Them that believe the power and meaning of the Christian serpent-handling tradition - Hood, Ralph W. Jr. 1942- (University of California Press, 2008)
Includes bibliographical references (pages 267-284) and index
"They shall take up serpents" -- The history of Pentecostalism absent the serpent -- The media and the man : George Went Hensley -- Serpent handling endorsed by the Church of God -- The serpent : sign and symbol -- Trance states : tongues speaking and the anointing -- Extemporaneous sermons in the serpent-handling tradition -- The experience of handling serpents -- The experience of the anointing -- Near-death experience from serpent bites in religious settings -- Music among serpent-handling churches -- Serpent handling and the law : history and empirical studies
Explores the religious practice of serpent handling in churches of Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee, Kentucky, North Carolina, and West Virginia. This book provides an analysis of this phenomenon from historical, social, religious, and psychological perspectives. It deals with the near-death experiences of individuals who were bitten but survived
Keywords: Religion; RELIGION / Messianic Judaism; RELIGION / Christianity / General; Serpents / Religious aspects / Christianity; Snake cults (Holiness churches); Christentum; Serpents -- Religious aspects -- Christianity; Liturgie; Schlangen; Church of God