RMJ DOES SOME OF THE BEST ADVENT POSTS,  today's is more worth reading than what I was going to write. 

I will also recommend rustypickup's take on the passage from Mark I wrote about Monday.  I like his take on it better than mine though I think Jesus might have been trying to show his followers and the woman something about the universalism of his message.  I think Jesus had more of a sense of humor than comes through the usual way of reading his words out loud.  The gentile Woman's courage in pressing her request might have shown she was in on the joke faster than his followers were.