Scripture
Reading: Exodus chapter 4
Brief
outline of Exodus 4: Moses doubts the Israelites will believe him, so God
gives him three signs: turning his staff into a snake and then back to staff,
making his hand leprous and then healing it, and turning Nile water into
blood. Still, Moses is not confident,
God reassures Moses and permits him to have his brother Aaron as his spokesman.
God commands Moses to return to Egypt with his family and the staff. Once in
Egypt, Moses and Aaron gather the elders of the Israelites, perform the signs
before the people, and they believe and worship God.
Lessons
from St. Gregory of Nyssa (‘Life of Moses’):
St. Gregory
teaches that the signs- Moses turning his staff into a snake and then back to
staff, and making his hand leprous and then healing it, are symbolic of the
Lord’s incarnation.
When Moses
extended his hand from his bosom, it transformed to an unnatural complexion.
The Scripture says that Christ Jesus is the begotten God who is in the bosom of
the Father (St. John 1:18) and is at the right hand of the Most High. (Ref: Rom
8:34; Col 3:1, Eph 1:20, Heb. 1:3 etc.]. Moses drawing his hand from the bosom
symbolizes Christ manifesting to us from the bosom of the Father. The leprosy
on Moses’s hand symbolizes the weakness of human nature which Lord Jesus Christ
assumed. St. Gregory reflects on the Psalmist verse, “It is my grief that the
right hand of the Most High has changed.” (Psalm 77:10; NRSV), noting that
although the divine nature is unchanging, God was willing to lower Himself to
assume the weakness of human nature.
When Moses
placed his hand back to the bosom, it reverted to its natural appearance.
Likewise, Christ, after He wiped away our infirmities, returned to Father’s
bosom. Through His incarnation, Jesus Christ made it possible for our human
nature to be transformed.
Next is the transformation
of a rod into a snake. St. Gregory says that we shouldn't be troubled by
comparing Jesus to a serpent, an animal often seen as negative. He refers to a
verse from the Gospel where Jesus himself makes a comparison to a serpent
lifted by Moses in the wilderness. (St. John 3;14- “And as Moses lifted up the
serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up”).
St. Gregory explains that if Satan, the father of sin, is
depicted as a serpent in Scripture and as serpents can only bring forth
serpents then sin can also be illustrated as a serpent. St. Paul testifies
that the Lord was made into sin for our sake. “For our sake God made the one
who knew no sin to be sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of
God.” (2 Corinthians 5:21). Therefore, if sin is likened to a serpent, then Christ
becoming sin can be seen as Him taking on the likeness of a serpent. The
serpent was transformed back into a rod, guiding sinners and offering support
to those striving for virtue.
Moses’s wife
and sons travel with him back to Egypt. St. Gregory says Moses’s wife who is of
foreign origin represents secular knowledge. While some aspects of secular
knowledge can be beneficial for nurturing virtue, it should not introduce
anything harmful into our spiritual life. As an example, St Gregory states that
certain philosophies align with Christian faith (like the immortality of the
soul) but also teach concepts that contradict it (like the idea of
reincarnation or that God is material). These contradictory ideas are the
"fleshly and alien foreskin" that needs to be "circumcised"
or removed like the way Moses’s wife circumcised her son thereby saving Moses’s
household from the claws of death.
As God told
Aaron to meet Moses in the wilderness, God offers assistance to those who
strive to lead a virtuous life. This
assistance has always been with us, but it becomes evident when we dedicate and
train for higher spiritual pursuits. Earlier Moses’s advice was met with
resistance when he addressed the quarrelling (two) Israelites but now Moses,
with Aaron, addressed the multitude of Israelites of God’s promise and the
people believed. St. Gregory underlines the importance of undergoing rigorous
spiritual training, similar to the preparation Moses underwent, before assuming
a position where one has to guide/lead/instruct others.
Questions
for Personal Reflection:
1. We read above that the leprosy on Moses’s hand signifies the human
weaknesses which Christ Jesus assumed. As we commemorate the healing of leper
on the second Sunday of the great lent, reflect on areas of my life where I
need healing and transformation, whether physical, emotional, or spiritual. Do
I even allow Christ to heal my infirmities and return me to a state of
spiritual health? “Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean.” - how does
this act of faith inspire me to approach Jesus with my own needs and trust in
His willingness to help?
2. Lenten prayer of St. Ephraim (St. Ephraim and St. Theodor commemorated
on the first Saturday of the Great Lent)- “O Lord and Master of my life,
take from me the spirit of sloth, despair, lust of power, and idle talk. But
give rather the spirit of chastity, humility, patience, and love to Thy
servant. Yea, O Lord and King, grant me to see my own transgressions, and not
to judge my brother, for blessed art Thou, unto ages of ages. Amen.”
3. Moses explained to Jethro that his reason for traveling to Egypt was to
see if his people there were still living, without mentioning about God’s
command. Have you ever felt reluctant to share your faith or God’s work in your
life with others?
In Christ,
Rincy
Ref: Gregory of
Nyssa, Saint. The Life of Moses. Translated by A.J. Malherbe and E. Ferguson,
HarperCollins, 2006, pp. 39-41. HarperCollins Spiritual Classics series.
(Original translation published by Paulist Press, 1978)
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