Then He commanded them that they should tell no one; but the more He commanded them, the more widely they proclaimed it

 

 From there He arose and went to the region of Tyre and Sidon.  And He entered into 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 ears, 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 

 

On Saturday, we read that the Pharisees and some of the scribes came together to Jesus, having come from Jerusalem.  Now when they saw some of the 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 pitchers 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 into a house and wanted no one to know it, but He could not be hidden.  Tyre and Sidon is a Gentile region which was to the north of Galilee.  As the text indicates, Jesus goes here to withdraw after yet another conflict and challenge to the Pharisees (see Saturday's reading, above).  It is for this reasons that He entered into a house and wanted no one to know it.  However, His identity and fame by this time mean that He could not be hidden.  In St. Matthew's version of this story, this withdrawal from the Pharisees into Gentile territory is emphasized through Jesus' remark, "I was not sent except to the lost sheep of the house of Israel" (Matthew 15:23).  Thus, He was not there to preach.

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.  My study Bible comments that Christ's refusal at first to heal her daughter comes not only because His ministry before the Passion is first to the Jews, but also serves to reveal her profound faith and love.  Her persistence, her alacrity in her response, and her humility before Him all speak of her faith.  My study Bible says that she accepts her place beneath the Jews ("the children"), who were the chosen people of God, but still desires a share in God's grace.  It notes that Christ's hesitancy is not a lack of compassion, but a conscious means to reveal her virtues.  This is confirmed in Christ's response, "For this saying go your way; the demon has gone out of your daughter."  Little dogs are house dogs, puppies.  One can imagine her persistence in the way that a puppy may plead under a table for the good food thereon.  My study Bible further comments that 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. 

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 ears, 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.   My study Bible indicates that Christ's sigh in looking up to heaven is a sign of divine compassion for the sufferings of our fallen human nature. 

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."  Here, according to my study Bible, Jesus shows us that we must not seek acclaim or praise when we do good to others.  Interestingly, it notes, Theophylact upholds those who disobey Christ under these circumstances.  He sees them as a good example, that we should proclaim those who have done good to us even if they do not want us to. 

 

 Theophylact's praise of the people who proclaim Christ's work, although He commanded them that they should tell no one, is an intriguing understanding of grace and graciousness.  From a certain perspective, it is a way to enact the reciprocal practice of mercy, of the joyful receipt of a gift.  It speaks to all of gratitude for something very fine and good.  In this sense, we can understand Theophylact's approval and praise.  In a sense slightly similar to the voluntary expression of humility by the Syro-Phoenician woman, the people's exuberant praise for Christ is an acknowledgement of something or Someone who is much greater than they, or than others they have known.  It is a way to express that God is worthy of praise at all times.  In the understanding from the Gospels, and the Old Testament Scriptures, we call this giving glory to God, an appropriate thing to do in all times and circumstances.  This seems difficult to do -- or perhaps it doesn't seem to make sense -- when we go through difficult times.  One might turn to the first part of our reading today, and a modern sense of what's fair would be appalled and upset at Christ's reference to the Syro-Phoenician woman as a "little dog."  But then one would have to recall that it was in the very earliest days of the Church that the idea that all the faithful were one family as believers, Jews and Gentiles.  Instead, we need to see the responses Christ gives to this woman as something to be thankful for, even to glorify God, because -- as my study Bible remarks -- Jesus' response to this woman draws her out, and shows to all her faith, persistence, intelligence, and commitment of love for her daughter.  In our own lives, the same can be said of difficulties met with faith and the help of God.  This particular episode described here in today's reading also opens up the door to the fruitfulness of Christ's mission, and its eventual turn toward the Gentiles as well as the Jews.  Let us remember gratitude as a great key to our faith, one that unlocks all kinds of ways in which we may experience the love of God and the insights that will give us.  For faith is not purely a rational choice, it's not just expedient, neither is it merely something we practice because everyone else is doing it.  It's the work of God we're given to do. 

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

 

 Then Jesus went out from there and departed too 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 too 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.  After the confrontation with the scribes and Pharisees from Jerusalem (recorded in yesterday's reading, above), Jesus withdraws to this Gentile region of Tyre and Sidon.  This Canaanite woman is a Gentile, as we'll clearly read in Christ's responses a little further along.  My study Bible notes that some elements of today's reading make clear the Jewish orientation of St. Matthew's Gospel.  One of those indications is here, in the messianic title with which this woman addresses Christ, Son of David, a Jewish term for the Messiah.  Additionally, my study Bible comments on her character, as she displays immeasurable love:  she identifies so strongly 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.  Jesus refuses to answer, my study Bible comments, for two reasons.  First, because she is a Gentile; His ministry before His Passion is first to the Jews.  Second, to reveal this woman's profound faith and love.  

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."  In patristic commentary, there are those who see the disciples' request to send her away as an attempt to persuade Jesus to heal her daughter.  My study Bible explains this perspective as meaning to say, "Give her what she wants so that she will leave."  Jesus' response indicates that this is correct, as He again refuses to heal her daughter.  Jesus' claim, "I was not sent except to the lost sheep of the house of Israel" is yet another indication of the Jewish orientation of St. Matthew's Gospel, for neither this saying nor her title for Jesus, Son of David, are found in Mark's version of the story (Mark 7:24-30).  St. Mark's Gospel, however, records that Jesus wanted no one to know that He was there.

