Exodus 19: 2-20 (links validated 5/22/25a)

J. R. R. Tolkien coined the word ‘eucatastrophe’ which literally means a good turn around. It refers to a sudden and unexpected rescue or ‘joyous turn’ towards the good in the face of an absolutely dire situation; a catastrophe is reversed from bad to good, from death to life...This sudden turn around in the story is well illustrated in Tolkien’s ‘Lord of the Rings’, and many will have read the book or, at least, seen the movie’s various scenes in which the Great Eagles swoop in and save Gandalf from the top of Orthanc, or carry off Frodo and Samwise from Mount Doom, or turn around the final battle in the ‘Return of the King’. The eagle, then, becomes the instrument of the eucatastrophe in Tolkien’s writing; they are a symbol of divine grace, of God acting to save us from sin and destruction, as he has by Christ’s Incarnation and Rising from the dead. The reason Tolkien chooses an eagle as, effectively, the instrument of saving grace and a sign of divine providence may come down to the verse we read today from Exodus in which God declares to Moses: ‘You yourselves have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself’ (Ex 19:4). Indeed, the eagle has long been considered the most noble of birds, and closest to the divine – it is rich in symbolism...

With the Israelites’ history as people who have just emerged from slavery in the background, Brian McLaren paraphrases the commandments in this way: 1. Put the God of liberation first, not the gods of slavery. 2. Don’t reduce God to the manageable size of an idol – certainly not one made of wood and stone by human hands, and not one made by human minds of rituals and words, either, and certainly not one in whose name people are enslaved, dehumanized, or killed! 3. Do not use God for your own agendas by throwing around God’s holy name. 4. Honor the God of liberation by taking and giving everyone a day off. Don’t keep the old 24/7 slave economy going. 5. Turn from self-centeredness by honoring your parents. (After all, honor is the basis of freedom.) 6. Don’t kill people, and don’t do the things that frequently incite violence, including: 7. Don’t cheat with others’ spouses, 8. Don’t steal others’ possessions, and 9. Don’t lie about others’ behaviors or characters. 10. In fact, if you really want to avoid the violence of the old slave economy, deal with its root source – in the drama of desire. Don’t let the competitive desire to acquire tempt you off the road of freedom. I like McLaren’s version of the commandments because they remind us that these are rules for living in community...

Scroll down the page for this resource.

Scroll down the page for this video.

Scroll down the page for this video.