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St. John the Evangelist Parish
11301 W. 93rd Avenue, St. John, IN 46373
219-365-5678 :: http://www.stjohnparish.org/
11301 W. 93rd Avenue, St. John, IN 46373
219-365-5678 :: http://www.stjohnparish.org/
A question from Matthew, chapter 15, in which the Canaanite woman was asking Jesus to heal her demonic daughter. Two responses from Jesus are a bit odd to me. One of them was his response to the disciples that "I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel." The other one was his response to her that "It is not right to take the food of the children and throw it to the dogs." Was Jesus just showing his human side here? In other words, was he having a bad day when he made these responses?
ReplyDeleteVerse. 22. It is probable that the woman first cried out before the door, and assembled a crowd, and then went into the house. Have mercy on me. The great faith of the Chanaanæan woman is justly extolled. She believed him to be God, whom she calls her Lord, and him a man, whom she styles the Son of David. She lays no stress upon her own merits, but supplicates for the mercy of God; she doesn’t say, have mercy on my daughter, but have mercy on me. ... To move him to compassion, she lays all her grief and sorrow before him in these afflicting words: my daughter is grievously afflicted by a devil. (Glossa.)
DeleteVerse. 23. He answered her not. It must not be supposed that our Savior refused to hear the woman through any contempt, but only to show that his mission was in the first instance to the Jews; or to induce her to ask with greater earnestness, so as to deserve more ample assistance. (Denis the Carthusian)
Ver. 26-27. And to cast it to the dogs; i.e. to Gentiles, sometimes so called by the Jews. (Witham) --- The diminutive word Kunarios, or whelp, is used in both these verses in the Septuagint. Our Lord crosses the wishes of the Chanaanæan, not that he intended to reject her, but that he might bring to light the hidden and secret treasure of her virtue. Let us admire not only the greatness of her faith, but likewise for the profoundness of her humility; for when our Savior called the Jews children, so far from being envious of another’s praise, she readily answers, and gives them the title of lords; and when Christ likened her to a dog, she presently acknowledges the meanness of her condition. (St. Chrysostom, hom. liii.) He refused at first to listen to her petition, says the same saint, to instruct us with what faith, humility, and perseverance we ought to pray. To make his servants more sensible of his mercy, and more eager to obtain it, he often appears to pay no attention to their prayers, till he had exercised them in the virtues of humility and patience. Ask, and you shall receive; knock, and it shall be opened to you. (Haydock)
Verse. 28. Be it done. In the beginning God said, Let there be light, and there was light; here Jesus Christ says, let it be done, and her daughter was healed from that hour. So powerful with God is earnest and fervent prayer. (St. Chrysostom, hom. liii.)
Verse. 30. And he healed them. The Chanaanæan was long in obtaining her request, and only prevailed by her importunity; whereas the Jews were cured on declaring their infirmities. Thus were they left without excuse, seeing how much greater was the faith of this poor Gentile woman, than that of the descendants of Abraham. (St. Chrysostom, hom. liii.)
http://haydock1859.tripod.com/id33.html
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