Yes, Lord, yet even the little dogs under the table eat from the children's crumbs

 From there He arose and went to the region of Tyre and Sidon.  And He entered a house and wanted no one to know it, but He could not be hidden.  For a woman whose young daughter had an unclean spirit heard about Him, and she came and fell at His feet.  The woman was a Greek, a Syro-Phoenician by birth, and she kept asking Him to cast the demon out of her daughter.  But Jesus said to her, "Let the children be filled first, for it is not good to take the children's bread and throw it to the little dogs."  And she answered and said to Him, "Yes, Lord, yet even the little dogs under the table eat from the children's crumbs."  Then He said to her, "For this saying go your way; the demon has gone out of your daughter."  And when she had come to her house, she found the demon gone out, and her daughter lying on the bed.

Again, departing from the region of Tyre and Sidon, He came through the midst of the region of Decapolis to the Sea of Galilee.  Then they brought to Him one who was deaf and had an impediment in his speech, and they begged Him to put His hand on him.  And He took him aside from the multitude, and put His fingers in his hears, and He spat and touched his tongue.  Then, looking up to heaven, He sighed, and said to him, "Ephphatha," that is, "Be opened."  Immediately his ears were opened, and the impediment of his tongue was loosed, and he spoke plainly.  Then He commanded them that they should tell no one; but the more He commanded them, the more widely they proclaimed it.  And they were astonished beyond measure, saying, "He has done all things well.  He makes both the deaf to hear and the mute to speak."

- Mark 7:24-37

Yesterday we read that the Pharisees and some of the scribes came together to Jesus, having come from Jerusalem.  Now when they saw some of His disciples eat bread with defiled, that is, with unwashed hands, they found fault.  For the Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat unless they wash their hands in a special way, holding the tradition of the elders.  When they come from the marketplace, they do not eat unless they wash.  And there are many other things which they have received and hold, like the washing of cups, pitchers, copper vessels, and couches.  Then the Pharisees and scribes asked Him, "Why do Your disciples not walk according to the tradition of the elders, but eat bread with unwashed hands?"  He answered and said to them, "Well did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written:  'This people honors Me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me.  And in vain they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.'  For laying aside the commandment of God, you hold the tradition of men -- the washing of pitcher and cups, and many other such things you do." He said to them, "All too well you reject the commandment of God, that you may keep your tradition.  For Moses said, 'Honor your father and your mother'; and, 'He who curses father or mother, let him be put to death.'  But you say, 'If a man says to his father or mother, "Whatever profit you might have received from me is Corban" --' (that is, a gift to God), then you no longer let him do anything for his father or his mother, making the word of God of no effect through your tradition which you have handed down.  And many such things you do."  When He had called all the multitude to Himself, He said to them, "Hear Me, everyone, and understand:  There is nothing that enters a man from outside which can defile him; but the things which come out of him, those are the things that defile a man.  If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear!"  When He had entered a house away from the crowd, His disciples asked Him concerning the parable.  So He said to them, "Are you thus without understanding also?  Do you not perceive that whatever enters a man from outside cannot defile him, because it does not enter his heart but his stomach, and is eliminated, thus purifying all foods?"  And He said, "What comes out of a man, that defiles a man.  For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit lewdness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness.  All these evil things come from within and defile a man."

 From there He arose and went to the region of Tyre and Sidon.  And He entered a house and wanted no one to know it, but He could not be hidden.  For a woman whose young daughter had an unclean spirit heard about Him, and she came and fell at His feet.  The woman was a Greek, a Syro-Phoenician by birth, and she kept asking Him to cast the demon out of her daughter.  But Jesus said to her, "Let the children be filled first, for it is not good to take the children's bread and throw it to the little dogs."  And she answered and said to Him, "Yes, Lord, yet even the little dogs under the table eat from the children's crumbs."  Then He said to her, "For this saying go your way; the demon has gone out of your daughter."  And when she had come to her house, she found the demon gone out, and her daughter lying on the bed.  Tyre and Sidon are Gentile regions.  Jesus has not come here to preach but to withdraw -- especially after the encounter with the scribes and Pharisees that we read in yesterday's reading (above).  But, as with His plans to withdraw with the disciples before the feeding of the five thousand, the mission of Christ into the world creates all kinds of responses from human beings that even Christ does not seem to plan nor control (as was discussed in this commentary, as we noted how Jesus marveled at faith or the lack of it in response to His ministry).  Jesus' immediate response to this woman indicates His intent to preach first to the Jews, as indeed He says in Matthew's version of the story (Matthew 15:24).  But again, in a kind of parallel to the story of the feeding of the five thousand, the woman's persistence for Christ wins out.  Her persistence indicates a great faith, and faith trumps over all things.  Her love for her daughter is also clearly on display as profound -- so both faith and love are present here (such as in the story of the centurion, another Gentile of faith such that made Christ marvel).  The word for dog here actually is a diminutive form that means puppy, as in a house dog who awaits the crumbs that may fall from the meal under the table.  Her response does not defy the idea that Christ preaches to the Jews about the God of the chosen people, but that she accepts and values what she may receive with gratitude.  In her humility she reveals her desire for a share in God's grace.  My study bible says that Christ's hesitancy here wasn't a lack of compassion, but rather a conscious means of revealing the virtues of this woman.  It says, "Her ultimate acceptance by Christ also points to the gathering of the Gentiles into the Church after Pentecost, no longer as dogs, but as children who are invited to eat the bread of eternal life."  Anyone who has experienced the attention of a puppy under the table awaiting a crumb understands with what single minded-focus, persistence, and hope we may see an allegory to the true desire of this woman for what Christ has to offer!

