The Night I Lost My Religion at the "Holy Roller" Church

The Night I Lost My Religion at the "Holy Roller" Church£)-H*wi rvwv HÄA*»*·.'' by Jerry R. Fee "Some people call them 'holy rollers ,'" Don said. "Why do you suppose they're called that?" "1 don't know. I've heard tell they drink strychnine, too." "Junior told me he saw one of them use a blowtorch on himself last month while he was at die church," Don continued . "I ain't heard diem do it yet but Jimmy says tiiey speak in unknown tongues sometimes." "Jimmy's just making that up. There's no such thing as unknown tongues." "Bill says they handle snakes about once a month. I want to see that when tiiey do. You reckon diey roll on the ground sometimes when they worship and diat's how diey got the name 'holy roller'?" 41 "Beats me," Don said. "I wonder why tiiey didn't do anything like that tonight ?" Don and I were curious teenagers often exploring new and fascinating things togetiier. Don was fifteen and I had just turned fourteen. On this occasion we had witnessed a worship service in the newest church in our neighborhood and were discussing it on the way home. The service wasn't anything like the descriptions we had heard from others who had been in the church. Our first experience was an interesting one to say the least. The preacher that night was a very vocal fellow. His small stature belied nis powerful voice. He had pranced around the front of the church like a young colt in a pasture. A large black Bible was waved over his head and occasionally slapped in his palm for emphasis. He could speak the fastest of any man I had ever known. How he could go on like he did for so long was beyond me. On several occasions I thought he was going to die trying to get his breath because he preached so hard. Every so often the preacher would tiirow in a sound like a 'hah." I was never sure whether he was making that sound while breathing in or out. The sound was used like a punctuation mark to his spoken text. He preached hell fire and damnation for over an hour and he kept going on about how sinners and backsliders would burn in Hell if they didn't repent before dying. "Get right before you meet your Maker," he had said to a chorus of amens and glory hallelujahs. The service had been supercharged with emotion and we were caught up in it at the time just like everyone else. "Make peace with the Lord. Let Jesus carry your burdens and make you a home in Heaven," he had preached. The preacher really knew how to make a sinner squirm. He placed Satan squarely on our backs and told us how he was leading us down the road to sin and heartaches if we didn't repent and answer the invitation he extended. "Let's sing one more verse of 'Almost Persuaded while we wait for our sinners to come forward to confess their sins and get right with the Lord," he said. "We're all praying fer ya, brothers and sisters. Come on down here in front and give the Lord God Almighty your soul. Do it right now while he's calling you. Can't you just hear him calling you?" It was all Don and I could do to get out of going down front and joining the church that night. We had been besieged by members of the church as we sat mere and listened to the preacher. Several men had come to us and attempted to persuade us to go down front and confess our sins. I was really glad when the last verse was sung and we could leave the church that evening. I didn't want to rush into something without giving it more thought. My interest in this particular church was a matter of curiosity about all religions at that time in my life. I had begun to question where mankind actually came from and if there was really life after deatii. Having experienced the...