Daughter, your faith has made you well. Go in peace, and be healed of your affliction

 

 Now when Jesus had crossed over again by boat to the other side, a great multitude gathered to Him; and He was by the sea.  And behold, one of the rulers of the synagogue came, Jairus by name.  And when he saw Him, he fell at His feet and begged Him earnestly, saying, "My little daughter lies at the point of death.  Come and lay Your hands on her, that she may be healed, and she will live."  So Jesus went with him, and a great multitude followed Him and thronged Him.  

 

Now a certain woman had a flow of blood for twelve years, and had suffered many things from many physicians.  She had spent all that she had and was no better, but rather grew worse.  When hears about Jesus, she came behind Him in the crowd and touched His garment.  For she said, "If only I may touch His clothes, I shall be made well."  Immediately the fountain of her blood was dried up, and she felt in her body that she was healed of the affliction.  And Jesus, immediately knowing in Himself that power had gone out of Him, turned around in the crowd and said, "Who touched My clothes?"  But His disciples said to Him, "You see the multitude thronging You, and You say, 'Who touched Me?'"  And He looked around to see her who had done this thing.  But the woman, fearing and trembling, knowing what had happened to her, came and fell down before Him and told Him the whole truth.  And He said to her, "Daughter, your faith has made you well.  Go in peace, and be healed of your affliction."  

 

While He was still speaking, some came from the ruler of the synagogue's house who said, "Your daughter is dead.  Why trouble the Teacher any further?"  As soon as Jesus heard the word that was spoken, He said to the ruler of the synagogue, "Do not be afraid; only believe."  And He permitted no one to follow Him except Peter, James, and John the brother of James.  Then He came to the house of the ruler of the synagogue, and saw a tumult and those who wept and wailed loudly.  When He came in, He said to them, "Why make this commotion and weep?  The child is not dead, but sleeping."  And they ridiculed Him.  But when He had put them all outside, He took the father and the mother of the child, and those who were with Him, and entered where the child was lying.  Then He took the child by the hand, and said to her, "Talitha, cumi," which is translated, "Little girl, I say to you, arise."  Immediately the girl arose and walked, for she was twelve years of age.  And they were overcome with great amazement.  But He commanded them strictly that no one should know it, and said to that something should be given her to eat.

 

- Mark 5:21-43 

 

On Saturday we read that Jesus and the disciples came to the other side of the sea, to the country of the Gadarenes.  And when He had come out of the boat, immediately there met Him out of the tombs a man with an unclean spirit, who had his dwelling among the tombs; and no one could bind him, not even with chains, because he had often been bound with shackles and chains.  And the chains had been pulled apart by him, and the shackles broken in pieces; neither could anyone tame him.  And always, night and day, he was in the mountains and in the tombs, crying out and cutting himself with stones.  When he saw Jesus from afar, he ran and worshiped Him.  And he cried out with a loud voice and said, "What have I to do with You, Jesus, Son of the Most High God?  I implore You by God that You do not torment me."  For He said to him, "Come out of the man, unclean spirit!"  Then He asked him, "What is your name?"  And he answered, saying, "My name is Legion; for we are many."  Also he begged Him earnestly that He would not send them out of the country.  Now a large herd of swine was feeding there near the mountains.  So all the demons begged Him, saying, "Send us to the swine, that we may enter them."  And at once Jesus gave them permission.  Then the unclean spirits went out and entered the swine (there were about two thousand); and the herd ran violently down the steep place into the sea, and drowned in the sea.  So those who fed the swine fled, and they told it in the city and in the country.  And they went out to see what it was that had happened.  Then they came to Jesus, and saw the one who had been demon-possessed and had the legion, sitting and clothed and in his right mind.  And they were afraid.  And those who saw it told them how it happened to him who had been demon-possessed, and about the swine.  Then they began to plead with Him to depart from their region.  And when He got into the boat, he who had been demon-possessed begged Him that he might be with Him.  However, Jesus did not permit him, but said to him, "Go home to your friends, and tell them what great things the Lord has done for you, and how He has had compassion on you."  And he departed and began to proclaim in Decapolis all that Jesus had done for him; and all marveled.

 

 Now when Jesus had crossed over again by boat to the other side, a great multitude gathered to Him; and He was by the sea.  And behold, one of the rulers of the synagogue came, Jairus by name.  And when he saw Him, he fell at His feet and begged Him earnestly, saying, "My little daughter lies at the point of death.  Come and lay Your hands on her, that she may be healed, and she will live."  So Jesus went with him, and a great multitude followed Him and thronged Him.  As we can see from the text, and quite contrary to Jesus' immediate "adventure" in the country of the Gadarenes in yesterday's reading (above), here back in Capernaum His reception is entirely different.  His reputation is known as a healer, and He is sought out even by one of the rulers of the synagogue for help for his little daughter, who is at the point of death.  Jairus believes that Christ can heal her, and she will live.

 

 Now a certain woman had a flow of blood for twelve years, and had suffered many things from many physicians.  She had spent all that she had and was no better, but rather grew worse.  When hears about Jesus, she came behind Him in the crowd and touched His garment.  For she said, "If only I may touch His clothes, I shall be made well."  Immediately the fountain of her blood was dried up, and she felt in her body that she was healed of the affliction.  And Jesus, immediately knowing in Himself that power had gone out of Him, turned around in the crowd and said, "Who touched My clothes?"  But His disciples said to Him, "You see the multitude thronging You, and You say, 'Who touched Me?'"  And He looked around to see her who had done this thing.  But the woman, fearing and trembling, knowing what had happened to her, came and fell down before Him and told Him the whole truth.  And He said to her, "Daughter, your faith has made you well.  Go in peace, and be healed of your affliction."   My study bible gives us varied commentary on this healing miracle.  First, it tells us that Christ's healing of this woman demonstrates Jesus' power to cleanse and heal (see Matthew 8:1-4).  But also of importance, in the Old Testament, hemorrhage (her flow of blood for twelve years) caused ceremonial defilement.  This would impose religious and social restrictions, as contact with blood was strictly prohibited (Leviticus 15:25).  This suffering woman, who accounts herself unclean, nonetheless approaches Jesus secretly and with great faith.  In Jesus' words, "Go in peace," He is expressing that she has done well to come to Him in faith.   There is another, spiritual interpretation give in patristic tradition.  That is that this woman symbolizes human nature in general.  Humanity is in constant suffering and subject to death (symbolized by her flow of blood).  The physicians who could not cure her stand for the various religions of the world, including the Old Testament Law, all unable to grant life to humanity.  But it is through Christ that human beings are freed from suffering and bondage to sin.

