***
Gospel: Matthew 15: 21-28
At that time, Jesus withdrew to the region of Tyre and Sidon.
And behold, a Canaanite woman of that district came and called out,
“Have pity on me, Lord, Son of David!
My daughter is tormented by a demon.”
But Jesus did not say a word in answer to her.
Jesus’ disciples came and asked him,
“Send her away, for she keeps calling out after us.”
He said in reply,
“I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.”
But the woman came and did Jesus homage, saying, “Lord, help me.”
He said in reply,
“It is not right to take the food of the children
and throw it to the dogs.”
She said, “Please, Lord, for even the dogs eat the scraps
that fall from the table of their masters.”
Then Jesus said to her in reply,
“O woman, great is your faith!
Let it be done for you as you wish.”
And the woman’s daughter was healed from that hour.
The Gospel of the Lord.
***
***
When visiting religious shrines like Our Lady of Fatima in Portugal, often you’ll see people making desperate displays of faith. Pilgrims will come from around the world to place their prayer intention in the hands of Our Lady or a particular Saint.
For example, while I was in Fatima two weeks ago, I noticed an elderly woman crawling on her knees towards the chapel of the apparitions. She had to be at least a hundred yards away. At her pace, it could’ve taken another thirty minutes, even an hour, to reach Our Lady.
I didn’t know when her journey began or why she chose to crawl. But seeing this elderly woman drag her aching bones along the hardened pavement sent chills down my spine.
It made me stop dead in my tracks and pray for her intention.
Maybe she hoped for the conversion of a loved one. Perhaps she was haunted by a choice made years ago and still longed for forgiveness.
Or, like the mother in today’s Gospel, maybe she had a daughter dramatically in need of healing.
***
“Have pity on me, Lord, Son of David!” the mother says. “My daughter is tormented by a demon.”
That’s the worst pain any parent can experience – watching your child suffer while feeling helpless, knowing there’s nothing you can do to stop it.
The Gospel does not tell us what other methods this mother has already tried to cure her daughter. But the fact that she turns to God for help – as opposed to blaming him for her daughter’s illness – is a sign of deep faith.
Yet, she’s not initially rewarded the way we might imagine. In fact, she receives a very cold response.
***
First, Jesus ignores her.
Then the disciples dismiss her. “Send her away,” they say to Jesus, “for she keeps calling out after us.”
It’s a chilling scene.
But she persists. “Lord, help me.”
When Jesus finally speaks to her, it seems he does so condescendingly. “It is not right to take the food of the children and throw it to the dogs.”
Still, this mother humbles herself further. “Please, Lord, for even the dogs eat the scraps that fall from the table of their masters.” She senses that just a morsel of Christ’s power can heal her daughter.
Amazed by her faith and utter humility, Jesus blesses her, saying, “O woman, great is your faith!”
Then he gives her what she wants. “Let it be done for you as you wish.”
This becomes one of only two miracles that Jesus performs at a distance. This mother doesn’t need to rush home to know her daughter is well; Jesus’ word is enough, allowing her to part in peace.
***
Compare the depth of this woman’s faith with the shallowness of Peter’s faith in last week’s Gospel.
Remember, Peter and the other disciples were sailing across the Sea of Galilee, when suddenly they got caught in a storm – one so strong they feared they would drown. Meanwhile, Jesus was praying on solid ground by himself.
When he finally appeared to them, Peter questioned the Lord’s identity – “Lord, if it is you command me to come to you on the water.”
So, Peter stepped out of the boat and shortly thereafter began to sink. “O you of little faith,” Jesus said. “Why did you doubt?”
Peter took his eyes off of Jesus, focusing on the wind and the waves, instead. Meanwhile, this desperate mother remains fixated upon the Lord until he calms the demonic storm enveloping her daughter.
“Great is your faith,” he says to her (unlike Peter), “let it be done for you as you wish.”
***
So, what might all of this mean for us?
***
Like the persistent mother in today’s Gospel, or the little old lady in Fatima crawling on her knees, sometimes a desperate, but confident, display of faith moves the Lord to act.
But we conclude our prayer as the Lord himself did while staring into the heavens from the storm of the Cross:
“Into your hands, I commend my Spirit.”
Let it be done unto me as you wish.
***
***
Image credits: (1) please LORD, Prayer for Anxiety (2) The Woman of Canaan at the Feet of Christ, The Roman Catholic Diocese of Phoenix (3) J.John on Twitter, X