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.  My study Bible comments that, having evoked this woman's love and persistent faith, Christ now reveals her humility.  She accepts her place beneath the Jews, who were the chosen people of God, but she still wishes a share in God's grace.  Christ's hesitancy, therefore, was not a lack of compassion.  We should see it instead as a conscious means of revealing her virtues -- both for the disciples as well as for her sake.  Her ultimate acceptance by Christ points toward 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.  

Today's story from St. Matthew's Gospel is one more instance in which Christ cannot be hidden, and which teaches us that, even as He seeks to withdraw, His compassion is called upon and He responds with His power to heal an ailing humanity.  It is in these ways similar to the feeding of the five thousand men (and more women and children) who followed Him to a deserted place when He sought to withdraw once again from conflict with the authorities (in that instance, the attention of Herod Antipas).  In the latter case, they had followed Him and had nothing to eat when evening came.  Regarding today's story, St. Mark's Gospel tells us that He didn't want it known that He was there, as He'd withdrawn to this Gentile region in response to the criticism and conflict with the scribes and Pharisees from Jerusalem (see yesterday's reading, above).  But He cannot be hidden, even from this Gentile Canaanite woman who pleads with Him for the sake of her daughter, who is severely demon-possessed.  This is the first hint we get of something going on here we might not otherwise notice:  she's asking for help dealing with an "enemy power."  That is, she wants help in defeating the demons who afflict her daughter.  In calling Jesus Son of David, she is addressing One whom she recognizes as a Deliverer, a Savior.  As my study Bible pointed out, He tells her that He was only sent to the "lost sheep of the house of Israel."  But she nonetheless keeps pleading with Him.  And her humility is quite on display, as Jesus speaks of the puppies begging under the table for the children's food (we can imagine this image of her pestering insistence), and she responds without refuting what He says, but in acceptance, and smartly telling Him that "even the little dogs eat the crumbs which fall from their masters' table."  For this persistence, acceptance, humility -- and what we can call her prayers to the Lord in pleading with Him -- she is rewarded as Jesus gives her high praise:  "O woman, great is your faith!"  We have to notice her quick wit, and consider that for all this she is made of the stuff that pleases Christ, as she won't let go of this great blessing of the Son of David in her midst.  What we find here is the creative power always on display in whatever circumstances where Christ is involved, and wherever He goes, even when He's trying to escape scrutiny.  Faith opens up pathways and new expression of God's power through Christ -- in this case, a surprising beginning at the hint of faith opening to the Gentiles.  It's important that, once again, we note Christ has one aim in mind in coming to this place, and something quite different unfolds as another opportunity for the power of God to manifest and be revealed.  For this is our Lord and the surprising reality of God that never stops opening for us, expressing creative power, finding a way through faith to give new expressions of God's activity in the world and through human beings, even those seemingly least likely.  Let us give thanks and praise. 

 

 

 

Then He commanded them that they should tell no one; but the more He commanded them, the more widely they proclaimed it

 

 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 ears, 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 

 

On Saturday 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 pitchers 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 other 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 al 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.   As this story appears in Matthew's Gospel  (Matthew 15:21-28), it includes a couple of details Mark's does not.  In Matthew's Gospel, the Jewish orientation of the Gospel is clear:  Jesus states there that He was sent to the lost sheep of the house of Israel, and the woman uses the title "Son of David" for Christ, a Jewish term for the Messiah.  My study Bible comments that Christ went to the Gentile cities not to preach, but to withdraw from the faithless Pharisees, with whom He's just had another dispute (see Saturday's reading, above).  Here in Mark's Gospel, this is made clear when we read that Christ wanted no one to know He was there.  But, as we read, He could not be hidden.

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 ears, 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."  In keeping with what was noted in the previous section (that Christ wanted a respite from His conflict with the Pharisees), Jesus makes His way back toward the Sea of Galilee in a kind of "roundabout" way.  He goes through the Gentile region of Tyre and Sidon.  The Decapolis (a name meaning "Ten Cities") was a region of Greek and Roman cities, at His time mixed with Jewish populations.  My study Bible comments on fact that we are told, "He sighed," as Christ looked up to heaven and gave the command that His ears  be opened.  It says that Christ's sigh is a sign of divine compassion for the sufferings of our fallen human nature.  In His command to tell no one my study Bible sees a teaching that we mustn't seek acclaim or praise when we do good to others.  But Theophylact upholds those who disobey Jesus in this circumstance, and sees them as a good example -- that we should proclaim those who have done good to us even if they do not want us to.  Both teachings are valuable and compatible with one another.  We might also look upon this command as yet another attempt by Christ not to unnecessarily draw the attention of the Pharisees before His hour.  

