“I do believe, help my lack of trust!”

Homily for the Twentieth Sunday in Ordinary Time

August 16, 2020

Let me begin by saying that today’s gospel passage is disconcerting, and difficult to read, because it goes against the usual image we have of Jesus. Jesus goes to the region of Tyre and Sidon, located in modern-day Lebanon. So, he is in pagan, or non-Jewish, territory. And a Canaanite (foreign) woman approaches him, asking that he cure her daughter who is quite ill. We are told that Jesus ignores the woman, not even saying one word to her. The disciples ask Jesus to send the woman away because she is bothering them. Jesus then argues that he was sent to the “lost sheep of Israel”. As the woman perseveres, Jesus refers to her in derogatory fashion: “It is not right to take the food of the children and throw it to the dogs.” Imagine! The all-merciful, normally compassionate Lord calling this woman a dog! It just doesn’t fit our usual perceptions. In the end, the woman perseveres and gets her wish. So, what’s going on here?

Scholars have generally taken one of two approaches. First, some argue that, as a human being, Jesus would naturally grow into his ministry. He often spent long nights in prayer, trying to discern his Father’s will, and at the beginning of it all, he fasted and prayed for forty days in the desert. Thus, his awareness that his ministry was universal, including all people, is something that he grew into. Second, other scholars contend that Jesus is actually testing the faith of the woman, or taking her initial faith and helping her to move deeper. In the end, he marvels, as he does after many of his miracles, “O woman, great is your faith! Let it be done for you as you wish.”

I would like to take a look at this passage in terms of the need for perseverance, inasmuch as the woman persevered until her wish was granted. Let’s consider the story of how perseverance paid off in the case of two individuals we know quite well. Thomas Edison tried two thousand different materials in search of a filament for the light bulb. When none worked satisfactorily, his assistant complained, “All our work is in vain. We have learned nothing.” Edison replied very confidently, “Oh, we have come a long way and we have learned a lot. We know that there are two thousand elements which we cannot use to make a good light bulb.” Thomas Edison persevered and the rest is history.

Or consider the case of an aspiring free-lance artist, who tried to sell his sketches to a number of newspapers. They all turned him down. One Kansas City editor told him that he had no talent. But the young man had faith in his ability and he kept going, trying to sell his work. Finally, he got a job making drawings for church publicity material. He rented a mouse-infested garage to turn out the sketches, and he continued to produce other drawings in the hope that someone would buy them. One of the mice in the garage must have inspired him, for he created a character called Mickey Mouse. And Walt Disney was on his way.

Jesus taught that we must persist in prayer. For example, in the parable about the corrupt judge, he speaks of a woman who kept pestering the judge to get her rights, even though the judge “respected neither God nor man” (see Luke 18:1-8). In the end the corrupt judge, fearing that the woman will do him violence, settles in her favor. Jesus asks, “Will not God then do justice to his chosen who call out to him day and night? Will he delay long over them, do you suppose? I tell you, he will give them swift justice.”

In another parable on prayer (Luke 11:5-8) Jesus presents the case of someone who goes to a friend in the middle of the night to ask for three loaves of bread because he has unexpected company. The sleepy friend tries to get rid of his caller because it is the middle of the night and his family is in bed. Jesus concludes, “I tell you, even though he does not get up and take care of the man because of his friendship, he will do so because of his persistence, and give him as much as he needs.” Our Lord then concludes, “So, I say to you, ask and you shall receive; seek and you shall find; knock and it shall be opened to you.”

Beyond perseverance, there is another aspect of today’s gospel I want to take a look at, namely that the Canaanite woman argues with Jesus. She is a woman on a mission, and she is not going to take no for an answer. When Jesus tells her it is not right to give the food of the children to dogs, she replies, “Please, Lord, for even the dogs eat the scraps that fall from the table of their masters.”

In the gospels, this is not the only case of someone taking Jesus to task. In the account of the death of Lazarus (John 11), Jesus delays in getting there after receiving the message that the one he loves is ill. After Lazarus dies, his sister Martha goes out to meet Jesus, and she accuses him: “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would never have died.” Then she opens the door to new possibilities. “Even now I am sure that God will give you whatever you ask of him.” In other words, if you’ve got the power, use it. Do something.

There are stories similar to this in the Old Testament, including Abraham bartering with God on behalf of the residents of Sodom and Gomorrah (Genesis 18:16-32), and Moses interceding on behalf of the people after they had worshipped the golden calf (Exodus 32:7-14).

