[In the stories of the woman who has suffered hemorrhaging for thirty years and that of the daughter of Jairus,] neither woman is viewed as unclean or as a source of uncleanness by Jesus, but rather is treated as a person in need of help. Thus, the way is paved for women to participate more fully in Jesus’ own community. In both stories, faith is a key commodity, a commodity in which the healed woman is as capable of possessing as Jairus.
Certainly, the healed woman is made an example by Jesus when he calls her to centre stage and speaks of her faith. In Mark’s presentation of the event, the woman appears in a more favourable light than the exasperated disciples. Moreover, while an ordinary rabbi might have treated the loss of a daughter as less significant than the loss of a son, when one compares this story to that of the raising of the widow of Nain’s son, Jesus exhibits an equal concern over the loss of either son or daughter.
--Ben Witherington III,
Women in the Ministry of Jesus
Image source: Healing of the Bleeding Woman, ca. 4th century, Catacombs of Marcellinus and Peter, Rome, https://illustratedprayer.com/2018/07/01/the-bleeding-woman/
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