Jews will
not replace us!
A chant in the darkness from
torch-bearing militant marchers.
Just down the road in
Charlottesville.
An alternating chant with,
You will not replace us!
Both chants expressing white
supremacist hate and fear.
Fear that Jews and other
groups will replace them.
Surpass them in America's
power/privilege rankings.
A privilege they feel
entitled to, simply because of their whiteness.
And it's not just a matter
of skin color, it's Northern European origins.
These folks would face a
rude shock if they took a DNA ancestry test.
For many of them, their
arbitrary whiteness is crucially important.
They seem to see it as the
only plus they have going for themselves.
They’re possessed by a
force that counters their virtue,
Their character, even
their intelligence.
So, they try to draw
everyone into their us versus them struggle.
A divisiveness that has
plagued mankind from its beginning.
When it comes to us versus them and Jews will not replace us,
They should take a look at
today's Scripture passages.
(Many of them consider
themselves to be Bible-guided Christians.)
Jesus is, of course, a
Jew.
As were Abraham and Moses,
Mary and Joseph, John the Baptist,
All of the apostles, and many
of the early saints of the Church.
And today we hear Jesus
say that he came
Only to save the lost
sheep of the house of Israel.
It was only the
persistence of that non-Jewish Canaanite woman
That led him to reach
beyond his calling to the Jews.
His ultimate mission may
have been to all of mankind.
But in his plan or his
understanding, at least at that instant,
He was here only to save
the Jews.
That woman is one of my
favorite Gospel characters.
She's not only persistent,
but bold and clever.
Who among us would stand
up to Jesus if he gave us a firm No.
Keep after him if he hit
us with a stinging rebuke.
Calling the Jews his
children, and us the dogs.
That was an us and them situation where we were the
clear losers.
But the spunky Canaanite
woman hung in there.
Throwing Jesus's analogy
right back at him.
Cleverly, and humbly,
pointing out that even the dogs get some scraps.
And she moved Jesus so
much that he made an exception.
Moved him to change the
plan, or at least the plan's timing.
Somewhat like when Mary
moved him at the wedding feast in Cana.
When she asked him to do
something about the wine.
And he at first refused,
saying his time had not yet come.
But he listened, and he relented
at her repeated request.
So, it was we Gentiles who
cut in on the privilege held by the Jews.
A privilege far more precious
than any other.
Our readings from Isaiah,
Psalms, Romans and Matthew all confirm,
God first favored the
Jews, but then opened his kingdom to all of us.
Jews might have been moved
to chant, You will not replace us!
And we didn't.
But Jesus listened to us
and took us in—along with the Jews.
Gave us a place among his
children.
Welcomed us to follow the
God of Israel.
When asked to grant mercy,
Jesus would not refuse.
Even when it didn’t quite
fit the scripted plan.
There are many lessons in
today’s Scripture passages.
Two are: God listens, and
Mercy triumphs.
Jesus told us many times
that we should be persistent in prayer.
Today he shows us that he
responds to our persistence.
God listens and responds
to us.
He may not give us exactly
what we ask for.
But he’ll give us what he,
in his infinite wisdom, knows we need.
And he’ll shower us with his
love and mercy.
When we see incidents like
Charlottesville
We see that we have a lot
of work to do.
We’ve seen that Jesus
doesn't withhold mercy when we ask for it.
We shouldn't withhold it
from others.
We’ve seen that God takes
us in when we ask.
We shouldn't exclude
others.
As with the Canaanite
woman’s daughter,
There are still demons
within our brothers and sisters, and within us.
Demons that need to be
driven out.
If we persist in our
prayers and our voices and our example,
God will listen and take
notice.
And, in his mercy, he’ll respond and drive them
out.
20th Sunday of Ordinary Time
Mt 15:21-28 Read this Scripture @usccb.org
