Sermonstudio

Jesus left that place and went away to the district of Tyre and Sidon. Just then a Canaanite 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.


There is a danger in the lectionary. Focusing on a series of lessons can make it difficult to look beyond the lesson at hand to see what comes before and what follows for the further explication of today's lesson. The lesson at hand, the healing of a woman's daughter, is a good example of this problem. On this day there is an optional portion of the lesson. Matthew 15:10--20 may be read before the lesson appointed for the day (the story actually begins at Matthew 15:1, but it is slightly truncated in the lectionary). The optional portion is a discussion of what makes a person clean or unclean.

While such a discussion is not common today, and certainly not in the sense of ritual purity which underlies the original discussion, it does put the healing in today's appointed lesson in a sharper focus. The woman seeking the miracle is clearly unclean, actually beyond the concept of ritual purity as she is introduced as a Canaanite and hence is totally unworthy of receiving a miracle. Yet, she ends up with a daughter who is healed at Jesus' command.

This is also the third week in a row when faith is an issue in the Gospel Lesson. The first week, it was a matter of faith to follow Jesus' directions and have the people sit down so all 5,000 of them could be fed with five loaves and three fish. Last week it was the faith of Peter when he walked on and then sank into the water. Now it is the immense faith of a pagan woman.

This is also the fourth miracle in a group of miracles (beginning with the feeding of the 5,000, followed by the walking on water, healings at Gennesaret, this miracle, the healing of some sick people, and concluding with the feeding of the 4,000) which can be understood as a presentation of Jesus as the Lord of the church, singling out Peter as the leader (and successor of Jesus), and establishing the disciples as the ministerial agents charged with carrying on the continuing ministry of Christ. This series of miracles can be understood as Matthew's explanation of the pattern of growth on the church after the resurrection and ascension.


About The Text

Words
that place - The last place mentioned is Gennesaret, from Matthew 14:34, and it seems to be the place referred to here.

the district of Tyre and Sidon - Tyre is about thirty miles to the northwest of Gennesaret, Sidon about 25 miles north of that. The preposition used here (the Greek word eis) can be taken to mean to or toward when used with terms indicating a place. Thus the text does not actually support the understanding that Jesus went to either city. At the most, it is the district, not necessarily the cities themselves which is the location for these events.

The further question comes up, in light of the remainder of the episode, of what Jesus was doing in pagan territory (namely the district of Tyre and Sidon). This is the only incident in this gospel where Jesus might be understood to have gone into pagan territory, but the text could also be understood to mean he merely went toward the district and did not actually enter it.

Matthew also mentions Tyre and Sidon in 11:21--24, and it has been suggested as a result that he might be writing his gospel (at least in part) to a church in that area.

Canaanite - By this time there is no longer any geographical area known as Canaan. Is the term being used as a generic designation for residents of Phoenicia (Tyre and Sidon)? Josephus writes of the strong (negative) feelings of the residents of Tyre toward Jews only a few years after the time of Jesus, which adds an extra undercurrent to the present story. It is a dramatic heightening of events to find a woman of such faith in such an unlikely place, when the events of the Passion are looming on the horizon (when the Jews, who should be faithful, will generally be found to be faithless). The word is a hapex legomenon in the New Testament, although the term is frequently used in the Old Testament (when there was actually a geographical and ethnological referent for the use).

came out - The same verb was used earlier for left (Matthew 15:21), which calls into question the details of the location of this miracle. Did Jesus enter the Gentile territory or did the woman "come out" of that territory to meet Jesus within the Jewish territory of Galilee? The text is unclear, although the Jerusalem Bible, in a note, presents this understanding as the appropriate way to understand this text.

