Prodigal Son (Normal Fast)
   Epistle: 1 Corinthians 6:12-20
   Gospel: Luke 15:11-32
   Theme: Schedule a confession. Pray facing East every morning.

3. Triodion Week 3 - The Last Judgement (Meatfare)
   Epistle: 1 Corinthians 8:8–9:2
   Gospel: Matthew 25:31-46
   Theme: Pray facing East this week. Christ is returning from the East.

Last week we explored the themes of the Publican and the Pharisee but let us explore the Triodion Week 2: The Prodigal Son Returns

Triodion Week 2. Sunday of the Prodigal Son (Repentance and Return)

• Theme: The unconditional love of the Father and the joy of a sinner's return to God, as seen in the parable of the Prodigal Son (Luke 15:11-32).

• Spiritual Message: This week focuses on repentance as a return to God, no matter how far one has strayed.

• Significance: It underscores God’s readiness to forgive and welcome those who genuinely repent, laying the groundwork for personal transformation.

The Sunday of the Prodigal Son is the second of the four preparatory Sundays before Great Lent in the Triodion, and it focuses on the themes of repentance, return, and God's boundless love and forgiveness. The parable of the Prodigal Son is used as an "ikon" of repentance, illustrating its different stages and encouraging the faithful to return to their true home with God.

Key aspects of the Sunday of the Prodigal Son, as described in the sources, include:

• The Parable as an "ikon" of repentance: The parable of the Prodigal Son (Luke 15:11-32) is central to this Sunday. It depicts sin as exile, enslavement, and spiritual hunger, while repentance is portrayed as a return from exile to one's true home and receiving back one's inheritance and freedom in the Father's house.

• Action as an essential component of repentance: Repentance involves not only feeling dissatisfied with one's current state but also taking concrete action to turn back to God. The phrase "I will arise and go to my father" underscores the need for a decision and subsequent action.

• God's loving acceptance: The parable emphasizes the father's unconditional love and eagerness to welcome back his prodigal son. The father's actions of running to meet his son, kissing him, and restoring his dignity signify God's readiness to forgive and accept repentant sinners.

• Emphasis on exile and return: The services on this Sunday emphasize the idea that sin is a form of exile, and the return to God is a return to one's true home. The Psalm "By the waters of Babylon we sat down and wept" (Psalm 136) is sung on this day to remind the faithful of their present exile in sin and their resolve to return home.

• Liturgical Elements:

• Vespers on Saturday evening includes stichera from the Triodion that highlight themes of exile, repentance, and the father's loving welcome. The stichera convey a sense of sorrow for having squandered one's spiritual inheritance and longing for reconciliation with God. These stichera also depict God's loving nature and the joy that results from a sinner's return.

• Mattins includes a canon with troparia that focus on the parable, highlighting the themes of sin as exile and the joy of returning to the Father’s house. The canon emphasizes the necessity to have a life worthy of the loving Father and the glorious victim who is the Savior of souls.

• The exapostilarion for the day calls to mind the need to flee from the boasting of the Pharisee, learn the humility of the Publican, and to cry aloud to God for mercy.

• Sessional hymns at Mattins further explore the themes of exile and return, urging the faithful to seek the path of repentance. The hymns also focus on the gifts that one has received from God, which have been wasted, and they express the hope of being received by God.

• The Gospel reading for the day is Luke 15:11-32, which recounts the parable of the Prodigal Son.

• Thematic Connections: The Sunday of the Prodigal Son follows the Sunday of the Publican and the Pharisee, building on the theme of repentance. While the previous Sunday focused on humility as a starting point, this Sunday emphasizes the actions required for a return to God. It also looks forward to the Lenten season, encouraging the faithful to embrace a sincere path of repentance and renewal.

In summary, the Sunday of the Prodigal Son is a call to recognize one's own sinfulness, to take action to return to God, and to trust in His boundless love and forgiveness. It emphasizes that repentance is not just about feeling sorry but also about actively seeking reconciliation with God, and that He is always ready to welcome those who return to Him. This Sunday serves as an encouragement to begin the Lenten journey with a spirit of hope and a desire for transformation.

Selected Hymnography from the Sunday of the Prodigal Son

Vespers Tone One

I was entrusted with a sinless and living land, but I sowed the ground with sin and reaped with a sickle the ears of slothfulness. In thick sheaves, I garnered my actions, but I winnowed them not on the threshing floor of repentance. But I beg Thee, my God, the pre-eternal husbandman, with the wind of Thy loving-kindness winnow the chaff of my works, and grant to my soul the corn of forgiveness.  Shut me in Thy heavenly storehouse and save me.

Brethren, let us learn the meaning of this mystery. For when the Prodigal Son ran back from sin to his Father’s house, his loving Father came out to meet him and kissed him. He restored to the Prodigal the tokens of his proper glory, and mystically He made glad on high, sacrificing the fatted calf. Let our lives, then, be worthy of the loving Father who has offered sacrifice, and of the glorious Victim, who is the Savior of our souls.

Matins ‘Verses of the Polyeleos’ (Psalm 136:2)

By the waters of Babylon, we sat down and wept,
when we remembered Zion. Alleluia.

We hanged our harps upon the willows in the midst thereof.
Alleluia.

For there they that had taken us captive required of us a song;
and they that had carried us away required of us a hymn, saying,
"Sing us one of the songs of Zion." Alleluia.