In certain senses, today's reading conveys to us a character of humility in Jesus.   It's important to note, also, that this trait of humility is mingled with Christ's striking hallmark of compassion.  Perhaps it is most significantly these two qualities that mark saintliness in those whom the Church has honored as holy people.  We can read humility into the idea that Jesus really wants to disappear from sight for a while, and avoid confrontation with the Pharisees -- and so He travels into Gentile territory.  Looking closely at this map, one can see the cities of Tyre and Sidon on the coastline north of Galilee (in the area marked as Phoenicia).  And in the second part of today's reading, we can see that He goes out of His way to travel eastward in a roundabout circle, via the Decapolis, to come back to the Sea of Galilee.  All of this is to avoid more confrontation with the religious leaders from Jerusalem, the center of Jewish religious life.  All we have to do is recall Christ's divine identity, witnessed to by the miraculous healing that He does as well as His authority over the unclean spirit in the daughter of the Syro-Phoenician woman, to understand that His power and authority could obviously work to achieve all kinds of things for him -- including avoiding the Pharisees.  But He doesn't do that.  The time for confrontation is not up to Him alone or what His preferences are; in all things, Christ follows God the Father.  And that time for open confrontation will come when He enters Jerusalem on His way to the Cross.  In humility, He does what human beings need to do when the time for confrontation is not appropriate:  He avoids it, and travels far from the scrutiny of the religious leaders, and does not want Himself to be known, as the text tells us.  This is humility on a number of levels:  He won't use His extraordinary power to achieve what He means to achieve by some spectacular miracle or proof, He won't use that power in some miraculous way to avoid the Pharisees, He won't use any sort of manipulative power to overwhelm the human beings who seek Him.  He humbles Himself in accordance with His mission, and His fulfillment of the promise of the Incarnation that He live as one of us.  If we consider His reluctance to heal this woman's daughter, He also displays a kind of humility in accepting her request, as well as compassion.  Now, we might take a look at His words to her, comparing her to the little pups who beg under the table, and consider that what He says is uncharacteristically insulting and harsh!  But nonetheless, her bold and clever to reply to Him tells us another story -- that there is something conveyed in His manner so that she still has the confidence to approach Him and reply back.  Moreover, He yields and richly replies to her answer, even praising her for her persistence, and, we might suppose, her quick response using His own metaphor back to Him!  Reminding ourselves again of His majestic divinity as Son, we might find it surprising that He shows what appears to be a change of mind on His part, and yields to her persuasion.  Again, for the Son of God, this is a deep appearance of humility, to be persuaded by this particular woman to do something He at first refused.  But of course, this is also an expression of compassion, an exception that proves the rule, so to speak.  In the second healing, we find similarly a kind of humility in going far away from the crowd, and also admonishing the healed man's friends to tell no one.  In conventional human terms, we might think one would typically seek to be known for the good we do -- but not Jesus.  He has a mission to accomplish, and that is not how it will be accomplished.  That would not be in keeping with His obedience to God the Father.  Christ's sigh, as noted by my study Bible, is an expression of compassion for the suffering of human beings.  The command He gives, "Be opened!" as well as the expression that the healed man's tongue was "loosed" is an indication of liberation for human being kept captive by and hobbled by the things that ail us.  If we examine closely the actions of Christ throughout the Gospels, we will see consistent expressions of these qualities of humility and compassion, even as He heals and liberates.  His is a ministry that does not seek to "prove" things to those who won't believe, nor to "Lord it over" others by manipulation or force of any kind.  We must somehow meet Him with the faith that recognizes the goodness in His qualities, the desirability of such a Lord who is gentle and lowly of heart, and seeks to be "like Him."  If we think about it, the traditional qualities we learn from custom and culture which indicate what it is to be a gracious person all come from Christ.  Let us all endeavor to remain the people who can appreciate and cherish these qualities, seeking to emulate and value them in our lives.  

He could not be hidden

 

 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 who had an impediment in his speech, and they begged Him to put His hand on them.  And He took him aside from the multitude, and put His fingers in his ears, 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 this 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 Him, 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 pitchers 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.  After His conflict with the scribes and Pharisees in Saturday's reading (see above), Jesus withdrew to the region of Tyre and Sidon, a Gentile region.  For this reason the text tells us that He wanted no one to know it.  But it also illuminates for us the reality that Christ could not be hidden.  We might speculate that this shows what it is that Christ is both human and divine; it is His divine nature that cannot remain hidden.  Jesus' response, "Let the children be filled first, for it is not good to take the children's bread and throw it to the little dogs" is thrown into relief by a detail of Matthew's report of this (Matthew 15:21-28), in which Jesus comments, "I was not sent except to the lost sheep of the house of Israel" (Matthew 15:24).  These are the children to whom Jesus refers.  But, as in Matthew's version of this story, this woman is extremely persistent, and will not be put off by Jesus' remarks, so she responds, "Yes, Lord, yet even the little dogs under the table eat from the children's crumbs."   She is at once humble, accepting what Christ has said, and persistent in her faith and her love for her daughter.  For this expression of both humility and faith her daughter is healed.  

 

 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 who had an impediment in his speech, and they begged Him to put His hand on them.  And He took him aside from the multitude, and put His fingers in his ears, and He spat and touched his tongue.  Then, looking up to heaven, He sighed, and said to him, "Ephphatha," that is, "Be opened."   My study Bible comments that Jesus' sigh is a sign of divine compassion for the sufferings of our fallen human nature. 

 

Immediately his ears were opened, and this 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."   There are visceral implications here of the repressive nature of evil, and the signs of Christ's action of liberation, of freeing.  This man's ears and tongue were in a sense "locked" and "closed."  Jesus commands them to be opened and loosed.   My study Bible comments that Christ's admonition to tell no one shows that we must not seek acclaim or praise when we do good to others.  But interestingly, Theophylact upholds those who disobey Christ in this situation as a good example, that we should proclaim those who have done good to us even if they do not want us to.  It is, of course, one more example of Christ's desire to remain hidden, and yet He cannot do so.

