Wednesday of the Eighteenth Week in Ordinary Time

“Christ and the Canaanite Woman “
by Juan De Flandes, c. 1500

 
Readings for Wednesday of the Eighteenth Week in Ordinary Time [1]
 
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible [2]
 
Readings and Commentary: [3]
 
Reading 1: Jeremiah 31:1-7
 
At that time, says the LORD,
I will be the God of all the tribes of Israel,
and they shall be my people.
Thus says the LORD:
The people that escaped the sword
have found favor in the desert.
As Israel comes forward to be given his rest,
the LORD appears to him from afar:
With age-old love I have loved you;
so I have kept my mercy toward you.
Again I will restore you, and you shall be rebuilt,
O virgin Israel;
Carrying your festive tambourines,
you shall go forth dancing with the merrymakers.
Again you shall plant vineyards
on the mountains of Samaria;
those who plant them shall enjoy the fruits.
Yes, a day will come when the watchmen
will call out on Mount Ephraim:
"Rise up, let us go to Zion,
to the LORD, our God."
For thus says the LORD:
Shout with joy for Jacob,
exult at the head of the nations;
proclaim your praise and say:
The LORD has delivered his people,
the remnant of Israel.
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Commentary on Jer 31:1-7
 
Jeremiah addresses himself to the Israelites who have fled to the desert in the Diaspora. He likens them to those who went into the same desert following Moses as they fled Egypt (Exodus 16-18). They return to “Zion” – the New Jerusalem – with joy because of God’s great mercy toward them. The prophet envisions the great prosperity of the people as they return, delivered from their exile. Key in this passage is the great love the Father shows his people echoed in Hosea 2:21-25 and Isaiah 54:6-8.
 
CCC: Jer 31 1611
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Responsorial Psalm: Jeremiah 31:10, 11-12ab, 13
 
R. (see 10d) The Lord will guard us as a shepherd guards his flock.
Hear the word of the LORD, O nations,
proclaim it on distant isles, and say:
He who scattered Israel, now gathers them together,
he guards them as a shepherd his flock.
R. The Lord will guard us as a shepherd guards his flock.
 
The LORD shall ransom Jacob,
he shall redeem him from the hand of his conqueror.
Shouting, they shall mount the heights of Zion,
they shall come streaming to the LORD'S blessings.
R. The Lord will guard us as a shepherd guards his flock.
 
Then the virgins shall make merry and dance,
and young men and old as well.
I will turn their mourning into joy.
I will console and gladden them after their sorrows.
R. The Lord will guard us as a shepherd guards his flock.
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Commentary on Jer 31:10, 11-12ab, 13
 
The prophet Jeremiah foresees the return of the people from exile and the joyful restoration of Jerusalem.  The people rejoice as they return to prosperity, led by the Lord, the faithful shepherd who accomplishes this saving act. As in Isaiah 42:10 and Isaiah 49:1, all nations are called to witness God’s saving hand stretched out to his people.
 
The song from Jeremiah recalls the Diaspora, the exile of the Hebrews. In these strophes, the prophet sees the salvific work of God who shepherds his people as they return from exile in the “new exodus,” and the reunification of the people. He prophesies their return to the land from which they had been driven, giving praise to God for his mercy.
 
CCC: Jer 31 1611
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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 he did not say a word in answer to her.
His 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 him 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 her daughter was healed from that hour.
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Commentary on Mt 15:21-28
 
There was a long history of tension between the Canaanites and the Hebrews that was at a high point when Jesus encountered the Canaanite woman in the Gospel. She clearly knew what she was doing as she addressed him as “Lord, Son of David,” identifying him by that name as a Hebrew.
 
In this selection Jesus has withdrawn from Palestine to escape the persecution of the Pharisees and scribes and to spend time training his disciples. The region they come to is predominantly Gentile and sets the scene for his encounter with this woman (in St. Mark’s Gospel it is the Syrophoenician woman (Mark 7:24-30).
 
Jesus, while the words attributed to him are harsh, did not, 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.
 
The exchange between Jesus and the woman is intended to describe the universal nature of the messianic mission. Within the dialogue we see Jesus initially refuse to accede to the woman’s request (even though she recognized his authority “the woman came and did him homage, saying, 'Lord, help me'”).
 
This same pattern of refusal and then acquiescence is found in St. John’s Gospel (John 2:4, John 4:48). The metaphor being exchanged in this banter refers to the “children” being the Hebrews, and the “dogs” a reference to the Gentiles (frequently referred to as such by Hebrews of the day). While this seems out of character for the Lord, our translation leaves out some conversational nuances that soften the dialogue. The word translated as “dogs” in this translation could be more accurately expressed as “pups” or “little dogs.” It is also significant that the children and pups are eating at the same table, again expressing the universal nature of the mission of the Messiah.
 
CCC: Mt 15:22 439, 448; Mt 15:28 2610
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Reflection:
 
In spite of the way the exchange between Jesus and the Canaanite woman sounds, the message given is actually one of unity. We hear Jesus refuse the woman who has come to him. She caught him at a very bad time. He had just traveled to Tyre; he needed a rest, time away from the confrontations with the Pharisees in Palestine. And here comes this woman, a Gentile, who throws herself at him. It is interesting to note that each, Jesus and the woman, are both turning their backs on their native lands.  Each of them is moving toward an encounter arranged by the Father.
 
Jesus is true man as well as true God. He became tired just as we do. Curing the sick and casting out demons took much effort on his part. So, he declines. He has not been as successful with the “children of Israel” as he had hoped. The gospel he brought to his native land had not been well received, and here comes this Gentile woman making claims on that message of salvation.
 
Jesus uses a slang expression but softens it. In Scripture we hear the word he used was “dogs”; however, the Aramaic expression would have been more like pups. The woman persists and uses the metaphor to her own advantage, and the Lord expels the unclean spirit from her daughter.
 
It is clear from this encounter that Jesus brought the message to everyone, not just a select few. And his call to us is to take up that message and pass it on to others. We find that difficult to do at times. We even find it difficult to express that message to others who are tasked with sharing the same message, our brothers and sisters in Christ.
 
This then is what the Gospel calls us to do on this day: to bring the message of God’s love to those we meet, to express it in words and actions in a way that cannot be misunderstood. In this way we respond to the Lord as he responds to us, in love and understanding.
 
Pax

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[1] The picture is “Christ and the Canaanite Woman “ by Juan De Flandes, c. 1500.
[2] S.S. Commemoratio
[3] The readings are taken from the New American Bible, with the exception of the psalm and its response which were developed by the International Committee for English in Liturgy (ICEL). This republication is not authorized by USCCB and is for private use only.