Take the time to read this: 'Hope for Those Most Often Sinned Against'

[Tsiyu]

This is an enlightening read for those who want to understand what was written in the past versus what is being done today in "God's name."


Written by Irv Heishman for the National Council of Churches' website

http://www.ncccusa.org/poverty/sermon-heishman.html

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"In the book of Exodus we see a glaring example of political and social sin against a poor people. A new king arose over Egypt who did not know Joseph. This new king did not have any personal relationships with the Hebrew people. This kind of social segregation always breeds suspicion and fear. The king is no exception: "They are too many and too mighty," he fears.

So the king began a program of blatant, racist oppression. He enslaved the Hebrew people and as his fears grew, he increased the oppression, making their lives bitter with hard service. He levied unfair production quotas against the Hebrews. This did not relieve his fears so the king orders the Hebrew midwives to kill all the male children born to the people. This was a brutal but systematic program of forced population control. While all seems gloomy, there is a sign of hope at this point in the story, the first of many.

We see next in the story a grass-roots, feminist faith-based protest movement emerging. The midwives have had enough of the king's brutality and so they decide to break this unjust law. The scripture says, "the midwives feared God, and did not do as the king of Egypt commanded them, but let the male children live." When Pharaoh questioned them, they made up an ingenious fib declaring that the Hebrew women were so vigorous they had their babies before the midwives could arrive on the scene. In verses 20 to 21, we see that the Lord God was pleased with the civil disobedience of these women and rewarded them with families of their own.

Not about to be beaten by a bunch of midwives, Pharaoh tightened up the enforcement of his population control program by commanding all the people to throw all the male children of the Hebrews into the Nile River. The men were probably saying, "I told you so, now look what you’ve gotten us into." That’s the end of chapter one. Things are not looking good."


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