8. That daughter of the ruler of the synagogue was a figure of the people of the Jews, for whose sake Christ had come, who said, "I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel." But the woman who suffered from the issue of blood, figured the Church from among the Gentiles, to which Christ was not sent in His bodily presence. He was going to the former, He was intent on her recovery; meanwhile the latter runs to meet Him, touches His border as though He knew it not; that is, she is healed by Him who is in some sense absent. He saith, "Who touched Me?" as though He would say; I do not know this people; "A people whom I have not known hath served Me. Some one hath touched Me. For I perceive that virtue is gone out of Me;" that is, that My Gospel hath gone out and filled the whole world. Now it is the border that is touched, a small and outside [2617] part of the garment. Consider the Apostles as it were the garment of Christ. Among them Paul was the border; that is, the last and least. For he said of himself that he was both; "I am the least of the Apostles." [2618] For he was called after them all, he believed after them all, he healed more than they all. The Lord was not sent but "unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel." But because a "people whom He had not known, was also to serve Him, and to obey Him in the hearing of the ear," He made mention of them too when He was among the others. For the same Lord said in a certain place, "Other sheep I have which are not of this fold; them also I must bring, that there may be one fold and one shepherd." [2619]
9. Of these was this woman; therefore she was not refused, but only put off. "I am not sent," saith He, "but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel." And she was instant in her cries: she persevered, she knocked, as if she had already heard, "Ask, and receive; seek, and thou shalt find; knock, and it shall be opened unto thee." She kept on, she knocked. For so the Lord when He spake these words, "Ask, and ye shall receive; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you;" [2620] had also said before, "Give not that which is holy unto the dogs, neither cast ye your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn again and rend you;" [2621] that is, lest after despising your pearls, they should even ill use you. [2622] Cast not therefore before them what they despise.
10. And how distinguish we (as might be answered) who are "swine," and who are "dogs"? This has been shown in the case of this woman. For He only answered to her entreaties, "It is not meet to take the children's bread, and to cast it to dogs." [2623] Thou art a dog, thou art one of the Gentiles, thou worshippest idols. But for dogs what is so proper [2624] as to lick stones? "It is not" therefore "meet to take the children's bread, and to cast it to dogs." Had she retired after these words, she had gone away as she had come, a dog; but by knocking she was made of a dog one of human kind. [2625] For she persevered in asking, and from that reproach as it were she manifested her humility, and obtained mercy. For she was not excited, nor incensed, because she was called a dog, as she asked the blessing, and prayed for mercy, but she said, "Truth, Lord;" [2626] "Thou hast called me a dog, and truly a dog I am, I acknowledge my name: it is the Truth that speaks: but I ought not on that account to be refused this blessing. Verily I am a dog; yet the dogs eat of the crumbs which fall from their masters' table.' It is but a moderate and a small blessing I desire; I do not press to the table, I only seek for the crumbs."
11. See, Brethren, how the value of humility is set before us! The Lord had called her a dog; and she did not say, "I am not," but she said, "I am." And because she acknowledged herself to be a dog, immediately the Lord said, "Woman, great is thy faith; be it unto thee even as thou hast asked." [2627] Thou hast acknowledged thyself to be a dog, I now acknowledge thee to be of human kind. "O woman, great is thy faith;" thou hast asked, and sought, and knocked; receive, find, be it opened unto thee. See, Brethren, how in this woman who was a Canaanite, that is, who came from among the Gentiles, and was a type, that is a figure, of the Church, the grace of humility has been eminently set before us. For the Jewish nation, to the end that it might be deprived of the grace of the Gospel, was puffed up with pride, because to them it had been vouchsafed [2628] to receive the Law, because out of this nation the Patriarchs had proceeded, the Prophets had sprung, Moses, the servant of God, had done the great miracles in Egypt which we have heard of in the Psalm, [2629] had led the people through the Red Sea, when the waters retired, and had received the Law, which he gave to this people. This was that whereupon the Jewish nation was lifted up, and through this very pride it happened that they were not willing to humble themselves to Christ the author of humility, and the restrainer of proud swelling, to God the Physician, who, being God, for this cause became Man, that man might know himself to be but man. O mighty remedy! If this remedy cure not pride, I know not what can cure it. He is God, and is made Man; He lays aside His Divinity, that is, in a manner sequestrates, [2630] hides, that is, what was His Own, and appears only in that He had taken to Him. Being God He is made man: and man will not acknowledge himself to be man, that is, will not acknowledge himself to be mortal, will not acknowledge himself to be frail, will not acknowledge himself to be a sinner, will not acknowledge himself to be sick, that so at least as sick he may seek the physician; but what is more perilous still, he fancies himself in sound health.
