Exorcism Of The Syrophoenician Woman's Daughter

The exorcism of the Syrophoenician woman's daughter is one of the miracles of Jesus and is recounted in the Gospel of Mark in chapter 7 (Mark 7:24–30) and in the Gospel of Matthew in chapter 15 (Matthew 15:21–28). In Matthew, the story is recounted as the healing of a Canaanite woman's daughter.''Jesus the miracle worker: a historical & theological study'' by Graham H. Twelftree 1999 pp. 133–134 According to both accounts, Jesus exorcised the woman's daughter whilst travelling in the region of Tyre and Sidon, on account of the faith shown by the woman.

The third-century pseudo-Clementine homily refers to her name as ''Justa'' and her daughter's name as ''Berenice''. Also at 3.73 and 4.1.

In art, one or more dogs (otherwise unusual in New Testament scenes) are very often shown; ''Tobias and the Angel'' is the only other biblical subject in art to typically include a dog. More rarely the stricken daughter is seen.

Passage

The relevant passage in Matthew 15:22–28 reads as follows:

Many English translations of the Gospels state that Jesus was in the region of Tyre and Sidon and had from Galilee where he had entered in discussion with the Pharisees over their interpretation of the Jewish law. The Geneva Bible and the King James Version suggest that the visit was to the coast (i.e. the Mediterranean Sea), but the Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges argues that Jesus went to "the neighbourhood, rdistrict, not the sea-shore, as might be thought".

This episode is, according to Graham H. Twelftree, an example of how Jesus emphasizes the value of faith, as also shown in the Healing the Centurion's servant episode.

Syrophoenician woman

The woman described in the miracle, the Syrophoenician woman (Mark 7:26; , ) is also called a "Canaanite" (Matthew 15:22; , ) and is an unidentified New Testament woman from the region of Tyre and Sidon. "The woman is ..described as Syrophoenician by race. It is unclear whether Mark seeks to distinguish between a Phoenician from Syria and one from North Africa or between someone living in the coastal area of Syria and someone living in the central part."

The Gospel of Mark describes the woman as "gentile" or "Greek", while the Gospel of Matthew identifies her as a "Canaanite". "Canaanite" could be interpreted as a deliberate rhetorical device because they did not literally exist as a recognizable ethnicity in 1st century CE Palestine. In Jewish literature, Canaanites were synonymous with "the opponent" and "idolatry", even if the person was of Israelite descent.

Commentary

Thomas Aquinas comments on this passage in his homily on the sinful soul, saying,

Charles Ellicott contrasts this miracle with the miraculous healing of the centurion's servant in . According to Ellicott, whilst both miracles showed Jesus's willingness to help gentiles, Jesus had a more favorable view of the centurion. Compared to the Syrophoenician woman, the centurion behaved like the proselyte of the gate, due to his contributions in building a synagogue and moral conduct, which was commended by Jewish elders. Meanwhile, the Syrophoenician woman made no attempt to show she was a true convert. Ellicott also links Jesus's hostility to the curse of Canaan in since Syrophoenicians descended from Canaan. Nonetheless, shows Jesus's receptivity to Syrians, including those that did not openly profress their faith. According to Chrysostom, the Syrians demonstrated their strong faith by directly bringing their sick to him.

Mookgo S. Kgatle describes the Syrophoenician woman as a social activist against traditional Jewish views about gender, purity and ethnicity. However, she accepts the reality of her outsider status when it came to membership in God's chosen people. Kgatle notes that ancient Jewish culture used 'dog' to describe enemies of Israel, regardless of background, and also, generic contempt, unworthiness, religious profanity or alternatively, humility. He also says that the author of the Gospel of Matthew deliberately changed the woman's ethnicity from Syrophoenician to Canaanite to show that she was "unclean and pagan" and the presence of an "Israel-centered conflict" between her and Judeans.

Gallery

File:Willem van Oordt - Een Kanaänitische vrouw smeekt Jezus haar dochter te genezen (Matteüs 15-21-28), Marcus 7-24-30) - StCC s12 - Museum Catharijneconvent.jpg, ''A Canaanite woman begs Jesus to heal her daughter'', Willem van Oordt, 1645–1650
File:Pittore emiliano, prospettiva con cristo e la cananea, 1750-1790 ca.jpg, ''Perspective with Christ and the Canaanite woman'', Emilian, Ravenna Art Museum
File:Ilyas Basim Khuri Bazzi Rahib - Jesus and the Canaanite Woman - Walters W59243A - Full Page.jpg, ''Jesus and the Canaanite Woman'' by Ilyas Basim Khuri Bazzi Rahib, 1684
File:Bayonne Cathédrale Vitrail de la Cananéenne 033.jpg, Stained glass from Bayonne Cathedral, France
File:Romanité Moyen-âge 47.jpg, 4th-century sarcophagus, Nimes museum

See also

* Life of Jesus in the New Testament
* Ministry of Jesus
* Miracles of Jesus
* Parables of Jesus
* Perfection of Christ
* 1st century in Lebanon
* Asian feminist theology

References

Further reading

* Burkill, T. A
"The Historical Development of the Story of the Syrophoenician Woman (Mark vii: 24–31)."
Novum Testamentum 9 (1967): 161–177.
* Downing, F. Gerald. "The Woman from Syrophoenicia, and her Doggedness: Mark 7:24–31 (Matthew 15:21–28)." Women in the Biblical Tradition. Ed. George J. Brooke. Lewiston: The Edwin Mellen Press, 1992. 129–149.
* Schäfler, Markus, "The Syrophoenician Woman (Mk 7:24–31)"
* Alt, C.
The Dynamic of Humility and Wisdom: The Syrophoenician Woman and Jesus in Mark 7:24–31a
Lumen et Vita, Vol. 2, 2012
* Alonso, P. 2011
''The woman who changed Jesus. Crossing Boundaries in Mk 7:24–30''. Biblical tools and studies, 11
. Peeters Publishers.

External links

{{New Testament people

Exorcisms of Jesus
Women in the New Testament
Gospel of Matthew
Gospel of Mark
Tyre, Lebanon
History of Sidon
Phoenicians in the New Testament
Christianity and race
Christian feminism
Christianity and women
Dogs in art