Lord - This use could be either the honorific, sir, or the reverent title regularly applied to Jesus, Lord. While the second use is quite common in this gospel, it is possible to hear the woman, not being a Jew, using the title without knowing the meaning it has in a Jewish setting. Perhaps she heard others using the title in addressing Jesus, or perhaps she had been told by others she should call him by this title. There is at least a mild note of irony here that a Canaanite (even a Canaanite woman) would actually use such a title to address a Jewish holy man, with the implication of subservience inherent in the title.

Son of David - If the title "Lord" is ironic, this title is rather strange in the mouth of a Canaanite woman. It is a Jewish messianic title with significant political overtones. It is fairly uncommon for anyone in the gospel to use such a title. Prior to this use, the term appears in the genealogy, as an angelic address to Joseph, and twice in reference to Jesus. After this, the term is used five separate times, most notably by the crowd during the entry into Jerusalem. It is the political nature of the term in that context that helps to explicate the eventual sentence of death for the political crime of attempted usurpation of the throne. It is certainly unusual for a Canaanite woman to use such a term.

tormented by a demon - This term literally means "terribly possessed." It is a very pithy phrase in Greek, only a verb and adverb. It is not particularly easy to translate, and a variety of translations are possible. It can be rewarding to examine different translations to compare the wording selected for more insight.

came - The disciples gathered closer around Jesus, not that they had just arrived from somewhere else.

urged - This translates an imperfect tense, which includes an understanding of the continuing nature of the asking, hence the possibility of translating the word as either begging or nagging. Clearly the disciples are mightily bothered by the woman.

Send her away - An alternate translation could be "Give her what she wants." As the simplest way to get rid of her, the alternate presents a natural and logical way to understand the disciples' comments. If this translation is selected, the disciples are very much like a person confronted with a ragged person on the street who asks for spare change. A quick hand into a pocket and the distribution of some change is the very embodiment of this sentiment (and the antithesis of true stewardship and giving).

The harsher translation is a better fit with what comes after the disciples' comment. This is clearly not a sign of any compassion or sympathy for the woman's situation on the part of the disciples, but an expression of their exasperation with a woman who has managed to become a pain in various parts of their anatomy.

the lost sheep of the house of Israel - There are two potential translations of this phrase. First, as it appears, which utilizes the house of Israel as a modifier of the lost sheep. In other words, in answer to the question which sheep, the phrase responds the ones from the nation of Israel.

Alternatively, the phrase could be rendered the lost sheep, the house of Israel which equates the two phrases and makes the second a restatement and amplification of the first, not a modification.

came - This word highlights the difficulties of producing an exact sequence of these events. First, what are Jesus and the disciples doing when the lesson starts - sitting, standing, or walking? The text provides no clear answer.

The comment by the disciples, "after us," certainly seems to indicate the group is in motion, but Jesus' comment to her could take place either as they continued to walk (a rather curt dismissal), or it could indicate the group had stopped. This verb is a bit out of place, as it seems to say the woman was still chasing after the group. But if this was the case, exactly what were the mechanics of events when she knelt?

knelt - This word, in Greek, means considerably more than merely bending a knee in front of someone. Literally the word means prostrate, or bow down to kiss (as in kissing someone's feet). Clearly the word has more of a connection to worshiping Jesus than the simple act of kneeling seems imply. In Matthew 14:33 the disciples were worshiping Jesus, now a Gentile and a woman seems to be doing the same.

Lord - Once again, the issue is the proper translation of the term. Even though sir is a very probable translation, the reverent term Lord is also very possible, especially in light of the woman's posture when she spoke.

fair - In Greek, kalos, which has a root meaning of good, or beautiful, and a generally accepted meaning of healthy, sound, or fit. Some manuscripts have a reading with a word meaning lawful, but scholars generally agree this is a later attempt to strengthen the rationale for Jesus' rather callous sounding reply.

food - Literally this word means bread - which was the basic component of the diet at this time and often used as a synonym for the more generic term food.

throw - The word does not indicate an effort to drive the dogs away, but to feed them with the table scraps taken directly from the table.

dogs - Apparently this term means something on the order of house dogs. Not exactly pets in the way the term is understood today, as house dogs would generally have to earn their keep in some way. The word translated here is generally understood as a diminutive of the word used to indicate the dogs of the street or fields, i.e., wild dogs.

