James A. Weathersby,
Exodus 1:8-2:10 Psalm 124 Romans 12:1-8 Matthew 16:13-20
As I become older, seems my memory goes farther back than anticipates events ahead. Iremember my Old Testament Class, learning that the Books were named for the central character, theTheme, or the pivotal event in the life of the people. Exodus means ‘the road out’, referring specifically tothe Children of Israel coming out form their captivity and 400 years of Slavery in Egypt. We have pivotalexperiences in the life of America: The Revolution, the World Wars, the Suffragette Movement, the CivilRights Struggle/Movement. Now our Nation, along with and the World, are experiencing the GlobalPandemic of the Novel Covid Virus and varying Civil Unrest. I wonder what history will call thesemoments in time? Whatever the name, I am confident we as the human species, will learn, adapt andmature thru these discomforting events together. That is the Nature of life; we shall find the road out ofthis mayhem. Scriptures confirm this continually; humanity has persisted through the toughest of eventsand experiences in History.
In the first half of the holy Bible, we find recorded in the second Book of the Old Testament,these words in Exodus, “When the child grew up, she brought him to Pharaoh’s daughter, and shetook him as her son. She named him Moses, “because,” she said, “I drew him out of the water.”(Vs.10) This is the memory of the Children coming out form their captivity in Egypt, lead by the delivererMoses. His name is his resume, given to him by the daughter of Pharaoh ‘because I drew him out of thewater’. In the Middle Eastern cultures, names say something about your character, your heritage or yourfuture. The power of his name comes from his circumstance; Moses was born a slaves’ son among slavesin Egypt, who were condemned to death by the Pharaoh. His order to the midwives was clear, “SoPharaoh commanded all his people saying, “Every son who is born you shall cast into the river, andevery daughter you shall save alive” (Vs.22). To disobey the Pharaoh is punishable by death; theconditions Moses is born under are cruel. His circumstances are like today; the disenfranchised people arecaptive to their conditions beyond their resources because of the abusive politics in fear and power. ButGod is here.
Despite the edits commanding the destruction of the male babies born to the Hebrew slaves,Moses’ parents refuse to obey. The Hebrew Midwives Shiphrah and Puah refuse to obey; their namesmentioned as people of honor and respect by God (Vs.15). The babies are supposed to be thrown into theriver, another representative of a deity of the Egyptians. When this good-looking baby becomes too old toconceal, his mother constructs a basket, daubed with ‘asphalt and pitch’ (crude oil) to make it waterproof(2:3). This ‘mini ark’ with the baby inside, is placed among the reeds along the shoreline, with his oldersister watching him, “to know what would be done to him” (Vs.4). This situation is rife with thepotential for destruction; alligators, hippos, water asps, and the current harsh culture could lead to disaster.But God is gracious in every situation where people of faith obey. Despite the harsh culture of WWII,enslaved Jews and concealing Christians survived the Holocaust. African Americans survived the MiddlePassage and Slavery, ‘Jim Crow’ and Segregation Laws. LGBTQ communities survived the restrictiveCity Laws and the diagnoses and treatments of the DSM criteria. The road out of cruelty is long but leadsto freedom. Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., reminded us that “the arc of the moral universe is long, butit bends toward justice.” Change takes a long time, but it does happen. There will be a road out in time.
Novel Virus Covid, Black Lives Matter Movement, Climate Change and Civil Unrest, everyoneis looking for relief from this mayhem. The Word from God is the same today as it was centuriesago...there will be a road out. Remain faithful to the Causes of Justice, Mercy and Humility (Micah 6:8).Pax
The Rev. James A. Weathersby M.Div., BCC was born in Chicago, product of a dedicated single mother and the Public-School system. He is a genetic Baptist and a historic Democrat; spirituality in his veins for generations. His family valued Education and the Black church; there are four generations of ministers in his family, serving as Pastors of congregations and Chaplains in Institutions. His Bachelors of Arts came from Trinity Christian College in Palos Heights, Illinois from the Reformed Churches of America tradition. His Masters of Divinity Degree (specialty in Pastoral Care and Counseling) came from the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary of Louisville Kentucky, from the Southern Baptist tradition. His professional career as a Chaplain includes serving populations in Hospitals, Hospice, both Men’s and Women’s Corrections (Death Row Chaplain) in several Midwestern states. His time in Maine has included Chaplaincy at a Youth Development Center, Pastor to an island congregation and lately, Chaplain (II) of the State Forensic and civil Psychiatric Center. He has been honored to be married for 27 years and enjoy writing, yoga, and reading.
Moving Forward, painting by Valerie A. Clemons.
