Dr Kelly Fleming

Another reflection on disability and faith:

A passage in the Gospel that is often overlooked when reading “the larger picture,” is that of the woman in Capernaum who suffered from chronic bleeding. It is a very moving example of faith and needs to be addressed in relation to invisible disabilities, the stigmas attached to them and the social ramifications to the people who live with them.

The passage referred to here, examines all of these attributes including the willingness, albeit not without hesitation, of the woman to reveal her invisible disability. It shows her reluctance as well as her faith in revealing it in front of so many people.

The woman’s experience is superimposed within a passage about a twelve-year-old girl who was dying. Jesus was met by Jairus, a leader in the local synagogue who was the father of the young girl. He begged Jesus to come and heal his daughter so that she would not die. In the crowds that surrounded Jesus as He walked with Jairus was an unnamed woman who suffered from chronic bleeding.

As Jesus often taught using parables and connecting similes, the Gospel account of the girl’s age, most likely connects to the woman suffering from her chronic bleeding for twelve years and the effects of the bleeding were literally killing her.

The woman entered the crowd even though she was unclean by Mosaic Law and there was a stigma attached to uncleanliness. For example, when a woman was in the time of her menses, she was not permitted to enter the synagogue or bring offerings to the Temple and was considered unclean for seven days (Lev. 12:2). When a woman gave birth, she had to wait the appointed time (which differed if she gave birth to a son or a daughter) to be considered clean and then she went to the Temple to offer a purification offering (Lev. 12:4-8). Mary herself, the mother of Jesus, went through this purification process after giving birth and presented herself in the Temple after her days of uncleanliness had been fulfilled (Luke 2:22).

The woman had suffered greatly due to this chronic bleeding. It was an invisible disability but one that cut her off from society. First, because of her impurity, it prevented her from attending the synagogue to worship. Second, the condition she suffered was debilitating as it would have left her anemic and weak. Third, Mark 5:25-26 tells us that she had spent all her money seeking physicians to cure her of her bleeding to no avail, and her condition continued to worsen. She lived in poverty, an outcast from society, most likely as a beggar after having spent her entire life savings on medical care.

The woman took a bold step in faith that Jesus could heal her. She did not directly approach Him to ask for healing. Her faith was so strong that she believed if she only could touch the fringe of His garment, she would be healed. The crowd around Jesus was large, pushing against Him as he walked with Jairus and His disciples.
Coming up behind Jesus, she touched the fringe of His robe. Immediately, the bleeding stopped, and so did Jesus. He demanded “who touched me?” Everyone around Him were surprised by his question and Peter reminded Him that the crowd around Him was pressing against Him as He walked. Jesus said, “Someone deliberately touched me, for I felt healing power go out from me.” When the woman realized that Jesus was not going to move until someone responded, she became afraid and fell to her knees in front of Him. In front of the whole crowd of people she explained why she had touched His garment. Jesus was not upset, instead He told her to go in peace, her faith had healed her (Lk 8:44-48).

It is interesting to point out that Jesus felt the flow of power released from Him. In this release, the power of the Spirit flowed from Jesus to the woman and immediately stopped the physical flow of blood from the woman.

This woman humbled herself not only before Jesus but the entire crowd and revealed a very personal detail to everyone within hearing distance. Jesus acknowledged the woman’s faith. Jesus’ healing was not merely for show, He saw the people who had true faith in Him and His acknowledgment of this faith resulted in His healing them of their disability or illness.

Faith came first. Faith in the power of God. Faith that the power of God resided within Jesus Christ.