Reality bites!

[GeorgiaDon 379]

Am I a bad person if I think this is kind of funny? I mean, it's unfortunate that the guy died but how ironic can you get?

Fundie religion 0: Reality 1

Reality show snake-handling preacher dies -- of snakebite

Don

_____________________________________
Tolerance is the cost we must pay for our adventure in liberty. (Dworkin, 1996)
“Education is not filling a bucket, but lighting a fire.” (Yeats)

[jclalor 12]

Are you a bad person for thinking this is funny?... Not in the least.

This is also pretty convincing evidence of Darwin's theory of evolution.

[PiLFy 3]

Can't find the story, but this reminds me of a radio DJ in Thailand (?), years ago. He was wearing a Buddhist amulet during a live broadcast, & told a Thai soldier to shoot him w/his AK. He believed the amulet would protect him from harm. The Soldier shot him in the chest. It was the DJ's last broadcast...

[ryoder 1,590]

He died doing what he loved.

"There are only three things of value: younger women, faster airplanes, and bigger crocodiles" - Arthur Jones.

[D22369 0]

if yer gonna go out....

go out with a BANG


I really did try to resist

Roy

They say I suffer from insanity.... But I actually enjoy it.

[kallend 2,146]

There's a nice symmetry in that story.

...

The only sure way to survive a canopy collision is not to have one.

[bakerjan 0]

jclalor

Are you a bad person for thinking this is funny?... Not in the least.

This is also pretty convincing evidence of Darwin's theory of evolution.

Non-sensical sentence, how about you fill in the blanks so you sound cogent instead of coherent, LOL.

This is also pretty convincing evidence of that Darwin's theory of evolution is _____________________________ because it shows that _______________________.

Jan

[GeorgiaDon 379]

I got the joke in jclalor's post. Made sense to me.

Still, maybe he'll connect the dots for you so you'll get it too.

Out of curiosity, are you an actual human? Because you come across as some kind of an "irritant bot". Either that or some 13 year old brat who hangs out in their parent's basement and thinks it's funny to try to piss people off. LOL

On the off chance that you are an actual person who has actual ideas, turning down the "rudeness" volume in your posts could lead to you being taken a bit more seriously. Just saying.

Don

_____________________________________
Tolerance is the cost we must pay for our adventure in liberty. (Dworkin, 1996)
“Education is not filling a bucket, but lighting a fire.” (Yeats)

[RonD1120 62]

Point of correction, snake handling is not fundamentalist in the Christian sense. It is cultic exhibitionism in the ignorant sense.

I've been a Pentecostal for 33 years and I have never met anyone who accepts snake handling as a form of worship.

Look for the shiny things of God revealed by the Holy Spirit. They only last for an instant but it is a Holy Instant. Let your soul absorb them.

[Amazon 7]

RonD1120

Point of correction, snake handling is not fundamentalist in the Christian sense. It is cultic exhibitionism in the ignorant sense.

I've been a Pentecostal for 33 years and I have never met anyone who accepts snake handling as a form of worship.

Well you have moved to the southern extent of it in Appalachia... get out and travel a bit up along the mountains.... South Carolina and you are golden.

[GeorgiaDon 379]

Quote

Point of correction, snake handling is not fundamentalist in the Christian sense. It is cultic exhibitionism in the ignorant sense.

I've been a Pentecostal for 33 years and I have never met anyone who accepts snake handling as a form of worship.

Correction noted, Ron. Good to know you're not into the snake handling thing. That stuff is truly dangerous.

Don

_____________________________________
Tolerance is the cost we must pay for our adventure in liberty. (Dworkin, 1996)
“Education is not filling a bucket, but lighting a fire.” (Yeats)

[lawrocket 3]

What sucks is that there will likely be a call from people to ban this stuff. Those helpful, caring people who don't want to let dumbasses find ways to kill themselves. Or more strongly enforce rules against it.

My wife is hotter than your wife.

[jclalor 12]

RonD1120

Point of correction, snake handling is not fundamentalist in the Christian sense. It is cultic exhibitionism in the ignorant sense.

I've been a Pentecostal for 33 years and I have never met anyone who accepts snake handling as a form of worship.

Oh ye of little faith,

Mark 16:17-18

And these signs will accompany those who believe: in my name they will cast out demons; they will speak in new tongues; they will pick up serpents with their hands; and if they drink any deadly poison, it will not hurt them; they will lay their hands on the sick, and they will recover.”

