CAN WE ARGUE WITH OUR CREATOR GOD ?

  

A LENTEN PILGRIMAGE

Rev. Fr. K M George        The Argumentation

Can we argue with God? Most of us may not be confident enough to answer that question. Some of us may find it irrelevant. Some others may consider it blasphemous. How can we puny human beings argue with our Creator God?

Perhaps we have the popular negative notion that arguing signifies rebellion and disobedience. But arguing can be a creative dialogue. In such cases it is a committed conversation between two dedicated individuals or groups with logical clarity and consideration of all the consequences of the point in question, with a clear view of the ultimate goal. Well-known Indian economist and Nobel laureate Amartya Sen has a beautiful book,  

The Argumentative Indian. He brings out the ancient Indian tradition where both men and women participate in creative argumentation in public on philosophical and social questions. In the gospels we see at least two women arguing with Christ: the Samaritan woman and the Syro-Phoenician woman. Interestingly enough both are considered by mainstream Jews as outcasts, (a sort of mleccha, as the high caste Hindus once called the outsiders to their caste) with whom respectable Jews should not have any social interaction.

 

On the fourth Sunday of Lent we have read the incident of the Syro-Phoenician woman pleading with Jesus for the healing of her daughter. Jesus raises objections to her request, saying that He was sent only to the people of Israel and not to the outsiders. 

 He even refers to His people the Jews as "master" in comparison to the others for whom He used the term “dogs”. Not being intimidated or offended by the rather humiliating answer of Jesus, the woman responds with logic and perseverance. Finally Jesus is beaten by this courageous woman, until then a total stranger to Him. He recognised the power of her faith and argument, and praised her:

"Woman, great is your faith."

Matthew 15: 28

 

What a compliment!

 He immediately assured her that her daughter was healed. The objections that Jesus raised were in fact the usual objections of those Jews who had a very narrow, racist and exclusivist notion of the Messiah. He raised these objections in public in order to teach them a lesson that it was not the race or caste or the claim to be the people o God that counted, but firm faith and the willingness to receive God's grace and healing.

 

The life-giving gospel is open to all who believe, and Christians do not constitute a special caste. This notion of exclusivity is a misconception that ancient St Thomas Christians in India have held to a large extent down the centuries.