o h

OFF

YEARS

Founding Father

Book examines role of Moses
in the American story.

Morton I. Teicher
Special to the Jewish News

Feiler to explore this issue and the
need to "raise up a new kind of
Moses." He discusses the Underground
ruce Feller (Walking the Bible, Railroad and the degree to which
Exodus became an account of slav-
Abraham) has published
ery and freedom for both the Jews
eight books on a variety of
subjects, including his latest: America's of Egypt and the African-American
Prophet: Moses and the American Story slaves. Harriet Tubman, a leader of the
(William Morrow; $26.99). The author Underground Railroad, was known as
"the Moses of her people:'
traveled for two years to identify
Feller's consideration of slavery inev-
people, places and phenomena where
itably
leads to a discussion of the Civil
Moses plays a role in U.S. history in an
War
and
Abraham Lincoln. After his
effort to learn
assassination,
why Moses
twice as many
was such an
BRUCE
FELLER
of the eulo-
inspirational
mak,,
Best.elling author
gies
compared
figure from
him
to
the days of the
AMERICA'S as those Moses
who
Pilgrims in the
equated
him to
PROPHET
17th century
Jesus.
until today.
Moses and
According
the American Story
Feller goes
to
Feller,
back to Sept.
the
death
6, 1620, when
of
Lincoln
the Mayflower Bruce Feller
helped
to
set sail from
pave
the
way
for
the
Statue
of
Liberty.
England. Visiting New England,
He compares the tablet that Liberty
where the Pilgrims landed, he points
holds with Moses carrying the tablets
to similarities in the language of
of the Ten Commandments down
and
the
memoir
written
by
Exodus
Mount Sinai. Emma Lazarus' poem,
William Bradford, the leader of the
Pilgrims. Seeing America as the "wil- "The New Colossus," on the pedestal
derness," the Pilgrims saw themselves of the statue, implies that Moses,
as the prophet of exiles, is linked to
as "re-enacting Moses' journey:'
Liberty, the mother of exiles.
Feiler moves on to Philadelphia
Feller devotes a chapter to Cecil B.
and the Liberty Bell, with its words
DeMille, who produced versions of
from the story of Moses: "Proclaim
The Ten Commandments in 1923 and
Liberty Throughout the Land to
in 1956. According to Feiler, "DeMille
all the Inhabitants Thereof." Feller
viewed Moses as a perfect vessel to
recounts the story of the bell and
restore America's values:' Further "use
asserts that its quotation from
of Moses as pro-American propa-
demonstrates
America's
Leviticus
roots in the Hebrew Bible. He reviews gandist" is the comic book character
Superman, in which the "back story
some aspects of the American
is taken almost point by point from
Revolution, saying, "The pace of
Moses."
Mosaic references seemed to escalate
Finally, Feiler devotes a chapter to
as independence drew closer!'
Martin Luther King Jr. who "tapped
One example was the reference
into the long love affair between
to King George III as "a pharaoh:'
Americans and Moses." King's famous
Another was the belief of Franklin,
Jefferson and Adams that "Moses was August 1963 speech during the March
on Washington merged themes from
America's true founding father:'
the Bible and America. n
Feller goes on to explore the "deep-
seated bond" between Moses and
George Washington. When Washington
died, many of the orations drew paral-
Bruce Feller appears Sunday,
lels between him and Moses.
Noy.15, 5 p.m., at the JCC Jewish
The failure of Washington to deal
Book Fair in West Bloomfield.
with the problem of slavery leads

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November 5 • 2009

43