It's either 100% the inspired word of God or it isn't. Although most biblical scholars agree that this was not the original ending to Mark and that the original ending is probably lost forever.

[GeorgiaDon 379]

lawrocket

What sucks is that there will likely be a call from people to ban this stuff. Those helpful, caring people who don't want to let dumbasses find ways to kill themselves. Or more strongly enforce rules against it.

Maybe, but in this case it would be complicated by that "freedom of religion" thing. I'm not sure many politicians would be willing to back something that would open the door to them being painted as anti-religion.

Perhaps we should get skydiving and base jumping registered as "official religions". Then we could deduct the cost of jumps from our taxable income, and the DZ could become a tax exempt church. Most wuffos already think skydivers/base jumpers are about as nuts as snake handlers.

Don

_____________________________________
Tolerance is the cost we must pay for our adventure in liberty. (Dworkin, 1996)
“Education is not filling a bucket, but lighting a fire.” (Yeats)

[RonD1120 62]

GeorgiaDon

***What sucks is that there will likely be a call from people to ban this stuff. Those helpful, caring people who don't want to let dumbasses find ways to kill themselves. Or more strongly enforce rules against it.

Maybe, but in this case it would be complicated by that "freedom of religion" thing. I'm not sure many politicians would be willing to back something that would open the door to them being painted as anti-religion.

Perhaps we should get skydiving and base jumping registered as "official religions". Then we could deduct the cost of jumps from our taxable income, and the DZ could become a tax exempt church. Most wuffos already think skydivers/base jumpers are about as nuts as snake handlers.

Don

Did you ever hear of the Neo-American Church and its guide book the Boo Hoo Bible? They didn't get very far legally. However, they did have a commune in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains near Taos, NM. It was called Morningstar and run by a man named Michael Duncan.

Snake handling in TN is illegal I have been told.

Look for the shiny things of God revealed by the Holy Spirit. They only last for an instant but it is a Holy Instant. Let your soul absorb them.

[maadmax 0]

I would say it is as funny as all of the other self destructive behaviors misguided people engage in that lead to premature death.


...

[Southern_Man 0]

RonD1120

Point of correction, snake handling is not fundamentalist in the Christian sense. It is cultic exhibitionism in the ignorant sense.

I've been a Pentecostal for 33 years and I have never met anyone who accepts snake handling as a form of worship.

It grew organically out of Pentecostalism in the Appalachian region. It was never practiced by most Pentecostals but was significant in the Church of God (Cleveland Tennessee) which schismed into the Church of God (Tomlinson)--now known as the Church of God of Prophecy. A faction led by George Hensley left and became the Church of God with Signs Following. Snake Handling churches exist mostly as a loose network instead of a denominational structure.

Many (though not all) snake handling churches are part of the Oneness movement among Pentecostals who baptize in Jesus' name only (instead of the Trinitarian formula).

The same impulse that led some early 20th centure Pentecostals to take literally the Biblical promises regarding speaking in tongues and healing also led some to take literally the promises in the ending of Mark.

"What if there were no hypothetical questions?"

[Amazon 7]

lawrocket

What sucks is that there will likely be a call from people to ban this stuff. Those helpful, caring people who don't want to let dumbasses find ways to kill themselves. Or more strongly enforce rules against it.

That has been the norm for snake handlin in the south since the 1940's. I got a whole history lesson from my cousins wife when they were trying to talk me into coming to their church so they could cast out my demons.

Yeah.. good luck with that.. I like all my demons right where I can find em.

[Southern_Man 0]

Amazon

***What sucks is that there will likely be a call from people to ban this stuff. Those helpful, caring people who don't want to let dumbasses find ways to kill themselves. Or more strongly enforce rules against it.

That has been the norm for snake handlin in the south since the 1940's. I got a whole history lesson from my cousins wife when they were trying to talk me into coming to their church so they could cast out my demons.

Yeah.. good luck with that.. I like all my demons right where I can find em.

I think a whole lot of those people were picking up snakes long before they figured out it could be a religious sacrament.

"What if there were no hypothetical questions?"

[RonD1120 62]

Southern_Man

***Point of correction, snake handling is not fundamentalist in the Christian sense. It is cultic exhibitionism in the ignorant sense.

