Gospel in Art; Jesus saves the daughter of the Canaanite woman

Christ and the Canaanite Woman, by Rembrandt, 1650, © The Getty Museum, Los Angele

Source: Christian Art

Gospel of 20 August 2023
Matthew 15:21-28

Jesus left Gennesaret and withdrew to the region of Tyre and Sidon. Then out came a Canaanite woman from that district and started shouting, 'Sir, Son of David, take pity on me. My daughter is tormented by a devil.' But he answered her not a word. And his disciples went and pleaded with him. 'Give her what she wants,' they said 'because she is shouting after us.'

He said in reply, 'I was sent only to the lost sheep of the House of Israel.' But the woman had come up and was kneeling at his feet. 'Lord,' she said 'help me.' He replied, 'It is not fair to take the children's food and throw it to the house-dogs.' She retorted, 'Ah yes, sir; but even house-dogs can eat the scraps that fall from their master's table.' Then Jesus answered her, 'Woman, you have great faith. Let your wish be granted.' And from that moment her daughter was well again.

Reflection on the Old Master Drawing

Our drawing from circa 1650 by Rembrandt shows us the moment the Canaanite women walks over to Jesus. The beginning of the reading tells us that the woman is pleading with Jesus, who doesn't answer her. The disciples are however listening to her. We see this depicted in our drawing. Jesus walks on, in fact turning his head away from the Canaanite woman, whilst three of the disciples talk to her. Jesus and his disciples are drawn as one group, whilst the woman is walking on her own, slightly separated from the others.

We know from our own experience that people can surprise us. We expect them to behave in a certain way and then, to our amazement, they behave in ways that far exceed our expectations. This is what happens in our Gospel reading. Jesus withdrew to the region of Tyre and Sidon, a predominantly pagan area, and he and his disciples did not expect to find much faith there. So when the 'pagan' Canaanite woman approaches them, they were genuinely surprised.

What is beautiful in this reading is how strongly the Canaanite woman identifies with her troubled daughter. She asks Jesus to take pity on her, even though her request concerns her daughter. Such strong identification of a parent with their child will not come as a surprise to any parent reading today's reflection. Parents would literally do anything for their children to be happy and content.

The gospel reading further teaches us that sometimes the people we are tempted to keep at arm's length may be the very ones who have most to teach us. Unexpected people may teach us the most unexpected things about God!

Maybe today's story simply invites us to leave ourselves open to being surprised by God... through others.

LINKS

Gospel in Art: https://christian.art/
Today's reflection: https://christian.art/daily-gospel-reading/matthew-15-21-28-2023/