Have you ever heard yourself saying, “these dogs …”, or “this bitch”, to those whom you do not like, or tolerate? I have heard my self, saying that several times! It looks like Jesus too was trapped in such emotional display that a Canaanite woman once challenged.
Christian scriptures have recorded one of Jesus’ encounters with a Canaanite woman (Matthew 15:21-28). Here is a woman who does not belong to the caste, class, or creed of Jesus, or his disciples. Jesus was a Jew. This woman was a Canaanite. Jews of Jesus’ time, I learn from my readings, frequently looked down on the Canaanites and considered them as dogs! So, naturally when the Canaanite woman approached Jesus for some favor – here she wants Jesus to heal her daughter (Matthew 15:22) - Jesus spontaneously tells her that it is wrong “to take the children’s food and throw it to the dogs” (Matthew 15:26). It is too obvious that Jesus considered his people, the Jews as children and the Canaanites as dogs!
Jesus went further to justify his “gut level feelings” with sophisticated theological arguments. He said, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel” (Matthew 15:24). Jesus covers his own prejudices by implicating God, and God’s “sent-ness”. Neat argument! Isn’t it? Now, who comes to back Jesus? His own followers! They say: “Send her away, for she keeps shouting after us” (Matthew 15:23). Here, I notice, that their support to Jesus comes even before he makes a request from them.
Jews of Jesus’ time was a very exclusive, insulated community. They built strong walls of separation from other communities. Jesus and his disciples belonged to this exclusive community.
I am quite aware of those who would argue that Jesus was not an exclusivist but evolved a program to break this exclusivist attitude among his contemporaries. Yes, there is supportive materiel in the Gospel for this particular stance.
My point however is, this specific incident reveals the spirit of exclusivist attitude that this woman challenged and Jesus gives in by adopting a more inclusive spirit towards this foreign, alien, strange woman. At the end Jesus commends her “spirit of inclusivism”. Hence, Jesus said: “Woman, great is your faith! Let it be done for you as you wish” (Matthew 15:28)
I wonder if Jesus were to look at the present attitudes of bulk of the Canadian Christians towards people who are not their “caste, color, class, or creed”, will he discern and identify this inclusive spirit and say: “Great is your Christianity”, or “Great is your spirituality”, or “Great is your religion”? Do contemporary Canadian Christians through their thoughts, words and deeds promote passionately an inclusive, global, one world community that transcends color, caste, class, and creed? These are, I know, very difficult and sometimes very embarrassing questions. But they are exceedingly essential to establish faith and incredibly crucial to all faith communities.
The table that most practicing Christians walk to on a Sunday morning – I refer here to the Eucharistic table – is an inclusive table. And it demands similar attitude in the participants of that banquet the Lord of the Church has prepared.
I believe if we increase the spirit of inclusivism in the church community and the wider community and become more accepting towards people who are not our color, caste, class, or creed, the world we live in will have less conflicts and wars. Do you think I am very naïve in advocating a more inclusive world in order to stop conflicts and wars?
The Psalm 133, one of the shortest psalms, a poem, points to a beautiful vision of an “inclusive community”. It does not tell us how to establish this. But gives a taste; it inspires. A piece of poem like Psalm 133 tries to move, or persuade human emotions towards the vision that it carries within. But with those emotions, I believe, we must pull our will together to realize that vision here and now in our lives!
In the Bible I discover that our love for God and our love for humans are one and the same. In rejecting one you reject the other! When I look down on a black or a brown man or a native woman I am looking down on God. When I name him with that “derogatory” name “Negro” I am rejecting God who created him in his image.
Life in abundance for Jacob’s children who were divided depended very much on their coming together. The graphic reminder of this truth we are able to read and reflect in the story recorded in Genesis 45.
We will, I strongly believe, either live together, or die together! The future choice of the world is not between those living an abundant life and those living a life of scarcity! No! Either we all live a life of abundance and peace, or all live a life of scarcity and war with all its consequences!
Paul, a Jew, after his conversion to God, on his part, have always argued that in God’s vision both the Jews and the Gentiles are included, no matter even if they have done very badly. (For examples I read Romans 11:1-2, Galatians 3:28 and other passages!) All people in the world are “people of God”, with no distinction of color, caste, class, or creed.
God’s world is inclusive. Heaven and hell are all inclusive. The Lord’s Table is inclusive. And I am invited to build within me an inclusive mind, heart and will that eventually will pave way to an inclusive community, community where racism is only a past history and a Canada that sternly stops both overt and covert racisms.
