Exodus: the paradigm of liberation- exodus as the story of peoples’ struggles for liberation not as the story of leaders and heroes

Introduction:

Exodus comes next after the genesis and it consit of 40 chapters which tells the life of people lived at the time of Moses.  It is believed that it was written by Moses. (First five books were written by Moses).  Let us look into Dalit and feminist perspective.

Synopsis:

Ø  Dalit perspective

Ø  God-liberator

Ø  Isralite-dalits in india

Ø  Moses-isralites

Ø  Seeking liberation

Ø  Sipparah and puah

Ø  Moses’ mother

Ø  Daughter of pharaoh

Ø  Zipporah

Ø  Miriam

Dalit perspectives:

            Dalits are the oppressed, suppressed and marginalized in the Indian context.  Even though many technologies have been developed in this modern world this caste discrimination was still seen within this ancient country.  Overall, caste can be easily said as high caste and low caste where dalits are low caste people.  Even though they reach the heights others still suppress them in their deeds and thoughts.

God-liberator:-

            In exodus god is portrayed as the liberator who liberates the bonded people from their cruel suppressors.  The political system helped them to suppress those people with power and authority for Dalit communities that god as a liberator who liberates them from the oppression.  Most of the people belong to this Dalit community are poor who are landless people, working in lands for daily wages.  Similarly Isralites were also working class who worked as a bonded labour in that context.

Seeking liberation:-

            Book of exodus deals with the seeking of liberation.  Wherever there is bondage we need liberation.  So this liberation is needed for many all over this congemporaty world.  Only god alone can liberate all this structure formats of troubles, till then no leader or gihter cannot liberate dalit trouble form our county which is impossible in the land which practise caste more that god.

Isralites-Dalits in India:-

            If we take the mindset of both isralites and dalits now in India, both were of same.  The mental pressure which they attain is a suppressed one.  The one dalit will have a dream that nayone will come to save us form this caste problem same mindset was seen in isralites at the time of bondage.  They seek god for liberation and god sent Moses to save them.  Similarly dalits in present context praying to god to save us from caste system to send some Moses.

Moses:- 

            In exodus 2: 23-25.  Here god selects the leader called Moses to liberate them from Egypt.  This passage gives empowerment and hope.

Feminist perspective:-

            Exodus contains only few characters regarding women.  It mainly revolves around the heroic activities of Moses but not the female characters that made him such like that.

Sipparah and puah:

Shiparah and puah are the mid wives whom were mentioned in Ex 1:15-21 were the main theme is they were “God fearing”.  This means women at that time were more god fearing and faith towards god.

Moses’ mother:-

            Moses’ mother was mentioned in Ex 2:1-9.  When pharaoh ordered to kill the new born baby, Moses’ mother didn’t leave that just like that Moses mother saved their newborn by hiding him in a basket in the river, but that time Moses sister Miriam taking guard.

Daughter of pharaoh:-

            Child Moses in basket moved in the reeds went towards the bating place of daughter of pharaoh.  This time pharaoh’s own daughter discovered this Jewish baby and decided to adopt and raise him as her own baby.  Thus she raised Moses in a royal manner.

Zipporah:-

            Moses’ wife was zipporah which is mentioned in (exodus 2) where she was not given importance throughout this book but zipporah saved Moses life.  This shows her voices were never heard in the writings, it is said that Moses simply sent of her wife and children to her father’s house.  Zipporah was more supportive towards her husband but she was not respected towards this whole book.

Suppression towards women:-

            Another4 of pharaoh’s decrees was to give the Jewish women work which was more suited for men and vice versa, even though women were weak in physical as though men lost hope for salvation, the women did not. But women’s faith was so strong.

Moses’s Sister Miriam:-

            Miriam is the sister of Moses but the narrator afiled to present in the narratives.  Miriam is portrayed as a woman of prophet but somehow her song has a place in the narratives of exodus.  Thus all the characters we have seen before saved Moses in many occasions but they were not the prior in exodus.  This clearly shows that women were not given good positon at that time.

Dalits and women:-

            Dalits were they treated low in the present Indian context where women were treated low in many places, especially in exodus book regarding narration they made women as just as objects of Moses’s story.  This clearly shows the oppression of women in exodus and oppression of dalits in our country.

Conclusion:-

            Hence this can be concluded as exodus:  the paradigm of liberation.  Exodus story as the story of people’s struggles for liberation not as the story of leaders and heroes.  From this we can clearly conclude that women play a main role in exodus but it has been interpreted.

Bibliography:-

Arnold, bill and H.G.M. Williamson, Eds. Dictionary of the Old Testament, historical books.  Leicetor: IVP, 2005.

Hinson, David F.  History of Israel. Old Testament introduction 1. Delhi: ISPCK, 1973.

Noel, David freedman, Ed, the anchor bible dictionary, vol 5, New York: Doubleday, 1992.