Vatican City, May 11, 2016 / 04:11 am (CNA/EWTN News).- On Wednesday Pope Francis said the father’s embrace in the Parable of the Prodigal Son is a reminder that we never ought to despair, because nothing and no one can take away our dignity as children of God.

Pointing to how the father in the parable had watched and waited for his younger son’s return, Francis noted how “tenderly he saw him from afar, meaning that he waited for him constantly, from above.”