Perhaps you have heard of the Paris Catacombs, a mass grave located in tunnels beneath the city.  In the late 18th century, Parisian cemeteries were overcrowded. The filth from decomposing bodies was seeping into the ground and contaminating food stores and causing serious sanitary issues. In response, entire cemeteries were relocated to the tunnels.  

In moving the bodies, identities were lost. Yet when placed in the tunnels, the remains were artistically stacked, creating some of the well-known images from the catacombs. Skulls and femurs were stacked in formations with intricate designs. Even in death, man still seeks to find order. Today, small sections of the catacombs are open to public viewing. Perhaps because of people’s morbid curiosity, it has become one of the city’s biggest tourist attractions. 

A friend visited the Catacombs a few years ago and shared something interesting about the tour. While walking among the hundreds of thousands of bones, they listened to the audio tour guide, which explained the history of the Paris Catacombs. Surrounded by columns of bones, it was, as one might imagine, a dark, cold, and somber experience. 

Then, there was a pause in the tour. The tunnel path split, and at the center was a well. The audio guide explained that during the construction of the catacombs, workers dug the well so they wouldn’t have to carry water down each day. And there, in the depths of the tunnels, surrounded by death and bones, the audio began to quote John 4:10 and 4:14: 

John 4:10 – Jesus answered and said to her, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who says to you, ‘Give Me a drink,’ you would have asked Him, and He would have given you living water.” 

John 4:14 – “But whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst. But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life.” 

In a mass grave of hundreds of thousands, the pure words of the Author of Life rang out. 

My friend also noted that the audio guide was available in several languages. The Paris Catacombs draw tourists, historians, scholars, and artists from around the world, so most audio guides in Paris are offered in multiple languages. I did a quick search and found that the Paris Catacombs attract roughly half a million visitors each year. 

What can we take from this story? One lesson is that, despite our limited human perspective, the gospel continues to go out unhindered. Paris, a city known for its secularism or Catholicism, may seem a far cry from the message of eternal life as a free gift. Yet buried beneath its streets, the gift of eternal life is still being proclaimed. As Acts 1:8 reminds us, the gospel is spreading “to the ends of the earth.” Even in the tunnels beneath Paris, that truth rings out. 

Second, as believers, we can be comforted that no matter how things may appear to us, the Lord is still drawing all men to Himself. Just as He stood by the grave of Lazarus, offering life to all who would believe, so He offers eternal life today, in the mass graves beneath Paris, and in every corner of the world. His universal offer is to: whosoever will believe. 

This message is being proclaimed every day, in multiple languages, under the streets of Paris. And we can be part of proclaiming the message. The John 4 woman at the well heard Jesus’ words and ran to tell her city about the Savior. We can choose to either walk away and keep the message of God’s Word to ourselves, or, like the woman at the well, we can proclaim it boldly.