The Burning Bush of God’s presence
 

The episode of the burning bush presents God as both awesome and fascinating. The bush appears to be on fire and yet is not destroyed. As he looks more closely at the bush, Moses hears a voice that is identified as the voice of God. Moses is told to remove his sandals because he stands now on holy ground, in the presence of God. I had the blessing to visit these places. It is situated at foot of Mount Sinai where a Christian monastery was built in the fifth century. The monks show to the pilgrims a shrub which they say is an offshoot of that famous bush that Moses saw.

In the Bible the “name” stands for the whole person. When asked for his name, God replies, "I am who am." Yes, because we are the ones who are not. In other words: God is telling Moses: “Do not try to understanding me, to label me. I shall be what I shall be. When you will be needing a friend, I’ll be your best friend. When you will need a Redeemer, I shall be your Redeemer. Just trust me”!

God is not aloof, removed from our life, living in a different world. No! He is close to us more than we can imagine. He has heard the prayers of his people in the midst of suffering, and He has determined to rescue them through Moses and to lead them into a "land flowing with milk and honey."

I am reminded of the Chinese Goddess with hundred of arms, ready to rescue whomever cries out to her. Her name is: ”The one who hears the cry of the people”.

God had heard the cries of the people, seen their tears. His solution to their sorrows is the vocation of Moses: “I am sending you to Pharaoh to set my people free” Our Christian vocation is the solution that God has in mind for the many sufferings of our society. The God who did not need the angels to create the world now needs us to save it. God is in need of our commitment. We are the new Moses to our time. We are the ones who can change our parish, if only we were a bit more committed.