“Jesus withdrew to the region of Tyre and Sidon. And behold, a Canaanite woman called out, ‘Have pity on me, Lord! My daughter is tormented by a demon.’ . . . Jesus 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.’”  Matthew 15: 21-28

This Gospel story, which appears only in the gospels of Matthew and Mark, reflects two very different, often antagonistic, neighboring cultures of Jesus’ time. From the Jewish perspective, a Canaanite woman had no good reason to be seeking anything from Jesus, a Jew. One hopes that Jesus’ words refer to the expected inability of a rabbi’s prayer to be in any way valuable to an “unbelieving” Canaanite.

But what an extraordinary meeting of two people raised in diverse, often antagonistic cultures and who worshiped very different gods.  They speak to each other in matters where their cultures are at odds. They hear each other. They meet and complement each other.

What a wonderful meditation for us living in the midst of a multitude of diversities.  May we approach people who differ from us in any way, be it religious, cultural, racial or whatever  – may we approach each other with minds and hearts that listen rather than stand “our ground”, that seek words and ways to “meet and complement” rather than to criticize and condemn.  I cannot envision a Jesus who would give up His God, but His allegiance to God did not separate Him from others.

Sister Loretta