Of Scraps
There are several characters for the budding preacher to play with today.
There is of course Jesus himself who has chosen to go to the region of Tyre and Sidon. This area is traditionally thought of as the land of the Gentiles. The community outside the realm of salvation.
There are the disciples who don’t exactly come up smelling of roses. ‘Just give her what she wants because she keeps on shouting after us.’
In other words, they really don’t give a mandarin about the woman or her daughter. Their own peace and serenity is all they care about.
The lead role is claimed by the Canaanite woman and there is the briefest cameo appearance by her daughter who is plagued or oppressed by a demon.
At best, Jesus and his dialogue with this leading lady seem condescending. At worst, He is brutal and heartless.
His initial response is to ignore her.
‘But he did not answer her at all’.
Undaunted, the woman persists and The Master responds with
“I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel.”
Undaunted, and this time adopting the posture of humility and kneeling, the woman tries again.
But she came and knelt before him, saying,
‘Lord, help me.’
only to be met with
“It is not right to take the children’s bread and toss it to the dogs.”
Undaunted, she responds to this brutal rebuff
“Even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their master’s table.”
Then and only then, Jesus grants her request.
And there is a lesson here about pestering and persisting in prayer and there is a lesson about the least likely folk having their petitions answered. There is a really good homily that contrasts the disciples' reaction who just want the quick fix, over and against the woman’s persistence. And all of those are very good homilies and they are right and we need to be reminded of these things.
But aside from her tenacity, there are some other things that make her the star of the show.
First of all, remember that she is not asking for herself. She comes before The Lord on behalf of her daughter. This is a child who she loves very much. Mum will do whatever it takes to try and get healing and wholeness for her offspring.
We are offered a minimal amount of information about the lass. We don’t know how long she has been suffering, we don’t know if she has siblings, we don’t know the symptoms of her possession, and we don’t even know her name. But,… we do know one very important thing, perhaps the only thing that really matters and that is that the daughter is loved so very much.
Another thing that is outstanding about the Canaanite woman, is that she knows just how dependent she is on the Master. She only has her scraps of faith to offer.
Watch again this little interplay.
Jesus replied, “It is not right to take the children’s bread and toss it to the dogs.”
“Yes it is, Lord,” she said. “Even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their master’s table.”
At no point does she deny that she is an outsider, a gentile. She does not say ‘Well that was a bit harsh. How dare you?’
She comes to Him exactly as she is. No pretensions, no delusions, not even a shred of self-pity or righteousness. She approaches Him knowing who she is and just as importantly, she knows who HE is.
Her attitude and heart stand in direct contrast to The scribes and Pharisees, who have been offered the good things from the Master's table and chose to turn up their noses at the fare that was theirs for the taking.
And so, and this might sound a little odd, but it is the woman’s scraps that make her beautiful. Her integrity makes her the star of the show. In her emptiness, she is filled by the morsels of the Master which are more than enough.
And perhaps you and I might reflect on this when we come to the altar and hold out empty hands today. Our hands, have nothing whatsoever in them. We bring our nothingness, our desolation and once again you and I are fed with the scraps from the table. Deep inside we know that it is enough. The scraps are more than enough for they are… Him.
The Canaanite woman reminds of another mother who was filled with Him. We should let her have the last word today.
Mary said
‘My spirit rejoices in God my Saviour,
for he has looked with favour on the lowliness of his servant.
Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed;
for the Mighty One has done great things for me,
and holy is his name.
His mercy is for those who fear him
from generation to generation.
He has shown strength with his arm;
he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts.
He has brought down the powerful from their thrones,
and lifted up the lowly;
he has filled the hungry with good things,
and sent the rich empty away.