Christian scriptures have recorded one of Jesus’ encounters with a Canaanite woman (Matthew 15:21-28). Here is a woman who does not belong to the caste, class, or creed of Jesus, or his disciples. Jesus was a Jew. This woman was a Canaanite. Jews of Jesus’ time, I learn from my readings, frequently looked down on the Canaanites and considered them as dogs! So, naturally when the Canaanite woman approached Jesus for some favor – here she wants Jesus to heal her daughter (Matthew 15:22) - Jesus spontaneously tells her that it is wrong “to take the children’s food and throw it to the dogs” (Matthew 15:26). It is too obvious that Jesus considered his people, the Jews as children and the Canaanites as dogs!
Jesus went further to justify his “gut level feelings” with sophisticated theological arguments. He said, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel” (Matthew 15:24). Jesus covers his own prejudices by implicating God, and God’s “sent-ness”. Neat argument! Isn’t it? Now, who comes to back Jesus? His own followers! They say: “Send her away, for she keeps shouting after us” (Matthew 15:23). Here, I notice, that their support to Jesus comes even before he makes a request from them.
Jews of Jesus’ time was a very exclusive, insulated community. They built strong walls of separation from other communities. Jesus and his disciples belonged to this exclusive community.
I am quite aware of those who would argue that Jesus was not an exclusivist but evolved a program to break this exclusivist attitude among his contemporaries. Yes, there is supportive materiel in the Gospel for this particular stance.
My point however is, this specific incident reveals the spirit of exclusivist attitude that this woman challenged and Jesus gives in by adopting a more inclusive spirit towards this foreign, alien, strange woman. At the end Jesus commends her “spirit of inclusivism”. Hence, Jesus said: “Woman, great is your faith! Let it be done for you as you wish” (Matthew 15:28)
I wonder if Jesus were to look at the present attitudes of bulk of the Canadian Christians towards people who are not their “caste, color, class, or creed”, will he discern and identify this inclusive spirit and say: “Great is your Christianity”, or “Great is your spirituality”, or “Great is your religion”? Do contemporary Canadian Christians through their thoughts, words and deeds promote passionately an inclusive, global, one world community that transcends color, caste, class, and creed? These are, I know, very difficult and sometimes very embarrassing questions. But they are exceedingly essential to establish faith and incredibly crucial to all faith communities.
The table that most practicing Christians walk to on a Sunday morning – I refer here to the Eucharistic table – is an inclusive table. And it demands similar attitude in the participants of that banquet the Lord of the Church has prepared.
I believe if we increase the spirit of inclusivism in the church community and the wider community and become more accepting towards people who are not our color, caste, class, or creed, the world we live in will have less conflicts and wars. Do you think I am very naïve in advocating a more inclusive world in order to stop conflicts and wars?
The Psalm 133, one of the shortest psalms, a poem, points to a beautiful vision of an “inclusive community”. It does not tell us how to establish this. But gives a taste; it inspires. A piece of poem like Psalm 133 tries to move, or persuade human emotions towards the vision that it carries within. But with those emotions, I believe, we must pull our will together to realize that vision here and now in our lives!
In the Bible I discover that our love for God and our love for humans are one and the same. In rejecting one you reject the other! When I look down on a black or a brown man or a native woman I am looking down on God. When I name him with that “derogatory” name “Negro” I am rejecting God who created him in his image.
Life in abundance for Jacob’s children who were divided depended very much on their coming together. The graphic reminder of this truth we are able to read and reflect in the story recorded in Genesis 45.
We will, I strongly believe, either live together, or die together! The future choice of the world is not between those living an abundant life and those living a life of scarcity! No! Either we all live a life of abundance and peace, or all live a life of scarcity and war with all its consequences!
Paul, a Jew, after his conversion to God, on his part, have always argued that in God’s vision both the Jews and the Gentiles are included, no matter even if they have done very badly. (For examples I read Romans 11:1-2, Galatians 3:28 and other passages!) All people in the world are “people of God”, with no distinction of color, caste, class, or creed.
God’s world is inclusive. Heaven and hell are all inclusive. The Lord’s Table is inclusive. And I am invited to build within me an inclusive mind, heart and will that eventually will pave way to an inclusive community, community where racism is only a past history and a Canada that sternly stops both overt and covert racisms.
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