.png){kind=logo}
Mission
Inspire & Ignite Blog
MODERN EXODUS CRISIS
The Exodus, the epic story at the heart of Hebrew spirituality, lands the natural center of the semester in which we study the Old Testament in our yearlong journey through scripture in sophomore theology. The Lord said, “I have witnessed the affliction of my people in Egypt and have heard their cry against their taskmasters, so I know well what they are suffering. Therefore, I have come down – to rescue them from the power of the Egyptians and lead them up from that land into a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey.” (Ex: 3:7-8a) The Creator of the Universe cares so much about the suffering of enslaved people, He enters human history in order to free them.
The Exodus, the epic story at the heart of Hebrew spirituality, lands the natural center of the semester in which we study the Old Testament in our yearlong journey through scripture in sophomore theology. The Lord said, “I have witnessed the affliction of my people in Egypt and have heard their cry against their taskmasters, so I know well what they are suffering. Therefore, I have come down – to rescue them from the power of the Egyptians and lead them up from that land into a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey.” (Ex: 3:7-8a) The Creator of the Universe cares so much about the suffering of enslaved people, He enters human history to free them.
In the New Testament, Jesus began his public ministry as the Messiah by quoting the Prophet Isaiah and proclaiming that He had come to “let the oppressed go free.” (Luke 4:18) This is who God is—the One who saves the oppressed and “hears the cry of the poor.” (Psalm 24) The call that started with YWHW in the burning bush and continued with Christ on the cross is now the responsibility of the Church—that means us—thrust into the world by the power of the Holy Spirit.
One way I have guided my students to respond to the call is through examining the Exodus story through a modern lens. Many of our students learn about the suffering in Syria as a “Modern Exodus Crisis” and explore creative ways to answer God’s call to “Let my people go.” (Ex 9:1) At the midpoint in our study of the Exodus, I ask my sophomores to lean into the “Commitment to Doing Justice” pillar of the Graduate at Graduation and directly connect the Divine Revelation in Exodus to the current Syrian refugee crisis. They watch videos from the United Nations, read stories of refugees and analyze data from Catholic Relief Services. I love accompanying my students through this experience, especially because of how they relate to Moses, a broken man who felt imprisoned by his own inadequacies and shame. “But Moses said to God, ‘Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?’” (Ex 3:11) My students find solace and hope in God’s choice because it means that God can work with and through them as well. “God answered: ‘I will be with you.’” (Ex 3:12)
I am deeply humbled by their insights, and, with each student’s permission, I want to share just a few with you:
Based on the deeper truths revealed in the Exodus story we can closely relate them to the Syrian refugee crisis. In the Exodus story, God calls on Moses to help the Israelites on their journey out of Egypt because they could not possibly do it on their own. God is with them through thick and thin and eventually helps them gain their freedom. God has revealed in Scripture that we need to help others who can’t help themselves. We must help the people of Syria who are escaping their home country in search of a better life and future. As listed in the document Seven Things You Can Do to Help from Catholic Relief Services, some of the things we can do to help these people are donating to a charity that gives money to this cause, educating ourselves on the subject so we know how to better help, and perhaps the most important, praying. God tells the Israelites that even though it might be tough, you need to pray. For these people who might find it tough to pray for themselves because of the predicament they are in, we need to be their channel to God and we need to pray for them, just as the Lord commanded us to.
- Luke MacPhee ’22
In the New Testament, Jesus began his public ministry as the Messiah by quoting the Prophet Isaiah and proclaiming that He had come to “let the oppressed go free.” (Luke 4:18) This is who God is—the One who saves the oppressed and “hears the cry of the poor.” (Psalm 24) The call that started with YWHW in the burning bush and continued with Christ on the cross is now the responsibility of the Church—that means us—thrust into the world by the power of the Holy Spirit.