 Again, departing from the region of Tyre and Sidon, He came through the midst of the region of Decapolis to the Sea of Galilee.  Then they brought to Him one who was deaf and had an impediment in his speech, and they begged Him to put His hand on him.  And He took him aside from the multitude, and put His fingers in his hears, and He spat and touched his tongue.  Then, looking up to heaven, He sighed, and said to him, "Ephphatha," that is, "Be opened."  Immediately his ears were opened, and the impediment of his tongue was loosed, and he spoke plainly.  Then He commanded them that they should tell no one; but the more He commanded them, the more widely they proclaimed it.  And they were astonished beyond measure, saying, "He has done all things well.  He makes both the deaf to hear and the mute to speak."  Again this story shows Jesus avoiding the religious rulers -- leaving from the northern Gentile region of Tyre and Sidon, He comes through the Decapolis to the Sea of Galilee, a longer and round-about route, avoiding Galilee proper (map).  The Decapolis was a Greek-speaking region of mixed populations (the word means "ten cities"), southeast of the Sea of Galilee.  My study bible says that the fact that He sighed is a sign of divine compassion for the sufferings of our fallen human nature.  He sets the example of humility and its value -- that we mustn't seek acclaim or praise when we do good to others.  Of course, this remains an essential element of His ministry; He does not seek the fame He receives; in fact in this reading and throughout the ministry He avoids unnecessary conflict and misunderstanding in order to complete His mission properly in the face of those whose expectations of the Christ are false.  Theophylact, however, adds a comment that those who disobey Christ in this situation form a good example -- that we should proclaim those who have done good to us even if they do not want us to.

Jesus' compassion is on display through all that He does.  In yesterday's reading, we may observe how He defends His own disciples from the criticism of the scribes and Pharisees.  In today's reading, although He tells the Syro-Phoenician woman, "Let the children be filled first, for it is not good to take the children's bread and throw it to the little dogs,"  He relents with her persistence.  The story is striking in that it is precisely because she speaks back within the same vein as His own image -- that "even the little dogs under the table eat the children's crumbs," that her daughter is healed from the demon.  I think it's critical, also, that we note that it's in a category of rather extraordinary healing reflecting the faith of the one who requested it:  like the centurion, it's a healing done by distance.  In the context of the Gospels and other healings we observe by Jesus, this reflects her great faith as well as her compassion and love for her daughter.  It is faith that makes the connection with Christ's power, and compassion that is a kind of mutual language with Christ.  In the second healing, as my study bible pointed out, His sigh gives us a key to His compassion.  We note that Jesus takes the man away from the multitude for this healing.   In other readings, that is an indication of the presence of those who don't believe.  Furthermore, since this episode is recording, we can assume that at least some of His disciples were also present when the man was taken aside, and they are the witnesses to these events.  It reflects again Christ's careful guarding of faith in order for His power to be most effective -- and this is an extraordinary healing.  As the text also indicates, His emphasis on faith is not for His fame nor self-aggrandizement in any form.  It is because of His compassion that He shares His power with human beings, "implanting" this divine reality, this presence of the Kingdom, where it will be truly shared, respected, and understood -- in those who possess faith.  It's important to note that compassion doesn't cover abuse nor disrespect to what is holy.  Rather, faith ensures an understanding of the reality of the Kingdom.  It is Christ who taught His disciples, "Do not give what is holy to the dogs; nor cast your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you in pieces" (Matthew 7:6).  We discern the things we love, and that which we put our faith into.  We are also called to discern the value of His grace and love.   In today's reading, the Syro-Phoenician woman knows the great value even of the children's crumbs.