In both of today's stories, we witness an interesting contradistinction of Christ's humanity and His divinity.  In His humanity, He wishes to be hidden; He has just had an open conflict with the Pharisees and scribes who came from Jerusalem, the center of the religious authority.  He withdraws to the Gentile area of Tyre and Sidon, but He cannot be hidden.  Later He returns roundabout toward Galilee, and He's in the Decapolis (meaning "ten cities" in Greek), which is a Greek-speaking region in which both Roman and Greek culture are mixed with a Jewish population as well.  We can look closely at the oppression that exists among these Gentile peoples in today's reading:  the young daughter of the Greek-speaking Syro-Phoenician woman is oppressed by a demon.  The woman falls at Jesus' feet and repeatedly begs Him for healing because of this oppression of her daughter.  In the Decapolis there is a man who is both deaf and also unable to speak (having an "impediment in his speech").  In the Greek word describing this impediment, the root meaning includes that of "laborious toil," something imposed which makes speech terribly difficult for him.  "Laborious toil" is also a key component of the meanings of the Greek word for evil, or "the evil one."  The language used in today's text for healing by Christ describes liberation:  His act of healing "opens" the man's ears, and His tongue is "loosed," just as the demon has "gone out" from the daughter of the Syro-Phoenician woman.  While the malice and envy (also archetypal hallmarks of evil) of the Pharisees and scribes forces Jesus to withdraw and seek to remain hidden for a time, His divine nature remains powerfully liberating for those with faith, and there is no impediment that stands in the way of this powerful healing work that is part and parcel of Jesus and His ministry in the world.  Nothing stops this force for liberation, for healing, for salvation.  Its action is always at work.  It's as if we can parse out this text to tell us that while human nature will find ways to sin under the influence of the evil one, the powerful force of God to liberate and heal is always at work in our world through Christ and His ministry, through the redeeming influence of the Holy Spirit and all the forces of God at work for us.  The powerful implement by which this transforming power remains available and at work is faith; it is something in us that, through even the powerful impediments that seek to block our good and suppress our connection to God, we may find our thread, our way in life, through faith which brings us back and into communion with Christ, whose action is to liberate.  As we take a closer look at these stories, we may also think back upon our own lives, and how Christ's faith has worked in our lives.  It does not necessarily preserve us from encounters with evil or temptations to fall into traps of fear, or even the malice and envy of others, but it does work through faith to help us through what seeks to oppress and to oppose God's power in our lives.  We are not spared the difficulties of the world, just as the we have read of the disciples going through difficulties such as windstorms and terrifying experiences.  But it is our faith that keeps us tied to Christ, and the work of the Spirit and all the power of holiness in those with whom we pray, that great cloud of witnesses described by St. Paul (Hebrews 12:1).  We can look back at our lives and see the ways that the thread of faith leads us through difficulties, and remember the unstoppable nature of God which works through all things, even the impediments.

Be opened

 

 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 impedimet in his speech, and they begged Him to put His hand on them.  And He took him aside form the multitude, and put His fingers in his ears, and He spat and touched his tongue.  Then, looking up to heaven, He sighted, 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 pitchers 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.   Let us keep in mind that Jesus, having just had a run-in and conflict with the Pharisees and scribes who'd come from Jerusalem to Him, is seeking a place where He can be hidden.  He has come to the region of Tyre and Sidon, a Gentile region to the north of Galilee.  So Jesus' purpose in coming here is to escape public notice for the time, 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."   Jesus' reputation precedes Him.  Although this woman is not a Jew, she nevertheless came and kept asking Him to cast the demon out of her daughter.  When He says, "Let the children be filled first," He's referring to those to whom He's come first to minister, the "lost sheep of the house of Israel" (Matthew 15:24), to whom He's been sent for His direct ministry during His human lifetime.  While it sounds very insulting in a Near or Middle Eastern setting to refer to people as dogs, here he speaks of little dogs; that is, puppies or house dogs, not outdoor dogs or commonly seen strays.  This seems to refer more to her insistent pestering and begging (she "kept asking" Him) than her Gentile status.

And she answered and said to Him, "Yes, Lord, yet even the little dogs under the table eat from the children's crumbs." This woman's quick and smart response suggests she understands precisely what He means by referring to little dogs; that is, those puppies who beg under the table for the children's crumbs.  Anyone who's ever had a begging puppy under the table knows how persistent they can be!

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.  Her persistence is a model for prayer; she did not give up in her pursuit of Christ.  In Matthew's Gospel, this story is more drawn out; it is more clear that Jesus intentionally provokes her persistence.  Also in this saying she illustrates her humility:  she is willing to accept what Christ teaches about His ministry to the house of Israel ("the children") and does not argue with His statement.  But she finds a way to persist and to engage Him.  In doing so, she also shows her deep love for her daughter, whom she's trying to save.  Let us note that to cast out the demon is essentially a spiritual act; she accepting Jesus' authority in this respect, and putting her faith in Him.  My study Bible comments that her ultimate acceptance by Christ points to the gathering of the Gentiles in to the Church after Pentecost, no longer as little dogs, but as children who are invited to eat the bread of eternal life.

 

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 them.  And He took him aside form the multitude, and put His fingers in his ears, and He spat and touched his tongue.  Then, looking up to heaven, He sighted, 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."  My study Bible comments that He sighed as a sign of divine compassion for the sufferings of our fallen human nature.  His command to tell no one shows that we must not seek acclaim or praise when we do good to others.  My study Bible also cites Theophylact, who upholds those who disobey Christ in this circumstance; he sees them as a good example, that we should proclaim those who have done good to us even if they do not want us to.

