aftermath 993.aft.0 Louis J. Sheehan, Esquire

INTRODUCTION

Attention Materials

I posit to you that the seed of the three great Monotheistic religions –- Judiasm, Christianity, and Islam -- can be traced back to an Egyptian man who lived in the 14th Century BC. His religious vision was propagated by a small group of loyal followers.



Thesis Statement

In ancient times, the Pharaohs of Egypt allowed the Habiru – mercenary warriors -- to settle in ‘the land of Goshen’ to act as a buffer between the Egyptians and any invading peoples from the East.

In 1352 BC Akhenaten became Pharaoh and, within a few years, Akhenaten converted from the traditional ancient Egyptian polytheistic religion to his conceived religion of only one God, i.e., Aten. Technically, then, all of Egypt became monotheistic, but so many tradtionally vested interests were threatened that the Hapiru were called upon to serve as Akhenaten’s bodyguards. After Akhenaten’s death, Egypt –- but not the Habiru -- quickly reverted to the ancient polytheistic religion. Feeling threatened, a subsequent Pharaoh conscripted the Habiru to do forced labor and, eventually, the Habiru resolved to and did escape from Egypt and eventually settled in Canaan. The Habiru, in time, became known as the Hebrews. Their struggle for and escape to freedom has since become the classic story for the oppressed’s efforts to become free.


Preview

We will review

1. the history of the Habiru and Akhenaten

2. descriptions of the early part of the Exodus found in the Bible, and

3. the aftermath.

[TRANSITION] Allow me to start with a little history.