My dear brothers and sisters in Our Lord Jesus Christ. The readings this Sunday offer us the opportunity to reflect on the Providence of God:
God delivered all to disobedience,
that he might have mercy upon all.
Reflecting on this verse from St. Paul’s letter to the Romans, we realise that nothing moves without the will of God, and all that happens to us takes place only because it is permitted by God. In the face of the evil that is all around us, one might well think that this is a perverse God who allows evil to us so that He can show us how wonderful, and merciful He is. But if we realise that God is love, and is goodness, then it becomes clear that God cannot wish evil on us. God did not wish for evil, and the evil that afflicts us is the result of our sins, particularly that flowing from the original sin of our first parents, Adam and Eve. The Father, in His providence, sent His only Son to save us from this sin and the grip of the devil. He permits evil in this world, only to draw us away from the devil, so that we may return to His embrace.
In His providence, He offered to the human race that had sinned against Him, the opportunity to reconcile ourselves with Him once again, through the sacrament of baptism; a sacrament which is, as both the first and second readings make so clear to us, was made available not just to the Jews, but to all the peoples of the world. As we hear through the Prophet Isaiah:
my house shall be called
a house of prayer for all peoples.
One of the rites associated with the sacrament of baptism is the rite of exorcism. Before our baptism, which claims us for Christ, we belong to and are susceptible to the devil. Baptism claims us for Christ, and cleanses us from the stain of original sin. Like the Canaanite woman, our parents too come to the Church and ask of Our Lord: “Have pity on us, Lord, Son of David, our child is tormented by a demon.”
As we dive deeper into the Gospel episode, we appreciate the nature of divine providence more, and what ought to be our own response.
“It is not right to take the children's bread and throw it to the dogs”
These are the harsh words of Our Lord to the Canaanite woman that should give us pause. By virtue of our baptism, we are entitled to call ourselves, the children of God. However, we must still bear in mind that the Bread of these children may not be thrown to the dogs. In other words, we must be like lambs when we commune, not like dogs. No person who is not in a state of grace may approach the Eucharist! Those who commune without properly preparing ourselves are doing something akin to taking the Holy Bread and feeding it to dogs.
And yet; how many of us go to communion as if it were simply a reward for showing up for Mass? How many have the garment of their soul stained by months, if not years, of not going to confession, and still rock up to receive communion?
The response of the Canaanite woman to Our Lord offers us an appreciation of the depth of Divine Providence.
Please, Lord, for even the dogs eat
the scraps
that fall from the table of their masters.
The providence of God is such that He has reserved different things for different people. All shall be fed at the table of the Lord, not necessarily equally, but according to their needs, and their place in the economy of grace! The Bread from the table of the Lord is reserved only for children – i.e. those who have humbled themselves before God, have confessed their sins, as does an errant child who seeks to return into the graces of their father.
The rest of us, those unable to communicate, do not go away hungry from the table of the Lord. There are other graces reserved for those who cannot yet approach the Eucharist, graces necessary that they may eventually approach with dignity.
Pope St. John Paul II recommended for those unable to commune physically, the practice of spiritual communion, which can be articulated through this prayer:
My Jesus, I believe that You are present in the Most Holy Sacrament.
I love You above all things, and I desire to receive You into my soul.
Since I cannot at this moment receive You sacramentally, come at least spiritually into my heart.
I embrace You as if You were already there and unite myself wholly to You.
Never permit me to be separated from You
The Gospel today teaches us that the Canaanite woman was rewarded for her faith, but it is also true that she was rewarded for her sense of place. She did not presume a right to equality – a great evil of our times – but waited for Divine Providence to determine how she might benefit.
Contemplating Divine Providence, manifest first in the sacraments that reconcile us to God, we realise our own poverty, and recall the words of the poet Christina Rossetti, from her poem In the Bleak Midwinter:
What can I give Him,
Poor as I am? —
If I were a Shepherd
I would bring a lamb;
If I were a Wise Man
I would do my part, —
Yet what I can I give Him, —
Give my heart.
May Our Lord grant us the grace to trust in Divine Providence and give Him our hearts.
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit; Amen.
(A version of this homily was first preached to the faithful at the anticipatory Sunday mass in the parish church of Our Lady of the Rosary, Caranzalem on 15 August 2026.)
(Image reference: The Seven Sacraments, Antonie Wierix the Younger, 16th Century, Rijksmuseum)
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