Did you ever wonder where the symbol for the medical profession of a snake on a pole came from? Today’s reading from Numbers will tell you. The Israelites were instructed to gaze upon a snake to be cured of snake bite inflicted upon them because of disobedience. In John’s Gospel, Jesus says that when he is lifted up (on a cross) all will come to recognize him as the I AM (the name the Lord God used for himself to Moses from the burning bush in the book of Genesis). What I am called to do, just like the Israelites, is to look upon what I fear to overcome it. Jesus begs me to see him hanging helplessly on a cross. To look at what I fear: scorn for being a practicing Christian, what my sins have caused, and my eventual death. Only by looking my weaknesses in the eye, and acknowledging that I cannot do this alone, will I gain what I lack and finish this life well. What do I fear? What are the snakes—the fears—that need to be on a pole for me to confront? What are yours?
