Homily for the Week of August 17, 2008

TWENTIETH SUNDAY 2008
Is 56:1,6-7; Rom. 11:13-15, 29-32; Mt 15:21-28

Can you picture Jesus as a member of the Cadyville or Saranac Fire Departments carrying around his beeper? That is exactly what Jesus did. Like fire fighters, He was often interrupted by those who would call on him for help. And it so happens that today it is a non-Jewish woman, a foreigner, who sets off his beeper. Usually we see Jesus responding quickly and with great compassion. But today Jesus turns His back on her. She was not a Jew. His close friends try to discourage him from answering the rescue call. They all seemed to know her: she's noisy. She's bothersome and a distraction. And she is not one of them, She is not even a follower of Jesus. Forget her, and let's move on, they tell Jesus.

And it seems that at first Jesus is quite disturbed at her. Jesus was not thinking for himself but reflecting the disagreement among the Jews at that time. If you listened closely to the words of Jesus which I just read you must have been thinking: THIS IS NOT THE JESUS THAT I HAVE KNOWN. Jesus sounds harsh. Jesus at first refuses the request on the grounds that he came for Jews only.

But then she insists that her 911 call is not for herself but for her sick daughter. The woman can't tell Jesus much about her condition but the mother knows the daughter is hurting. Jesus at first treated her forcefully, primarily because as a Canaanite she was from a group of people who hated the Jews and Jesus. The Canaanites would make jokes about Jews and Jewish rabbis such as Jesus. They would often call the Jews dogs.

But then Jesus listens to her. She says to Jesus: PLEASE,LORD, FOR EVEN THE DOGS EAT THE SCRAPES THAT FALL FROM THE TABLE. OF THEIR MASTERS. And Jesus answers her: O WOMAN, GREAT IS YOUR FAITH. LET IT BE DONE TO YOU AS YOU WISH. By these words this woman showed she believed, and that her faith did not depend on where she lived or her ancestors or even her religion. All people belong to God, she believed. The shrewd and humble woman convinces Jesus to cure her child. Her faith convinces Jesus to pay attention and to heal her daughter.

This woman lived centuries ago. But we do have today in our Catholic church and in our country people who exclude others. Each of us at times have judged others, often using opposites such as: good/bad; rich/poor; young/old; married/not married; Catholic/Protestant; thin/fat; war/peace; tall/short; black/white; hot/cold; up/down; wide/narrow; yes/no.
In one way or other each of us here today have also made decisions as who is in or who is out within our friends, and sometimes, even in our families or classmates. More personally each of us has our own boundaries and we have constructed our own walls between us and those we include or those we exclude.

This causes us separation in our church and among our community. The good news of our Bible readings today is that God has created all of us equal, and he has given each of us the same heavenly destiny. God has eliminated all divisions. Because all people belong to God. We are invited today to pray for all persons; to include all in the church.

One of the most historic sites in the United States is Ellis Island in the New York Harbor, the federal immigration station in the New York harbor opened in 1892. Over forty percent of American citizens today can trace their family’s entrance into this country through Ellis Island. Among the first arrivers in 1892 were Fred Astaire, Irving Berlin, and Rudyard Kipling. This is very true of St. James Parish. A look at the older monuments in our cemetery tell us the story of our ancestors. For St. James Parish, it was not Ellis Island but it was Montreal 160 years ago where the starving Irish Catholic families arrived by boat from Ireland at the invitation of the Oblate priests of Canada and St. John's Church of Plattsburgh. They came to this beautiful Saranac River Valley and the Hardscrabble Road. And within a few years, with their own hands and skill cut the logs and stones and built this church. This church was built on the backs of those outsiders having become insiders.

We are thankful for the persistence of the Canaanite woman because when Jesus responded to her 911 call, he put in our front yard a flag with all the colors of the human spectrum in it. Catholic is spelled with a small “c” as well as a large one
Today's gospel poses some questions for us. Are our priorities the right ones? Do we restrict our love, our time, our compassion to those whom we like or who are like us? Are we striving to be like God, who shows mercy to people of all races and all backgrounds? Does our charity merely begin at home, or does it end there too?

Another set of questions is equally important: Are we ready to alter or set aside our priorities to help those who need us? Are we willing to give time and energy to those in particular need, or do we ignore their need because we feel we are already "doing our bit," or because we are afraid of departing from the safety of what we call normal?

These are not easy questions -- even Jesus hesitated before responding to the Canaanite woman who begged him for help. We need time to pray and reflect on our lives, to remind ourselves that our first priority in life is to love God and to love our neighbor as ourselves.