snake handlers

A movement of loosely organised fundamentalist Pentecostal churches, ministers and itinerant preachers, who handle poisonous snakes as part of their weekly ritual and sermons. Snake handling is a ritual based on an interpretation of Mark 16:17-20 and Luke 10:19 in the Bible. George Went Hensley (born circa 1880) began the practice in 1908, and is commonly considered the "father of contemporary serpent handling"; he died in 1955 from a snake bite.

There are between 1000 and 2000 snake handler church members, including those who do not handle snakes. The practice is controversial in that it pits the US First Amendment freedoms of religious expression against the states’ interest in protecting the safety of snake handlers’ minor children and other non-participants, potentially triggering felony charges against participants.

References in periodicals archive ?

One thinks of the Dutch Reformed Church in South Africa, who justified apartheid, the Pentecostal snake handlers of the USA,the Jehovah's witnesses who reject blood transfusions and a host others who have found justification for virtually every aberration known to man.

Homosexuality and the Bible THE [...]; LETTERS

More than any other attraction it is the snake handlers in their pointy yellow shoes, playing their flutes, while a supposedly mesmerized cobra sways to its melody that defines the medina in my mind.

The Marrakesh Medina

You can see everything in a handful of hours and while fanboys will relish losing themselves in a superlative stealth sandbox, less obsessive Snake handlers will struggle to justify paying for what is essentially a glorified demo.

STAYING IN

However, Kelhoffer concluded that "if there were snake handlers in the ancient world", he could find from his own study "no compelling evidence to support this claim" (p.

A case study of the intratextual model of fundamentalism: serpent handlers and Mark 16:17-20

People think they will stop handling snakes because someone got bit, but it's just the opposite,'' said Ralph Hood, a professor of psychology at the University of Tennessee, Chattanooga, who has been studying snake handlers for decades.

Snake handlers don't lose the faith; 3 days after pastor died from rattlesnake bite, mourners handle snakes

A Kentucky pastor who heads a congregation of snake handlers says officials in Tennessee have wrongly confiscated three rattlesnakes and two copperheads, and he wants them back.

Kentucky pastor tells Tennessee game officials to return his snakes

Twice Bitten, a twisty, turning mystery involving pentecostal snake handlers is targeted for a June release date.

Matt Davis Mysteries Soon to be Available in Audio Books

At his Neverland ranch, it was costing the star 4 million dollars per annum to keep staff - from carpenters to snake handlers - on the payroll.

How MJ splurged his millions of dollars

He experiences the lives and practices of ultra-conservative Jews, the Amish, a variety of stripes of extreme right wing conservative evangelicals, snake handlers and, red heifer breeders.

Going by the book (for a year)

There's a ton of bands you'll recognize, from punk to psychedelic to reggae to snake handlers to hip hop.

Hamburger eyes, the music issue

Experienced snake handlers are gowned, as if in a sterile environment, and must go through a prescribed routine to prevent contaminants from entering the snake rooms.

Neurobiological Technologies Inc. Completes 'Snake' Facility for Venom Used as Stroke Treatment

Neither can the term be applied to contemporary religious groups, Appalachian snake handlers for instance, which have little connection with modernity.