Canon Rob's Reflections

Today, we are called to remember and we will be joined by millions of other people around the world who will do so: to remember those who have died in wars; especially the two World Wars, and those which have taken place since. I have just finished reading a book, “The Four Fires,” by Bryce Courtenay who is one of my favourite authors. Although a novel, it is based on much research and is about an Australian family of Irish descent. The ‘narrator’ is one of the sons, nicknamed Mole, and his relationship with the other members of his family, especially his father who is a very sad figure. In the last part of the book, readers find out why. Mole’s father was a soldier in World War 2, captured by the Japanese and so badly treated as a POW, he never recovered. The horror of what he and his fellow prisoners went through was painful to read and I will remember it for a long time. It was hoped that the First World War would end all wars. Tragically that has not come true as we know from watching the news.

The author of Psalm 22 grew up in a world which was torn apart by warfare and it is likely that his words were a prayer for the king as he went out to fight another battle. “May the Lord hear you in the day of trouble, the name of the God of Jacob defend you;” [Verse 1.] One of my commentaries suggests it was a prayer for King David, offered by those who lived in Jerusalem as they watched their king lead his army. They know victory will come only with the help of the Lord. “Send you help from his sanctuary and strengthen you out of Zion.” [Verse 2.] Note though that the use of the words “you” and “your” in the first five verses suggest that, if it is about King David, they are addressing him and not God. So in verse 3 the king is encouraged to remember the sacrifices he offered to the Lord. Verse 4 begins, “Grant you your heart’s desire…,” which presumably is a request to God that the king will win the battle because the following verse makes it clear that victory is what is desired: “May we rejoice in your salvation and triumph in the name of our God..” In verse 6, there is a change in the personal pronoun from “we” as in verse 5, to “I.” “Now I know that the Lord will save his anointed; he will answer from his holy heaven,…” Again, one of my commentaries suggests that today’s psalm was sung in the Temple in Jerusalem, perhaps as part of an act of worship, and the cantor alone sang verse 6. If so, verses 7, 8 and 9 were a response from the congregation where the personal pronoun reverts back to “we.”

As you reflect upon Psalm 20 then, picture in your mind the images you see on television of a conflict taking place in the world today, as well as what you know of World War 2, and imagine yourself in church where, during the Service, today’s psalm is being recited. If you are able to do this you may get a sense of what it felt like to those worshippers who used it for the first time and also see how the psalms have a timeless quality about them. Reflecting on them is not an intellectual exercise, but a way of trying to get behind the words to the sentiment originally expressed so that they are relevant and ‘speak to us’ today. As I have said before, the psalms express every emotion and experience which we go through. All of life is in them! In them we find pain and sorrow, fear and contrition, courage and hope: and hope is certainly to be found in today’s psalm. See the confidence and trust in God which is expressed in verse 6: “Now I know that the Lord will save his anointed.” Then in verse 7 the author shows where the right priorities lie: not in the large number of horses and chariots which the enemy apparently have and rely on; but in the “name of the Lord our God.” The enemy are “brought down and fallen” but “we are risen and stand upright.”[Verse 8.]

The final verse is a prayer for the king, which is also in the Book of Common Prayer and used during Morning and Evening Prayer. Even if you are not familiar with that, it is a reminder that we should pray often for our monarch and for all who carry a heavy burden of responsibility in the world, this country and the Church.