Just then a Canaanite (Syro-Phoenician) woman from that region came out and started shouting, “Have mercy on me, Lord, Son of David; my daughter is tormented by a demon.” But he did not answer her at all. And his disciples came and urged him, saying, “Send her away, for she keeps shouting after us.” He answered, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” But she came and knelt before him, saying, “Lord, help me.” He answered, “It is not fair to take the children’s food and throw it to the dogs.” She said, “Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.” Then Jesus answered her, “Woman, great is your faith! Let it be done for you as you wish.” And her daughter was healed instantly.
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'Dogs'?! A bit harsh, no? Well, maybe not. It's worth another look.
We are like the disciples at Emmaus who got it all wrong and despaired until 'He opened their minds to understand the scriptures' (Luke 24:45). We can only understand what we are reading with His help. So, if I don't understand something at first reading, I pause briefly to ask Him to help me see what He wants me to see, and not what I think I see.
If I read something in the New Testament accounts of Jesus's words which seems harsh, I remind myself what Jesus is like, and if my reading clashes with that understanding, then I know it's my reading that's wrong. I go over it again, looking for another way to see it, with His help, until I get a glimmer of something more obviously in keeping with what we know about Our Lord.
In this reading, for example, I remember, 'I have other sheep who are not of this fold...' And that Jesus has a tender heart. And that Faith in Him makes us whole.
I also remember that what we have in the Scriptures of Jesus's saying are merely some remembered (though critically important) snippets from His three years of constant teaching, written down decades later. Just the words, with nothing about facial expressions, smiles, laughs, winks or unspoken communication between His eyes and those of whomever he is speaking to.
It's always worth taking time to read between the lines.
Making some space for a few unwritten but hardly unlikely details, then...
The Canaanites were definitely 'not of this fold'. For a start, there was ancient enmity between them and the Hebrew people who had taken over their land a thousand years ago. (Not much seems to change in Israel/Palestine.) The Canaanites had their own gods. They had no truck with the Hebrews' Yahweh. Hardly surprising, then, that the two peoples referred to each other as infidels... dogs. And worse. Common parlance.
Placing myself among the bystanders, I watch this encounter again, and now I see a wry expression on Jesus's face - is that a raised eyebrow? - as He turns round to look into the face of this persistent infidel woman who is annoying His friends. Ah, but soft eyes as He teasingly tests her with mention of the distance between His people and hers. His head on one side, I think He is smiling as He quizzes her: 'Mm-hm? You come to me? To one of those ghastly Jews, those old enemies who call your people dogs - those whom in turn, you'll agree, your people call dogs?'
Tricky. She thought this might happen. But the medical people have tried everything and given her daughter up for dead. She has nowhere left to turn. She is not of His faith, no, but... here she is. What has she heard about Him that was evidence enough to utterly convince her that He has a power to heal, such as no-one else has? And this Jesus looks and sounds... different. It seems that, unlike most others, He does not hate anyone. She is more than ever determined to plead with Him for her daughter.
But look - she sees that He reads her heart! He already knows everything about her, and about what she needs. The relief is overwhelming and she is warmed enough now to answer His tease with one of her own. With a small shrug she gives Him a small, lopsided smile as she answers, 'Crumbs from the table, sir...'
He appreciates her wit and acknowledges her courageous determination. They acknowledge each other. She now believes absolutely that He has this power she has heard about. It must all be true, then. Her heart tells her that her daughter was cured the instant He wished it and, touching His feet in gratitude, she hurries home to her girl, rejoicing and with a wholly new faith.
Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel.
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