Maymay sa Magbalantay

“In today’s Gospel, we encounter a very moving and surprising story.

A foreign woman — a Syrophoenician — approaches Jesus. She is not Jewish. She does not belong to the chosen people. And yet she comes boldly, desperately, humbly.

Her daughter is possessed by an unclean spirit. She is a mother in pain. And she kneels before Jesus.

At first, Jesus’ response shocks us.

He says, “Let the children be fed first. It is not right to take the food of the children and throw it to the dogs.”

It sounds harsh.

But what follows reveals something profound. The woman answers: “Lord, even the dogs under the table eat the children’s scraps.”

And Jesus is moved.

Her daughter is healed.

From this powerful encounter, let me offer three simple points.

1. Faith is bold and persevering.

This woman had every reason to walk away.

She was a foreigner. She was ignored.

She was tested. She was even challenged with words that seemed discouraging. But she did not leave.

Why?

Because love made her courageous.

She was not fighting for herself.

She was fighting for her child.

True faith is like that.

It does not give up after the first silence.

It does not collapse after the first difficulty. It continues to knock.

How many times do we stop praying because we feel God is silent?

How many times do we give up because the answer is delayed?

This Gospel teaches us: Sometimes faith is proven in the waiting.

2. Humility opens the door to grace.

Notice her response.

She does not argue angrily. She does not demand rights. She does not insist. She responds with humility — and even creativity. “Even the dogs under the table eat the scraps.”

There is no pride in her. Only trust.

And humility moves the heart of God.

Grace flows more easily into humble hearts than into proud ones.

When we come to God thinking we deserve something, we close ourselves.

When we come to God knowing we need everything, we open ourselves.

This woman teaches us that humility is not weakness. It is a strength rooted in trust.

3. God’s mercy is wider than we imagine.

This story is also about expansion.

Jesus begins by speaking of “the children” — Israel. But He ends by granting healing to a Gentile.

This is a sign that God’s mercy is not limited by race, culture, or background.

No one is outside the reach of grace.

Sometimes we limit God.

We think:

“This person will never change.”

“That family is too broken.”

“That situation is hopeless.”

But this Gospel reminds us: God’s mercy crosses boundaries.

The daughter was healed from a distance — without drama, without spectacle.

Because when faith meets mercy, miracles happen quietly.

——

My dear brothers and sisters, today we are invited to be like this woman: Be bold in prayer. Be humble in heart.

Trust in the wideness of God’s mercy.

When you feel unworthy — kneel anyway.

When you feel unheard — pray anyway.

When you feel delayed — trust anyway.

Because even a crumb of God’s grace is enough to heal what we love most.”