The relevance of the Old Testament.

Mrs McDermott, Head of Religious Studies, realised that this contribution from Lucia in Lower IV, was eminently applicable to the current situation we find ourselves in. A moving and very relevant diary entry dating back to the days of the Old Testament, when the Hebrews were enslaved in the land of Egypt.  Read on to discover more…

‘Moses, oh Moses. He is trying to free us all from slavery and bring justice to this world, but he does not realise how much damage he has caused! Oh dear! Today the most abnormal and horrifying thing happened. I find it unbelievable to even think about those dreadful images of that sight. Blood. Blood was everywhere. In rivers, in lakes, in ponds. All the essential water that keeps us, and our livestock alive disappeared to nowhere. Perhaps I should not blame Moses for this, but the Pharaoh for being so stubborn and not letting us go!

I am tired of this life, working non-stop with hardly any rest; now matters have just got worse! With no water, how can I maintain myself and my family, my poor little daughter. How can she grow and become strong as the daughter of a slave and living in these conditions with no water! Fear envelops me and everything seems so miserable and frightening. I am not alone. All the citizens of Egypt are victims of this, but when will this end? This is what I dread the most, the fact that nobody has any idea when this situation will come to an end. However, this is only the beginning, God planned many other plagues.

All of a sudden, I noticed an increase in these small, slimy creatures. They were harmless, at least that’s what I thought. I was trying to build, with all my strength, this massive pyramid in the scorching heat of the sun. That is when I realised that there were disgusting creatures observing me the whole time. I examined my surroundings and came to the realisation that we had been invaded by frogs. Frogs, how bizarre! I started wondering if perhaps those frogs have brought diseases to our land. Moses must have asked the Pharaoh to free us, and he selfishly rejected again. He has a heart of stone, he seems inhumane. No empathy, no compassion towards our needs and feelings, he only cares for himself and no one else. How egotistical! I heard one of the Israelites, the man with the long beard who never speaks and is always very shy and depressed (because of his malnourished sister, poor man), that God told Moses to “Stretch out your hand with your staff over the rivers, the canals, and the pools, and make frogs come up on the land of Egypt.” Why do we have to be victims of this? What have we done wrong? I will never understand the reason for this, it is too extreme! Why does almighty God have to do this to free us, is there no other way?

Oh God, full omnipotence and goodness, please keep my family safe and bring peace and joy to this world, please.’