LOS ANGELES, CA (Catholic Online) - Full of
subtleties and surprises, "Google Exodus" uses Google Translate to say
"Let my people go" in Egyptian. In addition, Moses uploads an amazing
video of the plague of locusts to YouTube. Using Google Maps, the film
switches to "street view" to show the miraculous Red Sea splitting.
"Judaism is as relevant today as it was 3,300 years ago when Moses
led the Jews out of Egypt. Yet there's a perception that Judaism is
somehow antiquated," Rabbi Shraga Simmons, senior editor of Aish.com
says. "Telling the Exodus story through the medium of the Internet helps
break that misconception."
"With Passover coming up, this film is a fun way to reach people who
might otherwise not be interested," Simmons says. "This film enables us
to communicate Jewish values in a language that everyone can
understand."
"The cool thing is that the video is spreading via the same web tools featured in the video," Simmons adds.
People have responded to the film in a very positive way. "Google
Exodus" quickly went viral. Within just five days of going live, the
film has already registered over 1.2 million views on YouTube and over
76,000 "likes" on Facebook. In fact, this week "Google Exodus" ranks 4th
place on the Guardian U.K.'s "Viral Video Chart."
Aish.com is a leading Jewish website, with millions of monthly visits
and 300,000 email subscribers. Aish.com is a division of Aish HaTorah,
the Jerusalem-based educational center with branches in dozens of cities
on five continents.
"Google Exodus" is also available, on Aish.com's sister sites, in Hebrew and Spanish.