 

Today's reading begins to give us hints of the opening up of Christ's ministry beyond only the Jews.  It teaches us about the faith and persistence in faith of a Gentile woman, and how she was rewarded by Christ for that persistence and her desire for what He offers.  Moreover, the healing of the deaf man who also had an impediment in his speech, takes place in the Decapolis, an area of Galilee with a strong Gentile influence as these are Greco-Roman cities.  It's interesting that Christ the Word "opens" this man's ears to hear and his tongue to speak.  We could understand a parallel here to Christ giving the ancient world, even Greco-Roman culture with its poetry, theater, literature, and philosophy a means to hear and to express concepts which did not exist for them, a new language to illumine and "open" everything.  But the story of the Greek woman with a demon-possessed daughter reflects the real key to the opening up of Christ's word to the world, and that is faith, and persistence in faith.  We need to really know that what He offers is an answer that is not going to be found anywhere else.  Our deepest struggles require something more than an intellectual brilliance or even the creativity the ancient world possessed in reaching for the good, the true, and the beautiful.  For it is Christ the Word who is in His Person the good, the true, and the beautiful, and He gives us keys that unlock the deeper doors of salvation to the root problems of the struggles of this world.  And this is what the ancient world would come to embrace in Jesus.  There are things that can only be healed by grace and by faith, by our communion with Christ.  We may know beautiful thoughts and concepts, important notions of the good, a rational sense of philosophical truth, but there are deeper struggles within human beings, and deeper structures of spiritual truth which need the discernment Christ offers and also His strength to rely upon.  He is the one who unlocks mysteries the ancients could not see before He came into the world, and gives us keys to the kingdom of God.  Finally, it is the Word of God whom we need to hear and whose praises we need to express in our lives, and this sets us back into a right orientation to creation itself.  It is this that the ancient world was awaiting, and which would transfigure philosophy, science, architecture, arts, theater, and all the brilliant understanding the ancients had into new orientation of what the question for truth, beauty, and goodness should serve -- and through which all of those things would be transfigured into greater expression.  Let us remember that this is what Christ does in our own lives, He opens us up to be transfigured, to understand what is better to serve, to give us an orientation which is at once more directly in communion with the Lord and also opens us up to the deeper mysteries of life and how we are to live it.  The ancient world with its splendid achievements needed to "be opened" to the realities of Christ which would transfigure life.  For even we who live with the achievements of today's world  may be willing to become like "little dogs" in order to receive such an enormous gift, to "be opened" to hear and express the good news of His gospel.

 

If they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded though one rise from the dead

Icon of the parable of Lazarus and the Rich Man, circa 1800.  Palekh School.  Found at Ruzhnikov

 

"There was a certain rich man who was clothed in purple and fine linen and fared sumptuously every day.  But there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, full of sores, who was laid at his gate, desiring to be fed with crumbs which fell from the rich man's table. Moreover the dogs came and licked his sores.  So it was that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels to Abraham's bosom.  The rich man also died and was buried.  And being in torments in Hades, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom.  Then he cried and said, 'Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame.'  But Abraham , 'Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things; but now he is comforted and you are tormented.  And besides all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed, so that those who want to pass from here to you cannot, nor can those from there pass to us.'  Then he said, 'I beg you therefore, father, that you would send him to my father's house, for I have five brothers, that he may testify to them, lest they also come to this place of torment.'  Abraham said to him, 'They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.'  And he said, 'No, father Abraham; but if one goes to them from the dead, they will repent.'  But he said to him, 'If they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded though one rise from the dead.' " 

 

- Luke 16:19-31 

 

Yesterday we read that Jesus taught:  "He who is faithful in what is least is faithful also in much; and he who is unjust in what is least is unjust also in much.  Therefore if you have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches?  And if you have not been faithful in what is another man's, who will give you what is your own?  No servant can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other.  You cannot serve God and mammon."  Now the Pharisees, who were lovers of money, also heard all these things, and they derided Him.  And He said to them, "You are those who justify yourselves before men, but God knows your hearts.  For what is highly esteemed among men is an abomination in the sight of God.  The law and the prophets were until John.  Since that time the kingdom of God has been preached, and everyone is pressing into it.  And it is easier for heaven and earth to pass away than for one tittle of the law to fail.  Whoever divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery; and whoever marries her who is divorced from her husband commits adultery."

 

 "There was a certain rich man who was clothed in purple and fine linen and fared sumptuously every day.  But there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, full of sores, who was laid at his gate, desiring to be fed with crumbs which fell from the rich man's table. Moreover the dogs came and licked his sores."  We can see the great contrast between the rich man, clothed in purple and fine linen, and who fared sumptuously every day, and the poor beggar named Lazarus who was full of sores, was laid at his gate, and simply wanted to be fed with crumbs which fell from the rich man's table.  There could not be more of a marked difference between the two.  The sores all over Lazarus' body no doubt torment him, as did those of Job (Job 2:7-9).  We also read of Lazarus that moreover the dogs came and licked his sores.  This may seem entirely cringe-worthy even today, let alone in the Middle East where dogs of the streets are viewed in an entirely negative light.  But we'd be surprised by the commentary of St. Cyril of Alexandria, who writes, "Yes, it says that even the dogs licked his sores and did not injure him yet sympathized with him and cared for him. Animals relieve their own sufferings with their tongues, as they remove what pains them and gently soothe the sores. The rich man was crueler than the dogs, because he felt no sympathy or compassion for him but was completely unmerciful."

