Today’s Gospel reminded me of an experience I had when I was a parochial vicar. A lady, quite distressed, came to my office. Her son had just been diagnosed with cancer, and she asked if I could visit him. I told her that I certainly could and then asked how she was doing.
She said she was upset with God because of what was happening to her son. The mother took her time telling me all of her “credentials” and explained that she was a very devout Catholic. She belonged to the Legion of Mary, served as an extraordinary minister of Holy Communion, volunteered at the food pantry, attended Mass every Sunday, and sometimes even during the week. The woman was disappointed because she felt she had done so much for God, and yet this was how God had repaid her.
Struggle
She sincerely struggled to accept her son’s diagnosis because she believed she had done enough to deserve different treatment from the Lord. I tried to console her and invited her to live this situation in faith, waiting for the Lord to act and humbly asking for His help. She seemed perplexed by my invitation. I had the impression that she felt everything she did “for the Lord” was already proof of great faith.
Today’s Gospel reminded me of that encounter because we see a woman facing a similarly painful situation with her daughter. Yet instead of appealing to her own merits, she pleads for God’s help, moved by profound faith and a deep knowledge of His goodness.
A Natural Sense of Faith and True Faith
There is a difference between a natural sense of faith and true faith. In the natural sense, the emphasis falls on us. We try to convince God of how good we are and how much we do for Him so that He will take our side and, in return, do things for us. This was the case with the lady who came to see me.
I do not question that she believed in the goodness of God or that her commitment to the Church and service to others were genuine. However, when she was confronted with the reality of death, she relied more on what she had done for God—and what she expected from Him in return—than on God’s goodness and providential love.
The woman in the Gospel, on the other hand, approaches Jesus, whom she recognizes as the Lord. She cries out, “Have pity on me, Lord, Son of David!” and presents her need. Jesus initially ignores her, and when the apostles urge Him to send her away, He responds that “it is not right to take the food of the children and throw it to the dogs,” indicating that she was not part of the people of Israel.
Trust
At that moment, she appeals to Jesus, not by relying on her credentials or merits—she has none—but by trusting completely in God’s goodness. This is evident when she says, “Even the dogs eat the scraps that fall from their masters’ table.” She knows the heart of the God who sent Jesus to respond to all who suffer. Jesus praises her faith—that deep awareness of God’s goodness and His willingness to help those who trust in Him. Her prayer is answered because she relied on God’s goodness rather than her own.
This reading invites us to ask for that same steadfast faith. I think we can all recognize that we often fall into a merely natural sense of faith. We try to earn merits to please God and convince Him to give us what we ask. We also become discouraged when it seems He does not notice all we do or answer our prayers.
Instead, the Lord invites us to rest in the truth that He desires to give us what we need freely—not because we are good, but because He is good. He wants to form in us the gift of faith: knowing Him so deeply that we can confidently present our needs, even when we have no merits to offer, trusting that He truly hears us.
May the Lord help us all to desire the faith of the woman in today’s Gospel and remain open to His grace.
Peace!
