GREAT THINGS ENTERPRISE
CLAUDE BLACK
Mark 6:56
The Power of Touch
In 19th-century infant hospitals and orphanages, many infants died from “failure to thrive”—a condition caused by a lack of physical affection and emotional connection. Babies were fed and kept clean, but were rarely touched affectionately due to concerns about infection or “spoiling” the child. Studies conducted in the 1950s showed that touch was vital to emotional and cognitive development.
Two attractive, well-dressed women were sitting near me on a MARTA train to downtown Atlanta. One woman was white, and one was Black. They talked excitedly—the impression was that some form of congratulation was taking place. The women hugged and held hands. It was a beautiful sight, which would have been taboo a few decades ago, when racial segregation prohibited both symbolic and literal touching between Black and white people.
The United States and the rest of the world endured the COVID-19 pandemic from 2020 to 2022. Nearly everyone practiced physical distancing to prevent the spread of the virus, which led to massive reductions in social and physical contact. Hugs, handshakes, and any physical contact were discouraged or even prohibited—even among family members. Sociologists and others reported a “touch starvation” crisis, which also led to weakened immune responses because of heightened loneliness, depression, and anxiety. Touch—the very thing people needed for comfort—became associated with risk and danger.
When Jesus and his disciples landed in the region of Gennesaret following the rough boat trip across the Sea of Galilee, word spread quickly that Jesus was present. People brought weak and infirm friends on cots to meet him. “And when he entered into villages, or cities, or the countryside, they placed the sick in the marketplaces and begged him that they might touch even the fringe of his garment, and as many as touched him were healed.” (Mark 6:56) Some commentators focus on the word “touch” used twice in this sentence, wondering whether the “touch” was physical or spiritual—a touch of faith. There’s little question that the word “touch” in this instance included physical touch, but one writer said—and others affirm—that it was the touch of faith that brought healing.
There is a small qualifying phrase in this sentence: “as many as touched him were healed.” This could be seen to state that many physically touched him, but only those who “touched him” with a touch of faith were healed. It is also interesting that the word “healed” (σῴζω, sózó, cf. Soteriology, the study of salvation) appears throughout the New Testament, referring to both physical and spiritual healing.
It is still true that the “touch” of Jesus brings spiritual and physical healing.
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