How shall we sing the Lord's song in a strange land?
Alleluia.

If I forget thee, O Jerusalem, let my right hand be forgotten.
Alleluia.

If I do not remember thee, let my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth;
if I prefer not Jerusalem as my chief joy. Alleluia.

Remember, O Lord, the children of Edom in the day of Jerusalem,
who said, "Down with it, down with it, even to the foundation thereof."
Alleluia.

O wretched daughter of Babylon, happy shall he be that shall reward thee as thou hast served us.
Alleluia.

Happy shall he be that shall take and dash thy little ones against the rock.
Alleluia.

Soul Saturday 

The Friday Vespers service before the Sunday of the Last Judgment includes specific stichera (hymns) dedicated to the martyrs and the dead, drawing on the Octoechos (a collection of hymns arranged in eight tones), and the Triodion. These stichera serve to commemorate the saints and to offer prayers for the departed while also preparing the faithful for the themes of the Last Judgment.

Here is a summary of the key aspects of these stichera:

• Stichera to the Martyrs:
  
  

• These stichera are typically sung at the Lord, I have cried portion of Vespers.

• The stichera honor the martyrs for their steadfast faith and courage in the face of suffering and death.

• They emphasize the martyrs' victory over the temptations and threats of their persecutors.

• The stichera often describe the martyrs as having attained heavenly blessings and becoming fellow citizens with the angels.

• The faithful ask for the martyrs' intercession, believing that they have boldness before God.

• The stichera use various tones from the Octoechos, such as Tone One, Tone Two, Tone Five and Tone Eight.

• For example, a sticheron in Tone One states that the martyrs' confession of faith "filled with fear the hosts of demons and set men free from error". Another in Tone Two indicates the martyrs' resistance to tyrants, declaring themselves as "soldiers of the Ruler of the powers on high".

• The martyrs' willingness to give up their earthly lives for Christ is emphasized

• They are presented as examples of how to live a Christian life.

• Some stichera praise the martyrs for their "insatiable love" for Christ, and their boldness in preaching Christ.

• These stichera also highlight that the martyrs' souls are united by the love of Christ's cross.

• The stichera express a belief that through the martyrs' intercession, "remission of offenses and great mercy may be granted to our souls".

• The martyrs are described as having "destroyed the tyranny of the enemy" and having received "crowns of glory".

• One sticheron in Tone Eight notes the martyrs were granted eternal life because they "despising torture in their longing for the life to come"

• Stichera for the Dead:
  
  

• These stichera follow the ones to the martyrs at the Lord I have cried section of Vespers.

• They acknowledge the vanity of earthly things and the inevitability of death.

• They emphasize that worldly wealth and glory do not accompany a person after death.

• The stichera express the belief that the souls of the departed need prayers and remembrance from those who are still living.

• The faithful plead with Christ to grant rest to the souls of their departed brethren.

• These stichera also ask that the departed may receive a place "at His right hand in joy".

• They foster a sense of the continuing bond of mutual love that links the living and the dead who are members of the Church.

• One sticheron in Tone Eight says, "O ye faithful, remembering today by name all the dead from all the ages...let us sing praises to the Lord...asking Him fervently to give them in the hour of judgment a good defense". Another speaks of the departed dwelling "in everlasting joy".
  
  

• Stichera for the dead are also sung at the Aposticha and include those written by St. John of Damascus.
  
  

• One of these stichera states that through "the poison of the serpent" death entered the world but "the Master by His coming has destroyed the dragon and bestowed upon us rest".

• Theological Significance:
  
  

• These stichera highlight the importance of remembering and praying for the dead.

• They emphasize the communion of saints, linking the living and the departed in a shared faith in Christ.

• The stichera also connect the themes of martyrdom and death with the hope of resurrection and eternal life through Christ.

• They underscore the belief that death is not an impassable barrier for those who believe in Christ.

• The themes of death, judgment, and resurrection are brought into focus, as the faithful prepare for the Last Judgment.

• The prayers ask that the departed may dwell with the righteous and at the right hand of God.

• These stichera emphasize the need to live a life of piety and faith in order to be granted mercy and salvation.

In summary, the stichera sung at Vespers on the Friday before the Sunday of the Last Judgment serve as a powerful reminder of the sacrifices of the martyrs and the ongoing connection between the living and the dead. They offer prayers for the departed and prepare the faithful for the contemplation of the Last Judgment and the hope of eternal life through Christ. These hymns are designed to foster a sense of repentance, faith, and the recognition of the need for God's mercy.

(Friday Vespers ‘Soul Saturday’ before)  Tone Eight

I lament and weep whenever I see death and look upon our beauty,
formed according to God’s image, lying in the grave, disfigured and inglorious,
its outward form destroyed.

O strange wonder! What mystery is this concerning us?
How have we been delivered to corruption?
How have we been yoked to death?

All this, as it is written, is by the ordinance of God,
who grants rest to the departed.

Tone Six

Thy creative ordinance was my beginning and foundation,
for Thou didst will to fashion me as a living creature
from natures both visible and invisible.

Thou hast made my body from the earth
and given me a soul by Thy divine and life-giving breath.

Therefore, O Savior, grant rest to Thy servants
in the land of the living, in the tabernacles of the righteous.