"So it was that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels to Abraham's bosom.  The rich man also died and was buried."  My study Bible comments that Abraham's bosom means heaven.  Abraham is mentioned among all the righteous, it says, because, in stark contrast to the rich man, Abraham showed hospitality to strangers (Genesis 18:1-8).  That the rich man . . . was buried is seen in patristic commentary as illustrating the state of his merciless soul, which was buried by the pleasures of the flesh.  My study Bible quotes from St. John Chrysostom, that the rich man was already buried in life by "couches, rugs, furnishings, sweet oils, perfumes, large quantities of wine, varieties of food, and flatterers."  That the rich man remains unnamed indicates that he is ultimately forgotten (see Psalm 9:6).

"And being in torments in Hades, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom.  Then he cried and said, 'Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame.'  But Abraham , 'Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things; but now he is comforted and you are tormented.  And besides all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed, so that those who want to pass from here to you cannot, nor can those from there pass to us.' "  The rich man's appeal to Abraham as a spiritual father isn't rejected, my study Bible tells us.  Rather, Abraham accepts the role, calling the rich man son, and showing himself to be compassionate even towards the wretched of men.  The great gulf, my study Bible explains, isn't a geographical divide, but the complete separation between virtue and wickedness.  This is a separation, it says, that cannot be overcome after death.  His own torments have not changed the rich man's heart.  He still sees Lazarus as a servant who exists for the sake of his own comfort.  Moreover, this account by Christ teaches us the communion of the saints.  That is, a man who is not even a believer, calls out from Hades and converses with Saint Abraham.

"Then he said, 'I beg you therefore, father, that you would send him to my father's house, for I have five brothers, that he may testify to them, lest they also come to this place of torment.'  Abraham said to him, 'They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.'  And he said, 'No, father Abraham; but if one goes to them from the dead, they will repent.'"   My study Bible reports that some patristic writers see this parable as set after the final judgment, and they cite the punishment and reward being received by these two men.  Others see this parable set at a time after death, but before the second coming of Christ (and the Judgment), as the man seeks to intercede on behalf of his brothers who are still living.  My study Bible says that the torment he experiences would be only a foretaste of his final state.  From this perspective, we learn that the souls of the departed have awareness of and concern for the state of those still alive on earth (see Luke 9:30-31, Matthew 2:18, 2 Maccabees 15:12-16) -- but also that even the intercessions of a wicked person are heard, although they avail nothing (contrast to James 5:16).  

 

"But he said to him, 'If they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded though one rise from the dead.' "   My study Bible quotes St. John Chrysostom on this passage:  "The ignorance of Scripture is a great cliff and a deep abyss.   It is impossible for anyone to be without benefit if he reads continually and with attention."  Moreover, it says, the rebellious were not persuaded even when people did rise from the dead (Matthew 28:11-15, John 12:9-11). 

One thing we do know from this parable, it illustrates that the consciousness of these two men remain alive after physical death, and both experience an afterlife.  There also is Abraham, paternal ancestor of the Jews, who is seen as a spiritual elder by the rich man.  As my study Bible notes, it's significant that the rich man never has a name mentioned in the Scripture; it means that he will be ontologically "forgotten."  At its heart, this story is about compassion, and about empathy.  Even in some sense, the stray dogs -- lowest of creatures in the historic mindset of the peoples of this region -- display an empathy and have compassion on Lazarus.  They lick his sores as they would lick their own to heal.  In this sense, although what they can give is meager indeed, they offer this hurt man full of sores what they can.  But the rich man does not even offer the crumbs from his table, showing ultimately his complete lack of concern and utter abandonment of the stranger outside of his door.  It's a kind of neglect that is so absolute that it is an extreme example of self-centeredness, selfishness.  Clearly the rich man is concerned only with himself.   He still sees Lazarus beneath him in a hierarchy, as if he were his servant.  But it is too late even if Lazarus were to seek to fill the request, and Abraham make that request for the rich man.  There is a great gulf fixed between them.  It is while we remain in this world that repentance has great effect.  While we are in this world the reconsideration of our ways of thinking is so important in a spiritual sense.  Let us recall that this parable is taught immediately after the teaching that we cannot serve God and mammon (in yesterday's reading, above).  The 'laws' of material things seem to declare that the more we accumulate and use for ourselves the better, while the gospel of the kingdom would teach us that it is important to practice mercy if we desire mercy, that we we "make friends" for the kingdom of heaven by good use of what we have in this world.  Abraham is known for his hospitality.  It is to Abraham that St. Paul refers when he writes to the Hebrews, "Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some have unwittingly entertained angels" (Hebrews 13:2).  The story of Abraham intertwines with the story of Lazarus and the rich man particularly around this notion of hospitality.  It is not so much his lack of sharing of his goods, but his complete lack of awareness of the unwanted person outside of his door, the outcast whom only the dogs offer care or attention.  And this makes an extremely important point, because it makes us clear where real selfishness or self-centeredness leads.  It teaches us about the real depth of meaning in charity, that is not simply about not distributing what we have, but really about the lack of concern or awareness of another human being at all, that others have souls that need communion and belonging.   The rich man seems to make a little progress if only because he seems to consider his brothers and their ignorance of the reality he now faces.  But even that is to no avail, for his brothers also have what he always had:  Moses and the prophets.  And let us not forget that it is the Pharisees to whom Jesus speaks now, who derided Jesus for His teachings on using resources to "make friends" for the kingdom of God.  In today's reading, we're also reminded of the parable of the Good Samaritan, who used his own resources to "be a neighbor" to another whom he happened to pass along the road.  In each of these cases, the concepts of hospitality, charity, neighborliness, and using resources to help others all intermingle to contrast with what it means to abandon others, to have no awareness nor empathy for those around ourselves.  This is the fundamental conflict between Lazarus and the rich man, not simply that one is rich and one is poor.   Even the dogs show a character of charity or empathy by their nature and offer what they can.  I have heard it said that to be created in the image and likeness of God is to be endowed with the potential for grace, and to express it.  Ultimately it is simple power of acknowledging others, of kindness and what is historically understood as graciousness, that makes for truly God-like behavior, the kind of character that is compatible with the energies of God in heaven.  All it takes is a word or a prayer, an awareness, a sense in which another is a neighbor.  Ultimately, it is the capacity to care that makes a distinction in this story, and the will to act on it, the compassion that makes one a neighbor.  And there are some who will remain unpersuaded though One has risen from the dead.

