Earning our Way

Fog fishing.  This is what the lake looks like when the water temperature is 65 and the air is 42.
Jesus' parable of the Prodigal Son is addressed to Pharisees and scribes who complained, "This man welcomes sinners and eats with them."  Like some modern day Pharisees, they think that they must earn God's love and look down on those who aren't being as strict as they are about the Law.
The stay-at-home brother in the second half of the parable is an image of them.  He complains to his father that he has slaved for him and never disobeyed his commands, and yet he has never been treated nearly as well as his father is treating the son who has returned.  He has been so intent on earning his father's love that he never noticed that his father already loved him.  The father begs him to celebrate his brother's return.  This son misses the celebration.
My homilies are always addressed to myself as well as to the people present, so I don't usually say much about this part of the parable.  I came to the realization half a lifetime ago that God's love cannot be earned, is always freely given.  All is grace.  So I wonder what Jesus is saying to me in this image of a man who thinks he can earn his own way.
After 70 years of hearing the phrase, I found out only this week that the "fatted calf" means the "grain fed" calf.  Instead of being left to feed on the grass, the calf destined for special feasts is stuffed with grain to put on extra weight and tenderness.  It sounds like veal.