We Westerners commonly think that Jesus, on the night he was betrayed, went to a private place in the garden of Gethsemane to pray (Mt 26:36-39). Actually, none of the Gospels say the place he prayed was private or solitary: “Sit here while I go over there” (Mt 26:36); “withdrew about a stone’s throw beyond them” (Lk 22:41); “he took Peter, James and John along with him,” and then “going a little farther” (Mk 14:33, 35). It is clear only that he separated from the disciples. At Passover, the garden was likely packed with people;
