President George W. Bush
Leadership Through Biblical Analogy
During the latter part of the twentieth century to the present, many American presidents would likewise use the symbolism of the Exodus and the Moses story in their writings and speeches. However, the symbol of Moses would generally be used to represent a need for leadership, as opposed to freedom or lawmaking.
Among the presidents known to have used the symbolism of Moses were Harry S. Truman, Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush and Barack Obama, who in 2007 called the leaders of the civil rights movement "the Moses generation." (Ifill)
According to biographer Hugh B. Urban, George W. Bush's autobiography, A Charge to Keep, "contains a much more powerful narrative that is modeled on the story of Moses."
In a passage from the book, Bush recounts his decision to run for president, and describes a church sermon where the pastor told the story in Exodus 3–4, in which "God appears to Moses in the burning bush, and despite Moses' lack of experience or skill, calls him to free Israel."
Urban adds that the pastor "went on to link this passage to contemporary history, suggesting that, like Israel then, America today needs strong leaders with faith, integrity, and moral values." His mother Barbara later said to him, "He's talking to you."
Hugh B. Urban — The Secrets of the Kingdom (2007)"The Moses Generation"
Early in his presidential campaign, in a March 2007 speech in Selma, Alabama, Barack Obama called the leaders of the civil rights movement "the Moses generation." He drew an explicit parallel between that generation, which had struggled for freedom as Moses led his people toward the Promised Land, and his own "Joshua generation," which he suggested would be the one to arrive there.
Obama's use of the Moses metaphor was not incidental. It reflected a deep tradition of African-American religious rhetoric that had used the Exodus narrative as a framework for understanding the Black experience in America — from slavery, to emancipation, to civil rights, and beyond.
The Moses generation pointed the way. The Joshua generation — your generation — will cross over.
Barack Obama — Selma, Alabama, 2007 (Ifill, 2009)
President Barack Obama — "The Moses Generation"
The story does not end with the presidency. On the nation's 250th anniversary, see how the Exodus thread runs through the whole of American freedom.
Continue to the epilogue: 250 Years Later →