Serpentine Tales: Snakes in the Hand

Acts 28: 1-10 Rev. Marianne Niesen July 25, 2010

I know that a good many of you will be glad to know that this is the third and final installment of my Serpentine Tales sermon series. Over these three weeks, I have chosen a few stories from Scripture that have included a snake or serpent and have expounded on it. First was the story of the Garden of Eden and the serpent there. Last week, we jumped forward hundreds of years to the time when the Hebrews were slaves in Egypt and God had chosen Moses as the leader who would free the people. In his first confrontation with Pharaoh, he had Aaron throw down his staff and it turned into a snake or serpent. Some of you have asked me just what the difference between a snake and a serpent really is. Scholars are quite clear that what is often translated as ‘snake’ in the Garden of Eden and the Pharaoh stories was not a snake as we think of it. It was a serpent - and they make the point that this distinction is important. I actually thought ‘serpent’ was just a bigger category that included snakes. Instead, as I did some research, what I found was this definition:

Serpent is a word of Latin origin (from serpens, serpentis . . . ) that is commonly used in a specifically mythic or religious context, signifying a snake that is to be regarded not as a mundane natural phenomenon nor as an object of scientific zoology, but as the bearer of some potent symbolic value.¹

One dictionary defined serpent simply as ‘literally a very large snake.’ So a serpent, in a sense, is a snake with meaning. It is also true that such things as dragons and sea monsters (like the Loch Ness Monster) are also called serpents. Thus, a serpent is a bigger category but perhaps the easiest way to think about it is that serpents are just snakes with an attitude. This information, of course, will probably not change your life much. And it is important only because the snakes I’ve talked about so far have been serpents. Their presence in the Biblical texts have meant something, have pointed to a spiritual or deeper meaning.

Today’s story, in the other hand, is about a plain, ordinary, regular, supposedly poisonous, snake. Nothing of mythic proportions. Just a snake. The text itself is one packed with action. It is from the Acts of the Apostles, written by the same person who wrote the Gospel of Luke. Paul is on a boat, with other prisoners, being sent to Rome. Though a prisoner, Paul is treated quite well on board the ship and is, in fact, being protected by a certain centurion. So they are sailing through the Mediterranean but the weather has turned bad and the ship is in big trouble. It has been drifting for 14 days, thrown about by treacherous waters. Paul, however, assures everyone that an angel had appeared to him and had assured him that everyone would make it to shore safely. Finally, the ship does indeed seem to be drifting toward shallower waters. Paul is so sure of it that he suggests they all have breakfast so they’ll have enough strength to be rescued. I am going to read the text now, beginning with Acts 27:33 and continuing to 28:10.

With dawn about to break, Paul called everyone together and proposed breakfast: "This is the fourteenth day we've gone without food. None of us has felt like eating! But I urge you to eat something now. You'll need strength for the rescue ahead. You're going to come out of this without even a scratch!" He broke the bread, gave thanks to God, passed it around, and they all ate heartily - two hundred seventy-six of us, all told! With the meal finished and everyone full, the ship was further lightened by dumping the grain overboard. At daybreak, no one recognized the land - but then they did notice a bay with a nice beach. They decided to try to run the ship up on the beach. They cut the anchors, loosed the tiller, raised the sail, and ran before the wind toward the beach. But we didn't make it. Still far from shore, we hit a reef and the ship began to break up. The soldiers decided to kill the prisoners so none could escape by swimming, but the centurion, determined to save Paul, stopped them. He gave orders for anyone who could swim to dive in and go for it, and for the rest to grab a plank. Everyone made it to shore safely.

Let me interrupt the story here to clarify just what is going on. The soldiers considered killing the prisoners because if they escaped - even under circumstances like this - the soldiers who survived would be held accountable for their escape and would likely pay with their own lives. So there was no sense surviving a shipwreck only to be killed because some prisoners escaped. However, Paul’s protector would not be stopped and his diligence in saving Paul, saved them all. The story continues . . .

