Bronze Serpent & Christ’s Cross as Remedy – Mar 24 – Homily – Fr Michael

 

Fr Michael gives the homily at Bloomington, IN, on Mar 24, 2026, likening the bronze serpent to Christ's Cross as the paradoxical remedy for sin's venom.

Fr. Michael explains the day's readings, where Jesus compares Himself to the bronze serpent Moses raised in the desert (Numbers 21:4-9). Just as the Israelites bitten by serpents were healed by gazing upon the serpent, a sign of contradiction, the Cross of Christ draws all people to salvation despite appearing as a defeat. Sin, provoked by the devil as a serpent, poisons humanity from the original sin onward, yet Christ turns this poison into a remedy through His sacrifice. The Pharisees, knowledgeable in Scripture, rejected Jesus not from ignorance but from hardness of heart, like those Hebrews who refused to look. God mercifully provides the sacraments, especially the Eucharist as sacrifice, to heal post-baptismal sins. Emulate the good thief's repentance and trust on Calvary (Luke 23:39-43), asking Jesus to remember us, finding paradise in Eucharistic union.

John 3:14-15 – Christ lifted up – https://bible.usccb.org/bible/john/3?14
Luke 23:39-43 – Good thief crucified – https://bible.usccb.org/bible/luke/23?39
CCC 396 – Original sin fall – https://www.scborromeo.org/ccc/para/396.htm
CCC 1323 – Eucharist memorial sacrifice – https://www.scborromeo.org/ccc/para/1323.htm
CCC 1364 – Mass represents Passion – https://www.scborromeo.org/ccc/para/1364.htm
CCC 1391 – Communion spiritual nourishment – https://www.scborromeo.org/ccc/para/1391.htm

00:00 - Christ Lifted Up: Sign of Contradiction
00:36 - Serpent Symbol and Antivenom
01:18 - Bronze Serpent in the Desert
01:53 - Christ Remedies the Poison of Sin
02:34 - Pharisees Reject the Sign
03:47 - Refusing to Look: Like the Hebrews
04:24 - God's Mercy for Our Sins
04:54 - The Cross as Saving Reality
05:18 - Eucharist: Sacrament of Sacrifice
08:46 - Good Thief's Disposition of Faith

Ave Maria!

Mass: Tuesday 5th Week of Lent - Wkdy
Readings:  - http://usccb.org/bible/readings/032426.cfm
1st: Numbers 21:4-9
Resp: Psalms 102:2-3, 16-21
Gsp: John 8:21-30

More on the Readings: https://airmaria.com/r?m=1766

Also on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GcY_OCn10_s