“Now when Jesus returned, the crowd welcomed Him, for they were all waiting for Him (Lk. 8:40).” In this Jubilee year, we remind ourselves that we are “Pilgrims of hope.” This Jubilee arrives at a time of global uncertainty, post-pandemic weariness, economic fragility, environmental concerns, and widespread social fragmentation.
Many are anguished by pain, battling wars, worn out by troubles, perturbed by future uncertainties, and demoralized by impending death. Yet we are called to look forward with eyes of hope, not with fear or resignation.
Let us encourage one another as we reflect on the Gospel according to Luke 8:40-56, which is titled “A girl restored to life and a woman healed.” Our reflections are in series for greater impact: the hope of the human players, determined characters, faith-filled scenes and the trust in divine providence revealed in this sacred story are our focus.
“They were all waiting for Him.” Luke 8:40 serves as the threshold to two interwoven miracles: the healing of the woman with the haemorrhage and the raising of Jairus’ daughter. The narrative opens with an eager crowd waiting for Jesus. This waiting is not passive; it is charged with expectation, faith, and longing for healing and renewal.
This verse—simple yet profound—captures the human heart’s deepest desire: the hope for an encounter with the One who brings life. The crowd is not indifferent. They are attentive, gathered, and inwardly stirred with anticipation.
In their waiting, they mirror the posture of the Church as she journeys through time toward the fullness of redemption. We are the crowd, gathered again to welcome the Lord. We are waiting, not idly, but actively—through prayer, charity, justice, and conversion.
The “crowd” waiting for Jesus is one of the essential elements in Luke’s theology – the universality of salvation and specifically the place of Gentiles among the people of God. Luke’s pagan origin, as well as his extensive travelling, is probably responsible for his broad-minded openness to all groups of people.
He shows great predilection for minorities: Samaritans, lepers, publicans, soldiers, public sinners in disgrace, unlettered shepherds, and the poor. The waiting crowd introduces us to the two interwoven miracle stories, one a healing and the other a resuscitation.
The miracles present Jesus as a master over sickness and death. In this account, which we shall deal with later, faith in Jesus is responsible for the cure (Lk. 8:48) and for the raising to life (Lk. 8:50).
The preceding text hinted that Jesus went to “the country of the Gerasenes” (Lk. 8:26), where the miracle of the healing of the Gerasene demoniac is reported. So, it is from this place that they were expecting His return.
The Greek word used for the “waiting” is “prosdokontes”, which means look for, expect, and anticipate, with an added element of tension arising from hope. A person who hopes is in the state of waiting: a firm expectation of a good that is to come. The crowd was waiting for Jesus with hope.
They knew Jesus would heal the sick among them, unbind the captives, feed the discouraged with His word and teach the ignorant.
Waiting is a necessary part of our Christian journey; a concept well elaborated in the Old and New Testaments. For example, Moses had to wait on the mountain for the stone tablet with the law and the commandment (Ex. 24:12). Jacob’s last words to his sons hinted that he was waiting for God’s salvation (Gen. 49:18).
In the spirit of waiting, the prophet Elijah went out to meet God at Horeb (1 Kings 19:11-14). Also, the psalmist says, “I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and in his word, I hope. (130:5).” It is heart-warming for the prophet to say, “But those who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength” (Is. 40:31).
In the New Testament, John the Baptist and his disciples also waited for the Saviour (Matt. 11:2-3). Jesus repeatedly sounds the caution in the Gospels, the need to wait and watch like slaves awaiting the return of their master. (Lk. 12:35-39).
Before His ascension, Jesus ordered His disciples not to leave Jerusalem, “but to wait there for the promise of the Father” (Acts 1:4). More importantly, in these last days, we are waiting for “the manifestation of the glory of our great God and Saviour, Jesus Christ” (Titus 2:3).
The Crowd as a Symbol of the Pilgrim Church. The people in Luke 8:40 had already heard of Jesus’ power. Some may have experienced His healing firsthand, while others have only heard the stories. Yet all were moved to hope and came together in communal anticipation.
Waiting in hope, then, is not a passive endurance, but a spiritual vigilance – a longing nourished by trust that God is present and working even when not immediately visible.
Nature teaches us the principles of waiting. Our own birth enlightens us about the necessity of patience. We don’t rush to be born; if it occurs in the early stages of pregnancy (before 24 weeks of pregnancy), it is termed a miscarriage.
After birth, we undergo a process of growth before we can walk and reach maturity. On the road, even if we find ourselves in a thick traffic jam, we hope that the green light will be on for us to proceed. We sometimes complain, cry out, and become unnecessarily frustrated and troubled in life, all because we don’t understand when and where to be patient. Unlike the crowd, they knew they would never be disappointed in waiting for Christ.
The Christian learns to wait; he maintains his hope regardless of the circumstances. In 1985, in his article on hope, Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger (Pope Benedict XVI) wrote, “To be a Christian is to be one who hopes; it is to situate oneself on the foundation of a sure hope. Hope is the very definition of Christian existence.”
Hope calls for patience, endurance, and determination based on these three truths: God is almighty, God loves each person immensely, and God is faithful to His promises. Halt the speed of despair; wait in hope, “for there is no cry that God does not hear,” Pope Leo XIV said, “even when we are not aware that we are addressing Him.”
The Jubilee Year is a moment of grace—a new opportunity to gather again like the crowd in Luke 8:40, waiting in hope for the Lord who always returns to His people. Let us wait with hearts open to encounter, minds alert to the signs of God’s presence, and hands ready to build a future of peace, mercy, and justice.
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