Even the little dogs eat the crumbs which fall from their masters' table

 Then Jesus went out from there and departed to the region of Tyre and Sidon.  And behold, a woman of Canaan came from that region and cried out to Him, saying, "Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David!  My daughter is severely demon-possessed."  But He answered her not a word.  And His disciples came and urged Him, saying, "Send her away, for she cries out after us."  But He answered and said, "I was not sent except to the lost sheep of the house of Israel."  Then she came and worshiped Him, saying, "Lord, help me!"  But He answered and said, "It is not good to take the children's bread and throw it to the little dogs."  And she said, "Yes, Lord, yet even the little dogs eat the crumbs which fall from their masters' table."  Then Jesus answered and said to her, "O woman, great is your faith!  Let it be to you as you desire."  And her daughter was healed from that very hour.

- Matthew 15:21-28

Yesterday, we read that the scribes and Pharisees who were from Jerusalem came to Jesus, saying, "Why do Your disciples transgress the tradition of the elders?  For they do not wash their hands when they eat bread."  He answered and said to them, "Why do you also transgress the commandment of God because of your tradition?  For God commanded, saying, 'Honor your father and your mother'; and 'He who curses father or mother, let him be put to death.'  But you say, 'Whoever says to his father or mother, "Whatever profit you might have received from me is a gift to God" -- then he need not honor his father or mother.'  Thus you have made the commandment of God of no effect by your tradition.  Hypocrites!  Well did Isaiah prophesy about you, saying:  'These people draw near to Me with their mouth, and honor Me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me.  And in vain they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.'"  When He had called the multitude to Himself, He said to them, "Hear and understand:  Not what goes into the mouth defiles a man;  but what comes out of the mouth, this defiles a man."  Then His disciples came and said to Him, "Do you know that the Pharisees were offended when they heard this saying?"  But He answered and said, "Every plant which My heavenly Father has not planted will be uprooted.  Let them alone.  They are blind leaders of the blind.  And if the blind leads the blind, both will fall into a ditch."    Then Peter answered and said to Him, "Explain this parable to us."  So Jesus said, "Are you also still without understanding?  Do you not yet understand that whatever enters the mouth goes into the stomach and is eliminated?  But those things which proceed out of the mouth come from the heart, and they defile a man.  For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies.  These are the things which defile a man, but to eat with unwashed hands does not defile a man."

 Then Jesus went out from there and departed to the region of Tyre and Sidon.  These are Gentile areas to the north of Galilee.  (See Tyre and Sidon far to the north on this map.)  After His confrontation with the Pharisees who came from Jerusalem, in yesterday's reading, Jesus has withdrawn to this area.  Repeatedly we've observed in the recent readings in Matthew that Jesus has tried to withdraw for periods during His ministry.  But everywhere He goes, people manage to find Him, to follow Him, or His disciples need Him.

And behold, a woman of Canaan came from that region and cried out to Him, saying, "Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David!  My daughter is severely demon-possessed."   Even in this Gentile territory where Jesus has withdrawn to get away from the Pharisees -- who came from far south, Jerusalem -- He can't escape His ministry and His fame.  Here a Gentile woman, a descendant of the ancient Canaanites in this region which is now Greek-speaking Syro-Phoenician territory, comes and finds Christ.  She begs Him to heal her daughter, whom she says is severely demon-possessed.  We can immediately observe that not only does she see Christ as healer, but also as deliverer, savior:  there is a spiritual battle going on behind the scenes, and she knows who can defeat her enemy who has "possessed" her daughter.  My study bible says that she shows immeasurable love, because she so identifies with her daughter's suffering that she says, "Have mercy on me."  She sees her daughter's well-being as her own, and her daughter's suffering as her own.  "Son of David" is a messianic title that would be particularly meaningful to Jews, and it shows the orientation of Matthew's Gospel as that written for a Jewish audience.  Perhaps it also demonstrates her knowledge of just who Jesus is and what their cultural differences are, but nevertheless in her state of need, she approaches Him.

