Circles of Irony

Wednesday of the Eighteenth Week in Ordinary Time &
Saint Teresa Benedicta of the Cross

Readings for Wednesday of the 18th Week in Ordinary Time
Biographical Information about Saint Teresa

Reflection:

Today is the memorial of one of John Paul the Great’s saints, Edith Stein or Teresa Benedicta of the Cross. I find it ironic that on a day when we are forcibly told that Jesus came first for the chosen ones of Israel, we find the Church memorializing a Jew who converted to Christianity, probably earning for herself among many or her contemporaries scorn and derision for doing do. Yet, her example of faith in the face of death and her ultimate execution at the hands of a race that claimed to be Christian sort of brings the irony full circle. She is a constant reminder that, under the influence of the Evil One, man is capable of unimaginable acts of cruelty and violence. This is something we need to be aware of as we see a rising tide in current world affairs of the same kind of hatred in the form of radical Islam. More ironically still the major target of this racial hatred is once again first directed at the Hebrew people.

With all of he above being said, I know we should love all of God’s word but the Gospel we hear today always bothers me. Granted that Jesus makes great use of parables and analogy, but just because the woman who comes to him is not Hebrew but a Canaanite, his analogy about throwing food to the dogs has always stricken me as uncharacteristic of Jesus’ nature.

What is important for us is to get past the simple words that are recorded and look at what Jesus is saying. First we need to understand that there was enmity between the Hebrews and the Canaanites. There was a long history of tension that was at a high point when Jesus encountered the woman. She clearly knew what she was doing as she addressed him as “Lord, Son of David” identifying him by that name as a Hebrew.

Jesus, while the words attributed to him are harsh, did not do as most of his own contemporaries would have, begin throwing stones at her to drive her away. His disciples were begging him to do that. Jesus recognized the great gulf between them but opened his healing touch to the woman’s child when her faith in him was demonstrated. He did the same thing many times when dealing with members of his own societal group.

When we couple the Gospel tension between the Canaanites and the Hebrews with the reminder of what racial hatred can do in the person of Saint Teresa Benedicta of the Cross, we get a clear message today. It seems so simple but it is so hard, “Love one another.” He never gets far from that theme. It is the one element in our lives that is an exception to the wise saying; “All things in moderation” (Note, I actually stole that thought from a B.C. comic I looked at earlier this week.)

Pax