Mark 7: 24-37
Location is important for
understanding this text. Jesus has left Judea, Jewish territory. He has been
overwhelmed by requests for healing, and perhaps he was hoping for a time of
rest, an escape from all the demands, for just a short time.
The region of Tyre is in a
Greek-speaking area northwest of Judea. The people here worship Greek gods, not
the Jewish God. Jesus is the outsider here, the minority.
Even so, the news of Jesus healing
powers and his care for the poor has reached the people, and there will be no
place for Jesus to hide and rest. A woman with a very sick daughter approaches
him and falls to the ground, groveling in front of him, begging him to heal her
little girl.
People throughout the ages have
debated how to read and understand this story of his encounter with the Syrophoenecian
woman. Does Jesus tell the woman she is a dog and say it with a wink? Is Jesus
really angry, and does he really call her a dog? Does the word he uses mean
adult dog, or little puppy?
I think that Jesus is so tired, he
lets his human side show. He lets his Jewish upbringing show. And he clearly says
to the woman that healing is not available to her kind of people. At least not
yet.
But, the woman stands up to him, uses
his words, uses humor, and is willing to let herself be called a dog if it means
her daughter will be healed. Jesus recognizes that he has been bested and tells
the woman her daughter has been healed.
I think Jesus has had a timeline
in mind, the Jews first, then the Gentiles. This encounter has changed the
timeline. All are welcome in God’s kingdom, no exceptions.
… From Tyre, Jesus heads east
across Galilee, and crosses the Jordan River. The Decapolis is a region of ten cities
with Greek and Roman culture on the eastern edge of Judea. Once again, Jesus is
the outsider.
People bring a deaf man who also
has a speech impediment, perhaps a problem with the vocal cords, maybe also a
tied tongue, where the membrane under the tongue is too short to allow the
tongue to move much. This time, there is no arguing about who is worthy of
healing. Jesus does take the man aside to heal him. While the mother’s daughter
is healed from a distance, Jesus touches this man, putting his fingers in the
man’s ears. And he spits, and puts some of his own spittle on the man’s tongue.
“Open up. Be healed,” Jesus says. And the man is suddenly healed, able to speak
normally.
It always amazes me that the
healing Jesus gives is so complete, the restoration of hearing includes the
ability to know what the person is hearing, and how to form words with the
tongue. There is no physical or occupational or speech therapy – the healing is
total and instantaneous.
Jesus cautions the man to say
nothing about his healing. Mark’s gospel has a number of these comments, where
the people who are healed are urged to remain silent. I believe it is connected
to Jesus’ understanding of his mission, his own timeline. I think he is worried
too much notoriety will move up the timeline for his death. It also puts too
much attention to the healing and takes away the impact of the message of the coming
of the reign of God into their midst.
Both of these stories highlight
the way grace is given. Even though Jesus resisted healing the daughter because
she was from a different culture, the mother made it clear that Jesus was
wrong. The healing of the deaf man was done in private, but the effect would
have been obvious once he returned to his friends. Grace given to one man is
obvious to many.
The people of Jesus time probably
thought that grace should not have been given to these foreign people. Such
grace to outsiders was undeserved. Even Jesus struggled with it, it seems.
… We still struggle with just who
deserves grace. Should grace be given to …
People of color? … People with
AIDS? … Pregnant teenagers? … Drug addicts? …
Child and spouse abusers? … Thieves
and murders? … Racists? …
Lesbian, gay, and transgendered
people? … Homeless people? …
Beggars? …Unemployed people? … Muslims?
… Religious fanatics? …
People who never go to church? … Democrats?
Or Republicans?
Do you find it hard to wish God’s
grace for one or more of these groups of people? We all judge some other people as less than
us. We all want to control God’s grace, and define who is worthy of it and who
is not.
In truth, we are all undeserving
of grace, because of this judgment of others. Yet, we are all God’s children,
and God gives us grace in spite of our judgment of others.
On Friday evening, Mike and I
watched Pope Francis speaking with several individuals by way of TV cameras.
Francis could see the people, and they could see him on large TV screens.
He affirmed each person, proclaiming
the strength within them, empowering them to seek a better future with that
power. He reminded them of God’s grace, even though some people might believe
it was undeserved for people like them.
For the undocumented student who
was denied a college scholarship, he praised him for having assumed
responsibility for his family after his father died.
For the mother of two girls, he
praised her determination in working hard enough to afford housing for them and
moving out of the homeless shelter.
For the girl who had been bullied
and shamed because of her skin condition, he praised her strength, and asked
her to sing him a song.
He called special attention to the
sister (woman religious) in charge of a shelter housing and caring for illegal
immigrants just across the border from Mexico. He praised her and all sisters for
their committed work with needy people everywhere in Jesus’ name.
This week, notice how you think
about people. Ask yourself if they deserve God’s grace. If you answer, ‘no, not
really,’ consider what Jesus would say. Remember that they are God’s children,
as beloved of God as we are.
Please pray with me. God of mercy,
forgive us. We forget that we are ALL your children, and none of us deserves
your grace. Help us to see all people through your merciful eyes. Amen
