You see how the crowd is pressing upon you, and yet you ask, ‘Who touched me?’ The disciples must have felt somehow insulted by Jesus when he inquired from them who it was who had touched him. As the opening verse of today’s Gospel passage makes it clear, Jesus and the disciples found themselves mobbed by the crowd immediately they alighted from the boat. As such, it was almost impossible to avoid being touched even if, for safety reasons, such had been their wish. It appears the crowd was aware that Jesus was going to be at this particular place and had camped there to wait for him. When Jesus and his entourage finally arrived, the crowd couldn’t help but mob him. And they had a good reason to want to get close to him. The news of what Jesus was capable of doing had spread far and wide. Word had gone around that Jesus had the ability to perform mighty signs: he could multiply loaves, heal the sick, and exorcise those possessed by demons. And while there might have been those who traveled far and wide just to catch a sight of this man Jesus (as we ourselves would do), there were also those who were in need of his services. The passage constituting today’s Gospel Reading focuses on two such individuals.
Jairus, a synagogue official, was seeking to see Jesus on behalf of his daughter who was at the brink of death. He requested Jesus to come with him to where the girl was lying sick so that he could lay his hands on her and heal her. Jesus complied and went off with him. But even as Jesus was making his way to Jairus’ house, the crowd clung to him. In the crowd was a woman who was also in need of Jesus’ attention. Unlike Jairus, however, she didn’t want to draw attention to herself. She couldn’t publicize why she needed Jesus. She was suffering from an illness (a condition) that made her unclean and as such “unworthy” to be in the crowd, let alone approach Jesus. She knew she was making a huge gamble for if she was found out, she would be punished. But she didn’t mind about the consequences. She really needed to see Jesus. As the Gospel account tells us, the woman’s condition had drained her of her life’s savings. She could not afford the services of doctors anymore. From what she must have heard of Jesus, she believed that he was the only one who could heal her of the affliction. Like Jairus, she approached Jesus armed with nothing but faith. “If only I could touch his clothes,” she thought to herself. And her deep faith was rewarded. The moment she touched Jesus’ clothes, she was healed of her condition. Jesus became aware that someone had been healed and inquired from the crowd who had touched him. The disciples were not amused at all.
The disciples were within their right to “reprimand” Jesus for inquiring who had touched him. They perhaps thought that Jesus was somehow mad that his security had been breached. However, Jesus’ concern was not his security. He was not concerned that the crowd was pressing in on him. He simply wanted to complete the healing process that had been initiated by the woman’s touch of faith. While the woman’s move to touch Jesus was occasioned by her condition, it also opens our eyes to what Jesus’ ministry was all about. The woman’s touch was symbolic of the goal of Jesus’ mission. In the unveiling of his mission, Jesus quoted from the prophet Isaiah what he had come to do: to proclaim a year of favor from the Lord to the disenfranchised (cf. Luke 4:18-19). There were men and women who had been pushed to the margins of the society because of their inability or “unworthiness” to participate in the affairs of the society. Such individuals - who included the poor, those perceived to be sinful, and the sick -  were subsequently rendered non-persons because they receded or rather were pushed into the background where they had minimal contact with the rest of the society. This woman healed by Jesus had been forced by her condition to keep away from others lest she contaminate them and render them unclean. For twelve years, she craved the warmth of the community. For twelve years, she could neither touch nor be touched by others. But that changed when she extended her hand and touched Jesus. It was a touch that restored her personhood. It was a touch that resulted in her being reconciled with God and her community. It was a touch that made her to once again be referred to as “daughter.” It was a touch that not only healed but also saved her.
Jesus’s mission can be summarized as “touch ministry.” While it was the woman’s touch that induced the healing in this particular episode, the Gospel accounts is filled with occasions where Jesus’ healing results from his touch. Jesus’ touch was the visible demonstration of the good news he was preaching: he was restoring their ability to be considered “touchable.” Jesus touched those he healed to show those who were watching that despite their illnesses, the sick were still human persons who were worthy of being loved and counted as part of the community. Their sicknesses did not rid them of their personhood and as such were to be treated like everybody else. There was no better way to demonstrate this than to be in contact (touch) them. Jesus’ touch was one of a brotherly embrace.