SUMMARY
Jesus heals a woman and raises a girl from the dead, emphasizing the importance of faith in both cases.
ANALYSIS
Mark demonstrates his artfulness as a narrator by weaving together two stories of healing. In this case, the particular method that Mark employs is called a “frame narrative,” and it gets its name because one episode frames the other. It begins with Jairus and his daughter’s plight, the story of the woman with the hemorrhage occupies the middle and then it ends by returning to Jairus’ daughter.
Multiple details weave the frame and center together. First of all, both the woman and the girl seem beyond help. The woman has suffered at the hands of doctors and spent all her money; the girl, it turns out, is dead. The woman has suffered from her disease for 12 years; the girl is 12 years old. Jairus begs Jesus to come help “My little daughter” (5:23); Jesus comforts the woman’s fear by calling her “Daughter” (5:34). Jesus proclaims that the woman’s faith has healed her (5:34); he reminds the leader of the synagogueA synagogue is a Jewish house of worship. Jesus often taught in synagogues where he sometimes ran afoul of Jewish leaders. In the book of Acts, Paul and others attend synagogues and teach in them. More to have faith (5:36).
In addition to highlighting Mark’s skill as a narrator, the links between the woman and the girl also serve to underline the lack of faith of the crowds and the ignorance of the disciples. The woman’s faith inspires her to push through the crowds to touch Jesus; Jesus knows that someone has touched him, but the disciples mock his question. Further, even though Jesus has just performed a miraculous healing, he is mocked by the mourners in Jairus’ house. Once again, Mark emphasizes the irony that people cannot understand Jesus despite his repeated deeds of power.
