I am NOT the Canaanite Woman (Blogging the Lectionary)

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I wasn’t going to blog the lectionary this week. I declared to my husband last night that it was too hard and I couldn’t find a handle on it. We talked about the events in Ferguson and the first line came. The story is found in this week's gospel, Matthew: 15:21-28.

I am NOT the Canaanite woman
although I roar
with approbation
when she made Jesus see
her humanity.

I am NOT the Canaanite woman
with my skin
the color of privilege.
I do not comprehend 
the depth of her pain.
In the face of it,
I do not know what I can do.

I am NOT the Canaanite woman
who broke centuries
of animosity between two nations
between two genders
between two faiths
who broke ALL the rules
to save her daughter.

I am NOT the Canaanite woman
but I am Jesus (in this story),
and I am sorry I ignored you
and I am sorry your pain
wasn’t as important as mine
and I want you to know
I am with you now,
ask and you shall receive.
You are not alone.


Comments

  1. SarahAugust 18, 2014 at 11:16 AM

    I'm not the black man shot because he looked at a cop in a "threatening" manner.

    I'm not the Latina woman stopped on the street and suspected of being an "illegal," even though she was born in Arizona.

    Unfortunately I am the one who still struggles with racism, who feels automatic fear around black men at night, who benefits from racial discrimination.

    Great post. This was a beautiful way of handling a troubling passage.

    ReplyDelete

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