The People of
Israel are in Egypt, slaves of Pharaoh. Moses leads them out of Egypt through
the waters of the Red Sea, where Pharaoh and his soldiers are drowned, into the
desert with the promise of one day reaching the Holy Land. They wander in the
desert for 40 years, guided by the Pillar of Fire and the Commandments, and
sustained by Manna from heaven. Some longed to return to Egypt, preferring the
relative comfort of Egyptian slavery to the hardships of freedom in the desert.
The prophet Jesus (Joshua) finally leads those who have remained faithful into the
Promised Land.
We are in the
world, slaves to the Devil. We are led out of this slavery through the waters
of baptism, where the Devil and his demons lose their power over us. We thereby enter
the battleground of faith, the Church militant, guided by the Spirit of God and
Holy Tradition, and receiving divine sustenance from the Eucharist. Some return to
the ways of the world, preferring the comfort of sin to the hardship of the
Cross. At the end of one’s earthly life, those who have remained faithful
attain the Heavenly Jerusalem, the presence of Jesus.
The End
