Share your thoughts on our visit with Dr. Hood. Did any of what he said make you feel uncomfortable? Do you agree or disagree with him? What did you learn that maybe you did not know before?
I thought Dr. Hood was an interesting, clear speaker and he really helped me understand the practice of serpent handling. His presentation did not necessarily make me feel uncomfortable; however, the mere thought of handling serpents simply makes me a bit uneasy. Just a bit. Personally, I would die before touching a serpent and I find it preposterous that people believe handling serpents will get them into Heaven. I do agree with Dr. Hood that they should have the right to do as they please. Laws are placed to protect people, but some people believe and practice strange things; therefore, they should be held accountable for their own judgment. I do think, however, there should be a law that people cannot handle snakes if they plan on hurting the snake. Basically, people should have the option to handle snakes, marry someone of the same gender, and have abortions. These are personal choices and no one is being forced to do any of them. Overall, I learned a lot from Dr. Hood. I never really understood the purpose of snake handling, but now I accept the fact that it is how some people choose to worship and do God's will.
Dr. Ralph Hood opened up my eyes today to a whole new kind of worship, serpent handling. Ralph Hood is a social scientist who teaches cycology. He is passionate about understanding one of the most unique religious traditions. He does not practice snake handling or try to convert people but rather he allows people to understand a religious practice which the central figure can wind up dead. The three main fundamentals of Serpent handling Church's are the holiness tradition which means that life should be lived so that ones behavior is an outward reflection of an inner change, fundamentalism which feels that the bible is a privileged text and piece of literature however can be read many different ways but can be read very literally, also the Pentecostal church is a major attribute of the snake handling church's because they believe religion is better felt than told. An interesting thing to me was that Serpent Handlers are also called sign following believers. The role of the serpent serves as a symbol of the death and resurrection for the believers. After hearing Ralph Hood speak I felt I have a better overall picture of snake handling. I no longer look at it as a cult or some kind of false teaching. I see that different people are called to worship in different ways and that is one way some people are called to worship. My original prejudiced views of snake handling are gone and I accept it as unique way in which some people practice their faith.
Today hearing Dr. Ralph Hood was such a great experience. Before he came I really had never heard of serpent handling. One of the first things he said was he was not here to make you believe in this religion but to understand it. After I heard him say this I really made me interested. We first learned three tributaries, which are holiness, fundamentalism, and Pentecostal. I learned that these people who handle or believe in this religion speak in tongues. They believe this is their communication with God. Before I did not know that these people in these churches would dance around with these radial snakes also that some drank poison. These people feel that they are called to handle serpents, and if they get bit and die they are dying for something that is worth dying for. Also I learned that the serpent symbolizes two things death and resurrection. I am really glad I got to hear, learn and listen about this interesting religion today.
In hearing Dr. Hood's presentation today, I learned so much about a topic I knew absolutely nothing about: serpent handling. He made it clear that, as a religion-psychologist, his main goal was to educate, not to convert us into a certain religion. While he is deeply passionate about his subject, he has never and will never handle serpents, out of respect to those who believe in the practice as a religious ritual. He also explained that there are three tributaries, religions, to practice this: holiness, fundamentalism, and pentecostal. Throughout the three religions, it is a common belief that the handler must be called to do what he does for only a certain time, and that is how long the service is, be it 20 minutes or 2 hours. As for the political/legislative side, there are laws in place in all but one state (WV) that ban snake handling. In some ways, the need to ban the practice for safety seems legitimate, yet, it is the handler's decision, and if they are responsible and knowledgable about their practice, they will either A) not be biten, B) be biten and recover, or C) be biten and die, but die with honor and prayers. Overall, I learned a great deal from Dr. Ralph Hood today, but I'm sure there is so much more to learn about the topic.
I found Mr. Ralf’s speech today very interesting. I really liked his style of first, displaying the religious beliefs of serpent handlers, and then backing them up by facts or theories. To me the practice of serpent handling is insane, and I know that I would never do it. However, I share his opinion that while we might not follow the same practices, we should still respect their beliefs. I identified my theme many times while he spoke to us. The first was when he spoke of the origin of snake handling. We know that George Wince Henry practiced snake handling in the 1900s in Tennessee, but we believe that it had been done also in the past. Along those lines, we believe that early Christians were serpent handlers, but we know that there are no pictures or documentation of serpent handling in those days. The serpent handlers believe that God literally meant for us to pick up a snake, however we know that this could be interpreted in many different ways. Another place my theme was revealed was how the serpent handlers knew they had a chance of being bit by the snake, but they believed that God wanted them to pick it up anyways. The only part of the interview that I didn’t enjoy was the video. I am very sensitive to other people being in pain or being hurt. Therefore, to see people getting bit and dying by snake bites really upset me. I feel an overwhelming sense of pity towards them, and want for them not to endanger themselves. Besides the video, I enjoyed the philosophy and religious lecture that he presented us with. It taught me many things including to respect other people’s religious practices.
After listening to Dr. Hood speak on serpent handling yesterday, I learned a lot including the main reason why people do it. I enjoyed it because he was very knowledgeable on the topic of people handling serpents and if we asked questions, he knew the answer right off the top of his head. I learned people do it not just because they want to do it; it is because they are called by God to do it and feel that it is the right thing for them. I agree and disagree with him in some ways. I agree with him about the government should not have made it illegal because if it is part of a religious practice, then its people’s choice to do it and not the governments issue/responsibility if someone ends up getting bit and dying. I disagree with him because if people are getting bit and dying, why would you continue doing it. Yes, I understand it’s a religious thing, but there are other things you can do that are religious and don’t involve fatal issues. I learned all about why people continue to carry out the tradition of serpent handling.
