{"id":922,"date":"2019-11-13T09:00:48","date_gmt":"2019-11-13T14:00:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nancylucenay.com\/staging\/8869\/?p=922"},"modified":"2025-07-14T18:04:50","modified_gmt":"2025-07-14T22:04:50","slug":"canaanite-woman-facing-barriers-or-bridges","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nancylucenay.com\/staging\/8869\/canaanite-woman-facing-barriers-or-bridges\/","title":{"rendered":"Canaanite Woman ~ Facing Barriers or Bridges?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Laura slipped into the crowded church foyer and found an empty seat. Finally! Hoping to overcome the barriers to find God<\/em>. \u201cCan you tell me how to be a Christian?\u201d she whispered to the woman next to her. Like the Canaanite woman, Laura was searching for God.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After hearing about Noah in her undergrad English class, Laura wanted to know more about God. When she returned to her mainland Chinese hometown, she rushed to a church to buy a Bible. But they refused, saying she wouldn\u2019t understand it. Then the next church said the same. Eventually, her uncle agreed to buy one in Hong Kong. However, when she read it, the words made no sense. The barriers to finding God seemed insurmountable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As Laura and I talked, she described her search for God and the barriers she\u2019d faced. \u201cI read the Bible but don\u2019t understand it. I feel as if I\u2019m standing outside the door and think I could understand more if I came inside.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Laura isn\u2019t the only person who\u2019s had to overcome barriers to find God. The Canaanite woman in Matthew 15<\/a> faced the same challenge.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Boundaries and Barriers<\/strong> Facing the Canaanite Woman<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

In first-century Judaism, purity codes<\/a> defined the boundaries of who and what was clean or unclean. The Pharisees believed God\u2019s blessings were only for those who were clean, those who kept the law and the traditions of the elders (i.e., those who were like them). When Jesus and his disciples ignored the handwashing tradition, the Pharisees accused them of being unclean. Their concern? Ritual purity, not cleanliness. But, Jesus said, defilement comes from the heart, not the hands. His next interaction with the Canaanite woman was, for his disciples, an extension of the clean\/unclean discussion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When Jesus and his followers withdrew to a Gentile\/unclean area, a woman begged Jesus to cleanse her daughter. To the disciples, the woman was unclean and unwelcome. The barriers of race, religion, and gender were impregnable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cLord, Son of David,\u201d she called, indicating she, an unclean woman, recognized Jesus as Messiah even though the Pharisees didn\u2019t. The disciples urged Jesus to send her away. Instead, after a confusing conversation (at least to us), he healed her daughter. Did Jesus think his mission was only to Jews? Did the woman enlarge his understanding? Was he rude to her or testing her? Or did they engage in a typical first-century honor competition through challenge and response<\/a>?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Building Bridges through Challenge and Response<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Jesus was neither confused nor rude. By redefining clean\/unclean, he removed barriers in his disciples\u2019 definition of who could be clean. Familiarity with the steps of challenge and response can increase our understanding.<\/p>\n\n\n\n