At the time dogs were regarded as unclean animals, the ones which, along with pigs, ate human filth. Figuratively, "dogs" was often used to refer to persons who were judged to be unclean, or at least unbaptized, but this image might not always have applied to the "house dogs" found in this context. Jewish sources include some references (from the centuries immediately following the time of Jesus) to "infidel dogs," "Gentile dogs," and even "Christian dogs." Christians, not surprisingly, sometimes returned the compliment, as in Philippians 3:2--4a.

Woman - The term here is gunai, the same word addressed to Mary in John 2:4 and Mary Magdalene in John 20:13 and 15. Both here and in John the term is not particularly respectful, and is regarded as at least mildly derogatory.

Let it be done for you - This translates a third person imperative, a grammatical construction not available in English. Perhaps the best way to understand this statement is to think of it as being in the same vein as the typical command of Captain Picard of the Starship Enterprise - "Make it so." This is what Jesus is saying here, but in a way that can only be phrased quite clumsily in English.

her daughter was healed - The word order in Greek is actually healed the daughter of her from that hour was. The point in the original text is to emphasize the healing action over any other possibility.

instantly - The phrase used is actually from that hour. In an era when precise time was largely a figment of someone's imagination, this phrase served as an equivalent to the modern concept expressed in the NRSV translation - instantly.

Parallels

Matthew uses the text of Mark 7:24--30 quite freely as a basis for this episode. While the length of the two accounts remains roughly the same, the details are changed significantly from the Marcan original to this account. As a simple example, Mark calls her a Phoenician woman of Syria (hence, the common translation of "a Syrophoenician woman"). Matthew calls her a Canaanite, a term which no longer has a contemporary referent, unless he uses it in a demeaning sense.

In Mark 7:24, Jesus enters a house, seemingly to avoid the crowds following him, but his efforts are futile and it turns out that he can't be hidden. This detail is not mentioned in Matthew, perhaps in an effort to maintain Jesus' "cleanliness," as merely entering the house of a Gentile could be taken as rendering him unclean.

Matthew's report of Jesus' effort to ignore the woman and her request (or demand), and the disciples' begging that he send her away are not found in Mark. Thus, these events are likely quite significant for Matthew. This image of Jesus is of someone who has been pursued by the crowds rather consistently and is seeking a refuge to rest for a brief time. As he moves in an area somewhat distant from his normal haunts, looking for some relief, a woman appears and demands a healing. At first Jesus resists both his disciples' urgings and the woman's demands, but eventually, after he interacts with her, the woman's humor, and her absolute conviction that Jesus can cure her daughter, impress him and he does what she has been asking for.

Matthew 8:13 records the only other cure of a Gentile (the Centurion's son in Capernaum) in the gospels. In both that episode and in the current story, the healing word is spoken at a distance and the cure is effected instantaneously. Again, it seems that this occurs to protect Jesus' ritual cleanliness by avoiding the need for him to actually enter a Gentile dwelling.


The People

As Individuals

One of the more unusual figures found in the stories of Jesus interacting with people in the gospels is the Canaanite woman found in this story. Not only is she a woman and a Gentile, she also displays a quick wit and a sense of humor even as she is consumed by the problems which are consuming her daughter. In a time when women were generally regarded rather doubtfully (as in John 4:27), this woman was not particularly bound by social conventions in her search for a cure for her daughter. Above everything else, she was persistent.

