Year C - Third Sunday of Lent

The story of the Exodus figures large in Lent, as the journey out of slavery and into freedom - from slavery to the Egyptians or from slavery to sin. The early Christians, coming from a Jewish background, found the Exodus idea very helpful in understanding what God has done for them in Christ. Paul uses the exodus idea in an allegorical way in the second reading.

The Exodus story begins with the call of Moses to be God’s instrument in saving the people of Israel, in the story of the “Burning Bush.” Moses sees this and hears God speak to him. The gods that pagan polytheists believed in were numerous and localized in those days, usually “the god of this mountain” or “the god of that river”, and so on. Moses was probably at this point in his life a polytheist – a believer in many gods - and wanted to know which god (of many possible gods) he had met, and so asks the name of the god. God answers Moses in two ways: first identifying with his ancestors (Abraham, Isaac and Jacob), rather than a place, and second as "I am who I am." This is a rather strange expression, and has been interpreted in various ways: it could mean, “I am the only God” i.e. ‘I exist unlike all the other so-called gods who do not exist’; or “As God I am the only Self-existent being”; or simply “I won't give my name - you cannot know it”. There could be an implication that God really has no name, because only individual creatures or objects have a name, and God is not a creature or an object, but the source of all existence. This discussion could get very philosophical!

Anyway, the Name of God is held in great respect by the Jewish people; people were forbidden to speak the Name of God aloud; it was spoken but once a year on the Day of Atonement by the High Priest. One of the Ten Commandments is about “not taking the Name of God in vain”.

Note also that God speaks in political and economic terms to God’s people. God will save them from slavery, poverty and oppression, and give them freedom, land, prosperity and independence. Mixing religion and politics! No god had ever made promises like this before. Note also that this Exodus language was very important in the history of the struggle for freedom among African American slaves, not from Egyptian masters, but from other Christians!

The Gospel this Sunday is rather bizarre, and probably frightening to children, so I suggest concentrating on the Exodus 'Burning Bush' story instead.