On Thursday of the Second Week in Ordinary Time our Church invites us to read and reflect on a passage from the book of Deuteronomy (9:7-21,25-29) entitled "he sins of the people and the mediation of Moses". Our treasure, which follows, is from a letter by Fulgentius of Ruspe, bishop.
Saint Fulgentius was a follower of Saint Augustine's ideal of life and a student of Saint Augustine's theological teachings. Saint Fulgentius was a north African Christian prelate who served as Bishop of Ruspe and was a theological writer in modern-day, Tunisia, during the fifth and sixth century who defended orthodoxy against Arianism. He is known for his "heroic sanctity".
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.
