Catechesis Notes for the Week — The Lord Remembers His Promise to Save His People—When the Lord “remembers” it does not mean that He had forgotten, but rather that He is acting according to His promise of salvation to us. When we “remember” the Lord, we are recalling His promises to us and calling out to Him on the basis of those promises. This week’s readings continue the narrative of God’s call to Moses to redeem the children of Israel from bondage in Egypt. In the Lord Goes with Moses to Egypt, we learn of Moses’ doubts and apprehension. The Lord promises to go with him and gives him signs to show before Pharaoh and his brother Aaron to speak on his behalf. When Moses Goes to Pharaoh the Lord’s prediction comes true. Pharaoh hardens his heart and life for the children of Israel becomes even more difficult as they have to gather their own straw to make bricks. The children of Israel are distraught and speak against Moses. In a powerful proclamation of God’s saving acts that He performed on the basis of His promises, the Lord Promises Deliverance. The Lord foretold to Moses everything that would unfold for him before Pharaoh and what he was to do. In the Lord Gives Signs, the Lord demonstrates His superiority over the gods of Egypt and how He will harden Pharaoh’s heart that He might gain honor over Pharaoh. The Plagues are a set of nine plagues in three groups of three which demonstrate that the Lord God of Israel is the only true and living God over the false gods of Egypt. The water turned into blood, the frogs, and the lice demonstrate the Lord’s judgment against the Egyptian gods of the underworld. The flies, the diseased livestock, and the boils demonstrate the Lord’s judgment against the Egyptian gods of the earthly plane. And the plagues of hail, locusts, and darkness demonstrate the Lord’s judgment against the Egyptian gods of the overworld. Through this public display before Egypt and Israel, the Lord demonstrates that He is the only true and living God.

CP230212doc