<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN"> <HTML><HEAD> <META http-equiv=Content-Type content="text/html; charset=iso-8859-1"> <META content="MSHTML 5.50.4611.1300" name=GENERATOR> <STYLE></STYLE> </HEAD> <BODY bgColor=#ffffff> <DIV>Since I've been back on-list, I've noticed the near-complete absence of snake handlers and snake handling enthusiasts here. Of course there's me, though I haven't waved snakes in holy ecstasy since my late teens (and they were garter snakes, so the danger was muted). But I have kept up on the practice, which is diminishing, and wonder what it will mean for human progress once this venerable ritual passes into oblivion. The lack of snake handling talk on LBO is another reminder that those who look to the snakes for guidance will soon be empty handed. </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV>"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.'' </DIV> <TABLE width=420 border=0> <TBODY> <TR> <TD vAlign=top align=right> <DIV align=left> </DIV> <DIV align=left>Mark 16:18,<BR>The King James Bible</DIV></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE> <CENTER> </CENTER> <DIV align=left>EPHESUS, Ga.- "Spencer Evans was consumed in the Spirit when the snake struck. The 4-foot timber rattler sank its fangs into the 23-year-old preacher's left wrist as he rejoiced in God. Mr. Evans said he was 20 minutes into his tent revival he felt the Spirit 'move on him.' He leaned over, reached into a handmade wooden box and brought out the rattlesnake. The congregants were still on their feet, their arms waving to and fro in celebration of the Lord, their boots damp from the dank North Georgia air. </DIV> <DIV dir=ltr style="MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px" align=left> </DIV> <DIV dir=ltr style="MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px" align=left>"The next few seconds were a blur. Mr. Evans never saw the snake strike, but he remembers the feeling. </DIV> <CENTER> </CENTER> <DIV align=left>" 'It hit my wrist. It was like a baseball popped me. I was preachin', just comin' to the end of my message - it was dark out - and I wasn't watchin' it.' </DIV> <CENTER> </CENTER> <DIV align=left>"Within the Holiness faith is a minority of churches whose members handle snakes and 'serpents.' Mr. Evans is one of an estimated 100 snake-handlers at some 35 churches and numerous converted gas stations and dwellings scattered throughout Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee, West Virginia, Kentucky and Indiana. The majority of these handlers firmly believe scripture instructs them not only to handle snakes but to drink strychnine and handle fire. </DIV> <DIV align=left> </DIV> <DIV align=left>"Two hours after Mr. Evans was bitten by the rattler, Franklin County EMS technician Mike Smith got the call. When he and his partner arrived, they found Mr. Evans in the bathroom of a friend's trailer adjacent to the 16-by-33-foot tent where he had been preaching to a crowd of 25. </DIV> <CENTER> </CENTER> <DIV align=left>"Nauseated and slumped over the toilet, Mr. Evans told the EMTs that he wanted to stay and let the Holy Spirt take over." </DIV> <DIV align=left> </DIV> <DIV align=left><<A href="http://www.augustachronicle.com/headlines/062996/062996serpent.html">http://www.augustachronicle.com/headlines/062996/062996serpent.html</A>></DIV> <DIV align=left> </DIV> <DIV align=left>DP</DIV></BODY></HTML>