Dogs At The Table

I’m a dog lover.  Many of us are although there are many that love dogs’ evil counterparts – cats.   I apologize to cat lovers, although just google “evil cats,” and you’ll see what I mean.

We find that dogs are mentioned in today’s Gospel.  Specifically, Jesus says to the Canaanite woman: “It is not right to take the food of the children and throw it to the dogs.”   The woman says in reply, “Please, Lord, for even the dogs eat the scraps.” 

What’s wrong here?  It sounds like Jesus is being cruel to this woman who, by the way, does not take what he says lying down – like a dog at its Master’s feet.  She speaks up; wants her daughter healed; and won’t take “no” for an answer even when Jesus, at first, wouldn’t even talk to her (according to Matthew who likely wrote the narrative to make his Jesus-related point).

Also what’s wrong is the lowly status given dogs.  Consider the June National Geographic issue profiling “Hero dogs: a soldier’s best friend.”  A shepherd called Layka saved lives of U.S. troops in Afghanistan after she was shot and gravely wounded.   Military-trained dogs, especially German shepherds, Labrador retrievers, and the Belgian Malinois, search for explosives and save lives.

Of course, in Jesus’ time, and long before, dogs had a different status.  Consider the Psalm (22:16): “…Indeed, many dogs surround me, a pack of evildoers closes in upon me...”  Then there’s Proverb (26:11): “As the dog returns to his vomit, so the fool repeats his folly.”   Point taken.   Also, there’s   1 Samuel 17:43: “…the Philistine also advanced closer and closer to David.  When he had sized David up, and seen that he was youthful, and ruddy, and handsome in appearance, he held him in contempt.  The Philistine said to David, ‘Am I a dog that you come against me with a staff?'...”

Nowadays, it is right to take the children’s food and throw it to the dogs, especially if their snouts are resting on the children’s laps as they eat their dinners with unwanted and unpleasant food “accidentally” slipping to the dogs waiting in high expectation and alert.   I confess my dog also waits and sometimes receives.

Matthew is telling his audience (now that includes us) that Gentiles also belong at the table of the Lord and not just Jews believing him to be the Messiah.  We all have a seat.

The best explanation of what is meant by this encounter with the Canaanite woman (a non-Jew) can be found in the wonderful 2004 book “Back to the Well: Women’s Encounters with Jesus in the Gospels” by Frances Taylor Gench who concludes that Jesus honors the woman by saying:  “O woman, great is your faith…”  Gench says, “Her great faith stands in pointed contrast to the ‘little faith’ exhibited by Peter in the preceding chapter (14:31) and by the disciples in the following one (16:8).” 

“The woman’s faith foreshadows the response of the Gentiles to the Gospel, a faith that overcomes barriers which the risen Jesus explicitly removes after his death and resurrection, when he commissions his disciples to ‘Go therefore and make disciples of all nations’ in Matthew’s closing scene (28:16-20).”  By going forth with that charge, they healed as in Jesus’ removal of the demon that tormented her daughter.

We all have demons that torment us.  Jesus was sent to us to heal us by removing those demons.  Perhaps all we have to do is believe, keep calling after him, and then cry out, “Have pity on me, Lord, son of  David!  Please, Lord, for even the dogs eat scraps.  We’re here at your table waiting to be fed and healed.  Woof!”

Deacon David Pierce