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Are you familiar with the story of the prodigal son from the Bible? https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke+15%3A11-32&version=NIV https://www.bibleg

Are you familiar with the story of the prodigal son from the Bible? https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke+15%3A11-32&version=NIV https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke+15%3A11-32... Background: a man has two sons. He gives half of his wealth to each. The older son is a regular hardworking fellow who stuck around and helped and obeyed his father. The younger one squandered all of it away and after falling upon hard times, realized the folly of his ways and came back to his father, full of repentance. The father threw a large feast for him. “The older brother became angry and refused to go in. So his father went out and pleaded with him. But he answered his father, ‘Look! All these years I’ve been slaving for you and never disobeyed your orders. Yet you never gave me even a young goat so I could celebrate with my friends. But when this son of yours who has squandered your property with prostitutes comes home, you kill the fattened calf for him!’ “‘My son,’ the father said, ‘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.’”

esperent 6y ago
I think it would have been fairer if the father threw a party for the other son too.
- identity0 6y ago
  You missed the entire point.
  - angrais 6y ago
    Could be because like most stories in the Bible (or religious texts more generally) that the lesson learnt is often vague or implicit, and therefore may not even exist.
    - ralston3 6y ago
      Could be that the lesson is that the person who never picks up Twitter or works at Facebook in the first place is never celebrated because they were never lost to begin with (in this context). But the person who quits Twitter or resigns recognizes a sort of lack of direction, and that is what is celebrated. Not the person. The process
    - galaxyLogic 6y ago
      Good point. These stories were not designed to teach us something. Maybe they often do. But they are just stories which people like (to hear and tell) and therefore they have survived in the memic evolution.
  - esperent 6y ago
    No, the point is tediously clear, as with most religious parables. I merely disagree with it.
sidr 6y ago
> this brother of yours was dead and is alive again So don't bother trying to not die, since you can respawn and have a feast thrown for you.
- galaxyLogic 6y ago
  Of course the father was happy to get his other son back. Which father wouldn't? It is his right then to throw a party. It is not to celebrate the son who came back, but to celebrate the fact that the father and more properly the whole family got one more (grown up) member. And think about the network effects. The whole is bigger than the sum of its parts. I think the other son just was a kind of grudgy person
nobrains 6y ago
The father mentioned his reasons, but still did not do anything to make it just and fair for the older brother.
- ch4s3 6y ago
  I think implicit in the story is that the eldest son is set to inherit everything in time.
- refurb 6y ago
  He explains why it's just and fair.
- RodgerTheGreat 6y ago
  The point of the story is that loyalty to authority is its own reward, and that to submit to authority is the only life choice that ultimately matters. The context is a religion where faith in an ultimate authority- adopted at any point in life so long as it is judged sincere- is rewarded eternally after death. (And in less gentle interpretations, lack of faith is punished eternally after death.) It's internally consistent as a tool of indoctrination, but a good example of how religious tracts are a questionable basis for systems of morality.
  - jjeaff 6y ago
    I don't get that at all from the story. It teaches that you should stop worrying so much about yourself and celebrate the success of others, even when you think you are "better" than those other people. And it's a rather precient parable because jealosy of a sibling is a common thing. When others overcome something difficult, like addiction, I try to celebrate with them. I don't sulk and complain that i'm not getting enough adulation for never getting addicted in the first place.
  - papandada 6y ago
    Most of the story, in fact, focuses on the disproportionate and unexpected response of a father welcoming back a son who left while saying "I wish you were dead." The son came back out of desperation and didn't even get his pre-planned speech of apology out of his mouth, he just showed up.
themihai 6y ago
yeah a story to teach people obedience to the "authority"(i.e. father or religious leader) even if the authority is treating you like shit. Stop bitching about unfairness/inequality! Your reward is awaiting you in a parallel universe!
- chasd00 6y ago
  This story is why people celebrate when someone beats addiction but don't give a shit about your day job. Everyone loves a redemption story.
  - themihai 6y ago
    Don't you think throwing an epic/unaffordable party is a bit too much? 1. He came home empty handed. This doesn't really mean he won't leave again nor that he will make up for the damage he's done. 2. Why the other brother has to work like a slave with no reward? Not even a promise to change the current affairs. Just the old empty/vague encouragement "what i have is yours <but not now, later...>, we must all work <but actually you work and I watch.. >". Let's make this a modern story about the financial crisis in 2008. The party guys get bailed out by the hard working people. Big Party? Fast forward 2021: party guys will be rewarded even more.
    - papandada 6y ago
      You are taking the older son at his word but not the father. That's not the only way to read it.
    - 1123581321 6y ago
      Inheritance is central to the story. The older brother is working to increase the value of the estate, because he’ll inherit half one day. The younger brother asked for his half up front in cash and wasted it. The older brother is pissed because he cares about doing the right thing, and he’s not especially rewarded for doing it when others don’t. There’s another story in the Bible about this, the vineyard workers. Workers are hired for the day with the promise of a day’s wage. Some are hired in the morning, others at noon, afternoon, and an hour before dark. The morning workers are angry because everyone got paid the same, and the vineyard owner reminds them that they were paid fairly, and that they should not let what others receive damage their contented-ness. Christianity’s emphasis of forgiveness and full welcoming has been criticized by many austere and rigorously just religions and philosophies.
papandada 6y ago
Significantly, the younger son asked for his inheritance before his father's death. To the elder son's complaints,the father merely responds (in the present tense) "all that I have is yours." Has that son perhaps not understood what he was in possession of?