Clearly she was not Jewish, but she does use Jewish terms to address Jesus. Perhaps this desperate woman, hearing of a healer, sought out people who might help her approach him and seek a cure. It is certainly possible that the woman began by mouthing phrases she had been instructed in, not knowing what they actually meant, in an effort to ensure the healer's help with her problem. It is as if she is seeking a magical cure for her daughter, one that the proper word will bring to pass, a word like abracadabra. It matters not that the healer happens to be Jewish while she is prostrating herself and subjecting herself to a representative of a race her ancestors (and likely her relatives), all regarded as contemptible at best.

What matters to this woman is the bright prospect of saving her daughter from the possession of the demon that is afflicting her. This is an attitude most parents can readily understand, certainly if their children have ever been afflicted by a problem which threatened their lives.

Even more, the woman is able to maintain a quick wit and sense of humor even in the face of being ignored by Jesus. When the disciples urged him to do what she wanted so she would go away, she must have felt as if she would have her miracle. To make things worse, the disciples' pleas were answered with Jesus' claim that he was not sent to help her. Her hope, which had been flickering and then brightening, must have flickered almost out.

In what can be understood as an act of desperation, she threw herself at his feet, likely impeding his progress, and simply begging for help. The answer came that the children's food shouldn't be thrown to the dogs. Rather than taking offense at being called a dog, even a house dog, she gave a response which showed both her quick wit and her acceptance of the probably humorous tone of Jesus' remark. Even dogs get the crumbs.

Even in asking for something that was the most important thing in her life at that moment, the woman was able to recognize that her needs were not necessarily the most important things in the world to anyone but herself. Rather than taking offense, rather than offering a stinging rebuke at this callous response to her request, the woman pointed out the weakness in the image used by Jesus.

Many people have the experience of having something said to them and then realizing exactly what they should have said in response a few hours, or days later. The woman had the much rarer experience of having something said to her and making the perfect response immediately.

And, taking her response as a sign of her deep faith, a faith so deep she was willing to view things realistically and acknowledge that she was in the wrong, asking for a terrible imposition from this healer, and knowing that what was so important to her was so inconsequential to him, Jesus did what she asked.

The picture of Jesus in this episode is certainly not what we might expect. Two weeks before this, Jesus tries to withdraw for a well--earned rest, but when the crowds follow him, he heals them and feeds them. Last week, when the disciples were faced with a storm that terrified them, he walks out on the surface of the lake and stills the storm. Now, when a woman appears asking for help for her daughter, Jesus begins by ignoring her, then he is rude to her, and only after she provides an impressive answer does he admit to being awed by her faith, and grants her demand.

This is hardly the caring and compassionate Jesus we expect to find in the gospels. He behaves in ways which would earn a rebuke from most parents to children who acted so rudely even to people they met even without knowing who the people were. Jesus is portrayed as a cold, rude, and quite ungenerous person. He refuses to even recognize the woman, then he refuses her request quite rudely, and only then, after a great response to his boorish behavior, does he grant her request.

As Images And Signs
The term used by Jesus, "children's food," can help us understand some of the images in this lesson. "Children" is often used as a sort of shorthand way of referring to the "children of Israel." The use of this phrase strengthens the image of Jesus' understanding of his ministry as directed to the Jews, as he states in Matthew 15:24.

The literal meaning of the term, "children's bread" can also be understood as a further reference to the eucharist and a comment on giving it to those who were not already part of the church. The eucharistic imagery was introduced with the feeding of the 5,000, and the mention of bread here can be taken as an echo of that mention. The story in general seems to function as a comment on the relationship which should exist between the Jewish core of the Matthean church and the Gentile converts who were beginning to join it in ever greater numbers.

Matthew emphasizes that the ministry of Jesus is aimed at the Jews, who will then spread the word to the rest of the world. This is the same general pattern which is projected at the beginning of Acts. Unfortunately for the idea of a nice, neat pattern, things didn't work out quite the way they were expected to. The Day Of Pentecost was an event which centered on the Jewish population in Jerusalem, but Paul (and to a lesser extent Peter) soon found themselves involved with Gentile converts to the Christian ideas they proclaimed. The precise relationship was one which was not easily worked out, as the book of Acts makes clear.

