Twentieth Sunday in Ordinary Time
16 August 2026
First Reading: Isaiah 56:1, 6-7
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 67:2-3, 5, 6, 8
Second Reading: Romans 11:13-15, 29-32
Gospel: Matthew 15:21-28
Reflection
By: Bernard Borja
A young professional who works in a corporation at Makati commutes to work as early as 5am from Mandaluyong to Ayala, not because he wants to be early at his office, but he attends the 7am mass at a chapel near his workplace. One day, when he was waiting for the train, the MRT announced a stop operation because someone fell off the tracks and will need emergency response. He thought to himself, “Abala naman ito. Baka hindi pa ako makaabot sa misa. (Another hassle. I might miss the mass.)”
~~~
The disciples’ reaction to the desperate Canaanite woman is uncomfortably familiar: “Send her away, for she keeps calling out after us.” To the disciples, she was a foreigner, an annoyance, and an interruption to their current mission. Today, this exact scene plays out not on the ancient roads of Tyre and Sidon, but along the streets of Metro Manila and within the divided chaotic world of social media. We find a deeply divided society, where the cries of the marginalized are frequently treated as mere noise by those in positions of privilege.
When we reflect on the disciples’ quick dismissal of the woman, we are challenged to ask: “When have we turned away those seeking help because their needs felt inconvenient? Or when have we looked at other’s suffering a disturbance to our comfortable routine?” In our society today, this disconnect is glaring. Consider the ongoing struggles of marginalized sectors, such as traditional jeepney drivers fighting for their livelihoods amid transport modernization, or the people who constantly suffer from flood during rainy season. To the comfortable and the well-off, the protests and pleas of these sectors are often dismissed as "anti-progress" or “not resilient enough”. Worse, most would just say, “Mga tamad kasi (They’re just lazy).” Just as the disciples wanted the Canaanite woman silenced, the privileged often wish the marginalized would simply disappear so their daily routines remain undisturbed.
This deep-rooted division often integrates into our spiritual lives. The prophet Isaiah reminds us that God’s house is a "house of prayer for all peoples," yet we often act as gatekeepers to His grace. In a city where abundant, air-conditioned churches sit just few hundred meters away from a stretch of informal settlers, religious biases run deep. It is dangerously easy for the privileged to unconsciously connect their wealth and comfort with divine favor, somehow judging the poor as lacking in faith, discipline, or merit. We forget St. Paul’s powerful reminder that God’s mercy is universal and entirely unearned. We must ask ourselves: “Does our own comfort and perception of "worthiness" prevent us from showing the radical kindness and generosity that God has given to all of us?”
Jesus’ eventual response to the Canaanite woman challenges this spiritual pride. The woman humbled herself entirely, enduring the disciples' disregard to fight for her daughter. Jesus ultimately praises her, saying, “O woman, great is your faith!” Similarly, the most profound faith in our country is often found on the margins—in the parents who work grueling, minimum-wage jobs to feed their children, or those who maintain hope despite the neglect of those who are in the government. Yet, rather than learning from this profound dependence on God, privileged society tends to merely romanticize the "resilience" of the poor without offering true compassion.
To heal the fractures in our society, we must follow Christ’s ultimate example. He crossed the societal boundaries of His time to answer a marginalized woman’s plea. For true faith to flourish, it must move beyond the gates of exclusive subdivisions and comfortable pews. It demands us to stop seeing the poor as an inconvenience, to dismantle our religious pride, and to recognize that the margins of society are exactly where God's transformative mercy is most powerfully at work.
Prayer
Lord, open our hearts to hear the cries of those outside our comfort circle, just as you heard the desperate plea of the Canaanite woman. Forgive us for the times we have treated the suffering of others as a mere inconvenience to our daily routines and comfortable lives. Strip away our spiritual pride and the false belief that our privilege is a sign of greater faith or worthiness. We ask for the courage to cross the boundaries of our comfort zones to offer true compassion, rather than empty praise, to those in need. May we follow your example of radical kindness, ensuring that your house truly becomes a place of grace for all people. Blessed Virgin Mary, assumed into heaven and mother of all, intercede for us so that our faith may flourish through transformative acts of mercy and love. AMEN.