esperent 6y ago

I think it would have been fairer if the father threw a party for the other son too.

identity0 6y ago
You missed the entire point.
- angrais 6y ago
  Could be because like most stories in the Bible (or religious texts more generally) that the lesson learnt is often vague or implicit, and therefore may not even exist.
  - ralston3 6y ago
    Could be that the lesson is that the person who never picks up Twitter or works at Facebook in the first place is never celebrated because they were never lost to begin with (in this context). But the person who quits Twitter or resigns recognizes a sort of lack of direction, and that is what is celebrated. Not the person. The process
  - galaxyLogic 6y ago
    Good point. These stories were not designed to teach us something. Maybe they often do. But they are just stories which people like (to hear and tell) and therefore they have survived in the memic evolution.
- esperent 6y ago
  No, the point is tediously clear, as with most religious parables. I merely disagree with it.

sidr 6y ago

> this brother of yours was dead and is alive again So don't bother trying to not die, since you can respawn and have a feast thrown for you.

galaxyLogic 6y ago
Of course the father was happy to get his other son back. Which father wouldn't? It is his right then to throw a party. It is not to celebrate the son who came back, but to celebrate the fact that the father and more properly the whole family got one more (grown up) member. And think about the network effects. The whole is bigger than the sum of its parts. I think the other son just was a kind of grudgy person

nobrains 6y ago

The father mentioned his reasons, but still did not do anything to make it just and fair for the older brother.

ch4s3 6y ago
I think implicit in the story is that the eldest son is set to inherit everything in time.
refurb 6y ago
He explains why it's just and fair.
RodgerTheGreat 6y ago
The point of the story is that loyalty to authority is its own reward, and that to submit to authority is the only life choice that ultimately matters. The context is a religion where faith in an ultimate authority- adopted at any point in life so long as it is judged sincere- is rewarded eternally after death. (And in less gentle interpretations, lack of faith is punished eternally after death.) It's internally consistent as a tool of indoctrination, but a good example of how religious tracts are a questionable basis for systems of morality.
- jjeaff 6y ago
  I don't get that at all from the story. It teaches that you should stop worrying so much about yourself and celebrate the success of others, even when you think you are "better" than those other people. And it's a rather precient parable because jealosy of a sibling is a common thing. When others overcome something difficult, like addiction, I try to celebrate with them. I don't sulk and complain that i'm not getting enough adulation for never getting addicted in the first place.
- papandada 6y ago
  Most of the story, in fact, focuses on the disproportionate and unexpected response of a father welcoming back a son who left while saying "I wish you were dead." The son came back out of desperation and didn't even get his pre-planned speech of apology out of his mouth, he just showed up.

themihai 6y ago

yeah a story to teach people obedience to the "authority"(i.e. father or religious leader) even if the authority is treating you like shit. Stop bitching about unfairness/inequality! Your reward is awaiting you in a parallel universe!

chasd00 6y ago
This story is why people celebrate when someone beats addiction but don't give a shit about your day job. Everyone loves a redemption story.
- themihai 6y ago
  Don't you think throwing an epic/unaffordable party is a bit too much? 1. He came home empty handed. This doesn't really mean he won't leave again nor that he will make up for the damage he's done. 2. Why the other brother has to work like a slave with no reward? Not even a promise to change the current affairs. Just the old empty/vague encouragement "what i have is yours <but not now, later...>, we must all work <but actually you work and I watch.. >". Let's make this a modern story about the financial crisis in 2008. The party guys get bailed out by the hard working people. Big Party? Fast forward 2021: party guys will be rewarded even more.
  - papandada 6y ago
    You are taking the older son at his word but not the father. That's not the only way to read it.
  - 1123581321 6y ago
    Inheritance is central to the story. The older brother is working to increase the value of the estate, because he’ll inherit half one day. The younger brother asked for his half up front in cash and wasted it. The older brother is pissed because he cares about doing the right thing, and he’s not especially rewarded for doing it when others don’t. There’s another story in the Bible about this, the vineyard workers. Workers are hired for the day with the promise of a day’s wage. Some are hired in the morning, others at noon, afternoon, and an hour before dark. The morning workers are angry because everyone got paid the same, and the vineyard owner reminds them that they were paid fairly, and that they should not let what others receive damage their contented-ness. Christianity’s emphasis of forgiveness and full welcoming has been criticized by many austere and rigorously just religions and philosophies.

papandada 6y ago

Significantly, the younger son asked for his inheritance before his father's death. To the elder son's complaints,the father merely responds (in the present tense) "all that I have is yours." Has that son perhaps not understood what he was in possession of?