The woman's comment about crumbs that fall from the master's table is an implicit recognition of the Jews as the masters (superiors) of Gentiles, particularly the people she comes from. While this certainly helped the Jewish Christians to feel better about the situation, not all Gentile converts were as willing to assume positions of subservience to the Jewish converts. This conflict would work itself out eventually, and largely as the number of Gentile Christians began to outnumber the Jewish Christians by substantial multipliers. Local situations could still present problems, however.

Further, Jesus ended up complimenting the woman on her great faith. This could certainly be interpreted as a comment against Jewish Christians, especially as most Jews didn't accept the Christian faith. Even a story that had many things which would make them happy ends on a note that was likely to cause problems for their self--image.

The disciples, in their suggestion to Jesus that he should do what the woman wants, basically that Jesus should do something, anything, just make her go away, are also familiar figures. It is often easier to take the simple route, just to make the problem go away. Don't really confront the issue, simply make it go away, get everybody to be quiet about these things, and eventually there will be no further problem. The disciples are certainly a reminder of the attitudes often seen when a problem rears its ugly attitude in the church.


The Action

In The Story
Underlying all the action of this story is the quest Jesus began in the lesson two weeks ago. He is still trying to find a little time for rest and contemplation, a quest which is still somewhat unfulfilled. In Mark, the action of the story is quite frenetic and the pace doesn't seem to let up from beginning to end. In Matthew, things are a little slower paced, but the search for a place for a retreat is still somewhat tedious and difficult to fulfill.

One aspect of the story which is somewhat out of character and a little unsatisfying is the attitude Jesus expressed toward the woman. First, he ignored her completely. When he had crossed the Sea of Galilee to escape the crowds, and they followed him anyway, he had compassion on them and healed the sick, then fed them (Matthew 14:13--21). The difference here seems to be that the crowds were Jewish and the woman was Canaanite.

It is difficult today to present derogatory terms from the first century with the same force they had at that time and place. Calling someone a Canaanite or a dog is simply not often offensive today. Different people use different ways to express the disdain inherent in such terms. In the Cotton Patch volumes, Clarence Jordan often replaced pejorative terms such as "Samaritan" with the terms "black" or "nigger." The replacement word is still quite offensive, even half a century after the use was first brought in. In this episode the woman is presented as black and Jesus said he was sent only to "needy white folks." Even today, many long years after the Cotton Patch versions were prepared, the tensions inherent in these terms still have a lot of validity, and more meaning in a modern context than the term "Canaanite."

It seems quite probable that the woman was a member of a group that the Jews at that time looked down upon. On the surface, Jesus seems to share that prejudice. He didn't answer her at all. This is not what we expect from Jesus, ignoring someone in need. The only answer available to this difficult situation is that Matthew seems to have allowed the theological understanding of the way in which the church was supposed to grow to shape his account of this incident.

In The Hearers

When first hearing this story, it is probable that the listeners heard it as a direct challenge to the exclusive nature of the Christian "club" to which they belonged. We know, from Acts, that there was a strong group of believers in the early church who held the view that a Christian had to become a convert to Judaism before they could become a Christian. It has long been understood that the audience for Matthew's Gospel included many former Jews who had embraced the Christian faith.

Into this group, which was seemingly quite proud of both their Jewish background and their Christian faith, Matthew casts this story of a woman from a background assumed to be unlikely to produce anyone even capable of faith, much less someone who was actually possessed by a faith strong enough to impress Jesus and gain the healing she sought for her daughter. The delay in the story between initial request and granting of the healing parallels the time between Jesus' ministry and the admission of Gentiles directly into the church.


The Sermon

Illustrations

If the preacher decides to include the optional portion of the lesson (Matthew 15:10--20) on this day, here is a story about the point:

A missionary in Africa once had a limited supply of printed resources to share with a growing number of believers. To make things go farther, he tore up some of the most bedraggled materials and distributed the resulting scripture portions to all who requested them, including a young boy.

