For Dennis Covington, what began as a journalistic assignment - covering the trial of an Alabama preacher convicted of attempting to murder his wife with poison

Burton seeks to present a balanced view of the remote churches of East Tennessee where believers take literally the words of Saint Mark: "and they shall take up

Jimmy Morrow, a pastor and serpent handler for over a quarter of a century explores the history of serpent handling from a variety of sources, including his ext

David Kimbrough explains the history and practice of serpent-handling believers from the pserspective of a respectful and scholarly participant-ovserver.

Although outlawed in many states, serpent handling remains an active religious practice—and one that is far more stereotyped than understood. Ralph W. Hood, J