Exodus

Myth or Reality?

By: Pietro Testa

Narrated by: Virtual Voice

The theme covered in this small research concerns the Exodus of the Israelites from Egypt, an episode reported in the Bible and which constitutes one of the fundamental pillars of the cultural memory of the Jewish people. The Exodus is a matter of 'goat's wool', as a comparison between faith and archeology, and it is a delicate and ambiguous comparison: two cultures of antiquity face each other.
On the one hand, ancient Egypt, witness of a millenary social organization, which has left tangible traces of its historical reality: reality proven and witnessed by its manifestations over time, through writing (and therefore thought), the art in its various forms, and in religion, apparently 'strange', but basically reasoned and subtle. On the other hand, the history of Israel documented by the Old Testament, which then echoes in the New Testament: but here is a story concerning the great figure of Jesus, manifestation of the encounter of God with humanity in a new discourse based on love and forgiveness. The episode of Exodus, and beyond, has tormented, and still torments, theologians and archaeologists today. This often depends on the vagueness of references to places and dates, both for the antiquity of the language (but there are experts) and for the Jewish theological currents. Furthermore, let's not forget the 'spirit' of the ancient (very complex) Hebrew language of the Bible which was translated into Greek, in which there are often 'inconsistencies' between hidden shades of one idiom with respect to the other. In conclusion, in this research we only wanted to highlight the testimonies, finally expressing a reflection on the state of the facts.