Reflecting on Psalm 88 - ‘In the Depths’ by Irene Frances
Photo by Evi Horowitz
IN THE DEPTHS by Irene Frances
In 2010 I visited Israel for the first time. Our tour included a visit to the House of Caiaphas where Jesus had been taken after He was arrested. This became one of the most precious memories of my time in Jerusalem, for a very unexpected reason.
Many years ago I was struggling with deep depression. On one of my admissions to a private psychiatric hospital I felt as though I was in a bottomless, black abyss, overcome by intense darkness that enveloped my soul. As I stood by the railings of the hospital walkway, I sensed the presence of God. I felt His strong assurance that though I was in the deepest of pits, He was already there. It did not matter how desperate I was, how dark my life, God was with me, and in that deep, dark place, God was there. To the measure of the depth of my despair, so was God’s intensely deep love for me.
In the House of Caiaphas, we were taken down some stone steps to a dark dungeon, lit only by a single globe. People believe that at the time of His arrest Jesus was held in this dark pit while the authorities quibbled over what to do with Him. Jesus Himself had been in the darkest of pits – there would have been no single globe, no light to break the blackness. Today in that pit there is a simple wooden lectern on which has been placed a folder containing the words of Psalm 88. One of the ladies in our group began to read them:
I am overwhelmed with troubles and my life draws near death. I am counted among those who go down to the pit … You have put me in the lowest pit, in the darkest depths (Psalm 88:3-6).
I stood in wonder at what I was hearing, taken back to that time many years earlier when I had been in my dark dungeon, when God had assured me that He was already there, and that even in that wretched pit I was not alone. Now, from His very Word – the Holy Scriptures – and spoken from the depths of a dark pit, He was validating the reality of what He had told me. Words failed me, tears flowed, and my heart rejoiced at His faithfulness to me.
The fabulous Saint Peter in-Gallicantu Church is built in the slopes of mount Zion. According to tradition, this was the place of the palace of high priest Caiaphas. Many believe that, after his arrest, Jesus may have been imprisoned in one of the underground crypts that lie beneath the church.
Anton 17 / CC BY-SA
Anton 17 / CC BY-SA
You may wish to follow up Irene’s reflection by reading more: Rev. Julie Schendel’s ‘The Sacred Pit’ (April 6, 2012) offers a powerful account of her visit to Caiaphas’ house. …”The pit consisted of a small area, perhaps 15 by 15 feet square, maybe 20 feet deep. No windows. No doors. No lights. The only way in or out was for a prisoner to be lowered by rope, tied around their shoulders and chest, lowering them in through the hole in the roof. Lowering them into the cold, empty darkness of the pit. Alone. Forgotten.
This is where it is believed Jesus spent his last night before his death.”
Photo by Susan Sontag at Souvenir Chronicles
Susan Sontag’s blog entry JERUSALEM: CHURCH OF ST. PETER IN GALLICANTU AND THE VIA DOLOROSA gives a brief history of the site of St. Peter in Gallicantu and includes images of the mosaics.
There is a mosaic depicting Jesus in a rope harness is on the outside south wall of the church.
Psalm88 - Prayer for Help in Despondency
A Song. A Psalm of the Korahites.
To the leader: according to Mahalath Leannoth. A Maskil of Heman the Ezrahite.
O Lord, God of my salvation,
when, at night, I cry out in your presence,
let my prayer come before you;
incline your ear to my cry.
For my soul is full of troubles,
and my life draws near to Sheol.
I am counted among those who go down to the Pit;
I am like those who have no help,
like those forsaken among the dead,
like the slain that lie in the grave,
like those whom you remember nomore,
for they are cut off from your hand.
You have put me in the depths of the Pit,
in the regions dark and deep.
Your wrath lies heavy upon me,
and you overwhelm me with all your waves.
Selah
You have caused my companions to shun me;
you have made me a thing of horror to them.
I am shut in so that I cannot escape;
my eye grows dim through sorrow.
Every day I call on you, O Lord;
I spread out my hands to you.
Do you work wonders for the dead?
Do the shades rise up to praise you?
Selah
Is your steadfast love declared in the grave,
or your faithfulness in Abaddon?
Are your wonders known in the darkness,
or your saving help in the land of forgetfulness?
But I, O Lord, cry out to you;
in the morning my prayer comes before you.
O Lord, why do you cast me off?
Why do you hide your face from me?
Wretched and close to death from my youth up,
I suffer your terrors; I am desperate.
Your wrath has swept over me;
your dread assaults destroy me.
They surround me like a flood all day long;
from all sides they close in on me.
You have caused friend and neighbour to shun me;
my companions are in darkness.
New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright © 1989, 1995
National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America.
Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. http://nrsvbibles.org