Once everyone was accounted for and we realized we had all made it, we learned that we were on the island of Malta. The natives went out of their way to be friendly to us. The day was rainy and cold and we were already soaked to the bone, but they built a huge bonfire and gathered us around it. Paul pitched in and helped. He had gathered up a bundle of sticks, but when he put it on the fire, a venomous snake, roused from its torpor by the heat, struck his hand and held on. Seeing the snake hanging from Paul's hand like that, the natives jumped to the conclusion that he was a murderer getting his just deserts. Paul shook the snake off into the fire, none the worse for wear. They kept expecting him to drop dead, but when it was obvious he wasn't going to, they jumped to the conclusion that he was a god! The head man in that part of the island was Publius. He took us into his home as his guests, drying us out and putting us up in fine style for the next three days. Publius's father was sick at the time, down with a high fever and dysentery. Paul went to the old man's room, and when he laid hands on him and prayed, the man was healed. Word of the healing got around fast, and soon everyone on the island who was sick came and got healed. We spent a wonderful three months on Malta. They treated us royally, took care of all our needs and outfitted us for the rest of the journey.

So the whole shipful of prisoners and soldiers was saved. Of course, being saved from the treacherous waters was one thing. They then had to hope the natives onshore would also be merciful - which they were. Hospitality was extended. Then Paul, who probably could have just sat on the sidelines and been waited on, helped with the building of the bonfire and was rewarded by being bitten by a ‘venomous viper’ which not only bit him but hung on. We can imagine an odd but very clear picture of a water-drenched Paul, holding a bundle of sticks with a snake hanging off his hand. For a moment, things moved in slow motion. Paul stood there, snake dangling in mid-air while the natives stare at him wide-eyed. They probably knew this was a ship of prisoners. And, they likely also believed that their good fortune at being saved from the sea was very good omen. These prisoners were vindicated. But, when the snake chose to bite Paul, they took it as a sign that his good fortune could not erase whatever evil he had done. The gods would make sure this evil man, this murderer, this whatever-he-was would pay with his life.

Then, the slow-motion stopped for Paul. He shook the snake off into the fire and continued doing whatever he was doing. But the people were frozen in place, watching. They knew what would come next. The victim of this kind of snake would go into shock and begin writhing on the ground. He would foam at the mouth and scream and moan and, finally, he would die. Right there. But it didn’t happen. Paul kept moving and they kept watching and nothing happened and that’s when they knew this man was not only lucky . . . he was a god himself. From there, the chief official of Malta, Publius, extended even greater hospitality - to all 276 survivors. The dinner party lasted 3 days! That’s a lot of food and a lot of celebrating. But again, Paul didn’t simply relax in the moment, he noted the need of Publius’ father, healed him and thus began a ministry of outreach and healing that lasted through the entire 3 months of winter that the shipwrecked contingent stayed. Eventually, the islanders expressed their gratitude by generously outfitting them all with everything they needed when they continued their journey toward Rome in the spring.

This is one of the most colorful, action-packed stories in Scripture. It’d probably make a great movie although, let’s face it, the scene with the snake would probably be built up to include some ugly looking, huge - yes, serpent-like creature - lying in wait for an unsuspecting Paul to thrust his hand in the way. They’d show the thing with teeth and fangs and black eyes with sinister music playing in the background. And, of course, there would need to be some scenes with the soldiers and prisoners getting familiar (if you know what I mean) with some of the local island women. Still there is good dramatic flavor here - good enough that its effects have lasted over 2,000 years. There are today over 325,000 residents of Malta and they still celebrate the shipwreck of Paul on February 10th each year. There is a St. Paul’s Bay and a church or two and the island itself is almost 100% Christian, mostly Roman Catholic. As for the snake, there is some confusion. Today, there are no poisonous snakes on Malta. Some people say that means the story was all made up. But others note that 2,000 years ago, Malta was a very different place - much greener, covered with forests and grasses and naturalists cannot say for certain that there never were poisonous snakes.

