Michael Nguyen SVD
In order to enjoy a Gospel’s story, the faithful must understand its context. The following essay provides historical background of the episode Matt 15:21-28.
The woman was a foreigner to the Jews.
Something that she did not choose, i.e., to be born a Canaanite person.
It just happened at the moment a man and a woman through a marriage bond knew each other in a very intimate manner, she was then brought (or pushed) to life. This man and this woman (called the parents by social norm) were Canaanite; as a result, she (the daughter) was branded with this following stamp,
Nationality: Canaan,
Sex: Female.
Above all, because of the Canaanite blood she inherited, the woman became an enemy to the Jews.
Because of her Canaanite flesh, she was considered inferior to the Jews, whose ancestors invaded and then possessed the land of her ancestors. Well, the Jews said Canaan is our land as Adonai Elohim promised to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, our ancestors. Read the Bible, the Book of Genesis…
Well, she certainly believed the opposite, “Canaan is indeed our land as Ba’al and many other gods revealed to our ancestors from the first day of creation.”
The argument would never end, but the reality is that Israel inherited the majority of the land once was possessed by the Canaanites.
The nation was erased. It was gone with the wind, but the people fortunately remained; Tyre and Sidon were two one many places where the remnants of the lost nation resettled.
For whatever reason that was not explained, Jesus, a Jew in his thirties and his Jewish company traveled to the lands of the Gentiles, whom they culturally considered inferior, they even called them dogs…
And they encountered the Canaanite woman.
In spite of cultural conflict, she raised her voice to the Jewish man.
She even addressed him, “Son of David,” the king who finished the nation Canaan.
She overcame the cultural barrier between her and Jesus because of her love for her daughter, who was tormented by a devil.
But, surprisingly, the loving Jesus ignored her pleas.
The woman must have feel hurt.
Because Jesus shut his ears to hers.
But she did not allow her feeling to control her mind, rather she kept raising her voice so loud that Jesus’ disciples jumped into the scene, “Oh! Please, master, give her whatever she wants, otherwise, she continues to shout after us…”
Jesus explained his strange behavior, “I’m sent only to the lost sheep of Israel.”
Ouch! The heart of the woman was again pierced with such a comment.
She might have beaten herself, “Because of my Canaanite background, my plea is ignored, my voice is insignificant to the ears of this famous Jewish healer… Oh! How much my feelings are hurt…” But, despite feeling hurt, the woman did not quit. She moved to next step, this time she knelt in front of Jesus, “Oh! Please.”
Well, the woman really put herself at the feet of the Jewish man… She expected this posture might move the “obstinate heart” of the man…
But she was wrong! Totally wrong!
Jesus said a statement that surely shocked the readers of the Bible, “No one takes the food of the children and throw it to the dogs…”
Bingo! Yahtzee! Perfect!
Calling someone dogs in Middle Eastern culture is culturally an insult.
The woman must feel deeply hurt again, Jesus ignored her, and now in a very critical way “challenged her faith” (someone might prefer this phrase as an attempt to understand why the word dogs find a place in this episode!).
The woman might have said to herself, “That’s it. No more! Too much for me to handle. I Q….QUIT.” She would then go away to look for a place to dig a hole to bury her head into it and to nurse her hurt feeling and her resentment…
Why not!
That is one of the common ways human beings react when feeling hurt… Oh! Hurt feelings! But, surprisingly, the woman neither gave up nor quit, but rather “stick to the subject.” Amazingly, she responded to Jesus’ statement by an unexpected response, “Yes, sir. You are right, but even the dogs can eat the scraps that fall from the master’s table.”
Well! Well! Well!
How good the woman is in communication!
At this moment, Jesus changed his mind. He praised the woman in public, “Woman, you have a great faith…”
Dear friend,
At the moment we pray,
Sometimes it seems like God does heed our prayer.
It seems like God shuts both His ears to our pleas.
If you have ever been in such difficult circumstances, let us turn to our “patron saint,” the Canaanite woman.
Learning from her, we will not quit, we will not dig a hole to bury our heads, but keep asking, keep knocking, and patiently wait for the moment,
The moment the door opens…
What we ask is eventually granted…
Please, don’t quit!
Please, don’t dig a hole!
Please!
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