Gospel according to the Syrophoenician Woman

Proper18BPentecost15, September 8, 2024, St. Martin’s Episcopal Church, Moses Lake by Sr. Annette Fricke, OP. I have worked in a couple of different settings now where I was one of the oldest of the employees and supervisors. It wasn’t like that in school before college. In school as a child, most of our classmates were within a year of the same age and it’s difficult without knowing for sure who is older and who is younger. There was some parental control going on as well as being held back due to poor grades. Holding back is how my bestie was in class with me and her sister was in my younger brother’s class. Occupationally, we were very different however and had in common that we did not become farmers or the wife of farmers. Same, but different. Because of my upbringing on a farm, working in Othello is a fit. Because of my brother’s childhood on a farm, being a small animal veterinarian is a fit as well. He lives out in the country and works in the larger city. I live in a larger community and work in a smaller one. The same, but different. The two healing stories in our gospel text have similarities. The most glaring of the similarities is that they both take place in non-Jewish territories. These are places where Jews are not welcome and in fact, are rather despised and treated with contempt. Perhaps the harsh words of Jesus to this woman from the region of Tyre reflect the political imbalance of the wealthy Gentiles and Jewish peasants there. Beyond that, Jesus was likely aware of the economic hardship that many Jews in that region experienced due to the exploits of the Gentile landowners. We should be asking why Jesus is there at all if he indeed sees his priority as the house of Israel. Indeed, the Gospel of Mark gives us a vision of the outstretching of God’s kingdom to be that which extends beyond the reaches of the folks of Judaism. Obviously, one of the major points of reading is that we are to go beyond our own little villages or social groupings of people in our quest to extend the mercy of God. But note also that this text has nothing to do with converting anyone by means of God directly, nor of our evangelization in God’s name. Pure and simple, this is about showing mercy to all people. It has nothing to do with imposing values or judgments on someone else. It doesn’t mean that we should not issue a marriage license because we do not thing that gay men should get married. It does not mean that if we are Quaker and believe in pacifism that we will not issue a permit to have a gun to defend houses or property. Jesus did not ask her, as far as we know, what she believed in. He met her at her need and healed her daughter. We don’t know what happened after that. We have no “Gospel according to the Syrophoenician Woman.” Perhaps we should; perhaps she would tell us how Jesus paid attention to even her, one who had a sick child among many sick children of the day. This woman was not going to just stand by and watch her daughter continue to suffer. She was passionate. She knew Jesus was a healer and she was determined to get healing for her daughter. She knew Jesus had that which she most desperately desired more than anything. She was prepared to do what it took to get it. Some of us will watch someone like that and say to ourselves, “What a stubborn fool,” but maybe that’s what’s lacking in us at times. At times, we just give up and become lackadaisical, paralyzed into inaction. Will God bring healing if we never ask for it or if we always pray meekly, “Thy will be done?” Is it not a step better to even demand that God hear our pleas for mercy? Lastly, it is important to notice that the mother pleads for the daughter and the deaf man is brought to Jesus by his friends. Community is important. God does not expect us to be the lone rangers and to conduct our prayer life and spirituality as though it’s just between God and us. Many of my preacher friends have nixed the idea of worship services other than Sunday because there just is no interest in attendance. But is that true? Are we willing as a congregation to go beyond obligation to voluntary fellowship gathering, maybe something informal? What will move our congregation to become more nurturing? What can we do to build fellowship among those who feel hurt or left out? A glaring part of the gospel text is that this woman appears to be by herself. She doesn’t seem to have friends, nobody to advocate for her. The image is provocative and is a quite comprehensive picture of the enormity and generosity of God’s love for all humanity. God’s love is like a table on which the children eat. We can see the common household setting of eating at the table with the dog hanging around looking for a bite. God’s mercy is not just for the few, but for the many because God’s children are not just those we most love and admire, but also those who live on the fringes of society and the edges of what we might term unacceptable dress or behavior. Not only do we put God in a box, but people as well. We want both God and others to conform to our sense of right and wrong. We don’t like entertaining the thought that someone else has an idea that might be just as good as ours. Jesus commends the woman not so much for her belief as for her passion and persistence. She has a good argument. She asserts herself with logic. We are to follow our hearts, passionately seeking, no demanding that those in our midst receive healing, remembering that we are all in this together. We may be different, but we are the same.