One way I have guided my students to respond to the call is through examining the Exodus story through a modern lens. Many of our students learn about the suffering in Syria as a “Modern Exodus Crisis” and explore creative ways to answer God’s call to “Let my people go.” (Ex 9:1) At the midpoint in our study of the Exodus, I ask my sophomores to lean into the “Commitment to Doing Justice” pillar of the Graduate at Graduation and directly connect the Divine Revelation in Exodus to the current Syrian refugee crisis. They watch videos from the United Nations, read stories of refugees and analyze data from Catholic Relief Services. I love accompanying my students through this experience, especially because of how they relate to Moses, a broken man who felt imprisoned by his own inadequacies and shame. “But Moses said to God, ‘Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?’” (Ex 3:11) My students find solace and hope in God’s choice because it means that God can work with and through them as well. “God answered: ‘I will be with you.’” (Ex 3:12)
I am deeply humbled by their insights, and, with each student’s permission, I want to share just a few with you:
Based on the deeper truths revealed in the Exodus story we can closely relate them to the Syrian refugee crisis. In the Exodus story, God calls on Moses to help the Israelites on their journey out of Egypt because they could not possibly do it on their own. God is with them through thick and thin and eventually helps them gain their freedom. God has revealed in Scripture that we need to help others who can’t help themselves. We must help the people of Syria who are escaping their home country in search of a better life and future. As listed in the document Seven Things You Can Do to Help from Catholic Relief Services, some of the things we can do to help these people are donating to a charity that gives money to this cause, educating ourselves on the subject so we know how to better help, and perhaps the most important, praying. God tells the Israelites that even though it might be tough, you need to pray. For these people who might find it tough to pray for themselves because of the predicament they are in, we need to be their channel to God and we need to pray for them, just as the Lord commanded us to.
- Luke MacPhee ’22
The lesson that connects the crisis in Syria to the lesson in Scripture is that God supports the slave, and God supports the refugee. Throughout the Exodus journey, God supports and loves the Israelites, the slaves, and we must do the same. It is our moral obligation as Christians to also support the slave and support the refugee. Very specifically in this case, the Syrians affected by the Syrian crisis.
-Gunnar Hustead ’22
-Gunnar Hustead ’22
One of the deepest truths relating to the modern and ancient Exodus is that God is among His people. These civilians are being torn from their homes, but in almost all of the accounts I have read, most mention that God still protects them in foreign lands. Many say that all they have are “mattresses and God” after being forced to leave the only place they’ve ever known. We all need to stop ignoring this crisis and give the people the full attention they deserve. We can help by donating to charities that are working in Syria, or help spread awareness so that none can ignore the thousands of killed and displaced people. We also need to speak out to our own government—with letters, with protests, etc.—and try to improve the asylum process, living conditions, and how much we are giving to Syrian refugees compared to other crises.
- Sam Istvan ’22
- Sam Istvan ’22
One of the major themes of Exodus is living with foreigners, and how we should love them as ourselves instead of being extremely cruel and enslaving them out of fear. We are called to care for those fleeing oppression and death and give them something better. When migrants die on a voyage to get out of Syria to Europe, it is against what a deeper truth of Exodus tells us to do. We are our brothers’ keeper, and as migrants are our brothers, we need to help them and look out for them.
- Francesco Holm ’22
- Francesco Holm ’22
We should support them. Not only by praying for them but sometimes we are the vessels that God works through, like Moses. We can provide them food and shelter on their journey to their Promised Land. Moses didn’t enter the Promised Land because he was already there spiritually, and if we look at this in terms of geography, we are already in America. It is a Promised Land, even though it does have flaws. We can help those refugees get to a geographic Promised Land so they are safe from harm and can live a healthy life.
- Luke Wolpert ’22
- Luke Wolpert ’22
God calls us to help everyone, but most specifically the poor and persecuted. The majority of Syrian refugees don't even have homes because they are running for their lives. We as a people of God should understand persecution to a major degree. During the Exodus, the Israelites were killed and enslaved. These are our people. So are the Syrian refugees. God calls us to love our neighbor and to say that Syrians are not our problem goes directly against the message of love that the Bible conveys. Furthermore, to suggest that Syrians are not our neighbors contradicts what Jesus himself taught. We have been called to help and provide for those who are struggling since the beginning of time, yet when our own selfish concerns come into play we forget what we were created for. For anyone who holds the belief that we don't have to aid the refugees, I would ask you to put yourself in their shoes. As for people of God, this same story was once written about the Israelites in Egypt. Then, and now, we are called to help people who are suffering to the best of our abilities.
- Ashley Buck ’21
- Ashley Buck ’21
“My strength and my refuge are the Lord, and he has become my savior.” (Exodus 15:2)
_______________
Nick Fagnant ’02 teaches sophomore and junior theology and also serves as the assistant theology department chair and the moderator of the Cornerstone Program. He is a proud alum and has worked at the school since 2009.
Main-Visitor Entrance
Regis Jesuit High School
Mail-Delivery Address
Regis Jesuit High School admits students of any race, color, national and ethnic origin to all the rights, privileges, programs and activities generally accorded or made available to students at the school. It does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national and ethnic origin in administration of its educational policies, admissions policies, scholarship and loan programs, athletic and other school-administered programs.