Day Twenty Eight

Exodus 6

2 God also spoke to Moses and said to him: "I am the Lord,

3 I appeared to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob as God Almighty, but by my name 'The Lord' I did not make myself known to them.

4 I also established my covenant with them, to give them the land of Canaan, the land in which they reside as aliens.

5 I have also heard the groaning of the Israelites whom the Egyptians are holding as slaves, and I have remembered my covenant.

6 Say therefore to the Israelites, 'I am the Lord, and I will free you from the burdens of the Egyptians and deliver you from slavery to them. I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with mighty acts of judgement.

7 I will take you as my people, and I will be your God.
You shall know that I am the Lord your God, who has freed you from the burdens of the Egyptians…"

FREEDOM
from Nelson Mandela

"When I first walked out of prison, that was my mission, to liberate the oppressed and the oppressor both. Some say that this has now been achieved. But I know that that is not the case. The truth is that we are not yet free; we have merely achieved the freedom to be free, the right not to be oppressed. We have not taken the final step of our journey, but the first step on a longer and even more difficult road. For to be free is not merely to cast off one's chains, but to live in a way that respects and enhances the freedom of others. The true test of our devotion to freedom is just beginning.

I have walked that long road to freedom. I have tried not to falter; I have made missteps along the way. But I have discovered the secret that after climbing a great hill, one only finds that there are many more hills to climb. I have taken a moment here to rest, to steal a view of the glorious vista that surrounds me, to look back on the distance I have come. But I can rest only for a moment, for with freedom come responsibilities, and I dare not linger, for my long walk is not yet ended."

Nelson Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom [Abacus, 1995]
Final paragraphs p751