The first information gleaned from today's class(aside from the fact that I am a poor pronouncer of peoples' names)was what Frye's chapter nine puts forth; namely that everything in the Book of Exodus is mirrored in the Gospels, particularily the freedom from bondage motif.

But there are other examples. Both contain an episode that could be described as the Slaughter of the Innocents. This grisly story is also one of twenty two points discussed in a book titled The Myth of the Birth of the Hero by Renke. An attempt is made by the Father/King to prevent the hero from growing up and usurping him by killing all the male children, but one manages to survive, who is of course the one who will defeat the Father/King. The hero is then raised by foster parents(the Pharoh's daughter with Moses, Joseph and Mary with Jesus) and we know little or nothing about their childhood, which can be a bit maddening for the reader, but never mind. And then at some point they learn the truth about who they are, and then must answer The Call. The hero can say "Yes!!" or can resist with all his might and still end up doing what he was destined to do.
Jesus, in his story, is typically understood to have a "Yes!!" response. Which is what makes Kazantzakis' The Last Temptation of Christ so intriguing and controversial, because he is depicted there as taking the opposite route and resisting. There is also the implication that he is stirred by feelings of romantic love, which really cheesed off fundamentalists everywhere, but I'll move on now.

The word heilsgeschichte, which is German for "holy history", catches the essence of how the Exodus story sits in Hebrew history. It is not concrete historical fact(far from it); rather it is a history embued with spiritual signifigance for this particular people. The Illiad could stand as a Grecian example.

And finally, two words and their shared similar signifigance: epiphany, which is a manifestation of the divine. And theophany, which is a revelation of God. Is there a difference between these two terms, however tenuous(sp?)? And if so, what is it exactly? I shall ponder on this.