Dear Brothers and Sisters,

Congratulations with the feast of the Resurrection of the Lord as well as the leave-taking of the Elevation of the Cross!

Today we heard the last Gospel from the cycle of Sunday readings from the Gospel according to St. Matthew. Next week a new cycle from St. Luke’s Gospel will begin. For the last several Sundays, prior to last week, we noticed that the Church was persistently leading us to the remembrance of our Saviour’s passions on the Cross. Finally, last week we heard in the Gospel reading about these events. Therefore it would seem logical that this weekend we would hear about the Resurrection, and in such a way complete the cycle of readings from St. Matthew. Although this seems logical, the liturgical rubrics of the Church indicate another excerpt to be read. Thus we read about Christ’s time in the coast of Tyre and Sidon, His unpleasant meeting with the Canaanite woman, and about the miraculous healing of this woman’s daughter. Today’s Gospel reading vividly illustrates that Christ, spreading out His hands on the cross, called everyone into His embrace, into His Church, not only the Jews, the chosen people, but also the Gentiles, who, as this woman shows, are capable of great spiritual feats.

The Canaanite woman, about whom we heard today at the Liturgy, is a wonderful example for all of us. Christ literally ignored her, but she did not stop beseeching Him for help. She was crying and wailing to such a degree that the apostles became embarrassed and asked that He send her away. Despite this, she stubbornly continued. Who out of us can say that they pray with such force? Who out of us has such patience to beseech our Creator for such an extended time?

Wonderful is this gentile not only because of her persistent prayers, but even more so because of her mildness, her lack of self-love. Jesus Christ calls her a dog, and she, as if nothing out of the ordinary was said, continues to petition Him. Had someone called us a dog, I am not sure even one of us would be left indifferent. In the best-case scenario, we would leave feeling hurt. In the worst-case scenario, we would try to avenge ourselves through a sharp word or some kind of mean-spirited act. Someone might even come to the aid of litigation to prove himself right and receive some form of compensation (amazingly, this even happens amongst members of the church). This insult in no way injures this woman, but bounces off of her like water off a duck’s back.

Finally, notice her audacity or daring and her quick wits. Christ says: “It is not good to take bread (grace) from children (the Jews) and give it to dogs (gentiles)” but she immediately answers, “That’s true, but even dogs get some crumbs that fall off the table; therefore, Lord, give me at least a little crumb and heal my daughter!” She, like Abraham in the Old Testament, when he tried to save the citizens of Sodom, is not afraid of the Lord. She doesn’t act like a slave or a servant, like a dog, but like a daughter of our Heavenly Father. We should ask ourselves, do we have such a close and familial relationship with the Lord?

Dear Brothers and Sisters, let’s begin to pray for our salvation with persistence, like the Canaanite woman did. Let’s not be offended by anyone, even if it seems that we have been gravely offended. Let’s also hope that in such a manner we can acquire the daring to stand before God not like slaves, but like sons and daughters before our Heavenly Father.

priest Alexis