I often hear from people who have become angry with God, yelled at God, and have even sworn at God—and then feel guilty about it. Their gut level concern is: Why? How could you have let this happen? They may be referring to the death of a child, the development of a life-threatening illness, the loss of a job, the experience of an injustice. In my own prayer during this time of pandemic, I have yelled at God in my heart, “These are people who are dying, innocent people who happened to be in the wrong place! Why the elderly? Why the weakest people in nursing homes and veterans facilities? Why should these people, the poor, the weak, people of color, pay the price for a paralysis of leadership? Why? Don’t you care?”

My mind goes to the story about Jesus asleep in a boat during a violent storm at sea (Mark 4:35-41). The disciples, in fear for their lives, rouse Jesus and ask, “Teacher, does it not matter to you that we are going to drown?” Jesus, don’t you care what’s happening to us? I can imagine Jesus feeling hurt by the question as he responds, “Of course I care!” And then he speaks to the storm: “Quiet! Be still!” And then, the wind fell off and everything grew calm. And Jesus asks, “Why are you so terrified? Why are you lacking in faith?”

Jesus knows, and understands, that we, his followers, are terrified at times. That, at times of pain, duress and challenge, we find our faith is shaken. And it is perfectly OK to scream of our fright, to wonder about our faith, even to question the goodness of God. As a matter of fact, Jesus knows perfectly how we feel. After all, on the cross he screamed, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Mark 15:34)

In the midst of this pandemic, of economic upheaval, of lost jobs, of racial injustice, of government incompetence, I join Jesus in asking, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken us?” And I continue to pray Psalm 22 from which our Lord’s words on the cross are taken: “O my God, I cry out by day, and you answer not; by night, and there is no relief for me. Yet you are enthroned in the holy place, O glory of Israel! In you our fathers trusted; they trusted, and you delivered them. To you they cried, and they escaped; in you they trusted, and they were not put to shame…” And, on and on, I pray, like the Canaanite woman, like Jesus himself. I pray of my fear, and my trust; of my anger, and my love; of my doubt, and my hope; of crucifixion, and resurrection; of confusion, and certainty… And then my eyes fall on the neighboring psalm, the beloved twenty-third, which offers comfort: “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want….Even though I walk in the dark valley I fear no evil; for you are at my side”…

God, who is compassionate, understands our fears, understands when our heart is aching, understands even when we become furious. Then, somehow, if we stay with it, God can help us to move to a deeper level of reassurance, healing and trust. For help, you may prayerfully read the story of Jesus’ healing of a possessed boy (Mark 9:14-29). When our Lord says to the boy’s father, “Everything is possible to a person who trusts.” The father replies, “I do believe! Help my lack of trust!” Perhaps in a world of pandemic and anxiety, this is an honest and authentic prayer for us all.

You might also like

Father's Homilies

Homily for the First Sunday of Advent November 30, 2025

By Charlene Currie • December 4, 2025
How Far Do You Want to Go?

Homily for the Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe November 23, 2025

By Charlene Currie • November 28, 2025
Prairie Chickens and Eagles Homily for the Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe November 23, 2025 An American Indian tells about a brave who found an eagle’s egg and put it into the nest of a prairie chicken. The eaglet hatched with the brood of chicks and grew up with them. All its life the changeling eagle, thinking it was a prairie chicken, did what the other prairie chickens did. It scratched in the dirt for seeds and insects to eat. It clucked and cackled. And it flew in a brief thrashing of wings and flurry of feathers no more than a few feet off the ground. After all, that’s how prairie chickens were supposed to fly. Years passed, and the changeling grew very old. One day it saw a magnificent bird soaring far above in the cloudless sky. Hanging with graceful majesty on the powerful wind currents, it soared with scarcely a beat of its strong golden wings. “What a beautiful bird!” said the changeling eagle to its neighbor. “What is it?” “That’s an eagle—the chief of the birds,” the neighbor clucked. “But don’t give it a second thought. You could never be like him.” So, the changeling eagle never gave it another thought. And it died thinking it was a prairie chicken. Today, we are celebrating the fact that Jesus Christ is the King of all God’s creation. And yet, it is strange that the gospel passage chosen for this feast is the scene of Jesus’ crucifixion. Notice how weak he is. Consider how he is laughed at and made fun of. “He saved others, let him save himself if he is the chosen one, the Christ of God….If you are the King of the Jews, save yourself.” So, the problem is one of expectations. The bystanders were looking for an eagle, and all they saw before them was a prairie chicken! And yet, at the end of the gospel, this prairie chicken seems to have some power that prairie chickens don’t normally have. When Jesus is asked by the thief being crucified with him, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom,” Jesus replies, “Amen, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise.” Hardly a promise that could be made by a prairie chicken! What’s going on here? I’d like to refer us to a passage we find in the writings of St. Paul, a section of his letter to the Philippians that is the second reading on Palm Sunday, when we reflect on the crucifixion of Jesus. Here it is: “Christ Jesus, though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God something to be grasped. Rather, he emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, coming in human likeness; and found human in appearance, he humbled himself, becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Because of this, God greatly exalted him and bestowed on him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bend, of those in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” Jesus taught the way of humility and service. He came to raise others up, especially those who were bowed down by poverty or prejudice. He taught that there was no greater love than to lay down one’s life for the love of others. Greatness is found not in building oneself up at the expense of others, but in building up others, especially those who need it the most. So, Jesus emptied himself, to the point of looking like a prairie chicken, and in doing so he showed us the way to the eternal kingdom by means of humble service, that we might become who we truly are, eagles destined to soar beyond the clouds.

