She begged him to drive the demon out of her daughter. (Mk. 7:24-30)

We continue our journey through Mark’s chapter. Here, Jesus questions the Jewish understanding of clean and unclean, categories applied to Gentiles. Jews would have referred to them as dogs, a verse that has resulted in much debate on Jesus’ use of the word when speaking to the Syrophoenician woman. Some have pointed out that the Greek word is a diminutive and can mean endearment or contempt. Jesus knows he had been sent first to the lost house of Israel, so what is going on? While scholars debate, we know this: the woman did not object to the name but persistently begged Jesus for the sake of her daughter. The crumbs would be enough to heal her daughter. The woman becomes an example of trust and determination.