Even today the Pharaoh, photographed last November as a mighty crouching sphinx, still seems powerful. But the book of Exodus doesn’t so much as give his name! It’s those who resisted Pharaoh’s cruelty on a grassroots level—midwives Shiphrah and Puah—whose names really matter.  Scripture says trouble for the Hebrews began when “a new king arose…

Two thousand year ago the cruelty of Herod forced Jesus and his parents to go to Egypt for refuge. Today cruel policies in Washington threaten to force Palestinians to Egypt and Jordan. This in the wake of American-supplied bombs having reduced Gaza to cinders. Today Washington also threatens to violate the sanctity of churches, mosques,…