ABSTRACT

This article attempts to analyze Exodus 3:1-12 from the lens of narrative and literary criticism and argues that more than being a story about the call of Moses, the text already brings out a theme that is crucial and fundamental in the entire Exodus narrative, that is, the liberating and salvific act of God (YHWH) as the shepherd of his people. Moses is not just a mediator but someone who personifies the immanent and active presence of God who leads the Israelites out of oppression. He is not just perceptive and sensitive to the affliction of his people. God himself is the one who leads them in the struggle for liberation. With the relentless presence of social injustice and oppression in the world of today, the relevance of this leitmotif needs no further elaboration. Nevertheless, it continues to call contemporary Christians, especially the Institutional Church, to be more committed to its vocation of shepherding God’s people, that is, to be ‘present among’ and to strive for the liberation of the oppressed, the marginalized, and the disenfranchised.