Taking the Bible Literally Causes Death by Snake Bite

In the traditional conservative Mennonite culture that I lived in until I was 20, I was taught to take the Bible literally (the King James Version was THE king). Verses were used to show why women must wear head coverings, why divorce is not allowed and why women are forbidden to be pastors. (though I could never get an answer as to why braided hair was okay or why selling all and giving it to the poor wasn’t the norm)

Then in the conservative evangelical culture I was in for the next 15+ years, I was also taught to take the Bible literally (though now the New International Version was THE version). That was why speaking in tongues was encouraged, why gays were considered an abomination and why women couldn’t be pastors (though now divorce could be justified if one’s spouse doesn’t live up to their vows, but I still couldn’t get an answer as to why selling all and giving it to the poor wasn’t the norm) 

Yet I know most, if not all, the people in both of those cultures will shake their heads at this story about a pastor from a small Signs Following Pentecostal group.

.

‘Serpent-Handling’ West Virginia
Pastor Dies From Snake Bite

.

They will ask, “What was he thinking!?”

And many will say that he deserved what happened.

Yet, all he did was take the Bible literally. It’s there in plain words… whether you are reading the King James Version of the New International Version.

.

18 They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them… Mark 16:18 KJV

18 They will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not hurt them at all… Mark 16:18 NIV

.

Photo by Lauren Pond, Washington Post

The group took the entire verse literally, on occasion they’d also drink poison.

And this pastor handled snakes, even after watching his snake-handling father die from a snake bite about 25 years ago. In an interview last year, the pastor said, “Anybody can do it that believes it. Jesus said, ‘These signs shall follow them which believe.’ This is a sign to show people that God has the power.”

…………………….

Since I began asking questions about religion and faith, first as a teen and then again in the past few years, I’ve realized that everyone picks and chooses what they believe from the Bible. Each denomination, group and sect zeros in on certain verses and makes them their focus. Even churches who promote themselves as being full-gospel churches, because other than this fringe group, I haven’t seen any of them handle snakes, so they are also picking and choosing.

And yes, I know this pastor is an extremist and we need to use moderation and discernment (whose?) and all the jazz… but the questions remain. And that my friends… is why I can’t help but continue to ask why about most things surrounding religion, faith, and God.

Do I think his death is God’s will for him, like some of his followers do? No, I don’t.
Is the pastor’s death his own fault? I think it is.

But having said that, I actually feel sad for this pastor. I’m sad that he felt he had to live such a risky life to please God. I’m sad that his life ended so young.  I’m sad at the separation that must have existed between him and his family in the years before his death, because while his mother attended his church, his wife and children did not. I’m sad that there’s 80 to 100 other deaths attributed to this type of snake handling since its origins in the early 1900s.

Along with sadness, I’m frustrated at the oppression religious mindsets can put on people.

As I wrote in Because I Can… trying to accept my new normal after the accident with the spiritual mindsets of my past is when I struggled with depression the most. It was only when I quit God as I knew him and allowed myself to go through a spiritual renewal that I began crawling out of the dark hole of depression.

And the journey of renewal continues today…
Because life is too beautiful and too short to do anything other than live well.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 
Sources:
‘Serpent-Handling’ West Virginia Pastor Dies From Snake Bite, ABC News, May, 2012
Snake handling is still considered a sign of faith, Washington Post, November, 2011
Why I watched a snake-handling pastor die for his faith, an intriguing post by a photojournalist who witnessed his death, Washington Post, May, 2012 

 

Bookmark and Share
  • Katie Troyer

    I am with you on this.

  • http://www.facebook.com/laurenslesser Lauren Colyer Slesser

    Very well written, Janet. I have experienced much of the same thoughts and doubts about the faith I was raised in…what an amazing revelation that we don’t have to be bound by those mindsets.

    • http://www.JanetOberholtzer.com Janet Oberholtzer

      Hi Lauren, 
      Thanks for visiting…. and glad you have also found freedom from restricting mindsets. 

  • http://www.facebook.com/VincentDonnachie Vincent Donnachie

    Hi Janet, I decided to share a few thoughts about this entry…

    First, stories like the one of the snake-handling pastor is sad but what is even more tragic to me is the truth that you bring up in this post about the Bible being used to oppress others, especially because it is meant to set people free.

    Secondly, I agree that all of the Bible should not be taken literally. If so, we would be gauging out our eyes and chopping off our arms every time they caused us to sin (Matthew 18:8-9). The Bible is filled with poetry, prophesy & metaphors, especially when it comes to creation and the world beyond this one. There is much in there that we simply cannot grasp and so God seems to paint pictures of things to give us hints about something our finite minds can comprehend.

    Where we may differ though is although I don’t think all the Bible should be taken to be literal, I do think the entire book is none-the-less, true. I must believe it’s true. I must believe it’s true because I know my own heart. I (as well as anyone reading these words) am capable of twisting words, manipulating people to fulfill my needs, and other self-centered actions and desires. In short, I do not fully trust my agendas or motivations. I need a solid truth outside myself. I need a place to stand. Without this, I am left to make the heart of God into whatever I feel it should be at any given season of my life. This is dangerous ground whether I am a militant fundamentalist or a loving liberal: Both make God into who they want Him to be and both for their own purposes.

