The People of Israel had found in Egypt a lifeline for the famine they suffered in their land. It did not have to be easy to leave that land that was a deep part of his identity, but in the end he had to accept the inevitable.

In Egypt he had years of prosperity. The children of the People of Israel multiplied in such a way that Pharaoh was scared because they were “making” </ em> his country. And from there, he began to oppress and enslave the Israelites, even killing male children at birth.

God the Father who loves his children and, in a more special way, the weakest, he meets Moses and tells him: ‘I have seen my people suffer’ .

< h4> Once again, as it was also when avoiding the sacrifice of Isaac, God in the Old Testament is presented as the God of Life, of Mercy, close and concerned for his children.

And he ends the sentence with the clear and forceful expression ‘I’m going to free him’ . God does not settle for pity. On more than one occasion I have heard people say, in front of television reports of children dying of hunger, ‘poor little children, but these programs should not be shown at lunch (or dinner)’ . God is not left in pity, God is committed. His mercy is not just a noun, it is a verb that arises from a Love that gives itself.

From this chapter of the history of the People of Israel, a prefiguration of what today is the Church, the People of God that walks in history, we must learn. If that repels us Pharaoh’s malevolent attitude to his fear of the ‘Hebraization’ of Egypt, should also repel any comment such as ‘they are Islamizing us’ or ‘first for those from here’ to excuse our lack of mercy.

As then, there are peoples who have to abandon their land, with the deep pain of those who leave it all, looking for a way to survive. What the Israelites did and what any of us would do to feed our children. There is therefore no room for building walls (or bars) instead of build bridges (as Pope Francis has said) or pretend that people’s origin can make them second-class citizens.

The ‘I am going to free him’ is in the same dynamic as the words of Jesus of Nazareth: ‘I have come so that they may have life and have it in abundance’. </span >