Reading
Mark 7:24-30
24 Jesus left that place and went to the vicinity of Tyre.[a] He entered a house and did not want anyone to know it; yet he could not keep his presence secret. 25 In fact, as soon as she heard about him, a woman whose little daughter was possessed by an impure spirit came and fell at his feet. 26 The woman was a Greek, born in Syrian Phoenicia. She begged Jesus to drive the demon out of her daughter.
27 “First let the children eat all they want,” he told her, “for it is not right to take the children’s bread and toss it to the dogs.”
28 “Lord,” she replied, “even the dogs under the table eat the children’s crumbs.”
29 Then he told her, “For such a reply, you may go; the demon has left your daughter.”
30 She went home and found her child lying on the bed, and the demon gone.
Meditation
Jesus is passing through a pagan territory and seeks a moment of rest from his ministry. Often in the Gospels we see him seeking refreshment by stopping in deserted places, or on a mountain; this time he retires to a private home. But Jesus cannot remain hidden, because he is not a candle placed under a bushel, so a woman, foreigner of ethnicity and religion, whose daughter is afflicted by an evil spirit, comes immediately to look for him.
Jesus responds by using the image of little dogs, which can be fed only after having fed their children and thus emphasizes the precedence of the Israelites over the pagans as recipients of his ministry. But the purpose is also to test the faith of the woman, who, thrown at the feet of Jesus, expresses her unworthiness, but doesn't giving up on her request.
We too can have the impression of not being listened to by God; that is the moment to increase humility in us and to renew trust, aware that our sense of inadequacy cannot diminish the hope in his goodness.
Like the centurion's servant, the daughter of the Syrian-Phoenician woman is healed from a distance. The Spirit of the Lord is not forced into a place, but embraces the whole world; his providence and his mercy reach us where we are, just as we are, in times of need.
This miracle of spiritual healing encourages us to persevere in prayer, not doubting that we can ultimately prevail if what we ask for is judged by God to be profitable for our good; the Lord who opens his hand and satisfies every living thing (Ps 144:16) will not deny us those precious crumbs which nourish his children like the birds of the sky.
And if the crumbs are so precious and bring about such wonders, what will that table and that overflowing cup (Ps 22:5) that the Lord prepares for us in heaven be like?
Prayer
Open your hand, o Lord, and satisfy us with your grace; so that freed from all evil we can become a temple of your Spirit. Amen.
- Rev. Dr. Luca Vona