A few days after giving the boy a portion of a gospel, the boy returned to the missionary in tears. The missionary asked what the problem was, and the boy said, "My dog is ruined."

"What happened?"

"My dog was the bravest hunter in the village. He would chase anything, even a lion. But, when I took the pages you gave me about the Prince of Peace, my dog ate some of them in the night. Now he is ruined, for he will never be fierce again."


There is some old doggerel about exclusive attitudes:

When you get to heaven, you will likely view

Many folks whose presence will be a shock to you.

But keep it quiet, do not even stare,

Doubtless there'll be many folks surprised to see you there!


Concerns about the sort of folks who are allowed to participate in the church, and their depth of faith, bring this to mind:

A gentleman once appeared at the church and asked to join. He was asked about the reasons why he wanted to join and he said, "Well, it was like this. Last night I was sleeping, and I woke up and heard a bug scratching on the pillow. But when I turned on the light and looked, I couldn't find any bugs. So I figure that was the Lord's way of telling me I should join the church."

There was some consternation among those who heard the story, and many doubts were expressed until one old deacon spoke up, "I move we take him in. We already have lots of members who have never even heard a bug scratch."


There are sometimes difficulties in dealing with the opportunities with which we are faced.

The sailors of Francis Drake, it is said, used to sit on the rocky coasts of England telling the boys of the countryside not about the pleasures of the sea, but the dangers. They spoke of high waves, stout winds, and gallant ships riding out the storms. They talked about such things until the country boys listening wanted it so much they ran away from home to be a part of Drake's expeditions.

There are times when it might be better if people really did ignore you.

A prisoner once dug a tunnel to escape from his captivity. When he escaped, he emerged in a school playground. As he emerged into the open air, he was so overjoyed that he shouted at a young girl standing nearby, "I'm free, I'm free."

"That's nothing," she said scornfully. "I'm four."

Approaches To Preaching
There is a danger in labeling things unclean, or identifying them as outside our area of responsibility. This lesson speaks powerfully against exclusivism and self--satisfaction in the church. Most particularly, separating one's self from what is unclean causes problems when what is unclean is actually a better witness to faith in Christ than that which is kept apart to maintain purity. Purity can become sterile.


Consider the contrast between the Canaanite woman, from a background of prejudice against the Jews with an immense faith in Jesus; and the population of Jerusalem, which will be clamoring for Jesus' death in a few weeks.


What defiles? This is the question of the optional portion of the Gospel Lesson appointed for this day. The lesson here is, in many ways, an answer to the question. Clearly what is important is faith, not some ritual cleanliness or list of qualifications.


The woman demanded a miracle, and wasn't prepared to leave until she got what she wanted. Are we sometimes too meek in our prayer? Do we sometimes hold back from challenging ourselves as we seek to serve God?


The early church was very willing to compete in the intellectual marketplace. Justin Martyr, for example, in the second century earned his living as a catechist, without any compensation from the church, only from the fees his students paid. Modern Christians often tend to shirk the call to witness to their faith. Not Christians alone, but also other religious traditions (for example, both Islam and Hindu) try to legislate obedience to religious rules of conduct. It can be as if the rules won't stand on their own, but must be enforced by some sort of purity police.


The woman was very persistent in her prayers to Jesus to help her daughter. She met his objection with humor, but also restated her request. Persistent and insistent. It can seem as if both our prayers and our presence are being ignored just as thoroughly as were those of the Canaanite woman. It is important to realize this is not a new sensation, as it also appears in Psalm 28:1.


Once again, at least in the mention of bread (food), a eucharistic theme is present in this lesson. The crumbs can also be taken as a reference to the leftovers from the feeding miracle of two weeks ago. Twelve baskets of food that Jewish folks had no use for are now available for distribution to Gentiles.