    There is another way I think. If I view the Bible as God’s truth then I should approach it with great humility. In the words of Jesus, I humble myself as a child (Matthew 18:2-5) in order to enter God’s truth. I won’t list all the verses here, but many times in the OT, the Bible speaks of keeping quiet and just listening and Paul speaks of not knowing fully yet in the NT. I can never be fully confident in my own interpretation of such a timeless truth from the creator of all things. So then, I wrestle and read and discuss and pray and continually resubmit myself to the truth of God. More often then not, this shows me how little I really do know.

    I think a good question here is worthwhile to consider: -what or whom is it that we seek freedom from? For me, I had major issues with cultural Christianity that I felt was getting in the way of true Christianity. I felt bitter for a number of years because of this (all while still serving a pastor in the system). Eventually though, I came to see what I needed to be free from was not a system but rather my own sense of self-importance. My source of bitterness was not – what was wrong out there, but what was wrong within. In the words of new friend of mind who recently made the decision to be a part of a church (for the first time), “I asked myself if Jesus went to the cross to take on my brokenness and the brokenness of humanity, why can’t I take on the brokenness of Christianity?”

    For me, I began to see the true beauty of Jesus words of loosing our lives to find it. To be a disciple of Jesus is to always be a beginner and there is such I joyous freedom in that. But it’s not a freedom from the constraints of a flawed humanity (because you can never escape that), but rather a freedom from self. I understand His word less and less, the more I read it and yet I know Him more and more and so I cling to it’s beauty. Human kind will forever twist all truth for their own gain.

    • http://www.JanetOberholtzer.com Janet Oberholtzer

      Vince,
      Thanks for sharing your thoughts.
        
      You say even though you believe everything in the Bible is true, you agree not all of it is to be taken literally and there’s many others that feel the same way (which is good or more people would be gauging out eyes or dying from snake bites) so everyone picks and chooses.

      But if one believes everything in the Bible is true and it’s to keep us from making God into whoever we want him to be… isn’t picking and choosing what to take literally and what not to, doing that very thing? Isn’t it making God and his ways/laws/requirements into something that we want him/them to be? 

      So it’s that very contradiction which your comment brings out that keeps me asking and exploring… not in a stressful way, because I live with more peace than I’ve ever had, but just in a curious-want-to-learn way. 

      • http://www.facebook.com/VincentDonnachie Vincent Donnachie

         I see what you are saying Janet. Again, this is why much humility and honesty is needed. The trick is learning how to let the Bible form us instead of us forming it. This is why a death to self is so crucial for the process. No one can ever do this perfectly of course, but my point is – it starts with our own honesty and humility as individuals.
        Beyond this, I don’t view the literal/truth thing as a contradiction. I think it is plain to see to even objective readers, that where the Bible speaks in poetic or prophetic language, it is not intended to be literal. Where the Bible does use these forms of language  – there is a truth still that is attempting to be communicated beyond normal human language – just like all poetry.  Now, where it speaks in terms of cultural guidelines is trickier and requires historical study to get closer to the meaning for sure. But even this is not about what I think it should say but rather – what is the closest we can get to what the real meaning was intended to be?

        I really like what Janis posted and this is the point of it all for me. The Bible was not about trying to prove anything. It was meant for the spiritually hungry and those that are hungry find meaning in it. The Psalmist wrote how he meditated on the laws of God day and night and that they sweeter to him then honey. Such a weird thing to write unless we understand that the Pslamist loved God and wanted to know Him more and the law was something that was born out of the very character of God. I cling to the Word not because of some moral superiority but because by it I can know something of God. A part of that knowing is a truth that changes my own heart, without which, I am not sure I can fully receive the knowledge of Him.

        • http://www.facebook.com/VincentDonnachie Vincent Donnachie

           On a completely different note – you were in my driveway this morning! Just read the article in the Merchandiser – good article. Hope your story continues to touch many lives.

          • http://www.JanetOberholtzer.com Janet Oberholtzer

            For a second you scared me, I wondered if I had been sleepwalking :)

            Thanks!

      • http://www.facebook.com/VincentDonnachie Vincent Donnachie

         Can you believe I am back again on this post? I know it’s a few days old now, which is like ancient history in blog world. But I just read a good post on this exact topic that I thought I would share with anyone who is interested: http://redeemercitytocity.com/blog/view.jsp?Blog_param=438

        • http://www.JanetOberholtzer.com Janet Oberholtzer

          That post does go along with this topic. 
          Thanks for sharing… even if an ‘age’ has passed in the blog world :) 

  • Janis

    Taking any holy writ at face value only degrades it.  It’s like seeing a finger pointing in a moral direction, and instead of looking where it’s pointing, just doing nothing more than sucking on the end of it going, “It’s a finger, it’s a finger, it’s a finger … “