MATTHEW 15:22-28

And behold, a Canaanite woman of that district came and called out, "Have pity on me, Lord, Son of David! My daughter is tormented by a demon. "But he did not say a word in answer to her. His disciples came and asked him, "Send her away, for she keeps calling out after us." He said in reply, "I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel." But the woman came and did him homage, saying, "Lord, help me." He said in reply, "It is not right to take the food of the children and throw it to the dogs." She said, "Please, Lord, for even the dogs eat the scraps that fall from the table of their masters. Then Jesus said to her in reply, "O woman, great is your faith!  Let it be done for you as you wish." And her daughter was healed from that hour.  

Gospelthink: I tested the young lady as I test you at times. The answer is to have faith in me. Am I as faithful to the Lord as I should be?

In the movie "Secretariat," Penny Chenery Tweedy had every reason to give up. The inheritance tax on the horse farm was so high that everyone thought she could never pay it. That was reason in itself for her to let it go. She still did not have a complete understanding of the business. She could not get any investors in her plan to gain the money. Her husband and brother were both adamant that she should quit. All she had was a hope that this "unproven" horse could be a winner. Even on the day of the Kentucky Derby itself, long after it was too late, she did not know whether Secretariat could race because of an abscess in the animal's mouth. But she never gave up. She was convinced that her horse would understand her conviction. As she looked her horse in the eye before the possibility of a Triple Crown, she could say in all honesty: "I've already won; I made it here; I didn't quit. I ran my race; now you run yours." The people who knew her understood how true her statement was. Her husband, one who had probably disagreed with her more than anyone, told her: "You've taught our children what a real woman is, what it is to believe in yourself, and you've taught me something too."   

The Canaanite woman described in Matthew's Gospel had every reason to give up on having this man Jesus help her. First of all, he did not say a word to her at first; secondly, his disciples tried to chase her away; thirdly, when he did speak, he told her that he was not there to help anyone not connected with the Jewish nation; and lastly, he directly insulted her, saying in effect that she was just a dog. But she never gave up. She was convinced that Jesus would help her. She believed in herself and her reason for approaching Jesus. Jesus who was probably merely testing her belief finally rewarded her faith in him and her faith in herself.

There are many concerns that are necessary in order to accomplish goals in our lives, but one of them perhaps is more important than others. We must believe in ourselves and in our cause. Of course, there will always be other considerations. We have to be careful that we do not carelessly risk our well-being, we have to study whether what we accomplish is even possible, and we have to worry whether other people, or animals in the case of the movie, could be hurt. But once we have studied the situation, we have to be convinced ourselves. We simply know it is possible, and if it does not happen, it is what God wanted and we can do nothing about that. All we know is that we are convinced that we can pull it off. And so, we set about to do it.

One of the important effects of such a personal conviction is the influence it has on others. A positive outlook in what happens in our own lives spreads to everyone around us, leading others to accomplish wonderful goals in their own endeavors. The movie brings up the interesting question of whether a horse can understand the conviction of an owner who loves the animal. We obviously do not know the answer, but the statement of winning an important race by 31 lengths says something about how the conviction of one person can influence even an animal.

Jesus points out the importance of faith in him. Such is the goal of every Christian in the world. That is, we must have the faith to completely trust the leadership of this God-man in everything that we do. But this part of Matthew's Gospel makes it also clear that we must have faith in ourselves. There will be circumstances that test our character, but if we believe in who we are and what we can do, we will accomplish our goals. At times we may have to alter our expectations, but our basic conviction will be present: if we believe in what Jesus taught and believe in ourselves, a good life will result.

PRAYER

Good and gracious God, at times your Son tested the people he was with on earth, leading them to see the importance of faith, especially faith in you. But at the same time, Jesus taught us to have faith in ourselves. Give us the grace to understand what we can accomplish when we have such a belief. Be with us, we pray. 

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GUIDE FOR CLASSROOM PRESENTATION AND PERSONAL ENRICHMENT

Theme: In order to accomplish our goals, we must believe in ourselves.
 
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
(session: approximately 58 minutes)
1. What scene during this session of the movie is most striking? Why?
2. The woman in the Gospel passage was a non-Jew. As Jesus points out, his mission was primarily to the Jewish people. Do Christians now show any prejudice toward our Jewish brothers and sisters? Explain your reasoning.
3. It is often surprising  that Jesus used such a sharp sayings ("throw to the dogs") in his dialogue with people. In your opinion, what was Jesus trying to accomplish with the Canaanite woman in this passage?
4. The Gospel does not say what happened to the woman in later life. Judging from her interaction with Jesus in this passage, what do you think her future would be like?
5. Jesus was testing the Canaanite woman. Using the idea of "testing," how does God "test" us in our lives today?
6. Besides personal conviction, what are some other characteristics necessary to accomplish our goals?
7. Sometimes we do not accomplish the goals that we have. The meditation addresses these situations as the will of God. What is your understanding of the "will of God" (See Catechism of the Catholic Church, second edition, n. 2822)?
8. Do you agree that a positive attitude toward something can influence others? Yes or no and why?
9. Do you believe that animals can "understand" what we want? Yes or no and why?
10. If it is true that the Christian's primary purpose is to have faith in Jesus, do you believe that most Christians have such a belief?
11. In your opinion, do most people "believe in themselves"? Yes or no and why?  
12. Dialogue analysis: Penny tells Seth and Miss Ham that she is not giving up. When should a person give up?
13. Scene analysis: Lucien gives a compliment to Miss Ham. Do you believe that people compliment each other enough in our world? Yes or no and why?
14. Scene analysis: Penny calls her daughter even though she is involved in her own activities, showing her interest in her daughter's life. Do parents in general show such interest in their sons and daughters? Yes or no and why?
15. Dialogue analysis: Phipps to Penny: "One loss can happen; two is non-performance." Why is this a good rule for life?
16. Scene analysis: Penny apologizes to the people she has blamed for Secretariat's failure at the Wood Memorial. In general, do you believe that people in charge admit mistakes? Yes or no and why?
17. Scene analysis: the movie makes it seem like Secretariat "eyes" Sham and vice-versa. Do you think animals can interact with each other on some type of "thinking" level? Yes or no and why?
18. Scene analysis: when Secretariat began racing in the Belmont Stakes, he immediately surged into the lead, the opposite of the way he ran the other races. Considering people, why is it good to change things around at times?
19. Scene analysis: Sham's jockey salutes Ronnie, Secretariat's jockey. Why is sportsmanship important in sports?
20. What does the movie "Secretariat" teach young people?  

©2007 Capuchin Province of Mid-America
Fr. Mike Scully is a member of the Capuchin Province of Mid-America