'Too many people were getting hurt': Snake-handling
pastor and his congregation EVICTED from their church after legendary
preacher died from bite AND his son was bitten
- Pastor
Andrew Hamblin's Pentecostal church practices a rare, century-old
tradition of worshiping God with venomous snakes to show how He protects
Christians
- Clyde
Daugherty, the owner of the church building, said he evicted Mr Hamblin
because he seemed more interested in media attention than the word of
God and too many people were getting injured or dying from snake bites
- Mr
Hamblin and fellow serpent-handling pastor Jamie Coots who died in
February were stars of National Geographic's reality TV series Snake
Salvation
Published:
18:50 GMT, 22 June 2014
|
Updated:
14:28 GMT, 23 June 2014
A building
owner evicted a pastor and his worshipers from their church because of
their fondness for handling venomous snakes while praying and dancing.
Clyde Daugherty, who
built the LaFollette, Tennessee-based church in 1994, rented the
building
to Andrew Hamblin for just $267 a month but eventually became fed up
with all the serpents slithering about and occasionally injuring or
killing congregants.
'Too many people were getting hurt and
dying, and that's a proven fact,' Mr Daugherty told 10News. 'He was focused too
much on the wrong things, like attention from the media and the TV show,
instead of the word of God.'
Andrew Hamblin, the pastor of Tabernacle Church of God in LaFollette,
Tennessee, was evicted from his church by the building's owner because
of his snake-handling ways
Mr Daugherty said he had offered to sell the
church, trailers and surrounding property to Mr Hamblin for $66,000, but
the pastor declined and is now looking for a new building.
Mr Hamblin's Pentecostal church practices a rare, century-old Christian
tradition of worshiping God with venomous snakes such as timber
rattlers, cottonmouths and copperheads, according to Urban Christian
News.
The 22-year-old plays mandolin, loves zombie movies, receives food
stamps, has five children and was the star of a 16-episode National
Geographic reality series called Snake Salvation, which featured
Appalachia's serpent-handling churches. About 125 such churches exist in the U.S.
Pastors
use the snakes to show non-Christians that God protects them from harm,
holding them aloft as they pray, sing and dance.
The belief stems from a literal reading of Jesus'
words in the Gospel of Mark: 'And these signs will accompany
those who believe: in my name they will cast out demons; they will speak
in new tongues; they will pick up serpents, and if they drink any
deadly thing, it will not hurt them; they will lay their hands on the
sick, and they will recover.'
The name Andrew Hamblin was removed from a sign for the Tabernacle Church of God
Mr Hamblin, who said he has been bitten
by poisonous snake many times, made headlines last fall after
authorities seized more than 50 venomous serpents in his possession. A
grand jury ultimately didn't indict him after his court appearances drew
large crowds of supporters.
Mr Hamblin's mentor, fellow reality TV
star and snake-wielding pastor Jamie Coots, died in February after
being bitten at his church in Middlesboro, Kentucky. His son Cody, 21,
took over for him and was bitten by a snake last month.
'I
was with Jamie in Middlesboro, Kentucky, when he was bit,' Mr Daugherty
said. 'Enough is enough. There will be no snakes at my services.'
Fellow pastor and reality TV star Jamie Coots (pictured) died after
being bit by a venomous snake at a Middlesboro, Kentucky, church in
February
