Snake handling

From RationalWiki

Snake handling is a practice found within isolated churches, mostly in Appalachia, many of which go by the name Church Of God With Signs Following or some variant thereof. Snake handlers reach into a box containing poisonous snakes during the worship service and handle them as a sign of their "faith".

The practice comes from a literal reading of the Bible passage Mark 16:17-18: And these signs shall follow them that believe: In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues. They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover... (King James Version).

About half of the snake handling sects found in Appalachia subscribe to a trinitarian theology and are off-shoots of a Pentecostal denomination, the Church of God (Cleveland, Tennessee), where the practice began under Church of God minister George W. Hensley, and which expelled Hensley and other snake-handlers from its membership c. 1922. The other half subscribe to "Oneness" Pentecostalism, baptize in the name of Jesus only, and seem to have a fondness for the teachings of William Branham (who wasn't known to handle snakes himself but was otherwise close to them theologically).

The practice has been outlawed in many states (including Kentucky, where most of the practitioners live). However, most attempts at prosecution arise when children are subjected to the practice or are in danger of being orphaned due to it. In Kentucky, several people die each year, despite their faith (or lack thereof, as their fellow believers would probably explain it). In Tennessee in 2008 there was a major sting operation against snake handlers resulting in the arrest of a few score of them and the confiscation of much contraband. The practice is, however, legal in West Virginia, where the Church of the Lord Jesus in Jolo (McDowell County of course - where else?) practices right out in the open and welcomes visitors.

In accordance with the same passage from Mark's Gospel, snake handling churches also follow some other dubious practices: drinking poisonous concoctions usually containing strychnine , playing with fire, and sticking their hands into live electrical sockets (where they got that from the Bible is anyone's guess).

Interestingly, these verses are believed by most reputable scholars not to have been part of the original text of Mark, and so many modern Bible translations exclude them. As a result, snake handling sects tend to also follow a King James Only belief.

[edit] Quotes

• "Sorry, Homer. I was born a snake handler and I'll die a snake handler." - Moe Szyslak.

[edit] Further reading

Foxfire 7 by Elliot Wigginton and his students, 1982, Anchor books, ISBN 0-385-15243-4

Salvation on Sand Mountain by Dennis Covington, 1995, Addison-Wesley, ISBN 978-0140254587

Both of these books contain somewhat sympathetic, or at least non-judgmental, looks at the practice.