From The Minister, August 13 2020

​My Dear Friends--
 
This week Matthew gives us the story of Jesus’ encounter with the Canaanite woman who asks him to heal her daughter. I wonder, have you had as much trouble with this story as I have over the years? There’s a phrase you may have heard of: “the scandal of the cross”. It references 1 Corinthians 1:23, in which Paul talks about Jesus’ crucifixion as a skandalon, or “stumbling block” to those expecting a triumphant messiah to deliver them from oppression. Surely, the reasoning goes, a messiah wouldn’t be subject to the ignominious death reserved for criminals and enemies of the state. Now theologians have spilled fountains of ink on the scandal of the cross, but while I understand the concept, I’ve never really felt it as keenly as I’m sure Paul’s audience did. Perhaps when you’ve grown up with the crucifix as a staple of your tradition since childhood, the scandal wears off!
 
But this story of Jesus and the Canaanite woman? This I have long found scandalous. I remember hearing it as a child and wondering, “What kind of Jesus is this?” Who is this Jesus who first ignores, then insults this poor woman? Who answers her desperation with talk of throwing food to the dogs? Where is the Jesus of love and mercy and compassion? Where is the Jesus who confounds the expectations of his followers by consorting with outcasts, committing to servanthood, and, yes, consenting to the cross?
 
In the end, of course, Jesus will praise the woman’s faith and heal her daughter. But the scandal of his initial treatment of her remains. What do we make of this? On Sunday I’ll share more of how I’ve come to understand this story--and, indeed, how journeying with you in this beautiful community of faith has increased my understanding! In the meantime, I encourage you to take another look at this encounter between the Son of David and the Syro-Phoenician mother. Hold it up against this week’s lesson from Isaiah (56:1,6-8) and feel the resonances. For extra credit, I heartily recommend Zadie Smith’s Intimations, a slim new volume of essays written during the early months of the lockdown. In this time of distance and separation, she ponders relationship and encounter--our journey through suffering to compassion.
 
In faith and love,
 
David