Woman of great faith | Bandera

Woman of great faith

Fr. Dan De Los Angeles |August 20,2017
facebook
share this

Woman of great faith

Fr. Dan De Los Angeles - August 20, 2017 - 12:10 AM

Sunday, August 20, 2017 20th Sunday in Ordinary Time 1st Reading: Isaiah 56:1.6-7 2nd Reading: Romans 11:13-15. 29-32Gospel: Matthew 15:21-28

Jesus withdrew to the region of Tyre and Sidon. Now a Canaanite woman came from those borders and began to cry out, “Lord, Son of David, have pity on me! My daughter is tormented by a demon.” But Jesus did not answer her, not even a word. So his disciples approached him and said, “Send her away: see how she is shouting after us.”

Then Jesus said to her, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the nation of Israel.”

But the woman was already kneeling before Jesus and said, “Sir, help me!” Jesus answered, “It is not right to take the bread from the children and throw it to the little dogs.” The woman replied, “It is true, sir, but even the little dogs eat the crumbs which fall from their master’s table.” Then Jesus said, “Woman, how great is your faith! Let it be as you wish.” And her daughter was healed at that moment.

D@iGITAL-EXPERIENCE
(Daily Gospel in the
Assimilated Life
Experience)

The Gospel reading is not about discrimination but about Faith. The apparent discrimination helps underline the message that God can never refuse a person moved by faith. Elsewhere in the Gospel Jesus say, “If you have faith as small as the mustard said, you can even command a tree to uproot itself, or order a mountain to move”.

The drama of the Canaanite woman ended to her favor when Jesus confirmed the greatness of her faith.

What was Jesus’ criterion in his favorable assessment of the faith of this pagan woman? Jesus must have been impressed by the woman’s insistence. Jesus tried to make it difficult for her. Undaunted by the seeming rebuff and apparent insult she persevered. Women are usually sensitive to words. The woman already heard Jesus comparing her to dogs. But she swallowed her pride and persevered. She was effectively proclaiming that Jesus was worth all the trust and confidence. Because she believed, her prayer was granted.

The woman was high in hopes that Jesus would heed her request. This hope sustained her even though Jesus seemed to show disinterest in her case at the beginning. All the while she was also conscious of her identity as an outsider because she was a pagan and did not belong to the chosen people. That’s why she did not mind being compared to a little dog unworthy of the bread meant for children. Aware of her identity, she would have been contented of the crumbs falling from the children’s table.  But she got more than that. More than the much-needed cure for her daughter, she was also rewarded with the greatest compliment no other pagan got from Jesus. Before her Jesus exclaimed, “How great is your faith!”  –(Atty.) Rev. Fr. Dan Domingo P. delos Angeles, Jr., DM

Your subscription could not be saved. Please try again.
Your subscription has been successful.

Subscribe to our daily newsletter

By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy.

Disclaimer: The comments uploaded on this site do not necessarily represent or reflect the views of management and owner of Bandera. We reserve the right to exclude comments that we deem to be inconsistent with our editorial standards.

What's trending