While He was still speaking, some came from the ruler of the synagogue's house who said, "Your daughter is dead.  Why trouble the Teacher any further?"  As soon as Jesus heard the word that was spoken, He said to the ruler of the synagogue, "Do not be afraid; only believe."  And He permitted no one to follow Him except Peter, James, and John the brother of James.  Then He came to the house of the ruler of the synagogue, and saw a tumult and those who wept and wailed loudly.  When He came in, He said to them, "Why make this commotion and weep?  The child is not dead, but sleeping."  And they ridiculed Him.  But when He had put them all outside, He took the father and the mother of the child, and those who were with Him, and entered where the child was lying.  Then He took the child by the hand, and said to her, "Talitha, cumi," which is translated, "Little girl, I say to you, arise."  Immediately the girl arose and walked, for she was twelve years of age.  And they were overcome with great amazement.  But He commanded them strictly that no one should know it, and said to that something should be given her to eat.  My study bible reminds us that there are three resurrections performed by Christ which are recorded in the Gospel:  the one in today's reading, that of the son of the widow of Nain (Luke 7:11-17), and the resurrection of Lazarus (John 11:1-44).  It says that many people have exercised authority over the living, but only the Son of God has  power over the living and the dead.  His command, "Little girl, I say to you, arise" is in some sense reminiscent of the one given to Lazarus, "Lazarus, come forth!" (John 11:43). 

Today's reading is, in some sense, a great illustration about faith.  But let us note that faith isn't really just about ascribing to a belief in Jesus.  It is much more than that.  Faith, if we take a closer look here, is an active, living connection to Christ.  It constitutes something powerful in a spiritual realm.  It activates a divine power at work in and through the faithful and their circumstances, and even on behalf of others.  It is a living thing, a kind of energy -- something not seen, and nevertheless known and perceived by those who share that faith, by Christ, and through the effects (or "fruits") it produces.  If we look closely at the healing of the woman with the blood flow, we find an interesting observation.  Jesus has just returned from the "far away" place across the Sea of Galilee, and a strange encounter with a truly forsaken man, a man who was occupied by a legion of demons (in yesterday's reading, above).  We commented in yesterday's blog post how this man mirrored what we might call social abandonment, but it's all magnified through the abandonment of faith in the context of the reading, and the apostate Jews who were herding swine.   "God-forsaken" would seem to truly describe the place.  Even the people who come to see the man healed and in his right mind beg Jesus to leave, because they've lost their swine, and that was what they cared about.  But here, we have the seemingly opposite scene, where Jesus is crowded round by a great multitude of people who throng Him.  In the middle of this great multitude is a woman who is essentially alone and forsaken.  She's spent all her money on doctors who can't help her, so by now she is not only in a chronic condition of hemorrhaging, she's also without funds.  But more deeply is the spiritual state of herself as she cannot be in community; being there in the crowd she takes a great risk as she is ceremonially unclean due to the blood flow, one who can bring "uncleanness" to others who might inadvertently touch or be defiled by her blood flow.  She, too, like the legion demoniac, is alone, but in a crowd of people.  Giving us a true taste of what faith can do, Jesus asks the disciples, "Who touched My clothes?" because He has felt power go out of Him.  On her part, she feels the healing take place internally.  Faith hasn't just made some sort of magic happen, it has made a connection, like a circuit of healing energy, between herself and the Lord.  It has healed much more than her affliction, it has taken her into communion when human community has shunned her and she has been excluded for her defiling condition.  The Healer and Teacher is also the One who restores us to community, and it really doesn't matter how excluded we might be from social and community rules.  We should also observe what happens with Jairus' daughter at his home, for there is a society there, too, that has decided that she is dead and there is nothing that can be done -- and so, they ridicule Jesus when He proclaims that she is only sleeping.  It is Jesus who must, in turn, exclude and throw out those who ridicule, because what they are doing is damaging or destroying faith, and faith is the key here that makes the healing, restorative connection.  A family is restored to wholeness through Jesus' work and especially His efforts to teach Jairus as head of this household, what he needs to do on behalf of the rest:  "Do not be afraid, only believe."  Note also that Jesus permits only Peter, James, and John to come with Him, as these are the ones strongest in faith.  (They are the same disciples whom He took up to the Mount of Transfiguration (Mark 9:2-13).  Faith in Christ creates a kind of healing circuit, a communion, one that is inclusive of those otherwise left out.  It happens for the woman with the blood flow, and it happens for the household of Jairus.  If we wish for good reasons to protect our faith, to be proactive about upholding it and putting up proper boundaries against damaging it, then we have to come to terms with the fact that it is faith that creates the proper communion we seek, the one with Christ, and through Christ, the rest of the created order of life and in the world.  We look to this magnificent grace that extends itself to and through all things to give us a sense of proper order, and what it is to live in proper communion with God and by extension with the world.  Let us consider all that it means when Jesus tells the healed woman, "Go in peace."