Homily for the Thirty-Third Sunday in Ordinary Time November 16, 2025

By Charlene Currie • November 28, 2025
Too Stubborn to Quit. Homily for the Thirty-Third Sunday in Ordinary Time November 16, 2025 The California coast was blanketed in fog July 4, 1952. Twenty-one miles to the west, on Catalina Island, Florence Chadwick, a 34-year-old-long-distance-swimmer, waded in to the water and began swimming toward the California coast. She had already conquered the English Channel, swimming in both directions. Now she was determined to be the first woman to swim the Catalina Channel. As the hours ticked off, Chadwick fought bone-chilling cold, dense fog, and sharks. Several times, sharks had to be driven off by rifles. Fatigue never set in, but the icy water numbed her to the point of exhaustion. Straining to make out the shore through her swimmer’s goggles, she could see only a dense fog. She knew she could not go any farther. Although not a quitter, Chadwick shouted to her trainer and her mother in the boat and asked to be taken out of the water. They urged her not to give up, but when she looked toward the California coast, all she could see was thick fog. So after fifteen hours and fifty-five minutes of fighting the elements, she was hauled from the channel into the boat. Frozen to the bone and her spirit defeated, Chadwick was devastated when she discovered she was only a half-mile from the coast! She felt the shock of failure…. Two months later, Chadwick swam that same channel, and again fog clouded her vision, but this time she swam with her faith intact—that somewhere behind that fog was land. This time she succeeded. Not only was she the first woman to swim the Catalina Channel, but she beat the men’s record by two hours. A line from this story that struck me was: “this time she swam with her faith intact.” Florence Chadwick was able to persevere to her goal because she believed she could do it. In today’s gospel passage, Jesus speaks about the challenges and threats that will be faced by the first disciples when they go out into the world and start proclaiming the message. He doesn’t mince words or paint a rosy picture. Tough times of suffering will come. But then he adds, “By your perseverance you will secure your lives.” In reflecting on this teaching, I was reminded of another Bible story. The disciples are in a boat crossing a lake. Jesus had stayed behind to spend some time in prayer. Then, late at night, he comes toward them, walking on the water. The disciples are frightened, thinking they’re seeing a ghost. Jesus tries to reassure them, when Simon Peter yells, “Lord, if it is really you, command that I walk on the water toward you.” Jesus invites him to do so, and Peter steps out of the boat and actually walks on the water toward Jesus. But then, he looks down and notices the threatening situation he is in. And he begins to sink. Jesus has to fish him out of the water and get him back into the boat (Cf. Matthew 14:22-33). What makes the difference? As long as Peter keeps his eyes on Jesus, he can do the seemingly impossible. When he focuses on the threat, he sinks. We find something similar in the writings of St. Paul. In his first letter to the Corinthians, he writes, “You know that while all the runners in the stadium take part in the race, the award goes to one man. In that case, run so as to win! Athletes deny themselves all sorts of things. They do this to win a crown of leaves that withers, but we a crown that is imperishable. I do not run like a man who loses sight of the finish line…” (1 Cor 9:24-26). So, when we have to face difficulties, when we live in hard times, when we feel left out or let down, how are we supposed to keep going? Florence Chadwick failed when she couldn’t see the finish line. When she found faith withing herself again, she was able to go back and reach her goal. Peter was even able to walk on water, but only as long as he kept his eyes on Jesus. And Paul writes that he has been able to keep going, even while facing all sorts of hardships, because he has never lost sight of the goal. When facing challenges, a stubborn faith is required; perseverance is needed. It’s very easy to give up, to call it quits, to feel that there’s no way to face all the problems that pile up. We don’t have to face life’s challenges alone. Jesus is with us. And he asks us to be there for each other. He asks us to persevere, to have faith, to be too stubborn to quit.