Faith in God's Power and in God's Loving Kindness

Homily for the Twentieth Sunday in Ordinary Time

In today’s Gospel passage, Jesus expels a demon from the daughter of a Canaanite or Gentile woman. The woman approaches Jesus even though she knows that the cultural norms of the day dictate that she keep her distance from Jesus. Women were not to approach men in a public setting in the culture of the day. In addition, she also realizes that as a Gentile, her presence would not be welcome in this setting. Yet she persists. Her persistence is rewarded when Jesus not only acknowledges her but also cures her daughter.

As is often the case in stories such as this that come to us from the Gospels, it is the woman’s faith that is rewarded by Jesus. She believes that Jesus has the power to heal her daughter, to expel the demon that is afflicting her. We have heard these stories before, and we, like the Canaanite woman believe that Jesus can do what is asked of him. However, her faith goes even further; for she believes that not only can Jesus do as she requests, she also believes that Jesus will decide in her favor. Her faith is not simply lodged in her knowledge of Jesus’s power; it is also lodged in her belief that Jesus will want to do this. This may be the crucial difference between her faith and our faith. The question that the Gospel poses for us today comes down to this: “Do we really believe that God is aware of us? Do we believe that God is part of our lives? Do we believe that God takes care of us, answers our prayers, and can change our lives? In other words, knowledge of God’s power is not enough. We must also believe that God is so invested in our lives that we can place our trust in his mercy and kindness.

While it is fairly evident that of the woman believes that Jesus will respond positively to her request, the disciples of Jesus are not so convinced. When they look at the woman, they see someone who is over-stepping the boundaries and asking for something that God would not bestow on this outsider, this Gentile.

However, if we pay attention to the other readings which are proclaimed on this particular Sunday, we cannot escape the conclusion that God’s loving kindness is not restricted to one people or nation. The great prophet Isaiah himself declares that God will accept the sacrifices of non-Jewish people. Jesus backs up the statement of Isaiah that God’s house is a house of prayer for all people. With the composer of Psalm 67, we pray today that all the peoples of this earth will come to faith in God. St. Paul declares in his Letter to the Romans that God’s gifts and God’s call to holiness is irrevocable. With sadness, St. Paul realizes that his fellow Jews have rejected this message with the result that the Gentiles have received and accepted it. As the Holy Father, Pope Francis announced clearly during World Youth Day in Portugal just recently, there is room for everyone in God’s Church. Predictably, because of the greater divisiveness that grips our world, there are those who scoff at this statement. Their faith does not extend to the point that they believe that God cares for all of creation and all God’s creatures. People frequently ask why we do not witness such miracles as that of which we hear this morning in St. Matthew’s Gospel. The answer to that question may just lie in the fact that we simply do not believe in God’s care for us or in God’s willingness to answer our prayers.

As we bring our offerings to God’s table today, it is absolutely essential that we place our faith not only in God’s power, but also in God’s loving mercy and desire to come to our aid.