6683 TOB Gr6-8

MINI-LESSON 5
Theology of the Body in the Story of Moses
CCC
CCC 205, 2056–2057, 2113
Standards
for Christian
Anthropology
6.2.2 TOB Explain how
original solitude means the
experience of man’s being
alone-with-God; his unique
relationship to God. (TOB 6:2;
CCC 374-375)
Teacher Background
God called Moses from the burning bush and gave him the
mission of setting His people, the Israelites, free from slavery
in Egypt. This mission called for dangerous encounters
with the Pharaoh, the ten plagues, and culminated in the
Exodus from Egypt, pursued by Pharaoh’s army. Yet the
greater task for Moses was not to physically remove the
Israelites from the bondage of the Egyptians, but instead
to free their hearts from their enslavement to sin and
idolatry. Despite being removed from Egypt, the Israelites
repeatedly clung to the sinful ways they adopted from the
Egyptians, living lives of debauchery, and worshipping
false idols.
God gave Moses the Decalogue, or “ten words,” or Ten
Commandments, which point out the conditions of a life
freed from the slavery of sin. Freedom is often misunderstood
as an individual doing whatever he or she wants,
and a set of rules, such as the Ten Commandments, may
appear to some to inhibit that freedom. Instead, the Ten
Commandments offer liberation and life, guiding us to
choose the good and enabling us to truly love.
Biblical Touchstones
If you obey the commandments of the LORD, your God, which I am giving you today, loving
the LORD, your God, and walking in his ways, and keeping his commandments, statutes and
ordinances, you will live and grow numerous.
DEUTERONOMY 30:16
For freedom Christ set us free; so stand firm and do not submit again to the yoke of slavery…
For you were called for freedom, brothers. But do not use this freedom as an opportunity for
the flesh; rather, serve one another through love.
GALATIANS 5:1, 13
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