Who Touched Me? The Unclean Woman Healed by Jesus

Dr. Julie Barrier

Did you see the way I was walking? That’s the way I used to walk all the time. I used to be so weak. Not now. Not anymore. I’m Miriam. No, not THAT Miriam, Moses’ sister. She’s been dead about 1,000 years, I think. Anyway, I’m the one they used to call “unclean,” “dirty,” untouchable. You heard about me, didn’t you? Well, now you can call me Miriam the Healed Woman. I’m HEALED! You can touch me now. Go on, touch me!

This is my story: I married Simeon, and we were happy at first. I expected to have at least 3 children, but I never did conceive even one. I was so disappointed, and Simeon wasn’t happy about it at all. Men want sons. AND daughters. People here in Capernaum looked at me either with pity or suspicion, because we Jews believe that if a woman doesn’t conceive, she’s been cursed by God. I didn’t understand why God would curse me, so I kept hoping for a baby. It never happened. Then after one monthly cycle, the flow just kept on going. It wouldn’t stop.

What's the origin of the Israeli flag?

IFCJ

The flag of the State of Israel was largely the design of David Wolfsohn, who succeeded Theodor Herzl as president of the World Zionist Organization, a group that seeks to establish a home for the Jewish people in Israel that is secured under public law. 

The flag was introduced in 1891 as a symbol of the Zionist movement. Wolfsohn wanted to create a flag that would capture the essence of the problems faced by the Zionist movement and the Jewish people in the decades before the Jewish state was brought into being in 1948.

What Is a Tallit?

The tallit, a Jewish prayer shawl, is a four-cornered garment that is usually white and made either of wool, cotton, or silk. Knotted tassels, or fringes, are attached to the four corners in fulfillment of the biblical command from the book of Numbers to envelop the wearer in God’s word.

Jewish men wear the tallit during morning prayers. Some also wear a garment called thetzitzit or tallit katan (small tallit) under their shirt all day as a reminder to observe all the commandments of the Torah.

Often, the portion of the tallit around the neck and on the shoulders features a special piece of cloth woven with silver threads, called the atara, or “diadem.”