However, if we get stuck on arguing about the snake - just as was true with the serpents in the previous two Sundays - we miss the point. The presence of a snake tells us to take note of what is happening but does not call attention to itself. Dan Dick, in his sermon on this text wrote:

“One of Jesus’ promises to his followers was that by their faith and God’s protection, (from Mark 16)‘they will pick up snakes in their hands, and if they drink any deadly thing, it will not hurt them; they will lay their hands on the sick and they will recover.’²

The ability to live this prophecy was a powerful witness to the early church that God’s Spirit was present. Much debate occurs about the veracity of such claims, but the message was important to the early church - faith in God was the most powerful force on earth.”³

Faith mattered then - and it matters now. And the fruits of faith are meant to be visible, evident. As I pondered that Scripture text from Mark’s gospel about picking up snakes and as I prepared for this sermon about ‘Snakes in the Hand,’ I couldn’t help but think about those Christian groups that actually do snake handling as part of worship. I discovered some interesting things. These groups are called ‘Signs Followers’ and are found mostly in Appalachia. They’d have no question that Paul could have survived a venomous viper’s bite since he was a ‘God anointed’ man. That’s what snake handling - or, better, surviving snake handling - requires. As best I can tell, for members of ‘Signs Followers’ churches, the handling of snakes in worship is considered part of taking the Bible literally and trusting God. If they are bitten in church, they tend to refuse medical treatment and often survive - because it is God’s will. And if they die, that too is God’s will. Dr. Ralph Hood, professor of psychology at the University of Tennessee, in his introduction to a book on serpent handlers wrote:

Their connection to (the) Holiness (tradition), Fundamentalism, and Pentecostalism might explain some aspects of the serpent handlers’ behavior to those unfamiliar with the faith - the ‘sinner people,’ as believers call them. (That’s us.) Especially in their obedience to the Word, believers reveal their Holiness roots, and in this sense serpent handling is no different from any other Holiness practice. (Like speaking in tongues, drinking poison, trances, faith healing.) Pentecostalism reminds us that to be filled with the Holy Ghost, we must be receptive to God’s Word. And to be obedient to God’s Word is ‘joy unspeakable.’ (No matter what happens) There is passion in life, there is fire in the blood, and only God will determine the moment of death, whether by serpent or by other means.⁴

I confess I have been fascinated by the stories in this book The Serpent Handlers. It is a sympathetic glimpse into the lives of real people who believe an act of worship can include handling snakes as well as drinking poison and a few other things that are foreign to my way of thinking and believing. But, the one thing these ‘signs followers’ folks and Paul in the shipwreck story have in common is the fact that the presence of the snake is not the point. For modern ‘snake handlers,’ the act of doing it is a sign of God’s power, God’s grace, God’s ‘anointing.’ This is from the authors of the book:

Although many serpent handlers are uneducated, they are neither ignorant nor crazy. They handle snakes not to test their faith but to confirm God’s word as set forth in Mark 16.⁵

Of course, I believe there are other ways to ‘confirm God’s word.’ Still, that commitment to make faith real, to put it in action, is the point in the end. When we hear stories like the one in today’s text about Paul, we often find ourselves focusing on the snake and whether it was really poisonous and how could he have really survived if it was. We are a lot like the islanders in that. And the thing we need to learn from the Scripture - and perhaps from the serpent handlers in Appalachia (which hits us a bit closer to home - these people are doing this stuff right now!) - is quite simple. The snake is not the point. As far as Paul was concerned, the Maltese viper was not the center of attention. Note that, as Paul stood there with a snake hanging off his hand surrounded by a gasping, gazing, gawking crowd, he responded by simply flinging it into the fire and then going on with his business. Which was ...? It was the business of life - building a fire, drying off, feeding the hungry, healing the sick - and clearly sharing his faith, a faith evident even today in Malta!

And so we are reminded that though shipwrecks happen and snakes emerge, our challenge is to keep the important things important. There are all kinds of distractions in life. Shake them off and keep on keeping on. We don’t need to handle snakes to do that - but we do need to make our faith an active faith. We do need to make a commitment, a commitment to do the work of Christ wherever we find ourselves because, in the end, whether we handle snakes or not, our relationship with God, our faith, is the most powerful force on earth.

1. Wikipedia, the Free Online Encyclopedia.

2. Mark 16:18.

5. Ibid., p. xvi.