The wonderful works of God

On Friday of the Third Week in Ordinary Time our Church invites us to first read and reflect on a passage from the beginning of the book of Deuteronomy (31: 1-15, 23) entitled "The last words of Moses". Our treasure, which follows, is from a commentary on the psalms by John Fisher, bishop and martyr. Saint John Fisher was an English Catholic bishop, Cardinal, and theologian. St. John Fisher was also an academic and Chancellor of the University of Cambridge. St. John was executed by Order of Henry VIII during the English Reformation for refusing to accept him as the supreme head of the Church of England and for upholding the Catholic Church's doctrine of papal supremacy. He is honored as a martyr and Saint by the Catholic Church. He was martyred on June 22, 1535 Saint John Fisher teaches through the Psalms that the faithful soul must cling to truth, endure suffering with Christ, and place all hope in the mercy of God rather than in the approval of the world. The book of Deuteronomy ends the five books of the Torah or Pentateuch with a retrospective account of Israel's past—the exodus, the Sinai covenant, and the wilderness wanderings—and a look into Israel's future as they stand poised to enter the land of Canaan and begin their life as a people there. The book consists of three long addresses by Moses. Each of these contains narrative, law, and exhortation, in varying proportions. In an expansion of the first commandment of the decalogue, Moses tells the Israelites how to make a success of their life as a people once they are settled in the land. The choice presented to Israel is to love the Lord and keep his commandments, or to serve "other gods." That choice will determine what kind of life they will make for themselves in the land. Whichever choice they make as a people carries consequences, which Deuteronomy terms "blessing" and "curse." Thus, the book can be seen as a kind of survival manual for Israel in their life as a people: how to live and what to avoid. This gives the book its hortatory style and tone of life-or-death urgency.