THE FAITH OF THE CANANITE WOMAN (MT 15,21-28) AND THE MATTHEAN COMMUNITY QUESTION We all are Christians

and we have faith in Jesus Christ as the son of God and saviour of the world. The Syro-Malabar Church is celebrating this year as mission year. In the multi religious context of India, we have a lot of opportunities and struggles for the mission work. The concern of my study is the faith of the Canaanite woman (Mt 15,21-28) and consequently the Gentile mission. So the research work is helpful to foster my vision on the mission of the Church. The method employed in our study of Mt 15,21-28 is historical criticism. The dissertation has three chapters. The first chapter is an attempt to setting the text of my study into a specific frame work. It explains the delimitation of the text, structure and source. Delimitation of the text proves that the passage is a unity in itself. After having considered the structures suggested by some eminent scholars, I decided to follow the structure of David L. Turner. The setting (15,21) The first request/ response (15,22-23a) The second request/ response (15,23b-24) The third request/ response (15,25-26) The fourth request/ response (15,27-28)1 He has rightly observed the importance of dialogue in the development of the story. From the search of source we proceed to the redaction of the text. The study about the redaction of the Markan text gives more explanation about the purpose of the author and the social setting of the community. It is a relevant text in the context of the scholarly dispute on the community of Matthew. It sheds light into the attitude of the Matthean community towards the Gentile mission. The second chapter focuses on the exegetical study of the passage. It is an essential step towards the study of a biblical text. Here we are discussing about the
David L. Turner, Matthew (Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testaments; Grand Rapids, Michigan 2008) 387. (Hereafter D.L. Turner, Matthew)
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literal meaning, theological meaning and figurative meaning of the text. The whole passage is divided into four parts according to the sequence of the dialogue. A deep study about this particular passage (Mt 15,21-28) helped us to know more about the theological concept and social situations of that time. This passage makes clear that not the physical Jewishness but faith in Jesus is the ultimate criteria to have the blessings of God. The Author presents a Jesus who yielded by the faith of the Gentile woman. Therefore, the Gentile mission is also the part of Gods plan and it is not against the historic privilege of the Israel.2 The third chapter is a discussion about the community of Matthew and its social setting. G.N. Stanton, D.C. Sim, and Paul Foster are mainly studied for establishing the Matthean communitys situation. In the framework of their views on the Matthean community, I concentrate on the passage for my study (Mt 15,21-28) and propose my conclusions. The relationship between Gentiles and Jews in the Matthean community is a relevant discussion. According to Sim the Matthean community has an anti-Gentile attitude. The Matthean community always remained as a Jewish sect, which moves in the orbit of Judaism. He did not have positive attitude towards the Gentile mission. Gentile mission is only a part of eschatological horizon. The author strongly opposes the possibility of equality between Jews and Gentiles in the Matthean community. Thus Stanton proposed that the gospel of Matthew was written to a new people. They are a separated community from Judaism. At the same time, Paul Foster argued that the Matthean community is not strictly a Jewish group. It is moving towards the Gentiles. In the light of our study, we can conclude that this particular passage is not an anti Gentile text (Mt 15,21-28). It favours the Gentile mission. Jesus is not presented outwardly in a sympathetic and compassionate way in the first part of the story. His words to the Gentile woman are sharp. The author wants to make the conservatives in the community aware of the Gentile mission. Jesus is portrayed as a rigid Jewish person but he was moved by the faith of the Canaanite woman. If Jesus, son of God changed his attitude towards the Gentiles, then it is the will of God.

Donald Senior, Matthew, 183.

As we go through this passage, we can see some statements which are explicitly favourable to the Jews. It points to a specific theological position of the author for a mixed community which is predominantly Jewish. But we can see a gradual development in the attitude towards the Gentile mission. Because the gospel is written after the resurrection of Jesus Christ and he has given the command to preach the gospel to all nations. We cannot see any incident in the gospels when a faithful person is rejected by Jesus due to ethnicity. So Jesus was not against the Gentiles even when priority is given to Israel. Matthean communitys attitude to the Gentile mission is reflected in this particular passage. It indicates openness towards the Gentile mission. As a conclusion I use this occasion to convey my sincere thanks to My guide Rev. Dr. Abraham Nellickal. His scholarly observations, necessary corrections, personal interest, patience and encouraging words helped me a lot for my dream come true. I place on record my gratitude to all the professors in the Mary Matha Major Seminary especially to Rev. Dr. Babu Panattuparambil, the rector, and to Rev. Dr. Tony Neelankavil the dean of theology. I am thankful to Prof. Joseph Verheyden who gave valuable correction for my work. Finally I am thankful to my dear friends who selflessly helped me to complete this research paper.