WESTMINSTER PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH
June 28th 2009

Rev. Mark R. Bradshaw-Miller
“Touched”
Mark 5:21-43
Last week we were witnesses to the trouble that is always stirred up whenever you leave the places of comfort and venture into unfamiliar territory. The storms rage and anxiety builds and our doubts and fears take over. But this week, Jesus and the disciples, have returned from the other side. And from the moment that Jesus feet are on dry ground, his services and his touch are in high demand.
The crowd has been eagerly awaiting his return. In fact, the crowd is so big that it is not only difficult for Jesus to get off the boat, but for anyone to get close to Jesus. To even get a glimpse you would have to be rather pushy. But, when you are in need of a healing touch, being polite is the least of one’s concerns.
While the crowds were unforgiving, they did know when it was time to step aside. For a leader of the synagogue, even the crowd knew its’ proper place. When Jairus shows up on the scene he is given unfettered access to Jesus. Two sets of rules, one for the crowd and one for those with connections. It is something that is understood well and even beyond question. As the crowd follows the preapproved social protocol though, something amazing happens. Jairus falls at the feet of Jesus and begs repeatedly!
There is nothing uncommon about someone begging for the healing of their child. But Jairus, a leader of the synagogue, must beg repeatedly before Jesus acts. For someone used to having crowds part at his presence, needing to beg repeatedly must have been a lesson in humility. But the important lesson that day was for the crowd more than for the man who was willing to do anything for his daughter.
Without saying a word, Jesus goes with him. Whatever Jesus planned after his return trip from the other side was quickly shelved when faced with the immediate needs of a child. As Jesus goes on his way the crowd begins to press in on this healer. It is nothing new for Jesus. Since the moment that he began his healing the crowds were thick. The crowds always pressed in hungry to touch and to be healed. But in this crowd, on this journey to save a little girl, there was a different touch. It was a touch that moved beyond the mere bumping up against. It was a touch that stopped Jesus in his tracks. “Who touched me?”
The disciples get the absurdity of the request. Who touched you, Jesus are you crazy? Everywhere we go there is a crowd pressing in on you. The strange request should have let the disciples know that Jesus was up to something. But to this woman, this unnamed woman, Jesus’ question only brought terror.
For twelve years she has suffered. From one doctor to another and then on to the specialists each one offering their interpretation of what was happening and the plan for treatment. Test after test and at the end of the day she was worse off and without a clue as to the solution. To make matters worse she had gone well beyond her life time allotment with the insurance company. She was broke and sick. On top of all this she was unwelcome in her faith community because she was considered unclean.
Ritual law saw this daughter of God as unclean. Everywhere she would go she had to shout out: “Unclean.” It was her duty to make sure that her ritual impurity would not infect others. No longer did she have a name, she was only known as unclean. So for this woman to push her way through the crowd, to touch Jesus, was an offence to ritual law. Not only that, she had contaminated the entire crowd and Jesus. When Jesus says; “Who touched me?” the woman knew that humiliation and punishment was sure to follow. But this is not how God works, despite God’s followers too often acting otherwise.
She falls at Jesus’ feet confessing her supposed crime and telling him all that has brought her to this point in life. Into the face of this terrified woman, Jesus looks and gives her a name: Beloved daughter of God. He even goes beyond this by acknowledging her great faith. This woman, formerly known as unclean, has been healed, restored, and commended. It is a moment that all those gathered should celebrate.
But wait a minute! Have we forgotten about Jairus’ daughter? The delay caused by the interruption of the unclean woman, has caused the death of the daughter of the leader of the synagogue. Despite this news, Jesus does not miss a beat and heads to Jairus’s home. Jesus silences the crowd and brings peace to the commotion surrounding this daughter of privilege. But unlike the unnamed woman there will be no public healing here. Everyone is sent out except a few. There will be no crowd. Healing and restoration on this day will come in private. The great reversal has come full circle. The one who stood at the margins was brought to the center and commended for faith. And the leader of the synagogue is admonished to trust God and then restored to his daughter.
Jesus brings healing to the blind, deaf, and even the dead all with a touch. The laying on of hands is the chosen method for healing and restoration in the gospel of Mark. In the ritual law touch was strictly regulated and Jesus often ignored the regulations. Touch is more than just a means of Jesus healing; it is integral to human health. The need of touch from another human being is wired into the very fabric of our humanity. A newborn that is not held in the early days of life can fail to thrive and even worse, die. This week I read Parenting Magazine and a side bar article gave the following in dealing with minor bumps and bruises:
Apply gentle pressure to the area with your hands for a few moments. Touch sensations travel faster to the brain than pain, and because the brain can register only one at a time you can trick the brain in to thinking the hurt is not so bad.
There is true power in even human touch.
However, even as we talk about the healing power of touch, we must also acknowledge that touch can also be unwelcome, and anything but healing. But the touch offered by Jesus only comes when requested. It is not forceful or demanding. The touch offered by Jesus is that which moves beyond the mere physical to something much deeper. The touch of healing offered by Jesus is the sort which can bring healing to someone who is alone in the midst of a crowd. It is a healing that comes to one suffering silently and to a parent desperate for the life of a child. Whether it was the daughter of a community leader, or someone seen as unclean, Jesus knows the importance of touch, the importance of being connected with others. Yes, it is Jesus who is bringing healing, but he is also bringing people together. It is a lesson in the power of community and the power of truly being connected to God and to one another. Let us never forget the basic power of touch and not be afraid to reach out our hand and offer a healing touch in Jesus’ name to all who cross our path, from the daughter of privilege to those that society has labeled unclean. It is then,and only then, that we will know the power of the healing touch. Amen.