Flight Into Egypt

 

There has always been an image in my mind of St. Joseph leading a donkey which bears the Blessed Virgin carrying the Baby Jesus on a long walk through the wilderness to a tiny Egyptian village in the middle of the desert to wait out the storm of King Herod’s wrath. I never found that fully satisfying though. There are only two references to the Holy Family’s flight to Egypt that I am aware of in Holy Scripture and I can not ever recall hearing any Catholic theologian speak extensively on the issue. In essence the trip is in an intellectual and historical black out for me, but none the less interesting.