"When you get to the top, pull out your Bible and read the last chapter of Deuteronomy."
Dr. Bill Bradford gave that advice when he learned I was going to extend my visit to the Holy Land to visit Mount Nebo in present day Jordan. At this place Moses looked down across the Jordan River and into the "promised land." Here God told him, "I have caused thee to see it with thine eyes, but thou shalt not go over thither."
The view from Nebo, over the Jordan River, across the plains to Jericho, and beyond to the outskirts of Jerusalem, was worth the trip.
The last chapter of Deuteronomy tells us that Moses died here and then says "And there arose not a prophet since in Israel like unto Moses, whom the Lord knew face to face."
Ironically, a new book by Bruce Feiler, the best-selling author of "Walking the Bible," suggests that Moses is also America's prophet.
Feiler's new book, "America's Prophet: Moses and the American Story," chronicles how Moses has left his footprints at every stage of American history.
A few examples:
Columbus in September 1492, after experiencing high seas on his voyage of discovery, wrote "The rising of the sea was very favorable to me, as it happened formerly to Moses when he led the Jews from Egypt."
William Bradford, leader of the Pilgrims, described their mission in the New World to be like that of "Moses and the Israelites when they went out of Egypt."
The words on the Liberty Bell come from Leviticus (Third book of Moses) 25:10, "Proclaim Liberty thro' all the Land to all the Inhabitants Thereof."
In August, 1776, a committee composed of Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, and two others, recommended that the new seal of the United States feature the scene of Moses extending his hand over the divided waters of the Red Sea to cause it to come down on Pharaoh and his army. (By the time the seal was finally adopted, the pyramid took the place of Moses, but that is another story, perhaps for fiction writer Dan Brown to tell.)
When George Washington died, memorial services were held for him across the country.
Of the 346 surviving texts of orations given at these services, more than two-thirds compare Washington with Moses. Both were fathers of their nations, lawgivers and military leaders who freed their peoples from oppressive rule.
Before and during the Civil War, the story of Moses and the liberation of the Children of Israel inspired the struggle for freedom of enslaved peoples in America. Harriet Tubman, who led many slaves to freedom, became known as "Moses."
On the other side, Southerners defended slavery as an institution that the laws of Moses contemplated and approved.
More than half of the compiled eulogies given after President Lincoln's death compared Lincoln to Moses.
"The Ten Commandments," both the movie and the debates about displaying the commandments in public places, regularly bring Moses back to the center of American life.
Martin Luther King often recalled the struggles of Moses and the Children of Israel.
In his last speech, before his assassination in Memphis, he turned to the image of Moses about to die "on the mountaintop" at Mount Nebo. "And he's allowed me to go up the mountainÉAnd I've looked over. And I have seen the promised landÉ.And I may not get there with you, but I want you to know tonight that we as a people will get to the promised land."
Are these connections enough to convince you that Moses is America's prophet? If not, read the book before you make up your mind.
D.G. Martin is hosting his final season of UNC-TV's North Carolina Bookwatch, which airs at 5 p.m. Sundays. His blog and prior programs can be viewed at www.unctv.org/ncbookwatch. This Sunday's (Jan. 3) guest is Ron Rash, author of "Serena."
