Matthew 15: (10-20), 21-28

First, gross. He's talking about the unclean, so we really get a dose of what that means. “Unclean” is not just about going to the bathroom. The purity laws go way back and define the culture. They are being heavily questioned in the time of this parable and the point is made pretty clearly here. I don't care for what he says about what comes out of the heart, but I'm with him that what comes out of your mouth when you speak is more important than what you put into it when you eat.

Then we switch to a very troubling parable. A reminder here that this was written to a Jewish audience. It comes long before the gospel of John. The Canaanite woman evokes the title “Son of David” as a reminder that Jesus is a Jew, a descendant of the nation of Israel when it was a great nation (according to their legends). And “Canaanite” is not just minor racial slur here either. They are far more removed from Judaism than “Samaritan”. She is descended from the worshipers of Baal. There were brutal fights between these two sets of ancestors, and here they are in a chance meeting, with Jesus in the position of power, able to cure her child or not. (I'm not going to bother with the truth of the miracle, or lack of understanding of germ theory in this case.)

The disciples are ready to dismiss this woman, and Jesus makes that troubling statement that “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel”. A verse that is lifted out of context to the joy of anti-Christians who want to claim Jesus was not the inclusive loving guy they say he was, and to the joy of fundamentalist who want to maintain their tribe. Then we get persistence, and if that's all we get from this, I don't think it's worth it. Both of them “go low” as Michelle Obama would say, Jesus calling her a dog and her saying “even dogs get crumbs from the master”. (Again here, I'm not going to talk about faith, or even about the metaphor of healing being about acceptance into the community, but you could.)

I see a parable here that is trying to teach those who hear it that it is time to end the quarreling of these two cultures, and maybe by extension all such quarreling. They are both living under the same oppressive system now. The kingdoms they descended from are long gone. Jesus represents the side that did slightly better, but if you try to sort out how they ended up where they are, you'll find plenty of prophets telling those ancestors how they screwed it up and how they can fix it with new laws or by adhering better to the old ones. The woman does her part by accepting that there are problems in her past. Admitting your past indiscretions is often a good step before moving forward. The disciples represent the gate keepers, the ones who want to keep things as they are.

But here, Jesus' mind is changed. That is, what this author thinks God is, has changed. What he thinks it means to be a human being has changed. It's not about Yahweh being better than Baal. If someone has a need and someone else can fulfill that need, that's the primary consideration. That may sound like communism, but we're not talking about taking anything from anyone who can't afford to give it. Jesus heals “instantly” in this case, there's not a question about ability. The issue in this story is clearly lineage, inheritance and birth rights.

Genesis 45:1-15

A lot has happened since Joseph fell in a hole. He is now the Secretary of Agriculture for Egypt, wearing the signet ring and gold chain around his neck. He did this by predicting famine, using his dream interpretation skills, and suggesting Pharaoh store up grain. The Nile was known for its abundant grain harvests, so getting rich off the needs of others is really not that weird for them. That the Jews are in on it is the weird part. But we're still in Genesis, long before all that slavery and “let my people go” stuff.

It is a strange tale. Some of the cruelest acts of revenge by a good man from Canaan are played out in the few chapters leading up to this one. The cheery and weepy reunion of the lectionary masks all that. It is also the end of this series on Genesis, but the book continues. The famine happens as Joseph said it would. They sell their grain, leaving the Canaanites poor, so Joseph buys their land for Egypt. God has nothing to say about this. The generation we have been following live to ripe old ages, then die as the book ends. Exodus begins and “Now a new king arose over Egypt, who did not know Joseph.” The “sons of Israel” are now slaves. Not much explanation.

Joseph tries to say some things for God, but it seems he is playing the part of an apologist, explaining the glory of God despite what is being shown. I feel like I'm listening to Pat Robertson talk about Jesus after a hurricane just hit.

Romans 11:1-2a, 29-32

The lectionary likes to put echoes of the OT in the NT readings. Here Paul relates himself to Benjamin, the young brother Joseph just met at the reunion scene in Genesis. This makes a statement about the long term commitment of God. It then skips over a lengthy analogy of gardening to being inclusive of non-Jews. The metaphor seems to be that it's okay to be disobedient and the verses included here clarify that it's about being merciful. The explanation is about as strange as the Joseph story.