7:24–30 The NIV heading for this story notes the real point of the passage, that it is a gentile woman whose faith succeeds. Although Jesus’ criticism of scribal tradition in 7:1–13 and his rejection of the concern for ritual purity in 7:14–23 can be accounted for in the context of his own historical ministry, these teachings were also relevant to the church after him, as we have noted in the comments on these passages. In the present passage, the relevance for the early church of all that has been stated by Jesus in Mark 7 becomes even more transparently clear. If the logical effect of Jesus’ teaching is to legitimize those who do not follow pharisaic ritual customs, such as the gentile believers, this incident gives an actual precedent for addressing Gentiles and for their inclusion in t…