From Mount Hor the children of Israel set out on the Red Sea road,
to bypass the land of Edom.
But with their patience worn out by the journey,
the people complained against God and Moses,
“Why have you brought us up from Egypt to die in this desert,
where there is no food or water?
We are disgusted with this wretched food!”

In punishment the LORD sent among the people saraph serpents,
which bit the people so that many of them died.
Then the people came to Moses and said,
“We have sinned in complaining against the LORD and you.
Pray the LORD to take the serpents away from us.”
So Moses prayed for the people, and the LORD said to Moses,
“Make a saraph and mount it on a pole,
and whoever looks at it after being bitten will live.”
Moses accordingly made a bronze serpent and mounted it on a pole,
and whenever anyone who had been bitten by a serpent
looked at the bronze serpent, he lived.

Numbers 21: 4-9

Here are the complete readings for Tuesday, April 8, 2025.

(“Moses Erecting the Brazen Snake” by William Blake)

The French philosopher Jean Paul Sartre once wrote, “this is what hell is. Hell is other people.” Reading the passage from Numbers, it seems as though the people in desert succeeded in creating their own hell for one another. Bad behavior spilled over and caused suffering for others, who then spread misery still further. The venomous snakes in the story seems to represent peoples’ destructive decisions that have come to fruition. Notice, then, that the cure for the snakebite was for an afflicted person to look directly at the snake made out of bronze. The person had to come face to face with their shortcomings, confront and own what they had done in order to find healing. This is an act of humility and bravery that is fitting for all manner of repentance, in any age.

At times you will discover
that God’s ways are not your ways,
and God’s thoughts are not your thoughts.
When this happens,
try to surrender yourself trustingly
into the arms of your Parent God,
who knows you,
understands you,
and loves you. – The Fundamental Principles of the Xaverian Brothers

God, You never cease surprising me. When I am awake and aware of your presence, I experience miracles that I might have before taken for granted. Thank you for the whispers in the quiet moments that guide me and the majesty of each dawn that reminds me of the blessing to be alive. Give me a heart that is open enough to be shaped by new connections, and large enough to be forgiving of others and myself. Thank you for understanding me so I can better understand who I am this day.

Amen