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Man dies after handling snake in church service.

jojom

jojom

Active Member
jeager106 said:
Really? Ya gotta be kidding me. I thought these dangerous Pentecostal
services had been outlawed!
If I ever go into a church and they bring out a box of pit vipers I'm going out the
back door. If there is no back door I'll MAKE ONE!:confused::confused:

link:
http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/sheriffs-office-man-dies-snake-bite-church-service-32736102
Click to expand...
From Wikipedia: "All Appalachian states except West Virginia outlawed the snake-handling ritual when it first emerged. The states of Alabama, Kentucky, and Tennessee have passed laws against the use of venomous snakes and/or other reptiles that endangers the lives of others, or without a permit. The Kentucky law specifically mentions religious services; in Kentucky snake handling is a misdemeanor and punishable by a $50 to $100 fine."

The snake incident in the story took place in Kentucky.


.
 
Twilight Hue

Twilight Hue

Twilight, not bright nor dark, good nor bad.
Yet another Christian receives the prestigious Darwin award with a heartfelt thanks for graciously removing himself from the gene pool.
 
jeager106

jeager106

Learning more about Jehovah.
Premium Member
Shadow Wolf said:
I can't help but wonder if that was interpreted as a sign of weak faith? (Mark 16:18)
Click to expand...

Matter of fact I did some research on this kind of "worship" after
I read about a pastor who lead such a church group was bitten
by a rattler, refused to get into an ambulance that someone hailed
for him, protesting that his "faith" would surely save him.
He died on the church grounds after many hours of agony.
The reasoning (if one can call playing with vipers reasoning) is
that if one has faith the snake won't bite. If the snake does bite
then if one has faith the bitten person cannot die.
(hummm???)
If the person does die then one of two possibilities exist.
The bitten did not have faith and was therefore not a true believer, or
if the person was viewed as a true believer but died anyway it's
was because "god" needed that person in heaven.
How's that for some flawed logic?:confused::confused:
 
jeager106

jeager106

Learning more about Jehovah.
Premium Member
Thana said:
Well.... I hope people atleast learn something from his death.
Click to expand...


Unlikely as this is just the latest of the Pentecostal deaths.
There have been several others.
NOTE: This is one group of Pentecostals doing the snake
handling thing. Not all Pentecostals do this.
 
Thana

Thana

Lady
jeager106 said:
Really? Ya gotta be kidding me. I thought these dangerous Pentecostal
services had been outlawed!
If I ever go into a church and they bring out a box of pit vipers I'm going out the
back door. If there is no back door I'll MAKE ONE!:confused::confused:

link:
http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/sheriffs-office-man-dies-snake-bite-church-service-32736102
Click to expand...

You know the bible actually talks about exactly this situation -

Matthew 4:5-7
"Then the devil took Him (Jesus) into the holy city and placed Him on a turret of the temple sanctuary.
And he said to Him, If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down; for it is written, He will give His angels charge over you, and they will bear you up on their hands, lest you strike your foot against a stone.
Jesus said to him, On the other hand, it is written also, You shall not tempt, test thoroughly, or try exceedingly the Lord your God."

Jesus saw it was wrong and didn't do it. Why would then a Pastor/Priest who claims to adhere to the bible then go and do exactly what Jesus was tempted by and resisted and warned against?

Sad.
 
C

columbus

yawn <ignore> yawn
Thana said:
Why would then a Pastor/Priest who claims to adhere to the bible then go and do exactly what Jesus was tempted by and resisted and warned against?
Click to expand...

Because the Bible is extremely unclear about what you are supposed to believe and what you are not.
Tom
 
Politesse

Politesse

Amor Vincit Omnia
They were, but you can't really legislate minority faiths out of existence. It's countering the eternal authority with temporal power; who is going to win that one? Souls are more resilient than iron bars.
 
Politesse

Politesse

Amor Vincit Omnia
It's not necessarily a matter of not having faith. The man who arguably started the movement also died from snakebite, but most practitioners believe it was simply his time, just as someone who was hit by a bus might well be seen by their fellows. But they understand that they are risking their lives; snake-handling is an act of surrender to God, not defiance of death. It is a materialist fallacy to consider death the worst possible evil. To a snake-handler, the demonstration of faith, that is an act of the soul, is of more importance than the fate of the material body. You demonstrate lack of faith by refusing to take the leap, not by trying and dying.
 
C

columbus

yawn <ignore> yawn
Thana said:
The bible is what it is.
Click to expand...
But nobody knows what that is.
We all agree that it is a large batch of words. That is where the agreement ends. Some people think it primitive fiction. Others think it the corruption of God's word. Others the Word of God Itself.
I see it as primitive fiction and I can back that up. People who believe it has something to do with God cannot back their opinions up with anything distinguishable from delusion.
People are the ones who muddle things up.
Click to expand...
If not the authors, then who? The snake handlers don't believe it is them, they believe in God and the Bible.
Tom
 
Thana

Thana

Lady
columbus said:
But nobody knows what that is.
We all agree that it is a large batch of words. That is where the agreement ends. Some people think it primitive fiction. Others think it the corruption of God's word. Others the Word of God Itself.
I see it as primitive fiction and I can back that up. People who believe it has something to do with God cannot back their opinions up with anything distinguishable from delusion.
Click to expand...

If your evidence were any better than mine then there would be no need for debate.

It's.. unbecoming to pretend otherwise.
 
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