Snake Salvation
In the hills of Appalachia, Pentecostal pastors Jamie Coots and Andrew Hamblin struggle to keep an over-100-year-old tradition alive: the practice of handling deadly snakes in church. Jamie and Andrew believe in a bible passage that suggests a poisonous snakebite will not harm them as long as they are anointed by God's power. If they don't practice the ritual of snake handling, they believe they are destined for hell. The pastors must frequently battle the law, a disapproving society, and even at times their own families to keep their way of life alive.
- 2013-2013
- 1 season
- Reality
In the hills of Appalachia, Pentecostal pastors Jamie Coots and Andrew Hamblin struggle to keep an over-100-year-old tradition alive: the practice of handling deadly snakes in church. Jamie and Andrew believe in a bible passage that suggests a poisonous snakebite will not harm them as long as they are anointed by God's power. If they don't practice the ritual of snake handling, they believe they are destined for hell. The pastors must frequently battle the law, a disapproving society, and even at times their own families to keep their way of life alive.
Season 1 Episode Guide
16 Episodes 2013
Episode 1
Appalachian Hunt
Tue, Sep 10, 2013 22 mins
When a baneful copperhead snake bites a church congregant, pastor Andrew Hamblin is called in to pray for his recovery. With their snake supply dwindling, pastors Jamie Coots and Andrew Hamblin race to hunt and capture wild, venomous snakes before the reptiles go into winter hibernation.
Episode 2
Tricks of the Trade
Tue, Oct 22, 2013 21 mins
With the onset of fall and wild snakes hibernating below ground, pastors Andrew Hamblin and Jamie Coots are forced to obtain their deadly, venomous serpents by other means. The men travel to Repticon, a huge snake expo in Columbia, South Carolina, to purchase new snakes for their congregation. Jamie brings newborn rattlesnakes from his church that he will use to trade in for larger snakes at the expo. But Andrew is forced to pawn his prized electric guitar to get money to buy his snakes. The pastors compete head to head at the expo to see who will leave with the most serpents.
Episode 3
Smoke 'em Out
Tue, Sep 10, 2013 22 mins
Due to an unusually long winter in Appalachia, Pastor Jamie Coots' snake supply is running dangerously low. He hatches an ambitious but risky plan to travel all the way to Texas, hoping that he and his gang can hunt down some deadly western diamondback rattlers. They face a possibly fatal bite far from home for the one chance this month to stock up on snakes. In Tennessee, Pastor Andrew Hamblin adds a new specimen to his snake collection: a very rare, albino western diamondback. Andrew must decide whether to take up the deadly albino snake in service or leave it safely in its protective cage.
Episode 4
Courting Disaster
Tue, Sep 17, 2013 23 mins
After being caught in Tennessee possessing and transporting illegal snakes for use in church, Pastor Jamie Coots must appear in court to defend his religion and avoid being sentenced to jail time.
Episode 5
Backsliding
Tue, Oct 1, 2013 23 mins
Pastor Jamie Coots faces one of the biggest challenges of his life--his daughter Trina has stopped going to church. Jamie fears she is now heading to hell unless he can convince her to return.
Episode 6
The Devil Fights Your Mind
Tue, Oct 8, 2013 22 mins
Drug dealing and a life of crime are just a phone call away for Holiness church member "Big" Cody Wynn, who struggles to stay on the straight and narrow path towards salvation.
Episode 7
Swamp Hunt
Tue, Sep 17, 2013 22 mins
Religious snake handler Little Cody Coots fights excruciating pain, and possibly his life, after being bitten by a venomous cottonmouth while hunting in a Louisiana swamp.
Episode 8
Venom in the Veins
Tue, Sep 24, 2013 21 mins
Twelve hours after a near fatal bite, Little Cody Coots is back to snake hunting, pushing his body and his marriage to their breaking points.
Episode 9
Temptation of the Flesh
Tue, Oct 15, 2013 22 mins
Snake-handling preacher Andrew Hamblin battles internal demons, wondering if he made the right decision leaving his once-prosperous career of a bluegrass banjo prodigy to lead a life of faith.
Episode 10
Casting Out Demons
Tue, Sep 24, 2013 22 mins
When a prophetess senses that an evil spirit is threatening to destroy Andrew's congregation, the young pastor calls for a revival: daily services that will last until the evil is gone.
Episode 11
Outlaw Religion
Tue, Oct 8, 2013 22 mins
Pastor Andrew Hamblin goes to battle against state of Tennessee to overturn a law that forbids snake handling.
Episode 12
Sin or Serpents
Tue, Oct 15, 2013 22 mins
Forbidden by her religion to remarry, Pastor Coots' daughter, Trina, faces an awful choice: leave her faith and fulfill her dreams of marriage or rejoin her family's snake-handling church but spend her life alone.
Episode 13
Bitten in Church
Tue, Oct 1, 2013 22 mins
The foundation of Jamie's church is shaken when a copperhead bites his father.
Episode 14
Tempted by the Devil
Tue, Oct 22, 2013 22 mins
The foundation of Jamie's church is shaken when a copperhead bites his father.
Episode 15
Lethal Poison
Tue, Oct 22, 2013 22 mins
Pastor Hamblin tries to win acceptance from the grandparents who raised him by bringing them to a snake-handling service; Little Cody Coots prepares to drink poison to exhibit one of the five Bible signs: drinking "any deadly thing."
Episode 16
Deadly Legacy
Tue, Oct 22, 2013 22 mins
Concerned about who will replace him should he die from a snake bite, Jamie tries to groom his son, Little Cody, to take over the pastorship. Meanwhile Andrew Hamblin holds a special outdoor service to help save a close friend.