This translation uses the expression "felt sorry," but the better translation is probably "felt compassion." In his heart, in his "gut," Jesus feels the anguish of this man afflicted with leprosy. So before he speaks healing into the man's life, he does the unthinkable: he touches the leprous man. By Jewish law, Jesus makes himself unclean by touching the man. Yet Jesus wants to show the compassion he feels in a way this man would understand. Jesus spoke the words of healing only after he has connected to the man's deepest emotional need and bridged the barrier that enforced this man's isolation. Mark has two messages for us in this story. First, he wants us to know that Jesus has come and bridged the distance between us and God and he will let nothing separate us from his love. Second, he wants us to do the same with others.