I've been a Pentecostal for 33 years and I have never met anyone who accepts snake handling as a form of worship.

It grew organically out of Pentecostalism in the Appalachian region. It was never practiced by most Pentecostals but was significant in the Church of God (Cleveland Tennessee) which schismed into the Church of God (Tomlinson)--now known as the Church of God of Prophecy. A faction led by George Hensley left and became the Church of God with Signs Following. Snake Handling churches exist mostly as a loose network instead of a denominational structure.

Many (though not all) snake handling churches are part of the Oneness movement among Pentecostals who baptize in Jesus' name only (instead of the Trinitarian formula).

The same impulse that led some early 20th centure Pentecostals to take literally the Biblical promises regarding speaking in tongues and healing also led some to take literally the promises in the ending of Mark.

Thanks, you told me more than I have ever heard about snake handling. Right now my wife and I are members of the the CoG (Cleveland TN.) I can say with certainty that it is not condoned in the north GA district. I have heard that the practice is held in the west NC, east TN area around Murphy NC but very few in number. I have mostly thought of it as popular in WV.

Look for the shiny things of God revealed by the Holy Spirit. They only last for an instant but it is a Holy Instant. Let your soul absorb them.

[StreetScooby 5]

Maybe the guy should have used more ether on the snake?

We are all engines of karma

[Southern_Man 0]

RonD1120

Thanks, you told me more than I have ever heard about snake handling. Right now my wife and I are members of the the CoG (Cleveland TN.) I can say with certainty that it is not condoned in the north GA district. I have heard that the practice is held in the west NC, east TN area around Murphy NC but very few in number. I have mostly thought of it as popular in WV.

I did not mean to imply that snake handling was currently practiced in the COG, only that it was a significant part of their history in the early years of the 20th century. It was the closest snake-handlers ever got to being established as part of a larger denomination.

It is not surprising you (or most) have never met anybody who condones or practices snake handling. Estimates are tough but I haven't found any that say there are more than ~20,000 snake handlers total. And they are not always all that open about those beliefs to outsiders. When you are engaging in practices that are frowned upon by the authorities it is wise to keep your head down. In addition to the places you mentioned there are also significant snake handling populations in Kentucky, southern Indiana, and north Alabama.

Anybody who is interested in reading more about snake-handlers I would highly recommend Salvation on Sand Mountain by Dennis Covington.

"What if there were no hypothetical questions?"

[RonD1120 62]

Southern_Man

***Thanks, you told me more than I have ever heard about snake handling. Right now my wife and I are members of the the CoG (Cleveland TN.) I can say with certainty that it is not condoned in the north GA district. I have heard that the practice is held in the west NC, east TN area around Murphy NC but very few in number. I have mostly thought of it as popular in WV.

I did not mean to imply that snake handling was currently practiced in the COG, only that it was a significant part of their history in the early years of the 20th century. It was the closest snake-handlers ever got to being established as part of a larger denomination.

It is not surprising you (or most) have never met anybody who condones or practices snake handling. Estimates are tough but I haven't found any that say there are more than ~20,000 snake handlers total. And they are not always all that open about those beliefs to outsiders. When you are engaging in practices that are frowned upon by the authorities it is wise to keep your head down. In addition to the places you mentioned there are also significant snake handling populations in Kentucky, southern Indiana, and north Alabama.

Anybody who is interested in reading more about snake-handlers I would highly recommend Salvation on Sand Mountain by Dennis Covington.

Thanks

Look for the shiny things of God revealed by the Holy Spirit. They only last for an instant but it is a Holy Instant. Let your soul absorb them.

[PiLFy 3]

What exactly is handling a venomous Snake supposed to do for these people? I mean, does the snake whisper spiritual growth in their ears? Or, does Mr.Snake not bite them only if they're pure of faith?

In other words....WTF ?!

[Southern_Man 0]

PiLFy

What exactly is handling a venomous Snake supposed to do for these people? I mean, does the snake whisper spiritual growth in their ears? Or, does Mr.Snake not bite them only if they're pure of faith?

In other words....WTF ?!

Provides validation for their chosen belief system, promotes in-group bonding, marks them as separate from outside groups, and a host of other social/cultural benefits that are common with religious beliefs and practices (and which are likely beyond the scope of a message board).

"What if there were no hypothetical questions?"