Yes, Lord, yet 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

On Saturday 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, "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.  Tyre and Sidon is a Gentile region north of Galilee.  Jesus has withdrawn here out of the reach of the Pharisees, with whom He's just had a confrontational encounter (see yesterday's reading, above).   This is confirmed in Mark's gospel account of the story in today's reading, where Jesus "wanted no one to know" He was there.  It is confirmed also in Matthew's report that Jesus says He was sent only to the house of Israel (verse 24).

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 comments that this woman shows immeasurable love in her request.  She identifies so strongly with the sufferings of her daughter that she cries, "Have mercy on me."  She sees her daughter's welfare as her own, and her daughter's sufferings as her own. 

 But He answered her not a word.  And His disciples came and urged Him, saying, "Send her away, for she cries out after us."  My study bible comments here that Christ refuses to answer, not only because this woman is a Gentile and His ministry before His Passion is to the Jews, but also in order to reveal her profound faith and love.  Many patristic writers see the disciples' request to send her away as trying to persuade Jesus to heal her daughter.  It is as if to say, "Give her what she wants so that she will leave."  Jesus' own response indicates this is a good interpretation, because He again refuses to heal the daughter. 

But He answered and said, "I was not sent except to the lost sheep of the house of Israel."  My study bible remarks on this passage in Matthew that it shows the Jewish orientation of this particular Gospel.  This story is also mentioned in Mark 7:24-30.  But there are two main differences between Mark's and Matthew's accounts.  First Matthew records these words of Jesus regarding the lose sheep of the house of Israel, and Mark does not.  Second, Matthew reports this woman using the title Son of David to address Jesus, which is a Jewish term for the Messiah, and Mark doesn't.

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.   Jesus through His actions and responses (or lack of them, if you will) has evoked this woman's love and also her persistent faith.  He also reveals her humility.  She is accepting of her place beneath the Jews in the sense of Christ's immediate mission and their Old Testament status as the chosen people of God through whom salvation has come to the world.  But, my study bible says, she still desires a share in God's grace.   Jesus' hesitancy, it says, was not a lack of compassion, but rather is to be understood as a conscious means of revealing the virtues of this Gentile woman, both to the disciples and for her own sake.   Her ultimate acceptance by Christ points clearly to the gathering of Gentiles into the Church after Pentecost, no longer as little dogs who eat the crumbs which fall from their masters' table, but as children who are invited to eat the bread of eternal life. 

How do we reveal our own persistence?  Can we, too, match the persistence of this Gentile woman?  Do we have the gumption to answer God back, so to speak, as she does?  Do we have the conviction born of love that she does, to withstand seeming adversity, or a "No" answer?  Are you persistent when you meet with disappointment?  Today's story really tells us how important this issue of persistence really is.  It is, in fact, depicted as an essential quality for Christians.  We might find it peculiar that it is Christ Himself who seems to block her way forward to find healing for her daughter.  He even compares her, as one who is not one of the house of Israel, to the "little dogs" who would eat the children's bread.  But she shows her great perseverance when she responds, "Yes, Lord, yet even the little dogs eat the crumbs which fall from their masters' table."  And for this she is rewarded with seeming delight, Christ Himself responding in turn, "Great is your faith."  It is the profound humility she shows which in fact is so closely connected to her persistence.  In a modern understanding, as typically purveyed by images in media and popular stories, we so often are taught to associate a false kind of pride with persistence.  We might pump up our egos with self-talk about how great and perfect we are.  We might refuse to consider our own flaws in order to supposedly build character.  While it is emphatically true that morbid guilt is but the flip-side of self-centeredness, and is the opposite of healthy righteousness and understanding of God's love for us, humility is yet the highest of the virtues, and opens up the door to all the rest.   Recently, I saw a slogan someone had painted on a wall that said, "Despair is a lack of imagination."  Putting that in a Christian context, I would heartily agree, however I would put this example of the woman of Canaan first:  it's humility that really gets us out of despair and started on the road to a positive and realistic imagination that serves the good.  Without humility, we don't see ourselves, our circumstances, or even others very clearly.  Humility is a guarantee of realism, and a realistic assessment of where we start, what we can do, and in order to see the first step -- even if it's a little one -- that is right in front of us.  It is only humility that guarantees us our ideas are not swollen with self-aggrandizement, and it's only humility that guarantees that receiving a "No" answer does not defeat us.  For it is in humility that we understand grandiose ideas aren't realistic to begin with, and setting reasonable goals while looking for avenues open to us is the way to go.  Humility keep us from being dependent upon what the rest of the world says or thinks, our image in others' sight.  It focuses us instead of what we need to do to improve our own lives.  This woman finds her way through humility.  She tells Jesus, "Yes, Lord, yet even the little dogs eat the crumbs which fall from their masters' table."   She doesn't need to deny that Jesus is Lord.  She doesn't need to complain about His words.  She accepts all of that with clarity; she knows His compassion and love is there.  She takes His word and replies with the avenue left to her.  This is the key to persistence and even to imagination.  It starts with humility, the key that unlocks this door, the place of all faith in its just and right context.  Let us examine the virtue we so often are taught to overlook in an age of needing to have "superpowers" to count for something.  Instead, all we need is humility to believe we are all that Jesus would reveal us to be.

