"And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues;

They will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not hurt them at all; they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well."

- Mark 16:17-18 (NIV), quote attributed to Jesus following His resurrection

A 48 year-old woman died on Sunday after being bitten by a timber rattlesnake during a church service in London, Kentucky. Despite reptile-handling in churches being illegal in Kentucky, this is the seventh such liturgial fatality in that state since 1980.

The Lexington Herald-Leader picks up the story.