12. So then for this reason that people did not come to Him, that is by reason of pride; and the natural branches are said to be broken off from the olive tree, that is from that people founded [2631] by the Patriarchs; in other words, the Jews are for their punishment justly barren through the spirit of pride; and the wild olive is grafted into that olive tree. The wild olive tree is the people of the Gentiles. So says the Apostle, "that the wild olive tree is grafted into the good olive tree, but the natural branches are broken off." [2632] Because of pride they were broken off: and the wild olive tree grafted in because of humility. This humility did the woman show forth when she said, "Truth, Lord," "I am a dog, I desire only the crumbs." In this humility also did the Centurion please Him; who when he desired that his servant might be healed by the Lord, and the Lord said, "I will come and heal him," answered, "Lord, I am not worthy that Thou shouldest come under my roof, but speak the word only, and my servant shall be healed. I am not worthy that Thou shouldest come under my roof." [2633] He did not receive Him into his house, but he had received Him already in his heart. The more humble, the more capacious, and the more full. For the hills drive back the water, but the valleys are filled by it. And what then, what said the Lord to those who followed Him after that he had said, "I am not worthy that Thou shouldest come under my roof"? "Verily I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel;" that is, in that people to whom I came, "I have not found so great faith." And whence great? Great from being the least, that is, great from humility. "I have not found so great faith;" like a grain of mustard seed, which by how much smaller it is, by so much the more burning is it. Therefore did the Lord at once graft the wild olive into the good olive tree. He did it then when He said, "Verily I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel."
13. Lastly, mark what follows. "Therefore,"--that is, because "I have not found so great faith in Israel," that is, so great humility with faith,--"Therefore I say unto you, that many shall come from the east and west, and shall sit down with Abraham and Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven." [2634] "Shall sit," that is, "shall rest." For we must not form notions of carnal banquets there, or desire any such thing in that kingdom, as to change not vices for virtues, but only to make an exchange of vices. For it is one thing to desire the kingdom of heaven for the sake of wisdom and life eternal; another, for the sake of earthly felicity, as though there we should have it in more abundant and greater measure. If thou think to be rich in that kingdom, thou dost not cut off, but only changest desire; and yet rich thou wilt really be, and in none other place but there wilt thou be rich; for here thy want gathers together the abundance of things. Why have rich men much? Because they want much. A greater want heaps together as it were greater means; there want itself shall die. Then thou shalt be truly rich, when thou shalt be in want of nothing. For now thou art not surely rich, and an Angel poor, who has not horses, and carriages, and servants. Why? Because he does not want any of these: because in proportion to his greater strength, is his want the less. Therefore there there are riches, and the true riches. Figure not to yourselves then banquets of this earth in that place. For the banquets of this world are daily medicines; they are necessary for a kind of sickness we have, wherewith we are born. This sickness every one is sensible of, when the hour for refreshment is passed. Wouldest thou see how great a sickness this is, that as an acute fever would be fatal in seven days? Do not fancy thyself then to be in health. Immortality will be health. For this present is only one long sickness. Because thou dost support thy disease by daily medicines; thou fanciest thyself in health; take away the medicines, and then see what thou canst do.
14. For from the moment we are born, we must needs be dying. This disease must needs bring us to death. This indeed physicians say when they examine their patients. For instance, "This man has the dropsy, he is dying; this disease cannot be cured. This man has the leprosy: [2635] this disease too cannot be cured. He is in a consumption. Who can cure this? He must needs die, he must perish." See, the physician has now pronounced that he is in a consumption; that he cannot but die; and yet sometimes the dropsical patient does not die of his disease, and the leprous does not die of his, nor the consumptive patient of his; but now it is absolutely necessary that every one who is born should die of this. He dies of it, he cannot do otherwise. This the physician and the unskilled both pronounce upon; and though he die somewhat more slowly, does he on that account not die? Where then is there true health, except where there is true immortality? But if it be true immortality, and no corruption, no wasting, what need will there be there of nourishment? Therefore, when you hear it said, "They shall sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob;" [2636] get not your body, but your soul in order. There shall thou be filled; and this inner [2637] man has its proper food. In relation to it is it said, "Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they shall be filled." [2638] And so truly filled shall they be that they shall hunger no more.
15. Therefore did the Lord graft in at once the wild olive tree, when He said, "Many shall come from the east and west, and shall sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom of heaven;" that is, they shall be grafted into the good olive tree. For Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, are the roots of this olive tree; "but the children of the kingdom," that is, the unbelieving Jews, "shall go away into outer darkness." The "natural branches shall be broken off," that the "wild olive tree may be grafted in." Now why did the natural branches deserve to be cut off, except for pride? why the wild olive tree to be grafted in, except for humility? Whence also that woman said, "Truth, Lord, yet the dogs eat of the crumbs which fall from their masters' table." [2639] And thereupon she hears, "O woman, great is thy faith." [2640] And so again that centurion, "I am not worthy that Thou shouldest come under my roof." [2641] "Verily I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel." [2642] Let us then learn, or let us hold fast, humility. If we have it not yet, let us learn it; if we have it, let us not lose it. If we have it not yet, let us have it, that we may be grafted in; if we have it already, let us hold it fast, that we may not be cut off.