Many of Jesus’ miracles focus on him laying hands on people to effect a cure; so the focus is generally on him & his action, as the agent of God’s divine healing.   The healing of the hemorrhaging woman is different: she’s one of the crowd people, & her thought is just to touch his clothing to get well. Therefore: the focus of THIS Gospel is on the woman’s strong faith.

This woman is a woman of perseverance & not discouragement. Think of the effects of 12 years of bleeding. Her society would have considered her unclean, & unfit for associating with others, who’d have avoided contact with her. The results would’ve included her being treated like a leper, an outcast, a castaway, an insignificant person. One female Scripture scholar named Karen Surtaney points out that some societies STILL treat a woman who sheds blood for the sake of GIVING life (monthly menstruation) as unclean, but praises the bloodshed of people TAKING others’ lives in the name of war! There’s something wrong with that picture! & if someone is treated like a leper or outcast for 12 years, what’s the emotional or psychological long-term effects? It seems to me that the physical pain alone would be terrible, & the isolation would only magnify it.

But Jesus’ response to this woman is NOT repulsion or disgust. He responds to her with peace, acceptance, grace & understanding. In the midst of the Gospels leaving this woman unnamed,  Jesus calls her “daughter” in response to her faith. Jesus cherishes & values her, & he ALSO rescues her from outside society’s circle & brings her INSIDE & includes her. Her faith response is a great example for us all: even as a stranger in the crowd, she looked for the opportunity to be healed just by TOUCHING Jesus’ clothing. I find it enlightening that faith appears in many forms in many different people & situations.

So, what’s it like when WE reach out to Jesus in OUR times of pain, heartache, or isolation?   Are we ready to hear the TRUTH of what Jesus has to say to us, namely, that you & I are precious creatures of a loving God, & are known intimately by our creator? But even after this woman’s hemorrhaging has stopped, Jesus speaks as if there is MORE healing to follow. I take that to mean she was also able to surrender her pain, shame, hopelessness & fear, all on the basis of her touching Him. Who of us could ever imagine the healing Jesus can bring to us? Let our faith forever be our guiding light, for all the days of our lives. Blessed be God forever. Love, Father Chris