O woman, great is your faith! Let it be to you as you desire

 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.   Responding to the events in yesterday's reading, in which scribes and Pharisees from Jerusalem came to question Him about His disciples' failure to uphold the tradition of the elders, Jesus withdraws to the north, into Gentile territory.  My study bible tells us that this desire to withdraw, rather than preach in Gentile cities, is confirmed in Mark's version of this story, in which we read that Christ "wanted no one to know" He was there.  Further along in today's reading, He will also tell the Canaanite woman that He was sent only to the house of Israel.

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."  My study bible remarks on the compassion of this woman.  It says that she shows immeasurable love, in so identifying with the sufferings of her daughter that she cries, "Have mercy on me."  She sees her daughter's well-being as her own and her daughter's sufferings as her own.  In the Messianic title by which she addresses Christ, Son of David, and other remarks Jesus will subsequently make, we can see the Jewish orientation of Matthew's Gospel.

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 notes that Christ refuses to answer here, not only because this woman is a Gentile and His ministry before His Passion is first to the Jews, but also to reveal this woman's profound faith and love.  Several Church Fathers see the disciples' request to send her away as an attempt to persuade Jesus to heal the daughter.  It is as if they are saying, "Give her what she wants so that she will leave."  Jesus' response seems to suggest that this interpretation is correct, because He again refuses to heal her daughter.

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.   "Little dogs" is a term that indicates a puppy, a house dog, such as would be underfoot beneath a table.   It's also an emphasis, once again, that He's sent to the house of Israel.  My study bible says that, having evoked this woman's love and persistent faith, Christ now reveals her humility.  She accepts her place in relation to the Jews, the chosen people of God, but she still desires a share in God's grace.  Jesus' hesitancy wasn't a lack of compassion, but rather a conscious means of revealing the virtues of this woman -- both to the disciples and for her own sake.   Jesus' acceptance of this woman, of course, points to the gathering of the Gentiles into the Church after Pentecost, not as little dogs, but rather as children invited to the table for the bread of eternal life.

My study bible remarks upon the understanding that Matthew's Gospel is written with a Jewish orientation.  That is, it is written with an audience of Jewish believers in Christ in mind.  We are reminded that Jesus tells us (through the conversation recorded in the Gospel with the Canaanite woman), "I was not sent except to the lost sheep of the house of Israel."  He is in the world, as human being, in order to call back to God the lost sheep of the people of God. He is the Son of David, and He is the Shepherd (as was David a shepherd, too).  In Jesus' time, customs dictated that a Jewish man refrain from speaking with such a woman, and her behavior is most likely embarrassing, even scandalous, to the disciples who witness it.  Yet, Jesus does not simply send her away.  He doesn't perform the healing or exorcism she asks for merely in order to send her away, as finally the exasperated disciples seem to suggest to their Teacher.  Jesus has gone to this area of Gentiles in order to escape or avoid the further meddlesome actions of the leadership from Jerusalem, who by now are searching for ways to destroy Him and His ministry.  But in the overall scheme of things, God's plans fulfill promises which don't seem intended -- at least at this point -- in the human mind of Jesus.  (A similar dynamic happened in the feeding of the five thousand.)  The Father, Son, and Spirit may most certainly use any and all circumstances for revelation, and indeed here is a revelation.  It is the faith of this woman that breaks through all assumption and understanding, and this passage gives us a tremendous glimpse of the power of faith in human beings.   Jesus' patience runs right underneath the surface of this story, as He neither openly sends her away nor does He simply grant her request.  Instead, what is happening reveals her faith.  Each time He "rebukes" her, either in the form of silence or by saying, "It is not good to take the children's bread and throw it to the little dogs," she comes back with a persistent faith, insisting on the connection that -- even as a "little dog" -- she knows she has with God.  Within herself, there is the hope of God's love, so that "even the little dogs eat the crumbs which fall from their masters' table."  She is willing to accept all that He tells her, but she also seizes the opportunity that is still there, perceived in the faith and love that is within her.  Does Jesus know He will find this faith among the Gentiles?  Certainly elements of His ministry have already indicated that He is aware that faith in Him will expand to become "light to lighten the Gentiles, and the glory of thy people Israel" (Luke 2:32, Isaiah 4:6).   It is not just the graciousness of God, but also the power of faith within human beings that is on display in today's reading.  The tenaciousness of this woman mirrors the power of love, as it is love that prompts her to seek healing for her daughter.  The power of love and the power of faith are intertwined and related.  It is love and faith that transcend and persist through all circumstances, giving rise to hope.  Ultimately, faith is our response to God's love, which our soul knows.  Everything depends on how great and deep our desire is to nurture this relationship of love and its effects in our lives.  We don't know where that will lead nor what fruits and flowering it will bring.  But we persist and pursue it.  Today's story gives us the gift of that love and strength, and reveals its possibilities in us.