Out of the Depths
Out of the depths I have cried to thee, O Lord:
Lord, hear my voice. Let thy ears be attentive to the voice of my supplication.
If thou, O Lord, wilt mark iniquities: Lord, who shall stand it.
For with thee there is merciful forgiveness: and by reason of thy law, I have waited for thee, O Lord. My soul hath relied on his word:
my soul hath hoped in the Lord.
From the morning watch even until night, let Israel hope in the Lord.
Because with the Lord there is mercy: and with him plentiful redemption.
And he shall redeem Israel from all his iniquities (Psalm 129[130]).
This Psalm is one which we need to pray fervently. It reminds us of where we are and who we are called to be. Out of the depths we cry to the Lord. How profound a description of where we are and our current condition; certainly this is a fitting translation from the Latin, De profundis.
We live in a world that is, more often than not, cruel, unforgiving and ungodly. In this world we often lose sight of our identity as followers of Christ and forget who we are called to be. We call ourselves Christians but often we are Christians in name only and not in deed.
If we pause long enough to allow the mental commotion to settle, stop consuming that which the world offers, stop pursuing frivolities and focus on our calling, we may realize that we are in the depths of an existence that is far from Christ. In recognizing this, rather than being downcast, we should be thankful for the grace that clarifies; for having arrived at this humbling realization we finally are free to cry out to the Lord who saves us…and this is exactly what we must do: Seek His mercy and give Him praise. Being free from sin is true freedom indeed.
Out of the depths I have cried to thee, O Lord: Lord, hear my voice!
Tu Solus 