Then He commanded them that they should tell no one; but the more He commanded them, the more widely they proclaimed it

 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 ears, 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

On Saturday 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 pitchers 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.   As Jesus has recently been under attack by the Pharisees and scribes (see Saturday's reading, above), He withdraws to the Gentile region of Tyre and Sidon, north of Galilee (see this map).  The text makes note for us that Jesus could not be hidden.  It is another important understanding and effect of His ministry, and the working of the Holy Spirit, and God's presence.  This is a story which teaches us, among other things, about the importance of persistence in our faith.  Jesus has not come to this region to preach; as a human being, He wishes to withdraw from the conflicts in Israel, and has no intention to carry on preaching in this Gentile region, as the text makes evident by telling us that He wanted no one to know that He was there.   But God's work and divine will draw this Gentile woman to Him, and she persistently endures even the obstacles Jesus names (such as that He was sent to the lost sheep of the house of Israel, as reported in Matthew's version; see Matthew 15:24).  Her persistence wins her favor, and expresses her faith.  In particular, Jesus responds to her resilience in dialogue with Him, which she does in a sense that also conveys her complete humility.

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 ears, 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."  My study bible makes note of the fact that Jesus sighed.  It says that this is a sign of divine compassion for the sufferings of our fallen human nature.  Again, also, we note that despite Jesus' best efforts to avoid more conflict with the authorities, word of what He does spreads despite Himself:  the more He commanded them, the more widely they proclaimed it.   My study bible says that Christ's example shows that we mustn't seek acclaim or praise when we do good to others.  However, Theophylact upholds those who disobey Him in this circumstance, and sees them as a good example, as we should proclaim those who have done good to us even if they do not want us to.  Indeed, it is one sign of gratitude.

Let us consider Jesus' work in today's reading.  He goes even where He has not intended, in order to escape from the beginnings of conflict with the authorities who begin to pursue Him, and yet, the ministry follows and is everywhere.  Even this foreign woman demands His help, and reveals her true faith.  The Decapolis is another region with many Gentiles, a place whose name means "Ten Cities" in Greek.  It was a region of much influence of Greek and Roman culture, mixed with the Jews.  And there, too, His fame spreads despite His best efforts.  "Then He commanded them that they should tell no one; but the more He commanded them, the more widely they proclaimed it."   Jesus' ministry spread despite Himself, His healing spreads far and wide, despite Himself.  It's important, I think, that we understand this aspect of ministry, because without it, there is an important reality we don't come to know.  It is not only true that He is here for everyone, that He has been sent into the world not simply into the best of circumstances, but into the worst, and through all things.  He is sent to be with us.  But faith isn't for the nominal few who form some elite or elect group.  What today's readings show us is that Christ faith is that which gathers "the least of these," those who are outside, those for whom every other avenue of help might not be possible or available.  And this is one aspect of our particular faith that we cannot forget.  Jesus defines family, in an earlier reading, by saying, "Here are My mother and My brothers!  For whoever does the will of God is My brother and My sister and mother."   This does not mean that He rejects His own family, nor family on worldly terms.  But it does define something essential for our understanding of our faith that surpasses and transcends all things.  It means that there is essentially no one left out of possibilities of belonging.  It is simply faith that is the power to bind together, and to heal.  It means truly that Jesus is present even in the places where we think people are left out of the nominal "group."  God expands this ministry beyond even where Jesus' human expectations go; but the chosen are those beyond even Jesus' human understanding of the lost sheep of the house of Israel.  Or perhaps we could more truly say that those belonging to this House are far and away beyond all boundaries we expect or imagine.  Jesus reminds us that no matter how great our understanding of what and where our nominal group is, there are always outsiders, and God is always present to them too.  The only requirement is faith.  Every boundary is to be opened in the realm of faith, hope, and belonging in this House;  every expectation of limits to God's love and grace befuddled and astonished.  All are gathered to this House.  The psalm tells us, "Though my mother and father forsake me, the Lord will take me up" (Psalm 27:10). Let our eyes and ears be opened, and our mouths be full of praise.  God's hope will not be stopped.