How did you get to where you are now? I’m not talking about what vehicle you drove to get to your geographical location. I’m not inquiring about the various moves in your past. I have something broader in mind. How is it that you have come to have faith in Jesus Christ or that you are looking for something profound from Jesus? Who told you about Jesus? Who told them about Jesus? Who supported you with words of encouragement and support?
Starting on August 27, the lectionary Old Testament lessons hit some high points in the story of Moses. Moses is one of the greats in the Bible. In fact, you don’t have to be a student of the Bible to know the name Moses. Since Cecil B. DeMille’s epic The 10 Commandments, or other theatrical versions of the Exodus story, most people can locate the person of Moses as a significant player in the history of the Jewish people.
Those with a little bit of Bible or Sunday School under their belt might recognize some of his exploits. Moses is the one who experiences God in a burning bush. Moses is the one who confronts Pharaoh in Pharaoh’s own courts. Moses is the agent who announces the plagues. Moses is the one who leads the people out of Egypt and from their lives of slavery. Moses is the one who guides them through the wilderness. Moses is the one who brings down from the Mountain of God the 10 Commandments. Moses is the one to lead the Israelites to the Promised Land of Israel. Clearly, Exodus is the story of Moses and God’s miraculous work through Moses.
AND YET … none of these great feats of God’s liberating activities through Moses would have been possible without the heroic and courageous actions of 5 women. There are:
- 2 midwives, Puah and Shiphrah, who are named in one verse, but whose stories are never told
- Moses’ mother: unnamed in this episode, but identified as Jochebed in the genealogical list of Exodus 6:20
- Moses’ sister: unnamed until Exodus 15:20
- Daughter of Pharaoh – never named
We couldn’t begin to speak about Moses were it not for some very important, “unimportant” people. It’s a paradox, but it’s true. Moses never would have made it to adulthood without the direct action of 5 women. Remember, in Old Testament times, Israel was a very patriarchal culture. Women were largely considered unimportant and insignificant. Yet, scripture memorializes their important role in God’s liberation of Israel. Despite a cultural designation of unimportance, they are hugely important in God’s ongoing work in the world, and they are included in the Exodus narrative.
Beyond their central role in the beginning of Moses’ story, they remind us of the importance of all people in God’s story. Effective service exercised by lesser known members of a community are as important as those who hold positions of power. The truth is that there are no insignificant or unimportant people in God’s legacy of grace. All of us have a role to play. All of us may play a key role in the ongoing life of the mission of Jesus Christ, even though we may not know it at the time. All of us, no matter what we do, no matter what our station in life is, can be an important link in God’s legacy of grace.
God’s grace and mercy counteracts the brutal scheme of power. All of these women lived in a way that affirms and supports life. They refused to be a part of systems that detract from life. We, too, as disciples of a liberating Messiah, must be people who affirm life and love against forces that detract or deny life and love. To continue the lineage of grace, we must act in ways that infuse the world and the lives of others with grace. Either by sharing life and love or by struggling against the forces that detract from life, demean humanity, or destroy futures.
Back to the questions that started this reflection, my hunch is that our journey of faith is filled with some very important unimportant people. They may never have their names in a history book or even have their own Wikipedia page. Yet, they have had a huge impact on our story of faith.
I pray that God will use me, and that God will use you, to give birth, safeguard or sustain the life of faith in others. 