But He answered her not a word.  And His disciples came and urged Him, saying, "Send her away, for she cries out after us."  But He answered and said, "I was not sent except to the lost sheep of the house of Israel."  My study bible tells us that Christ refuses to answer, not only because she's a Gentile and His ministry before the Passion is first to the Jews, but in fact in so doing He reveals her profound faith and love,  the quality of her particular character.  This teaches all of us.  Furthermore, many Church Fathers interpret the disciples' request to "send her away" as an attempt to persuade Jesus to heal her daughter.  My study bible paraphrases as if they're saying, "Give her what she wants so that she will leave."  Jesus' response, to say that He was not sent except to the lost sheep of the house of Israel, affirms this interpretation.  He doesn't just send her away, and yet He refuses to heal her daughter.  This response, in effect, draws her out and requires another response from her.

Then she came and worshiped Him, saying, "Lord, help me!"  But He answered and said, "It is not good to take the children's bread and throw it to the little dogs."  And she said, "Yes, Lord, yet even the little dogs eat the crumbs which fall from their masters' table."  Then Jesus answered and said to her, "O woman, great is your faith!  Let it be to you as you desire."  And her daughter was healed from that very hour.  It's a very powerful passage, as we note first that she "worships" Christ -- the Greek teaches us that she falls to her knees at His feet, in a position of worship.  Jesus' responses to her have not only evoked her faith and love, but at this point also her humility.  She accepts the place of the Jews here, that they are the "chosen people of God," but still desires a share in God's grace, says my study bible.  Jesus' hesitancy is seen therefore as not a lack of compassion but instead a conscious way to reveal her virtues -- both to the disciples (who must be shocked that He would even be speaking to this Gentile woman), and also for her own sake.  After Pentecost, the Gentiles will be gathered in the Church, as children indeed who are invited to eat the bread of eternal life.

Ultimately, as with all the other miracles of healing in Jesus' ministry, it is the great faith of this woman that, in effect, saves her daughter.  At this point, after confrontation with the Pharisees, there is no doubt of what is happening.  This Gospel will go to all the nations.  But in the context of His ministry, as Messiah, we really have to understand how things unfold.  He was sent to the Jews first.  He was born a Jew.  His disciples are all devout Jews.  Things must progress in this ministry as they are meant to, step by step.  He is being refused by the leadership, and confrontation gradually builds.  He has withdrawn to this Gentile area, far away from the center of the religious leadership in Jerusalem.  This encounter is profound, deliberately meaningful and vivid for the disciples (and for the future readers and faithful in the Church such as those of us who read today).  Nothing of this conversation will be forgotten.  And, as my study bible reports, and as Church commentators throughout the centuries have seen it, this encounter itself is a kind of gradual evolution.  Whatever He does or says draws everything out.  Her love is affirmed.  Her faith is affirmed.  Her persistence, and also her great humility, are also affirmed.  And there's something more here:  she is one of the "rational sheep."  She's not passive but rather articulate and persistent, persuasive, and -- something else important to the character of faith from Old Testament to New --  she is engaging.  It's like all the conversations we read of the ancients "arguing" or pleading with God, from Job to the Psalms to the Prophets, to Jacob wrestling for a blessing, so she follows in the quality and character of faith that we and the early Jewish recipients of this Gospel should recognize and know.    This particular, and great combination -- of humility, persistence, articulateness, intelligence, engagement, love, and faith -- all make for the stuff of Scripture and the cast of those chosen by God who populate it.  It's something we recognize and should seek to emulate.  It's also really important to note how Jesus' ministry and everything about this scene and the evolution of His mission goes in stages, step by step.  So it is with our faith, for each of us!  This is a very important lesson for us all to learn, as our own relationship to Christ must evolve and grow through dialogue and prayer, engaging with God, developing our own virtues of persistence, humility, love, awareness, intelligence, and faith.  Let us engage with the text with this understanding, even as we don't always immediately get what we want how we want it, but grow into real discipleship.  She -- and He -- are teaching us what that really takes, and what it asks of us.