August 8th, 2005.

Memorial of St. Dominic, priest.

A reading from the book of Deuteronomy.

Moses said to the people,

Ask now of the days of old before your time,

ever since God created man upon the earth.

Ask from one end of the sky to the other,

did anything so great ever happen before? Was it ever heard of? Did a people ever hear the voice of speaking from the midst of fire as you did and live? Or did any God venture to go and take a nation

for himself from the midst of another nation by testings, by signs and wonders, by war, with his

strong hand and outstretched arm, and by great terrors, all of which the Lord your God did for you

in Egypt before your very eyes. All this you were allowed to see that you might know the Lord

is God and there is no other.

Out of the heavens, he let you hear his voice to discipline you.

On earth, he let you see his great fire, and you heard him speaking out of the fire.

For love of your fathers, he chose their descendants and personally led you out of Egypt by his great power,

driving out of your way nations greater and mightier than you

so as to bring you in and to make their land your heritage as it is today.

This is why you must now know and fix in your heart

that the Lord is God in the heavens above and on earth below

and that there is no other.

You must keep His statutes and commandments which I enjoin on you today, that you and your

children after you may prosper, and that you may have long life on the land which the Lord your God is

...