I thought Dr. Hood was an interesting, clear speaker and he really helped me understand the practice of serpent handling. His presentation did not necessarily make me feel uncomfortable; however, the mere thought of handling serpents simply makes me a bit uneasy. Just a bit. Personally, I would die before touching a serpent and I find it preposterous that people believe handling serpents will get them into Heaven. I do agree with Dr. Hood that they should have the right to do as they please. Laws are placed to protect people, but some people believe and practice strange things; therefore, they should be held accountable for their own judgment. I do think, however, there should be a law that people cannot handle snakes if they plan on hurting the snake. Basically, people should have the option to handle snakes, marry someone of the same gender, and have abortions. These are personal choices and no one is being forced to do any of them. Overall, I learned a lot from Dr. Hood. I never really understood the purpose of snake handling, but now I accept the fact that it is how some people choose to worship and do God's will.
ReplyDeleteDr. Ralph Hood opened up my eyes today to a whole new kind of worship, serpent handling. Ralph Hood is a social scientist who teaches cycology. He is passionate about understanding one of the most unique religious traditions. He does not practice snake handling or try to convert people but rather he allows people to understand a religious practice which the central figure can wind up dead. The three main fundamentals of Serpent handling Church's are the holiness tradition which means that life should be lived so that ones behavior is an outward reflection of an inner change, fundamentalism which feels that the bible is a privileged text and piece of literature however can be read many different ways but can be read very literally, also the Pentecostal church is a major attribute of the snake handling church's because they believe religion is better felt than told. An interesting thing to me was that Serpent Handlers are also called sign following believers. The role of the serpent serves as a symbol of the death and resurrection for the believers. After hearing Ralph Hood speak I felt I have a better overall picture of snake handling. I no longer look at it as a cult or some kind of false teaching. I see that different people are called to worship in different ways and that is one way some people are called to worship. My original prejudiced views of snake handling are gone and I accept it as unique way in which some people practice their faith.
ReplyDeleteToday hearing Dr. Ralph Hood was such a great experience. Before he came I really had never heard of serpent handling. One of the first things he said was he was not here to make you believe in this religion but to understand it. After I heard him say this I really made me interested. We first learned three tributaries, which are holiness, fundamentalism, and Pentecostal. I learned that these people who handle or believe in this religion speak in tongues. They believe this is their communication with God. Before I did not know that these people in these churches would dance around with these radial snakes also that some drank poison. These people feel that they are called to handle serpents, and if they get bit and die they are dying for something that is worth dying for. Also I learned that the serpent symbolizes two things death and resurrection. I am really glad I got to hear, learn and listen about this interesting religion today.
ReplyDeleteIn hearing Dr. Hood's presentation today, I learned so much about a topic I knew absolutely nothing about: serpent handling. He made it clear that, as a religion-psychologist, his main goal was to educate, not to convert us into a certain religion. While he is deeply passionate about his subject, he has never and will never handle serpents, out of respect to those who believe in the practice as a religious ritual. He also explained that there are three tributaries, religions, to practice this: holiness, fundamentalism, and pentecostal. Throughout the three religions, it is a common belief that the handler must be called to do what he does for only a certain time, and that is how long the service is, be it 20 minutes or 2 hours. As for the political/legislative side, there are laws in place in all but one state (WV) that ban snake handling. In some ways, the need to ban the practice for safety seems legitimate, yet, it is the handler's decision, and if they are responsible and knowledgable about their practice, they will either A) not be biten, B) be biten and recover, or C) be biten and die, but die with honor and prayers. Overall, I learned a great deal from Dr. Ralph Hood today, but I'm sure there is so much more to learn about the topic.
ReplyDeleteI found Mr. Ralf’s speech today very interesting. I really liked his style of first, displaying the religious beliefs of serpent handlers, and then backing them up by facts or theories. To me the practice of serpent handling is insane, and I know that I would never do it. However, I share his opinion that while we might not follow the same practices, we should still respect their beliefs.
ReplyDeleteI identified my theme many times while he spoke to us. The first was when he spoke of the origin of snake handling. We know that George Wince Henry practiced snake handling in the 1900s in Tennessee, but we believe that it had been done also in the past. Along those lines, we believe that early Christians were serpent handlers, but we know that there are no pictures or documentation of serpent handling in those days. The serpent handlers believe that God literally meant for us to pick up a snake, however we know that this could be interpreted in many different ways. Another place my theme was revealed was how the serpent handlers knew they had a chance of being bit by the snake, but they believed that God wanted them to pick it up anyways.
The only part of the interview that I didn’t enjoy was the video. I am very sensitive to other people being in pain or being hurt. Therefore, to see people getting bit and dying by snake bites really upset me. I feel an overwhelming sense of pity towards them, and want for them not to endanger themselves. Besides the video, I enjoyed the philosophy and religious lecture that he presented us with. It taught me many things including to respect other people’s religious practices.
After listening to Dr. Hood speak on serpent handling yesterday, I learned a lot including the main reason why people do it. I enjoyed it because he was very knowledgeable on the topic of people handling serpents and if we asked questions, he knew the answer right off the top of his head. I learned people do it not just because they want to do it; it is because they are called by God to do it and feel that it is the right thing for them. I agree and disagree with him in some ways. I agree with him about the government should not have made it illegal because if it is part of a religious practice, then its people’s choice to do it and not the governments issue/responsibility if someone ends up getting bit and dying. I disagree with him because if people are getting bit and dying, why would you continue doing it. Yes, I understand it’s a religious thing, but there are other things you can do that are religious and don’t involve fatal issues. I learned all about why people continue to carry out the tradition of serpent handling.
ReplyDelete